So for the second time I tossed all four Michelin tires on my '86 MGM Tudor. This time they had just about 7500 miles on them over ten years, yea I know the car is not used much. Never again, the side walls were dry rotted, one tire actually had rubber sticking out that I was about to pull off with my fingers. I had my bud order 4 new off brand "house" tires from his distributor, I forget the name, but the four tires with mounting and balancing cost me $400.00............I made sure the guy mounting them used plenty of bead sealer, the turbine wheels leak around the bead. Hope he listened, did not want to stand over him while he worked. I think the name of the tire was something like West Lake.
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I think these are Chinese tires marketed through Russia and then, Canada. No comment on quality as I have no experience with them.What I Own: 1993 Mercury Grand Marquis GS
What I Help Maintain: 1996 CV / 1988 CV / 1988 Tempo -
I've heard similar things about other recent Michelin tires. They don't seem to age well.
West Lake is indeed a brand that is found often in Canada (and does appear to be a brand based here) which is distributing Chinese-made tires, probably produced by the same factories making several other "house brand" tires for distributors across North America. For what it's worth, I've heard they're decent for being a cheap tire, and they were on my short list when looking for a set of tires before I decided to go raised white lettering for the wagon. No word on longevity of course, but at 400USD mounted for a set, you're doing great if they even make it as long as those Michelins did.
A note on house brand tires: Motomaster is a store brand of Canadian Tire, and it seems like their tires are on every 5th car out on the road. My limited anecdotal experience is they seem to age well. They're almost certainly also being sold in the US under a different name.Last edited by kishy; 11-09-2023, 06:37 PM.Comment
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West Lake..............made in ThailandComment
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Kish, yea $400 included mount, balance, and new valves.Originally posted by kishy View PostComment
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The Michelins on my wife's car are 8 years old and at the wear markers. Will be getting new tires on that on the week of Thanksgiving probably. They are still not dry rotting or cracking. The 6 year old tiers on my Expedition have most of their tread left (only about 20K miles on them) and no cracks. The cheap Generals on the trailer are 9 years old and starting to crack. Not sure what the issue is with the Michelins, but I've not had the issues on my vehicles. Expedition parks outside while the vics are in the garage. My car we won't even count since I burn the tires off that thing well before they ever have time to rot.
Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former. -- Albert Einstein
rides: 93 Crown Vic LX (The Red Velvet Cake), 2000 Crown Vic base model (Sandy), 2003 Expedition (the vacation beast)
Originally posted by gadget73
... and it should all work like magic and unicorns and stuff.
Originally posted by dmccaig
Overhead, some poor bastards are flying in airplanes.Comment
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Back in the day, my dad always rode on General Dual 90's.....three white strips.........on his 1962 Caddy Town Car. Triple TurquoiseOriginally posted by sly View PostComment
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Back when Studebaker manufactured vehicles in Hamilton, On...........they rolled out with Firestone "gum dipped" tires LOLOriginally posted by kishy View PostComment
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They all weather check (dry rot). Outdoor in the sun with low usage is the recipe for it.1990 Country Squire - under restoration
1988 Crown Vic LTD Wagon - daily beater
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They lasted 10 years outside, what do you expect out of them?
The Michelins on the Mark VII are 9 years old and starting to look a bit not-great but they probably have 25k on them. Its lived its entire life inside though which helps a lot. Probably getting tires on that in the spring unless someone runs a special before that. No point in putting tires on just for it to sit in the garage all winter.86 Lincoln Town Car (Galactica).
5.0 HO, CompCams XE258,Scorpion 1.72 roller rockers, 3.55 K code rear, tow package, BHPerformance ported E7 heads, Tmoss Explorer intake, 65mm throttle body, Hedman 1 5/8" headers, 2.5" dual exhaust, ASP underdrive pulley
91 Lincoln Mark VII LSC grandpa spec white and cranberry
1984 Lincoln Continental TurboDiesel - rolls coal
Originally posted by phayzer5
I drive a Lincoln. I can't be bothered to shift like the peasants and rabble rousersComment
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Thain, my bud has Pirelli on his car for 12 years...............no side wall fissures!..........Michelin's are notorious for side wall cracks. Never again.Originally posted by gadget73 View Post
Btw, the spare in the trunk has been there since 1997, covered with the Ford faux carpet..........absolutely no aberrations of any kind. The tire has never left he trunk.Comment
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I thought Westlake tires were a Discount house brand. Only saw them once on a Ranger while I was working at O'Reilly on a delivery truck that was transferred from another store. Regardless, that truck got four new tires because the prior store enjoyed deferred maintenance and that truck was a product of it.
Anyway, I digress, the only experience with Michelin tires has been on my roommate's Town Car. Nick had a full set of blackwall tires for the 17" rims that he wasn't going to use, so he cut us a good deal on those when one of the Travelstar whitewalls took a nail and wasn't repairable. So far the Defenders have been fine on his car, but the UV in the southeast can be rough on tires. I arguably wouldn't trust a tire over five or six years down here if it experienced any level of exposure.
I think for the Nexens that I've put on both my Panthers, they ran about $400 and change for a P225/70R15 WSW. I'm not super picky about tires, but after having bought black walls once, I determined I prefer keeping the white stripe.
My Cars:
-1964 Comet 202 (116K Miles) - Long Term Project
-1979 Ford LTD Landau (38K Miles) - New Cruiser
-1986 Dodge D-150 Royale SE (112K Miles) - Slowly Getting Put Back Together
-1987 Grand Marquis Colony Park LS (343K Miles) - April 2017 + September 2019 POTM Winner
-1997 Grand Marquis LS (244K Miles) - March 2015 + January 2019 POTM Winner - Sold (05/2011 - 07/2024)Comment
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I am glad you got rid of those Michelin tires. They do not last long when not being used, when they have over 40,000 miles or used in very hot weather.
For what you use the car for, the off brand tires will do fine. $400 installed is good. At least they are not the China crap.
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While on the tire topic, I've had good results from the Douglas line from Walmart. Ours are made at a Goodyear facility in North Carolina per the code on the sidewall.
Not so good luck out of no name Vercelli and Firestone house brand Primewell. They function as tires but are loud for no reason.1990 Country Squire - under restoration
1988 Crown Vic LTD Wagon - daily beater
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Tom you are correct~!...........the Tudor is used for only two things...............transport me to the cemetery my parents are buried, and transport me to the private garage where my Studebaker is stored. The WestLake is more than acceptable.Originally posted by Mainemantom View PostComment
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