I would not mind trying something different in the future, something a little more aggressive. Too bad tires are so exspensive. $800+ for a set and several years of use is a long time and a lot of money to waste on tires that you dislike.
Are Hankooks or Yokohamas any good, or Kumhos? I always thought they made cheaply made tires. I am just ignorant about them though.
I think Hankooks, Yokos, and Kumhos are good. Really pretty much everything is an upgrade over the stock tires we all get off the lot. I can remember the first time I had to replace the stock tires on my little Suzuki. I went with some Kumhos and it was amazing how much better it rode. I've also used Hankooks and Yokos without trouble as well.
The only truly bad experiences I've ever had with tires are 2 different sets of Big O Brand tires (one set on a Trooper was the worst set of tires EVER MADE). And my poor experience with the Toyos. Again, it might have just been bad luck and I may have gotten an out of round tire and a tech who refused to admit it. That was the problem with Big O. Two of the tires were completely out of round and I couldn't get them to fix it. Once I got an independent shop to verify it then they replaced them, but of course I had already put about 5,000 miles on the other 2 tires, so they never wore properly the entire time I owned them. What a mess. The Toyos seemed to be 1 tire specifically and then one more that wasn't helping much, and Les Schwab's flat out refusal to admit that the tire may be the problem. I've driven enough vehicles and logged enough miles to know when a tire is a problem.
It always cracks me up when you have to tell the guy at the tire shop how to do his job, yet then he wants to turn around and tell you that you don't know what you're talking about. I've put in more time under a vehicle than the entire shift of people working there and they look at me like I'm an idiot. I never ask for special treatment.... I just know when a part is defective and should be replaced.
It doesn't help any that they attempted to sell my mom a set of 75,000 mile tires on her 20 year old Maxima a few months ago. She called me from the store crying because she couldn't afford the tires (she had a nail hole in one) and the guy said she NEEDED these tires or he could NOT LET HER LEAVE. I got him on the phone and asked him why he was refusing to let my Mom leave. He said she had a punctured tire. I told him to fix it. He said that she could use new tires as they were wearing funny. I said that was fine and asked why he insisted she needed new tires before leaving. He said that she shouldn't be driving on those tires. I told him that if he really felt that a woman in her 70's with a 20 year old car with 100,000 plus miles on it NEEDED a 75,000 mile tire on it then he was an idiot, and that if he refused to let her leave without putting on new tires and refused to give her the option of repairing the puncture in her tire then I was going to call the cops on him. He got pretty freaked out. I said "Just repair the tire, and thank her for being a good customer and apologize for the misunderstanding on YOUR part in thinking that she needed new tires. Got that junior?" The guy sounded like he had a brick stuck in his throat but he croaked "Yes sir, thank you."
Fifteen minutes later my mom called from home with her fixed up tire. The next day I took her car over to Discount and got some 40,000 mile Kumhos put on that would be a much better tire for her driving needs (she doesn't need a hard compound 75,000 mile tire.... the tire will outlive her!). We paid about 1/3 what they wanted at Schwab for their super tire, and she has really enjoyed the improvement in ride and handling, and really... she wouldn't notice a bit of difference in the other tires, except for maybe her car would have ridden stiffer and she'd have been more uncomfortable.
I guess the lesson here is DON'T GET ME STARTED ON TIRE GUYS! Haha.
