TheSamba.com :: View topic - Coker 165s: American Classic vs. BFGoodrich

Thu Apr 21, 2011 9:16 am

Any recommendation for one over the other?

I am looking at both in the 3/4" wide whitewall version, and they both look pretty similar, both are $146 each today on Coker's web site: http://store.cokertire.com/catalogsearch/result/?q=165R15

I guess if I had to pick right now, I'd go with the Goodrich, because I like the tread design a bit more, plus I've put some miles on another set of the same tires and have been satisified with the performance.

I am also slightly uncomfortable with putting a tire called an "American Classic" on my German car--but that's a minor issue in my mind (in CT our antique plates say "Early American" on them, so I'm used to the slight dis...).

But just figured I'd ask if there were any other opinions or recommendations out there on one vs. the other. Thanks!

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(thanks 79 SuperVert for the good advice about thread subject line editing)

Thu Apr 21, 2011 10:22 am

I just bought 4 Coker Classic whitewall 165/15's and I had to keep swapping tires around on the car until I got a combination that didn't pull to the left or to the right. Somehow two of them were off just enough to cause the problem. I'm not returning them because I finally got them to work but just letting you know...

P.S. If you edit your first post you can edit the title of the thread at the same time.

Thu Apr 21, 2011 10:31 am

That's what we get when we have to buy our (whitewall) Bug tires from a monopoly company, I guess...

Quality control becomes less of an issue with a 'captive' customer base?!

My local garage also commented about how much difficulty they had with balancing the 5.60x15 Firestones that came recently from the same "monopoly" company, by the way...

Thanks '79Super also for the tip on editing the thread title--I'll give it a try!

Thu Apr 21, 2011 10:35 am

I believe all their tires are made by the same company, using molds that were purchased from the original companies (i.e. Firestone, Goodrich, etc.), so I would expect that quality control problems would affect all their product lines.

Thu Apr 21, 2011 10:36 am

79SuperVert wrote: I believe all their tires are made by the same company, using molds that were purchased from the original companies (i.e. Firestone, Goodrich, etc.), so I would expect that quality control problems would affect all their product lines.

No argument (unfortunately)...

Thu Apr 21, 2011 11:55 am

I couldn't decide between the two so I ordered a set of whitewalls from Diamond Back. I hope they are worth it.

Thu Apr 21, 2011 12:37 pm

antisocialred wrote: I couldn't decide between the two so I ordered a set of whitewalls from Diamond Back. I hope they are worth it.

You're probably better off, since, doesn't Diamond Back effectively "custom make" their whitewall tires starting from new, current-production, "name brand" tires?

Thu Apr 21, 2011 12:57 pm

denman MADE all of cokers tires, now someone else does... all the models, based on old molds

ask any hot rod guy we have all had tires WAY out of round that wouldnt even take a balance.. you have to shave most of em

junk, but the most popular alternative for some reason.. i guess advertising means a lot LOL.. its a shame, they give bias plys a bad name when in fact they are good tires if you have a good set

Thu Apr 21, 2011 1:17 pm

touchdowntodd wrote: ...junk, but the most popular alternative for some reason.. i guess advertising means a lot LOL.. its a shame, they give bias plys a bad name when in fact they are good tires if you have a good set...

I have two older sets of the Firestone 5.60x15s, from maybe about 15 or so years ago, and I always liked them. In fact, they're still very good tires and I would not hesitate to use them. They are fat whitewalls that I use on older cars, though, and I am interested in skinny ww's now for newer cars...

Sad to hear about how far things have come...

Thu Apr 21, 2011 6:24 pm

Has anyone tried Universal Vintage Tire?:
http://www.universaltire.com/catalog_filter/?ftire_size=165R15

Thu Apr 21, 2011 7:27 pm

Scott H wrote: Has anyone tried Universal Vintage Tire?:
http://www.universaltire.com/catalog_filter/?ftire_size=165R15

I am pretty sure the BFGs and American Classics that Universal sells are just re-marketed tires from Coker.

But the Vredesteins shown on that page (non whitewalls, unfortunately) are probably OG from the manufacturer (I've a couple of sets of those and they are very good quality).

Fri Apr 22, 2011 6:18 am

[quote="Stock Steve"] Scott H wrote:
I am pretty sure the BFGs and American Classics that Universal sells are just re-marketed tires from Coker.

But the Vredesteins shown on that page (non whitewalls, unfortunately) are probably OG from the manufacturer (I've a couple of sets of those and they are very good quality).

Re-marketed tires? If you are implying that Universal sells only blemmed or second line tires, you are completely mistaken.

We purchase and receive all our American Classic and BF Goodrich tires directly from the factory where they are made. The manufacturer is Specialty Tires of America located in Indiana PA.

We have a "no-blem" policy with STA, meaning we do not accept blems or seconds from the factory. On occasion, one may be damaged in our warehouse. When that happens, we declare it a blem and sell it at a discounted price on eBay.

In regards to the Vredestein and the American Classic brands, both are great tires. If you are looking for a great value, that is exactly what you will receive as both will meet your needs and in most cases exceed your expectations.

Mike Nixon
Universal Vintage Tire
Hershey PA

Fri Apr 22, 2011 6:20 am

Is "American Classic" the same as "Coker Classic"? Because the Coker Classics I bought say "Made in Mexico" on them.

EDIT: Never mind. I see from Coker's website that they are not the same. I should have bought the American Classics. Maybe they wouldn't have had the irregularities that the ones I bought had.

Fri Apr 22, 2011 6:20 am

[quote="Mike_uvt"] Stock Steve wrote: Scott H wrote:
I am pretty sure the BFGs and American Classics that Universal sells are just re-marketed tires from Coker.

But the Vredesteins shown on that page (non whitewalls, unfortunately) are probably OG from the manufacturer (I've a couple of sets of those and they are very good quality).

Re-marketed tires? If you are implying by stating that Universal sells only blemmed or second line tires, you are completely mistaken.

I was in no way implying that the tires Universal sells are blemmed or second line, Mike.

I was suggesting that the specific tires mentioned are essentially the exact same ones that a customer can buy from Coker.

Do YOU have any recommendation on the American Classic vs. the BF Goodrich in the 165R15 size with 3/4" white wall (original theme of this thread), since the previously mentioned web page shows that your company sells both?

Thanks for the additional info & clarification.

Fri Apr 22, 2011 6:31 am

79SuperVert wrote: Is "American Classic" the same as "Coker Classic"? Because the Coker Classics I bought say "Made in Mexico" on them.

They are two completely different tires. Both are manufactured in separate molds at different factories. The American Classic is made here in Indiana PA USA.

The American Classic is actually a Michelin tread design mold that was extremely popular in the early 2000's. As I understand it, when they retired the molds the folks at American Classic purchased them, modified the molds, and developed it into a wide white wall radial.

The AC tire is made in small batches, approximately 200-300 at a time. The smaller batches allows greater quality control, and keeps a fresher tire on out warehouse racks.

Fri Apr 22, 2011 6:40 am

Here's another slightly off-topic question, Mike:

Why is it that the quality of the Firestone 5.60x15s seems to have deteriorated so much in recent years?

Fri Apr 22, 2011 6:45 am

Mike_uvt wrote: 79SuperVert wrote: Is "American Classic" the same as "Coker Classic"? Because the Coker Classics I bought say "Made in Mexico" on them.

They are two completely different tires. Both are manufactured in separate molds at different factories. The American Classic is made here in Indiana PA USA.

The American Classic is actually a Michelin tread design mold that was extremely popular in the early 2000's. As I understand it, when they retired the molds the folks at American Classic purchased them, modified the molds, and developed it into a wide white wall radial.

The AC tire is made in small batches, approximately 200-300 at a time. The smaller batches allows greater quality control, and keeps a fresher tire on out warehouse racks.

I now wish I had done more research on this. The Coker catalog doesn't explain the differences between the AC and the CC tires. If I still have my Beetle 10 years from now I will be more careful re: buying tires.

Fri Apr 22, 2011 7:09 am

Stock Steve wrote: Do YOU have any recommendation on the American Classic vs. the BF Goodrich in the 165R15 size with 3/4" white wall (original theme of this thread), since the previously mentioned web page shows that your company sells both?

Thanks for the additional info & clarification.

We have had good experience with both brands. Personally I prefer the AC over the BFG mostly because I am not a "name brand" buyer. I also like the look of the AC because it is a cleaner sidewall. By that I mean less large script writing on the side wall.

Another advantage AC has over the BFG is the UTQG rating. The AC is rated a 520BB, the BFG is rated at 300AC. The AC gets a much better mileage rating with virtually the same performance rating as the BFG.

A lot of the people purchasing the tires will never get the full tread life out of these tires because they install them on "occasionally" driven classic cars. That said, I guess the mileage rating really doesn't mean anything. However, if you are using them on a daily driver, the AC will provide a greater value for your dollar.

Fri Apr 22, 2011 9:56 am

Mike_uvt wrote: Stock Steve wrote: Do YOU have any recommendation on the American Classic vs. the BF Goodrich in the 165R15 size with 3/4" white wall (original theme of this thread), since the previously mentioned web page shows that your company sells both?

Thanks for the additional info & clarification.

We have had good experience with both brands. Personally I prefer the AC over the BFG mostly because I am not a "name brand" buyer. I also like the look of the AC because it is a cleaner sidewall. By that I mean less large script writing on the side wall.

Another advantage AC has over the BFG is the UTQG rating. The AC is rated a 520BB, the BFG is rated at 300AC. The AC gets a much better mileage rating with virtually the same performance rating as the BFG.

A lot of the people purchasing the tires will never get the full tread life out of these tires because they install them on "occasionally" driven classic cars. That said, I guess the mileage rating really doesn't mean anything. However, if you are using them on a daily driver, the AC will provide a greater value for your dollar.

Good stuff--thanks Mike.

I think in a lot of cases in the "collector car world," the mileage rating, like you say, doesn't mean a lot (speaking for myself, that's definitely the case).

I am not partial to either specific tread design (though greatly appreciate your comments about the origin of the AC tread design).

And of course, with my recent experience relating to what my local garage had to say about attempting to spin balance those expen$ive 5.60x15 Firestones (very recently acquired), I was concerned about general overall build quality.

Thanks again.

Tue May 31, 2011 9:57 am

For an update, I am now flush with a new set of four 165R15 American Classics, with narrow (3/4") whitewalls. They look positively *wonderful*.

I also have a freshly refinished set of 4" wide, 4-bolt stock wheels for my '70 Bug (actually six of them, and so I'm going to ask the garage to mount the new ACs on the best four out of the six), just wating for tires to be installed.

I plan to bring everything to the local garage for mounting & spin-balancing within the next couple of days, and will report back.