Many vehicles do come with some sort of OE spec only, cheaper tires, but according to Tire Rack a new 225/65 R17 ProContact TX comes with 8/32 new.
WHY! the factory continental on My 22 XLT FX4 has them there the worst, have 14k on them and more than half worn, I doubt there going to make 20K, am not a youngster like most you guys, I drive like a old fart, local driving only and rotate them every oil change 4/5k.
Sounds like the Goodyears that came on my '04 Corolla. They lasted a year, less than 10k miles, and back then I had 10 minute commute to work.
Over time I learned that buying high quality tires pay for themselves over time vs cheap junky ones. I too only buy the all weather tires now. I still have the stock Continentals for the Maverick, I put them on in the summer since they do get better MPGs.
The fuel max tires lasted until 40K or so where I could not take the horrible ride quality and total lack of grip anymore (they would slip on even the slightest amount of loose gravel). Ran some Hankooks that were OK for 30K miles, then got loud and harsh...then some WeatherReady's for 30K that were nice, but then got loud and harsh, and needing new tires was one of the reasons I decided to get out of the car before sinking more in.Sounds like the Goodyears that came on my '04 Corolla. They lasted a year, less than 10k miles, and back then I had 10 minute commute to work.
When looking for best fuel economy be sure to also do the math when doing comparisons and determine if the extra cost (if any) of the best tire of that nature is worth it. Typically tires with less rolling resistance can eek you out some better mpg but there are drawbacks like their not too great performance on wet surfaces and they usually cost more. Sometimes people buy tires that promise the best mileage only to find out that they never recover the upfront cost of tires themselves.
The factory continentals on our 23 ecoboost look like new yet at 31,000 miles,lots of tread. Weird. And I never rotate tires.
I picked up my Continentals for $800 even from discount, thats with a military discount. They are the same size as the OEMs.
Do those Michelins ride any better? I find them (the Continentals) adequate but had great luck running Blizzaks in the winter. The Blizzaks were about as good as AWD.
