General Altimax HP Update (12,000 miles)

[Whelan]

Put these on instead of getting another pair of Kumho Ecsta ASX tires. Here is where we are since 9/2008 when they were installed and 12,000 miles of driving.On my second rotation, this winter was pretty dang cold and icy with good amounts of snow and slush in New England. I must say I felt these tires did much better job gripping than the Kumho Ecsta ASX. The car was a lot harder to get to do AWD donuts in, it just didn't want to break traction. On the roads they were confident and got me through some pretty nasty slop 8-10" of unplowed roads at times. And again I have AWD to help. In the rain they performed phenomenally, they just don't want to break away in any condition, I am pretty amazed for their price. The ratings out of ten were mid 8's across the board from dry to ice. I've been through many brands from Kumho, Goodyear, BF Goodrich, Michelin, Toyo, Pirelli and have never seen a tire look so new after this many miles. Many of my other tires were softer and started showing wear after 10-15,000 miles. These look brand new with very deep tread, I am expecting to get 50-60,000 on these tires which pretty much doubles what I usually get. Now that it is warming up they still ride nice. The car is a little quieter at highway speeds and when taking corners or going up or off ramps, the tires seem to outperform the car. Given it is a hatchback there is some roll, but the tires still feel confident and do not roll or slip.All in all currently I would give these tires a 9 rating, and if they hold up for a good final mileage report, I will definitely be purchasing again. I can't remember exactly what I paid for them but it was in the $2-300 range from http://www.treaddepot.com. And before I get my critiquing from Sublime, yes Blizzaks are the god of snow tires, but for the price and what I got and felt from these, I was extremely satisified. Not to mention the tread design looks great and the groove pattern is large and deep allowing a good channeling of water or snow from getting packed. So there you have it, a great tire, I use the stock 16" size and got more than I expected, very very happy.

[Sublimewind]

LoL.... I was just thinking about fresh tires for the Vibe actually... lol... And no, they aren't a Blizzak, but ANY SNOW tire is STILL better than an A/S tire in the snow... you didn't think you could get by without that little disclaimer, did you..?? LOL...

[Whelan]

Of course not, I swear you need to add it to your signature, it's like your motto. But give them some thought for general purpose. I do a 50 mile roundtrip commute every day, and to drive to my gf's and back is another probably 30-40 miles round trip. And the weekends I am easily putting over 100. So they get some use.

[DavidPIL]

Hey Whelan,Thanks for the update on these tires. If you remember, I asked for you to keep me updated on them because I was considering them for my next tires as well. I did have them installed on my mother's Aveo and so far they are much quieter and much more stable than the oem Kumho's.Before my interest in this tire, I purchased the General Exclaim tire. Now having about 15,000, they also still look to have plenty of tread left. Much better in 6" snow than what I had on before (Toyo Proxes4) and they didn't get to harsh in the freezing temps of Winter. And I ran them at 37psi.I noticed the price of the Altimax went up considerably at Tire Rack. Seems the word is getting out. And again, thanks for this update!

[Sublimewind]

Quote, originally posted by Whelan »Of course not, I swear you need to add it to your signature, it's like your motto. DONE........ lol....... I'm also seeing prices for them in 225/50-16 ~90$ each...

[bull77]

Quote, originally posted by Sublimewind »REMEMBER, ANY snow tire, even the cheapest, will be better in the snow than an A/S tire... PEROID... i think we've been all brainwashed by your motto btw -- it's period

[Whelan]

Yeah, similar to the HIR bulbs I put in, a month later they were going for $25 a pieces instead of $12 from John Deere. Speaking of which I need a new set, one finally blew after easily at least 1000 hours. I do a ton of night driving.As for these tires, I will still pay the extra to get them, they were fairly new when I purchased so its not surprising they gained popularity against brands such as Kumho and Avon.I'm glad to see some other people like them, General seems to be a solid brand.

[Sublimewind]

Quote, originally posted by bull77 »i think we've been all brainwashed by your motto btw -- it's period Thanks, I always forget to use spell check... couldn't that just be automatic?.. lol..

[Whelan]

I went to the Midas across from my gf's fathers body shop. The guy did my front brakes and at 92,500 miles he said my rear drums are totally fine. He said Toyotas take forever to use up their rear brakes, but he cleaned them up a bit anyways.He also noted my tires. Saying that the Generals are getting much higher ratings and that their quality has really come up to par from its origins as a more budget minded tire. He said the ones I have are great and should last me easily for 50-60k.