Featured Hot Rods Would you accept these tires?

So I bought some new skinny Pro Tracs from one of the mail order speed shops…I dropped them wrapped in the plastic to my local tire guy and picked them up a few hours later..for over $500.00 I was expecting something better…they have gouges in them, lines separation on the sidewall, and what looks like something dripped on them and “crazed” the sidewall

Not to mention the crazy weight they needed to add to 1 of the rims to get it to balance out..

I’m hoping I’m not SOL due to the fact they’ve been mounted…but man talk about lack of quality control

 

I’ve seen some of that damage before…..kid at the tire shop used a box cutter to take the wrapper off. The rest….???

 

WOW!

 

I think you have accepted them by having them mounted. Half that stuff is arguably caused by the shop installing the tires and pretty much impossible to prove other wise since you didn't inspect them before taking to the shop. .Not to be a dick but inspecting stuff you have shipped to you immediately upon receiving it is pretty much buying 101.

 

Yeah I get it..but not sure how the installer could drop something on the sidewall that would look like dried up material or splits in the sidewall

 

I've had the booger splotches on tires, usually washes off, same with the white scuffing.

 

The cuts and the scuffing they can easily blame on the installer. The other (maybe spots where too much mold release was added to the molds?) I would say there is probably about a 99% chance they will just say it is a cosmetic defect and has no effect on the performance of the tire and you should have checked before installing them.

 

Whats the date code read ?

https://www.discounttire.com/learn/dot-tire-id

 

I didn't know anyone had started repoping Pro Trac tires? That would lead one to believe those tires are pretty old to begin with, do they have a 4 digit date code on them?
If you bought old tires (or new for that matter) and didn't inspect them before you had them mounted, its on you.
Personally, I don't run tires over 7 years old, I have had too many bad experiences with that.

 

I have something better - Firestone with stone molded in .

 

One thing I learned is always inspect the tires without wrap before mounting. I got an oddball width whitewall blem in my order. Caught it too late.
That stoned Firestone above is too awesome funny. Hopefully fixed.

 

After a lifetime of being in the tire biz, I’ll chime in, FWIW.

A lot of the blotches look like trash or other contaminant in the mold that stuck to the raw rubber when it was cured.
The scratch/cut COULD be from installation issues. Or from cutting the wrapper on the sidewall instead of in the cavity between the beads. At least it’s on the scrub ring and not on the thinner area of the sidewall. How deep is it? Is it on the inside or outside of the car?
The excess weight begs the question: did the tech rotate the tire 180* on the rim and see if it would change, or just throw some weights on it and call it good.
Big “if” that the seller will let you return them, once mounted. Worth a try. Send them the pics.
I would be talking to the people who did the service about the cut.

If you totally strike out, the trash, blemishes etc., may come off with a fine Scotchbrite pad and some rubber buffing solvent.
Good luck!!

That Firestone is a classic FUBAB! Wonder if Coker would tap dance around that?

 

Just curious, the weights in the wheel, were they to balance the wheel first or with tire mounted?

Seems like a lot to me.

 

Coker was selling them

 

Whoever balanced that wheel with the weights opposing each other is chasing weights and doesn't know what they are doing.

 

Quit buying the bias ply tires, I have heard more negatives than positives, it hits them where it hurts $$. Is a small 15" ww tire worth what they want? Maybe/maybe not, but Only if there are no problems with out of roundness, heavy spots, etc. ( if you Must have bias ply to make you Happy)! Just like other things that have invaded our hobby (chinesium), quit buying there stuff, maybe the quality will improve? Rant over.

 

Would you accept these tires?

Ummmm.... NO!
Shit would be gonna hit the fan.
Like some are saying, you probably should have checked them when they arrived, but that is not an excuse for the seller/fitter to hand you a product like you got. And sorry, got to say, if your tire guy fitted them in that state without checking with you........ you need a new tire guy.

 

Regarding the balancing. It's crap. Those lead free stick on weights suck, they are way bulky for the weight you get out of them. I would have broke the bead and turned the tire on the wheel to try to get them closer, then used LEAD stick on weights.

 

I wouldn't....But you did.........

 

Heck, I recall the silver duct tape used.
It’s been a minute

 

Those tires look like sh*t. .... and the shop you had mount them should have notified you of the condition before they mounted them.
But hey,,,, I guess that is the New "Made in America" 2025 ...... Maybe a chain smoking bare foot china-man would have done a better job

 

Any chance you 'll say who?.
I'm sure of one thing.
You got smart and will inspect first.

 

Personal decision years ago was to avoid 'Stones' as they kept backing out of being responsible for failures. So many other choices

 

New tires shouldn’t look that way , but as has been said I little elbow grease they will look ok . Think about it , I really don’t think they are damaged as deep as the sidewall that have the writing sanded off for looks . Just my 2 cents

 

That's not a flaw, it's a feature.
For that authentic barnyard feel.

 

It is a shame that some companies seem to not care about quality control. The company that made those should have cleaned up the imperfections before they were shipped to you. For the price you paid they should look good. Actually, even if they were only $100 bucks a piece, they should still look good unless they sold them to you as "seconds". I do think that with a little work on your part that you could fix the imperfections if you have to. Good luck.

 

Now, there's an entirely new angle................ "tire patina".......

 

It kinda looks like the tire was branded.

 

@loveoftiki
Spray some "concrete cleaner" on them and lightly scuff it with a scotch pad [then wash the tyres]
They'll look new

Here's a semi finished example