I need to get new tires for my Pontiac Grand Prix before bad weather. I'm fairly short on money right now, so I'm looking for a brand that is fairly inexpensive, but also reliable. I went to the local Wal-Mart (I know, I know, not the best place to shop for tires), and I'm mainly considering the following brands:

- Goodyear Viva 2 ($77 each, 60,000 miles)
- Uniroyal Tiger Paw Touring ($79 each, 80,000 miles)
- Goodyear American Eagle ($89 each, 60,000 miles)
- Goodyear Viva Touring ($90 each, 80,000 miles)
- Michelin Symmetry ($108 each, 75,000 miles)

I want to get some opinions on what would be the best value here. I'm probably going to keep the car for 4-5 more years, and I drive about 250 miles per week. Everyone I've talked to so far say that the Michelin would probably be the best as far as performance... but I just thought I'd see what you all think. I would really appreciate you sharing your experiences (good and bad) with these brands of tires.

P.S. I've never heard of Uniroyal... are they reliable?

Thanks!

Hi Sarah - I haven't had experience with all of these types by any means, but if Michelin is one of your options, I would personally go with that. Michelin just makes a good tire, and remember, there's alot riding on those tires!

What I know about Goodyear is each tire comes with a year guarantee. If you get a flat tire you can call a toll free number and a dispatcher will send out AAA to come change your tire, fill it with air, or possibly tow you to Goodyear. And the best part is, if a tire needs to be replaced there is no charge. Just the other month I ran over something that slashed 2 tires. They were brand new tires and Goodyear replaced them at no additional charge. The roadside guarantee is just under $12 a tire when you purchase them. The 2 tires that were replaced totalled over $100. So you can see, that was a small price to pay. I've always used Goodyear and have been very satisfied.

But don't Grand Prixs use a special sport tire? Perhaps you should call the dealership and see if they can give you a list of sufficient replacement brands. Or have you already done that?

Uniroyal is known as Continental in Europe
and they are fitted to Mercedes ,Audi also Opels (German branch of GM)
They are good value for money and quite grippy

Ask the Tire dealer if they Stock Pirellis ? These are also good value and may be cheaper?
www.us.pirelli.com/web/default.page

Am a bit wary of Michelins as they are made of a hard compound which is a bit "plasticy"

Georgia - I don't think that Grand Prix use a special type of tire... I've called several places and gotten estimates for tires, and I told them I have a Grand Prix with 16 inch tires, and they gave me their options. But I will double check on that just in case. The Goodyear warranty sounds great! That would definitely be nice to have, and would offer great peace of mind as well.

bedstor - I will definitely consider Uniroyal. Do you know if they come with any type of warranty?

I think that Wal-Mart has some sort of protection policy that you can purchase when you buy tires there. I'll have to find out the specific conditions of that.

quote:

Originally posted by Sarah51

I think that Wal-Mart has some sort of protection policy that you can purchase when you buy tires there. I'll have to find out the specific conditions of that.

Don't think about it ,Its a clause written con
As to the makers warranty
Hows this?

quote:

All Uniroyal® tires have a limited warranty, which covers defects in workmanship and material for the life of the original usable tread , or for six years from date of purchase, whichever occurs first.

Some Uniroyal tread designs are also covered by a limited warranty for treadwear. These tires include:

Car & Minivan Tires Warranted Mileage
Tiger Paw® Touring T-Rated 80,000-Mile
Tiger Paw® AWP 70,000-Mile
Tiger Paw® AS-6000 60,000-Mile
Tiger Paw® Touring H/V-Rated 70,000-Mile
Tiger Paw® GTS 50,000-Mile
Tiger Paw® Freedom™ 50,000-Mile

www.uniroyal.com/care/index.html

Put the cheapest ones on that have a warranty and a quality brand. Michelin is no better than Goodyear in my opinion. If you had the money and a high performance car then it might make sense to do otherwise but a Grand Prix isn't a sportscar and I've never had any problem going with the inexpensive tires on my inexpensive cars.

$25 difference on 4 tires is $100 plus tax... I could find a lot better ways to spend that money.

I'm sure a lot of people will tell you otherwise... I just have not had any trouble. Actually awhile back I went to a NTB and they had tires for $60 that had a good warranty. Try Sears because they actually have an excellent tire department on many stores.

the uniroyal looks like the best deal 8o,ooo miles for $79 thats better than $77 for 60,000 miles and for only $2. moreyou get 20,000 more miles

Ok, thanks everyone. I'm in the process of checking around about the Uniroyal Tiger Paw. I'll probably end up going with them. Thanks again!