To all:

Can someone explain to me why a set of performance tires, that are presumably manufactured in a mold in a low labor cost country, should cost $1200? Separate question: if tires are properly mounted and balanced, is an alignment necessary?

Thanks, in advance.

-- Mikey

 

Wow, tough question to answer.

The single biggest reason with most is manufacturing technique and/or marketing costs.

Example: Kumho. Made in Korea where there is very low labor cost. Plus we do the majority of their marketing here in the states for them. Ever see a Kumho TV Commercial? Nope. Big magazine spread? Not really. Just a good tire made inexpensively, purchased in large quantity, and distributed by someone with experience in mass distribution - US. People ask me all the time if they are junk tires because they are so cheap. No, they are actually very good tires.

Now take the other side of the coin, Michelin. The pinnacle of tire technology. Much more R&D, more complicated rubber compounds, and in some models robotically made. They also market their product extensively via TV and magazine in higher recognition markets. The end result is a more expensive product, but also a very good one.

The other remaining issue here is overhead. Local stores have overhead they have to cover, and you pay for that in their pricing structure. We are most often MUCH cheaper (even after shipping and install charges) than the guy down the street is because we have very efficient mass distribution capibilities and buy in large quantity direct from the manufacturer. We also get very good ship rates from UPS and FedEx because of the volume we do from them.

It all adds up to the end cost to you. The biggest thing to take away from buying tires is to SHOP for them, because there is often a big swing in pricing from one place to the next.

Hope this helps.

 

Tyres in the UK cost 1200 pounds sterling thats $2400 !!!
Not only that a new 997S costs the equivelant of $140,000 if its a conselation, so I think you dont have it too bad.
Our gas is $2 per litre, how does that compare?

 

Damon --

Thank you for your thorough response. The Kumho model you described is more in line with today's supply chain concepts. Michelin, as a large company with global distribution, should be able to absorb a higher R&D budget and robotic manufacturing. Do they not offshore the production of their compounds and final products? It still strikes me as a poor price/value equation for a piece of rubber that is likely produced for $25/unit.

And, BTW, keep up the good work at The Tire Rack. Saving $ versus local retailers helps.

-- M

 

Thank you for that...I do feel a bit better now.

-- M

 

In the US we pay between $2.30 and 3.00 (us) per gallon (depends where in the US you are - WI vs CA) 1 gallon (us) = 3.785412 ltrs.

 

I don't believe the disparity (pounds to US dollar) is that great. 1200 pounds is more like $1,800 US dollars is it not?

 

I used to think that tires were expensive until I saw how they were built. The raw materials themselves are much more advanced than in the past. The good news is that for high performance tires they seem to have more performance and last longer. The assembly process for radial tires is fairly labor intensive. Only the most popular sizes are more highly automated which I don't believe includes most Porsche sizes. Only after the "green" tires are built up over several stages can they be cured and finished. Typically each tire has to be inspected for blemishes and trueness. If high performance tires are out of specification, they typically have to be scrapped.

 

Agreed. After touring a large BFG plant here in Indiana I had a whole new outlook on tire production.

 

1200pounds is $2340 dollars todays rate!

Our fuel is $8 per us gallon and a new 997 turbo is $ 206,079.13.
How come they can ship them all the way to the US and sell them at half the price?

 

not sure if anyone answered it yet but tire balanace has nothing to do with your alignment. If your old tires are abnormally worn its definatly worth the cash to get an alignment with a new set of tires

 

Have it aligned everytime you change tires. The suspension settles in over time and all brands of tires, even with the same published sizes, are different. As long as we are talking about tires, what's the knock on Conti Sport Contact 2 (19")? Haven't heard many good thing about them (but they came with the car so I guess I'll just wear them out).

 

I had 17" 255 conti sport contact 2's on my 993 na when I bought it. Paperwork implied they were about a year old and shouldn't be too hard yet. Those were some greasy tires. I had a lot of fun wearing off what was left of the tread but the Kumho Exsta MXs I replaced them with blow them away - and for quite a bit less moolah.

I guess the UTQG wear rating of 320 should be a tip-off....

 

They are generally junk. They get TOASTED in any REAL testing (not what some dumbass in a lowered Civic writes on a website). There is a very real reason they are cheap, less R&D, cheaper production, less technology.

Most of the price differential is in production costs. One reason there are so few tire plants left in the US. Unionized workers drive costs up too high. Indeed, it is very good product.

Not dissing Tire Rack, they are the pinnacle of online tire buying, it does NOT get better. However, take the TR retail price, add 12-15 per tire for shipping, then add $10/tire for mounting (because there isnt an independant shop on earth mounting TRs tires for free) and the fact that any warranty requires you to ship tires BACK and there is no reason under the sun to not just walk into a Discount Tire, Firestone, Les Schwab, etc and just buy what you want. About the only thing you are going to save is tax. If that is worth waiting a few days and having no one local willing to handle your warranty then maybe online is the way to go. The thought that TR is "much" cheaper is usually incredibly inaccurate.
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Comparing a 1 year old tire designed for smooth ride and comfort to a brand new tire designed for max performance is like comparing a GT3 to a base 911.
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