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MG TD TF 1500 - Tires FWIW

FWIW,
I know this has been discussed many times before, but it seems that recently a lot more tires in the 165 15 size have disappeared,, A few months ago, there were still a few Chinese, and Korean manufacturers, but a search last week came up blank, with the exception of Coker Firestone 560 made in Mexico or Vrederstines (also México???) . I ordered 5 and they were not round,,, plus the max allowed pressure is very low.. they rode very "squishy",, In my estimation, a new tire should not have to be 'shaved" to make it round..
Now I have 165 80 15 Classics ordered,(Tire Rack) but they are out of stock, and backordered..

Maybe I'm missing something in my search effort????
Steve Wincze

Steve, in 2005 I put new Veredistines on the 72 B, with new wires. Bought them directly from the factory in Holland and took almost three months to get. Took them to Hendrix Wire Wheel in NC and he had to shave every one of them to get them round. Alan told me that there is very few new tires that are perfectly round. He also said that he shaves a lot of expensive racing tires to true them up. Kind of a loosing battle to get perfect tires. PJ
Paul161

I got real Michelins from Coker a few months ago. Date code was in '14 so they were fresh. Just like they were years ago, except about 500 tiny tits of rubber sticking up everywhere from the tread. Many say too expensive, well they are half the price of a Michelin for my Maxima! George
George Butz

I got the same "hairs" on my Firestones,,,I've never seen so many on a tire!!! Almost like a Chia Pet !!
It took a while to cut them all off !! I'm surprised that yours are real Michelins, and not also made in Mexico,,,
Steve
Steve Wincze

I have 165/80R Nexen on mine, installed by the PO late last year. Likely cheap Walmart variety, but I'm not going to toss them.

....
MAndrus

MAndrus,
Don't be to hard on your Nexen tires.

I have a set of Nexen tires on my 1/2 ton pickup.
I have over 40k miles on them and they are holding up well.
They may not be perfect, but by no means a bad tire.
And for the price I'm happy with them.
G D

Michelin tires when made by Michelin were produced in many different countries.
Len Fanelli

Ones on the MG's were from France, set on the TR7 from Belgum, ones on the family sports truckster..USA


I could be mistaken but I don't believe that the Michelin tire being sold in our size are actually made by Michelin. I think the molds were sold to Coker along with the Firestones and they are manufactured by who ever for Coker under license.
MG LaVerne

LaVerne is correct. The Coker Michelins are made by Coker in Mexico. There is no way of knowing what the base of the tire is or who actually made it.
F.W.I.W. The Michelin X a radials installed on the TD in 1992 still look great, as do the ones that were on the MGA when purchased in 1987.
-David.
D. Sander

David and LaVerne, not any more at least for the 165-15 XZX. Mine (date coded '14) were made by Michelin in Serbia. Google it- Michelin bought or merged with a huge tire company there in 2005. My 20 year old XZX's were made in France and Italy. George
George Butz

George, that's good news. That was a great tire. It is good to know there are still genuine Michelins avalable.
-David.
D. Sander

David and George
Just to clarify what you are writing.....are you guys driving around on 20+ year old tires?

Tom
'54 TF
T Norby

I do drive the old tires from 1992 arround town, but not on the highway. They look fine, but are not safe for sustained high speed. I don't drive at all on the tires from 1987. Those have been dismounted for years.
-David.
D. Sander

It doesn't seem like Nexens are available any more in a 165 15 size,, I couldn't locate any
Steve
Steve Wincze

Tom, the Michelins I recently replaced this spring were 20 years old. Plenty of tread left, no sidewall cracks, but the rubber was petrified with zero wet traction. Nexen tires- my daughter had a set on her Mazda for 5 years, they were great but the sidewalls cracked/rotted likely due to being outside in the Florida sun. George
George Butz

The Coker Firestones from Summit Racing were $88.00 ea. Possibly they still are. Their made in the Ukraine. Nice tire. PJ
Paul161

I've been very satisfied with the Kumhos that I bought a couple of years ago. Wearing well, handle well, good price, etc. Bud
Bud Krueger

I dont think kumos are availaby now either. ,, I couldnt find them ,,, The Firestone 560's that I got (and returning) were made in mexico,, the max pressure is only 35 psi,, kind of low for some reason?? and a very squishy ride,, and should be shaved to make round.
I've never had to shave a tire to make them rpund..

Steve
Steve Wincze

A little note on tires you might be interested in. Article by Bob Ulrich, from "The Modern Tire". PJ

Did you know that the song “Born in the U.S.A.” is more anti-American than American in attitude? Bruce Springsteen wrote it to protest the treatment of veterans returning from the Vietnam War.

Even today, 30 years after the gritty song hit the airwaves, people continue to fixate on the chorus — “Born in the U.S.A., I was born in the U.S.A.” — rather than its true meaning.

I believe patriotism (not blind patriotism) is always a good emotion. Working together and looking out for one another makes a country stronger.

In our country, many consumers prefer to buy from domestic companies and seek out American-made products, including tires. There is nothing wrong with that, and tire dealers in the United States are happy to give the customers what they want.

The definition of an “American-made tire” is fluid, however, which makes it easier for dealers to sell it as such. Let me explain.

There are only two major American-owned tire manufacturers: Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. and Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. Each of them has multiple manufacturing plants in the U.S.

So any tire with the name Goodyear or Cooper on it can be sold as American-made. What if the tire comes from a plant in China? I find it hard to believe where the tire is manufactured is ever mentioned by the person selling tires produced by Goodyear or Cooper, and that includes the Dunlop, Kelly and Mastercraft associate brands.

The tire may not always literally be born in the U.S.A., but because a domestic manufacturer controls all production, it’s still an American tire. That’s close enough.

It is no wonder many Cooper dealers were upset when Apollo Tyres Ltd., an Indian company, made Cooper shareholders a deal they couldn’t refuse last year. They were about to lose what they believed was a 100% American company, giving them less leverage behind the counter.

Cooper shareholders may have been upset when the deal fell through, but I’ll bet many dealers were not.

Regardless, I’m sure the Cooper brand would have remained an American brand in the eyes of the consumer. People still think of the Firestone, BFGoodrich and Uniroyal brands as American more than 20 years after foreign manufacturers purchased them.

And they really are, because they are still manufactured here. It’s hard to erase a brand’s legacy.

In contrast, the flagship brands of Bridgestone Corp. and Groupe Michelin are more closely associated with their parent companies. Many still consider them foreign brands, even though Michelin has more consumer tire production capacity in the U.S. than any other company, and Bridgestone is fourth, behind Goodyear and Cooper.

In Michelin’s case, that is particularly ironic. Michelin North America Inc. began producing tires in New York in 1950! It also has supplied aircraft tires to our military for years.

Three years ago, the U.S. Navy exercised a second five-year option to extend its tire supply contract with Michelin North America and Michelin Aircraft Tire Co. Inc. Later that year, Michelin North America was honored with a 2011 Secretary of Defense Performance-Based Logistics Award for its naval service.

Michelin also has had similar contracts with the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) to supply aircraft tires to the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Army and some allied foreign militaries. Michelin has been classified by the DLA as a “best value” tire, and has the awards to prove it.

Despite its military service, however, Michelin North America may soon suffer for the actions of its parent.

Earlier this year, the Wall Street Journal reported Congress and the Pentagon feel Michelin’s declaration that it would like to continue trade with Iran once international sanctions expire is at the very least wrong, and at the very most treasonable.

That is because the U.S. has sanctions of its own in place against Iran.

The result could be the end of any future business between the U.S. military and Michelin once existing contracts expire.

I am not going to jump to conclusions and say the government is out of line in this case. I certainly don’t know all the details behind the very complicated relationship between the U.S. and Iran, or the inner workings of the U.S. military, for that matter.

I will say government officials seem to overreact first, and make sense of it all later (if at all). I hope their maneuverings are not self-serving or based on political paranoia.

As you can see, we are part of a global industry, whether that refers to the logistics of production and distribution or political intrigue. Just be careful when you label what you are selling. It’s all relative. ■
Paul161

Paul, whilst your comments are, of course, admirable, the legal position on 'Made in XXX' is a bit more precise.

It is simply that more than 50% of the sales value of the product is added in the country claiming the 'Made In' attribute.

The retail margin (often around 50% on its own) and transport costs plus local sales taxes as well as an apportionment of country based head office costs all count. On this basis many items made overseas, not necessarily even in the brand companies factory or under their explicit direction, will end up as 'Made in XXX'.
Ian Bowers

Personally, I don't care where they come from providing they do a good job and are affordable. I bought Blockleys, which are sold by a small British Co, but made in the Far East. I am happy with them.
Dave H
Dave Hill

I agree that if a tire gives good service, where it comes from is really of no importance. My Firestone's came from the Ukraine and they are a nice tire with a semi period look, but it will take a couple years before I know if they will hold up. Due to a world wide market on the manufacturing of everything we buy, if we decide to buy from only one country, we wouldn't have very much. I will say, the best machined parts I've ever bought over the years, came from Germany! Seems like they have a knack for making precision equipment. PJ
Paul161

The tires on my TD have been on for 30 years.
they are 600-15 and I think I ran 600-15 for years.

The car has not moved 10 feet in 30 years. While 4 of the 5 present tires, look good I would not want to do much more than go around the block on them.

After reading another thread I have decided I want to put wide white walls on the car.

The narrowest tires seem to be 185-15. Does any one know if these will fit?
Or does anyone have an affordable source for 165-15 Wide WW. The ones I see are around $250 per tire which would cost me $1250 for a set. That's a long way from the $80-90 some have mentioned.

Jim B.
Jim B in NJ

Jim, I have 165 15s on my car, ride nice and look good. PJ
Paul161

This thread was discussed between 28/08/2015 and 03/09/2015

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