Budget, Mid-range or Premium Tires, Which Tires Should You Buy?

As a result of a substantial increase in the demand for the automotive industry, a myriad of tire manufacturers have invested in producing this highly desirable part of cars. Beside the makers of premium tires, there are a lot of companies making cheaper tires called mid-range tires, and budget tires – the cheapest tires. The most outstanding difference between these types of tires is their prices. However, it is normal that you may wonder whether the more expensive is actually the better quality, or whether it is worth spending money to buy premium tires. Reading through this article would be absolutely helpful, as it will bring you some details about these three kinds of tires as well as their pros and cons.

1. Premium tires

Premium tires are produced by the processes with latest technology, providing the greatest performance and durability.

It is known that expensive tires are produced in state-of-the-art processes. Big companies producing high-quality tires invest a great deal of money in research and developing their products.

In other words, they create materials by recruiting chemists to find the best formulas, so that they can produce tires which are extremely hard-wearing. Tires, then, are tested by the companies’ engineers in many particular experiments so as to ensure the absence of errors. After that, they examine these tires in their indoor tracks that imitate several harsh conditions such as very low and very high temperature. Finally, they have a team of professional and skillful drivers who are responsible for confirming these tires could be used well, complying with different criteria of the producers that usually exceed general standards of the government.

Due to the competition among tire providers, manufacturing processes are upgraded as quickly as possible when the companies’ research teams create more effective and efficient technology. Consequently, you can drive your cars, which are equipped with premium tires, in many road conditions at a high speed, and you do not have to worry about safety as much as while using cheap tires.

Premium tires not only perform considerably better but also last significantly longer than cheaper rubber. Thanks to their superior quality censored by the makers, a premium tires can last from 20,000 to 30,000 miles in reality, depending on road conditions.

They also help your car to consume less fuel, hopefully making this kind of tire more environmentally-friendly and reducing your monthly costs. Experiments show that premium tires provide up to 7.2 % fuel saving compared to economy tires.

That the companies spend an increasingly big amount of money on research and developing tires leads to an increase in price of tires. However, in spite of the fact that it might be initially costly, purchasing premium tires will be definitely worth it, because you will neither have to replace them on a frequently basis nor be concerned about safety. 

2. Mid-range tires

Mid-range tires are cheaper than premium tires, but their quality is a lot greater than budget tires.

​The second option, which is sandwiched between the most expensive and the cheapest tires, called mid-range tires. This is recommended for those who are not willing to pay a big amount of money for a premium tire, but are afraid of economy tires in terms of quality. Moreover, mid-range tires are often made by the same manufacturers with premium tires. They are all made of similar materials, but different technologies. Also, there are some mid-range brands that are not so well-known as premium brands, but they do strongly invest in improving products. This, firstly, helps producers to reduce costs in order to enlarge their market share, and secondly, helps customers to not only save money but also have significantly greater durability compared with budget tires.

3. Budget tires

This kind of tires is much cheaper than premium and mid-range tires, but there is a huge difference in quality. 

These tires, on the other hand, are made in simpler processes by smaller companies. The companies target customers who are interested in inexpensive products, so they do not invest in modernizing their factory. As the cost of staying up to date with new technological achievements might be prohibitive, these companies prefer minimizing producing expenses, leading to a dramatic decrease in tire price on the market.

Materials used to make tires are cheap; therefore, these tires can wear just after a short time. It is reported by lots of consumers that a cheap tire lasted five times less than a premium one in the same driving environment. Thus, using this kind of tires may help you to save money immediately, but it is not really economical in the long run, because you must replace them more usually.

In fact, it is by no means that you should not consider budget tires a reasonable choice. The reason for this is that in city centers or in normal conditions when the roads are consistently flat, using budget tires are safe and effective. Moreover, whether you buy cheap or expensive tires would depend on your earnings. If your income is not high, cheap tires might be a preferable choice.

How to make a reasonably right decision?

Making a right decision is hard sometimes because of the variety of confusing information you could find. You can take a look at the comparison table below before reading through the checklists following it.

Here are some things to take in to account before choosing a tire.

First of all, think about purchasing premium tires if you:

• Usually drive for long distances
• Desire the best driving performance
• Frequently drive in rural areas
• Demand a long lifespan of your tires.

Conversely, you could consider buying budget tires if you:

• Exclusively drive in inner-city areas
• Do not need to drive so fast
• Expect the lowest initial expense.

Eventually, consider paying for mid-range tires if you:

• Need a good tires in terms of quality
• Look for an inexpensive choice
• Have to replace your tires frequently but do not want to use cheap tires.

In conclusion, deciding whether to buy premium, mid-range or budget tires needs you to be rational, as you have to consider your need and your income carefully. High-quality choices are economically beneficial in a long-term period, safer, and do help your cars operate incredibly better, while cheap tires are satisfactory in some specific situations. Carefully think about the checklist above, and select which ones would be the most suitable to your need, and do not forget that you will get what you pay for!