I've had an ongoing tire vibration (around 70mph) for a couple thousand miles now and so I went to Goodyear (I have the RT/S) and the first time they botched (they admitted) the balance, so I went back and they balanced again which did not fix vibration. Again. I made the point about exactly what was going on and they said they would check the alignment and the result was that alignment was "dead on". After 2nd visit still no fix.

Now I'm irritated so I go to my dealership and they do a road variance check and find some small cupping on the tires and also do an alignment check and find it to be off significantly(I watched). They do a much better job of balancing and aligning and I drive off with a better handling truck with tires that are in balance (decent even at 70mph with these crappy RT/S's) at a cost of 200$. They were clear in that balancing and aligning is not a warranty item. Does everyone agree with this? Just wondering.

I'll never buy another set of Goodyears. I can see that the uneven wear could be caused by alignment woes but I've rotated these tires 4 times and kept an eye on pressures and they have 16k on them. So why are they cupped? The only answer I can come up with is that it's a crappy tire. ????

 

Ford warrants the factory alignment for 12K miles.

 

Screwdriver,
sounds very similiar to the problems I had. I had Ford chasing a vibration (between 40 and 45 mph) in my truck at 9k miles, except they said the allignment was within specs, and they didn't think the slight vibration warranted rebalancing the tires (balance and allignment are covered within the first 12 months/12k miles), which are Goodyear AT/S. I kept driving it and the vibration kept getting worse. I took the truck back w/ around 20 k miles, and they recomended I get a tire balance and allignment, which was now not warranted and the balance alone was $40.

I declined and took it the local Goodyear retailer who balanced the tires for $20. Vibration was better but still present. I took it back to Ford and they check everything (suspension, driveline, transfer case, etc...) and everything checked out OK. Went back to the Goodyear retailer and they reblanced the tires, and they said their was nothing wrong with the tires. They also felt the vibration and described it as 'a hop'. I went back to Ford and they checked the tires (and didn't charge me) and it turns out the two rear tires have excessive runout and one is out of round and essentially bounces as it goes down the road.

I went backed to the Goodyear retailer and they essentially said I was screwed because Goodyear only warrants this problem in their tires for the first 2/32 of tread. Went back to Ford, and they told me to contact a different Goodyear dealer.

This dealer told me they would prorate the tires for me, which is going to cost me approx $125 for 2 new tires.



PS - this is my 100th post!!!!

 

Strangely enough I had that same 40-45 mile an hour vibration prior to the second balance at Goodyear.

The RFV check at dealership was 100$ and the Ford alignment was 90$. I'm happy with the result but I think Ford ought to step up to the plate and tell Goodyear to **** off. I'd rather have a Michelin LTX or whatever the they make instead of these Badyears. My alignment was pretty far off (probably came from the factory like that) so if your tires wear unevenly take it and get it checked someplace where they know how to work the alignment machine instead of crawling on the top of it and scratching their armpits while hooting and hollering. Next time I buy new I will have them perform an alignment before accepting delivery.

I just got off the phone with a buddy of mine who said Goodyear was working on his girlfriends car and they tore out the oil pan or tranny or some such on a bump and then lied about it. He was able to make it stick and they paid for it in the end. I am so done with that bunch! At least you got a prorate, good for you.

 

I was told by someone that Goodyear puts factory seconds on new car (this is hearsay, I don't know if it is true). Supposedly, the defects are minor aesthetic blemishes that don't affect the quality of the tire, but Goodyear would have trouble selling them to tire retailers.

 

I have a set of goodyear eagle gt-2's on my truck. they are a 275/60/17. They are getting good tread life, but they ride really rough and are really noisy. I have a custom stereo system in my truck and with the windows up, subs on, crusin at about 50 or 60mph, i can hear the tire noise. i thought about buying these tires is a 20" version, but now, after having these, i am not. Personally, i wouldnt tell anyone to get these tires, unless they dont really care about ride comfort and noise level. They are a cheep priced tire and have cheep performance.

 

what is neat about goodyear, in some vehicles, is that they custom buld some tires, they will make one point heivier so that when put on the rim, the valvestem and heavy point balance each other, letting the vehicle company spend less money on weights. Just kinda an interesting fact

 

in response to the above about blems being put on new cars that is false I worked for goodyear manufature and if they find any defect such as a blemish in the white letters nothing more than a cosmetic diffrence they will destroy the tire before it leaves the plant . this is before it gets to ford, chev, dodge they produce 50 to 60 thousand tires per 12 hour period they run 4 shifts @ 12 hours a day average scrap per shift is 200+ a shift( I myself do not like goodyear but for one thing and thats for race only there rubber compound is soft it is not intended to last long) the best tire for light truck all around duty is the mich.ltx or m/s tire these tires have a harder compound and they last (90%do) a couple thousand miles past there tread warr. and the ride is so much better.......(goodyears wear differently than any other tire and ride just as much differently)

 

YUK!

Hated the goodyears on my truck!!! Love My Bridgestones!!
JJ

 

BFG BFG BFG!!!!!!!


Or you could go with

bfg bfg bfg......

 

Hey Guys,

A while back I posted about my RT/S's being out of round. A local dealer tried twice to balance them without luck. Then they just gave me four new ones, which so far haven't turned to crap. It's just a matter of time, of course. Goodyears are notorious for this problem and Ford continues to punished new truck buyers by installing them. Obviously, Ford and GY have a sweet deal going between them. Even the service manager stands behind the GY's, telling me they are one of the best tires going. All the while I'm on the floor laughing at him. We all know better..........

So Screwdriver, try a different dealership. The one that gladly gave me 4 new tires for free at 18K miles wasn't the dealership that sold me the truck. They smootched my butt the whole time. The only thing they seem concerned with was getting high marks from me on the customer survey that Ford sends me after every visit. There is a huge difference from dealer to dealer.

Good luck and let us know how it goes.

 

I think Goodyear tires are made of a softer compound than other tires. I had three sets of them, and the longest I ever ran a set was 20,000. One set didn't even make it 10,000 miles! Remington Wide Brutes now, almost 70,000 miles and starting to wear! Plus, they were about 75 to 80 dollars cheaper per tire than the Goodyears.