Cheap tires! Swapped Delinte for Radar GT

[jmcbrew]

When I bought my Mach-E (used from a Ford dealership), it had a set of Delinte tires on it. They didn’t last long, but they were so cheap (~79 each) that I replaced them with the same. They lasted about 26k miles until the belts started showing. I only rotated them once… I’m betting I could have gotten 5k more miles in them if I had rotated every 5k miles, but that’s a hassle I didn’t want to deal with or pay for.

Other than the very short lifespan, I did like the Delinte tires. They were reasonably quiet and had excellent grip in dry and wet conditions.

Just today, I had a set of Radar All Season GT tires installed. They were $110 each at Tire Rack. I have only driven home (about 4 miles at speeds up to 50 MPG). So far, so good. They do feel a little less “squidgy” than the Delinte tires, but I wasn’t complaining about that before, so it definitely wasn’t bad. I will report back after I get some miles on them. I drive for Uber, so the miles add up pretty quickly!

The Radars have a 50k mile treadwear warranty, so I am hopeful that they’ll last a bit longer.

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[jefftuck]

The more I read, the more I think tires are really a place where you get what you pay for. There might be some fancy brand tires that aren’t worth the premium, but in general it seems like they’ve all figured out how to make tires. So, rubber compounds and build quality are pretty much correlated with price.

 

[jmcbrew]

The more I read, the more I think tires are really a place where you get what you pay for. There might be some fancy brand tires that aren’t worth the premium, but in general it seems like they’ve all figured out how to make tires. So, rubber compounds and build quality are pretty much correlated with price.

I don’t disagree. However, there are surely brands out there who punch above their weight (well… price). Having put only 200 miles in these Radar GTs, I can say that they do seem a little better suited to the Mach-E than the Delintes. It feels like they have a stiffer sidewall and the car feels more sure-footed going into turns. I won’t be able to truly judge these tires until I see how they wear. I put ~60k miles per year on the MME, so it won’t take too long.

 

[geeklifer]

The more I read, the more I think tires are really a place where you get what you pay for. There might be some fancy brand tires that aren’t worth the premium, but in general it seems like they’ve all figured out how to make tires. So, rubber compounds and build quality are pretty much correlated with price.

I agree. When it comes to these heavy EVs with a ton of torque, I'd rather spend a little extra to get that reliability. Cheap tires on an EV like ours is asking for trouble. They'll be "fine" until you need to swerve, brake hard, or drive in slippery conditions, and then they may fail when you really need them.

 

[GreaseMonkey]

What’s the point of buying a performance suv? Buy a leaf instead and you’ll save even more.

 

[HayaCruza]

The OP has a RWD Select, it is the entry level Mach E. The low cost tires make perfect since for his use case. Many people are tire snobs. Personally, I have been underwhelmed by Michelin, Continental, and Bridgestone.

 

[jefftuck]

I don’t disagree. However, there are surely brands out there who punch above their weight (well… price). Having put only 200 miles in these Radar GTs, I can say that they do seem a little better suited to the Mach-E than the Delintes. It feels like they have a stiffer sidewall and the car feels more sure-footed going into turns. I won’t be able to truly judge these tires until I see how they wear. I put ~60k miles per year on the MME, so it won’t take too long.

Maybe so. Here’s what I’ve decided. The BlueCruise, the automatic braking, all the safety stuff assume a certain level of performance of your tires.

Can I drive safely on cheap tires? Yes. Does all this safety tech work better with good tires? Yes. So, I’ll spend a couple hundred bucks more once in a while to make these systems as effective as possible.

 

[jmcbrew]

What’s the point of buying a performance suv? Buy a leaf instead and you’ll save even more.

Performance? I have a base model RWD MME. It’s slower than a Bolt!
EDIT: let me just say that I had a Bolt prior to the MME. It was faster… especially off the line. However, the Bolt suffered from the typical FWD lack of traction. Well… much worse than typical, since EVs have gobs of torque at low RPMs.

 

[jmcbrew]

Maybe so. Here’s what I’ve decided. The BlueCruise, the automatic braking, all the safety stuff assume a certain level of performance of your tires.

Can I drive safely on cheap tires? Yes. Does all this safety tech work better with good tires? Yes. So, I’ll spend a couple hundred bucks more once in a while to make these systems as effective as possible.

You might be right. I’m my defense, I have not seen any issues with safety. I just took the MME on a 3,800 mile road trip and used blue cruise extensively (although it expires at the end of the month), and the rear tires were bald as heck. Fortunately, there was almost no rain for the whole trip. I was glad to get new shoes on the car when I got back. Also, I drive for Uber and put about 1.5 sets of tires on the car per year. It starts to add up. Personally, I don’t think the car requires $1,000 worth of tires. I will not suffer with unsafe tires. These tires seem pretty good.

I suppose you may be happy with $250 tires, but then what if there’s a $500 tire? Would you use the same logic?

 

[jefftuck]

You might be right. I’m my defense, I have not seen any issues with safety. I just took the MME on a 3,800 mile road trip and used blue cruise extensively (although it expires at the end of the month), and the rear tires were bald as heck. Fortunately, there was almost no rain for the whole trip. I was glad to get new shoes on the car when I got back. Also, I drive for Uber and put about 1.5 sets of tires on the car per year. It starts to add up. Personally, I don’t think the car requires $1,000 worth of tires. I will not suffer with unsafe tires. These tires seem pretty good.

I suppose you may be happy with $250 tires, but then what if there’s a $500 tire? Would you use the same logic?

Safety isn’t necessarily something you need every day. Sure, I can drive around every day on the cheapest tires they sell.

Good tires just might make the difference one day. The day the rain or the curve or the car pulling out in front of you is just too much for cheap tires.

But, maybe that never happens. I hope not. I didn’t say a more expensive tire was better. I said a better tire was better and, for now, I’ll choose the better tire.

I’ll say this. A few years ago, I was driving in the rain on the interstate. Tried to pass a truck that was throwing water all over me. My bald rear tires (like yours) let go, hydroplaned, and I spun out into the median. Tore the front fascia off my car where it spun into the opposite direction embankment, but I was otherwise OK. Except for my wife and kids sitting in a disabled car in a highway median, waiting on the state patrol. Since then, I’ve taken the performance of my tires, not on a sunny day in town, but in those other conditions, more seriously.

If you can just drive yourself and not put your family at risk, in good weather and close to home, then I agree. Choose the cheapest thing that’s black and round. It will probably get those Uber drives done just fine.

 

[GreaseMonkey]

Safety isn’t necessarily something you need every day.

I work in manufacturing. Your statement would be grounds for dismissal. Don’t brag about being dumb. You can be dumb if you want. Just keep it to yourself.

 

[jefftuck]

I work in manufacturing. Your statement would be grounds for dismissal. Don’t brag about being dumb. You can be dumb if you want. Just keep it to yourself.

Yeah. If you only knew.

But, OK, if that’s what you take from my comment, you do you.

I also go to work in a highly regulated manufacturing facility every day. Our operations are regulated by our internal processes (oh, I run those) and by our on-site government regulators.

You don’t know me, so I’ll chalk this up to a misunderstanding.

 

[jmcbrew]

This thread isn’t going anywhere good. Each of us thinks we know what’s better. Each of us may think the other is an idiot. This is what a lot of these threads revolve into. I also tow trailers with my Mach-E! Heck, I might even drive around with five 220 pound adults in my Mach-E! We all care about our families. Heck, some of us even care about the people around us. Still, some people do dumb things. Even more common, people do things that are just fine that other people think are dumb things. I’m not sure we’re going to solve any of this on the Mach-E forum.

 

[ipca204]

i had to look it up:
The meaning of SQUIDGY is unpleasantly damp : clammy

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