I have the chance to buy some Firestone Wilderness tires that are in really good shape at a really good price. The issue is, is that I'm pretty sure that Firestone ATX and Wilderness tires are the ones that Ford had all the trouble with on Explorers a few years back. I did some reaserch and the ones that were troublesome were all out of the Decatur Il, plant. There's a DOT code on the tire that you can use to tell if the tires were made there or not. If they're not, then they're not on the recall list. See http://www.state.ia.us/government/ag/firestone-consumeradvisory-web.htm for details.

That being said, if these tires are not on the recall list, would you folks recommed buying them or should I just stay away from Firestone tires period.

 

If you have a wheelbarrow that won't exceed a very slow walking speed, then perhaps the Firestones would be a good fit. I had Wilderness HT's (not on recall list) on my '98 Ranger. Lost the right front going about 40 mph. That was fun. Inside sidewall just blew out. I'd NEVER hit anything with those tires, never been off road with it, nothing that would harm the tire. The right front just let go at about 40K. When I got the other three off, I had a bit of a scare about how close to death I was. ALL 4 had inside sidewall problems. Looked perfect on the outside.

A lil' step further back in time, I had two Firestone 500's simultaneously tread sep on me at 80 mph on a '76 Mercury Monarch. That was fun too. Managed to get it stopped without a blow-out. Tread rubber beat the crap outta the front fenders before I could get it stopped. Both still had 32PSI in 'em when I took it back to the Firestone dealer. They wouldn't warrant the tires, with less than 5K on 'em.

My '86 T-Bird came with Firestone Supremes on it. At 20 mph, could feel the tires were egg shaped. Ford dealer sent me over to Firestone for re-balance. You can't balance something that ain't round. Then, the numb skull at Firestone made the mistake of telling me a little Firestone secret. There's a different spec for OE tires and retail tires. OE tires have a wider tolerance for roundness, meaning I got some that were at the outter limits of roundness, but not quite out of spec for OE tires. Again, no warranty, except on 1, which was actually out of OE tire specs. I didn't get but about 15K on those. The T-Bird is pretty hard on tires because it's a heavy car, and pushes pretty bad in turns if the alignment isn't just perfect. I learned real quick the cheap ones last longer on that car than the expensive stuff.

Firestone tires are pretty good for two things: A tire swing, or mosquito breeder. They are NOT good for trucks.

Get some Michelin XC-LT4's. I got 50K and counting on the set I have on my F-150. Just keep it aligned, and check the alignment eccentrics for wear each time you have an alignment done, especially if it's Twin I.

 

tirerack.com

Not the best rating.......

Mike

 

tirerack.com

Not the best rating.......

Mike

 

I had a set on my Mazda Tribute and they were noisy, and developed a serious case of radial pull.

 

Ok. Looks like these might be good tires to stay away from. Without even looking, the Michelins are totaly out of my price range, just because of how I use the truck. I plan to drive between 3000 to 5000 miles a year with this truck (88 F150 XLT Lariat 4X4). I bought it mostly mostly for hunting season, picking up stuff at Home Depot and a few really bad snow days. That being said, what's a good cheap tire to look at? Are Coopers any good? I'm not a big fan of Generals, due to a prior bad experince with my Sable. What about Wal-Mart tires? Thanks for the input so far!

 

I run generals or cooper truck tires . Have had luck with both, but I know things happen. Ive had 10 sets of General gabbers but they don't make them any more. Have a set of new generals on my truck now but can't remember the name. I run no name truck tires on work truck . Wear quicker than the big names but dig good. and cost $ less. nails don't care what kind of tire it is Good luck
____________________________________
94 F150 XLT 4x4 SC LB Maf 302 E4od

 

tirerack.com



Did I mention tirerack.com?

Shop by price, shop by brand, shop by style....anything you wany. Best part is the tire survey for each class. I bought my Bridgestone Dueler Revos because of the user rating and I am in love with them! I will never have a different style of tire on my truck!

Mike

Did I mention tirerack.com?

 

A friend of mine took a quote from tirerack (total cost, with shipping), to a local dealer and they matched the sale price of the tires. The extra $$ he would've spent to ship the tires was used to mount and balance them. Took about an hour and he was back on the road with new rubber.

Not all places will do this, but it doesn't hurt to take a copy of a quote to a dealer and try...all they can say is "no".

 

I got my Dueler Revos for $530 (31x11.5x15) from a local Firestone by shopping around with a quote from tirerack. Most tire shops in Cincinnati want $750-850 for the same tires.

Mike

 

FWIW, the Firestones that got in trouble did so because of a combination of factors:
1) Overloaded vehicle
2) Underinflated tire pressures
3) Continuous highway driving in hot conditions (read: extremely high tire temperatures)

There were zero tire failures that were not heavily influenced by one of the first 2 driver errors. If you know how to use a pressure gauge and don't overload your vehicle, they're perfectly safe tires.

All that said, it's not a particularly great tire so I wouldn't consider them unless you were looking for a deal.

Dave