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Location: Valley Forge, Pa. | Hello again,
I just had a flat with a Coker tire. I just needed to get accross the street to get some air and used "Fix-A-Flat" enough to get me there. My tire had a 1/2" split right along between the edge between the wide white wall and the black. Appears to be a defect and not a ware issue. I might have 20,000 on them and only a couple years old. They were not rubbed or scuffed up. Is this a common problem with these tires? Has anyone had to deal with Coker as far as something like this? Will they help if it is truly a defect? These tires are expensive.
I have never pulled or even looked at the spare and needed it then. I purchased this 1960 Plymouth Suburban with 59,000 org. miles. The spare looks great. It is a Goodyear with thin white wall. What was on this car from the dealer?
Thanks again,
Karl. |
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Posts: 1053
Location: Ny | Hi Karl,
You'll never know if Coker will warranty the tire unless you try. The worst they can say is "no", and then you'll be in the same situation as you are now. I, personally, wont deal with Coker Tire. You can get the same thing at a much more reasonable price through other vendors.
As far as your spare is concerned, I couldn't tell you. Perhaps someone else here can let you know. I would be leary of putting any real mileage on it if it has any age to it. |
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Posts: 3408
Location: Chestertown, NY ( near Lake George) | Call Coker, they replaced 4 5 year old tires on a Cadillac that I was working on last summer. I shipped them back, they inspected them and agreed there was a defect in 3 of them, shipped 4 back to me n/c. |
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Location: Netherlands | I'll agree with Jessica here that I also most likely will never buy Cokers for my cars. I've read too many stories where new tires where out of round, or had some other defect straight from their warehouse.
I mean, Coker, you're a tire-company. The least you can do is check if your tires are actually 'round' before they head out the door.
But I agree with Shep aswell, you gotta at least give them the opportunity to check out, fix or warrant the tire. |
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Expert 5K+
Posts: 5139
Location: cornpatch county, Southwest IOA | Take into consideration- the cost of shipping a tire to them. If they don't come across, then you loose even more money. Maybe ask Coker if they have a dealer near you.....................................MO |
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Location: Under the X in Texas | I wonder HOW MANY different sotries I have heard from people who had problems with the construction of Coker tires, how many warranty claims have been submitted, how many times Coker did something and how many more times Coker refused to do anything. But then I wonder HOW MANY MORE hobbyists were intimidated by Coker's huge size and presence in the hobby so they never even tried to make a claim or they gave up after one call to Coker where their standard response is "Sorry" because otherwise it costs them money. I wonder if Coker would ever publish their return ratio of tires returned on warranty claims to tires sold -- I'll bet they won't because it has to be incredibly high. Just because a company spends hundreds of thousands of advertising dollars to promote its product does not mean that it invests adequate money into the quality of its products.
But I really wonder why hobbyists continue to buy from Coker when there are multiple alternative companies out there about whom you virtually NEVER hear any complaint whatsoever.
Sign me a happy Diamond Back customer. |
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Posts: 1352
Location: Springville, CA | Yeah for Diamondback Tires !!!!!! |
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Posts: 3967
Location: DFW, TX | I've had two sets of Coker tires. One set was bias plies, the other was radials.
The bias plies wore out on the front very quickly, but I'll attribute that to the alignment issues I have with lowering my wagon so severely. They were also a bit small to be mounted on the "heavy side" of a 3700lb station wagon (5.90-15s). One other irritating thing that I noticed well into the life of the tires, is that one of them had an out of round whitewall, so I had been driving thousands of miles with a woogedy whitewall. How embarrassing. But they did have a nice pie crust edge that looked really good.
As for the radials, they are fine. I think the whitewall stands out a little far from the tire, kind of like an iron-on patch looks on a shirt. But they drive infinitely better than the bias plies (no surprise) and they are wearing much better too. I would recommend these tires to anyone.
I think I will try Diamond Backs for my next set. I've heard a lot of good about them, and no complaints. |
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Posts: 3575
Location: Netherlands | I have a set of custommade DiamondBacks radials on my '62 NY wagon.
Mounted the tires by hand on a new set of Summit Supremes wheels and I actually still need to balance them, but well upto 60mph there's no vibration to be felt.
Edited by BigBlockMopar 2010-01-05 11:28 AM
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Posts: 143
Location: Atlanta, GA |
I bought the Goodyear Super Cushion Deluxe from Kelsey Tires and have been very happy. I have a 61 Chrysler Newport that had 760-15 Goodyear Bluestreak wide whitewalls factory installed (original spare in the trunk never been on the ground) and the Super Cushion Deluxe is nearly a spitting image with the diamond shape design at the edge of the sidewal. I have had them for nearly four years and am pleased.
As to the thin whitewall tires, I understand they first appeared on the 1962 model year for Chrysler. If that is true, the spare may not be the original. Goodyear has a good history section on their website as to when the various tires were produced and you may be able to match the tire name to see how old it is.
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Location: Under the X in Texas | BigBlockMopar - 2010-01-05 10:27 AM I have a set of custommade DiamondBacks radials on my '62 NY wagon. Mounted the tires by hand on a new set of Summit Supremes wheels and I actually still need to balance them, but well upto 60mph there's no vibration to be felt. The double pin stripes on the Supremes are going to be very cool on your wagon!!! Post that pic when mounted! |
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Elite Veteran
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Location: Ny | Diamondback's, though I've not had the opportunity to own my own set, are by far a much better quality tire. Some of their best selling WWW's sport a michelin or BFG tread that I am thoroughly familiar with. The siping makes all of the difference in longevity of wear, handling, and traction.
Not only have I seen multiple complaints about Coker tires, but the staff that I have encountered are rude. How do they sell so many tires? StillOutThere absolutely hit it on the nose. Advertising. Their information is so readily available to the public that it often becomes a first call for a lot of classic car owners. Same techniques business' in the Yellow Pages use... a bigger ad draws more attention. If they advertise so much in so many magazines, they've got to be good, right? In my opinion, Coker's money spent on advertising is a waste, because if they knew anything about running a successful business, they'd realize that aquiring a new customer can cost 5 times more than satisfying or retaining their current customer base.
Also, the difference is also in the comparison of the brands. Some people, while being car savy or mechanically inclined, really don't know much when it comes to tires. Unfortunately they end up settling for less because the Coker tire is "better than the ones that were on it before."
Even if you're not about to invest the kind of money that Diamondbacks run for, there are so many alternatives to Coker tire that are PRICED way better than they are. All it involves is utilizing GOOGLE or forums such as this that can educate a buyer.
Edited by Jessica 2010-01-05 4:39 PM
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Expert
Posts: 3967
Location: DFW, TX | I suggest taking everyone's opinions with a grain of salt.
If Coker sells 90% of the antique/resto tires on the market, who do you think you'll hear 90% of the complaints about??
Also, there are so many different products being sold by Coker that the problems experienced by one customer are unrelated to a product that you intend to buy.
As stated, I've never heard ANY complaints about Diamond Back, and that alone is enough to get me to buy my next set of tires through them. I've heard a couple of rumblings about Hurst tires and nothing about Radirs. Probably because those brands are VERY expensive and not a lot of people are buying them. And the gripes probably come from people demanding an ultra-quality product for the price.
I'm not a Coker apologist, I was ticked about the tire wear and whitewall concentricity issues of my tires. I've heard many times how difficult they can be to deal with when ordering or making warranty claims. But there sure are a lot of Coker customers out there... |
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Posts: 3575
Location: Netherlands | 'burb,
you make me feel like a goldchainer... I just bought a pair of Hurst cheater slicks... 
StillOutThere - 2010-01-05 3:32 PM
The double pin stripes on the Supremes are going to be very cool on your wagon!!! Post that pic when mounted!
The pics of the tires and wheels was 3 years ago.
I've posted the wagon here and there on this site and also the HAMB, but here it is again for good times sake... 
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Posts: 3967
Location: DFW, TX | Love that wagon, man.
I was also going to buy some Hurst cheater slicks, but at $650/pr, I figured I better hold off until it's roadworthy. 
I'd really like to try the Radir 8.20-15s, but while I want a treaded tire, I don't want that goofy checkered flag pattern they use.  |
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Location: Netherlands | You must have been looking at their 'Casler' slick.
I don't like the coarseness of that tire's pie-crust.
I would've liked a more normal profile aswell but I went for the HURST 28-3/4" X 8-1/2" X 15" "PIE CRUST".
With their 'Retro grooving' it totalled to $400 for the pair.
Retro-grooving:
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Posts: 1053
Location: Ny | Lookin sharp, BBM. |
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Location: cornpatch county, Southwest IOA | 61Newport413 - 2010-01-05 12:44 PM
I bought the Goodyear Super Cushion Deluxe from Kelsey Tires and have been very happy. I have a 61 Chrysler Newport that had 760-15 Goodyear Bluestreak wide whitewalls factory installed (original spare in the trunk never been on the ground) and the Super Cushion Deluxe is nearly a spitting image with the diamond shape design at the edge of the sidewal. I have had them for nearly four years and am pleased.
As to the thin whitewall tires, I understand they first appeared on the 1962 model year for Chrysler. If that is true, the spare may not be the original. Goodyear has a good history section on their website as to when the various tires were produced and you may be able to match the tire name to see how old it is.
I don't know why everyone thinks Coker and Diamondback is the only thing to have. Do yourself a favor and check out Goodyear by Kelsey tire---I have never heard a complaint about them---I really like my tires from them .. Central US located so shipping isn't so much...........................MO |
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Location: cornpatch county, Southwest IOA | 57burb - 2010-01-05 6:08 PM
Love that wagon, man.
I was also going to buy some Hurst cheater slicks, but at $650/pr, I figured I better hold off until it's roadworthy.
I'd really like to try the Radir 8.20-15s, but while I want a treaded tire, I don't want that goofy checkered flag pattern they use. :wince: |
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Location: Netherlands |  |
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Location: Ny | I chose Diamondback specifically because I am highly familiar with the tread pattern and siping. They are based on tread designs from Michelin and BFG tires I sold at Sears.
Lucas Tire sells a lot of the same products that Coker does at a better price. PLUS they also have portawalls for those who prefer getting tires local, but still want the wide white sidewall. They're competitive in pricing and even outprice Kelsey. I've not bought from them, but perhaps someone else has experience and can relate what their customer service is like? I've never heard anything bad from them or Kelsey. |
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Posts: 3967
Location: DFW, TX | My Coker radials are built from BFG cases.
As for Portawalls, they are really not meant for use with the soft sidewalls of modern radial tires. The "bulge" where a radial tire meets the ground causes the Portawall to flare out. At speed, this causes them to flap around like crazy.
Thank you for the tip on Lucas, I will have to check them out. |
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Location: Ny | My Rambler had portawalls on it and they appeared to be "glued" on with some sort of adhesive in addition to being seated at the bead, unless it was a different type of sidewall insert. All that was left was a crusty residue since the tires/portawalls were several years old. Good info to know, though. I wasn't familiar with how they worked since I've never had to install them before.
Edited by Jessica 2010-01-07 12:00 AM
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Expert 5K+
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Location: cornpatch county, Southwest IOA | Thanks BIGBLOCK. The croos flags in the old days were much smaller and many more of them.
I do like the pie-crust of the last tires (W cross flags) better than the Hurst's. . What brand are they and can they be had with blackwalls?.................MO |
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Location: Under the X in Texas | Jessica - 2010-01-06 11:20 AM SNIP Lucas Tire sells a lot of the same products that Coker does at a better price. PLUS they also have portawalls for those who prefer getting tires local, but still want the wide white sidewall. They're competitive in pricing and even outprice Kelsey. I've not bought from them, but perhaps someone else has experience and can relate what their customer service is like? I've never heard anything bad from them or Kelsey. Lucas was the FIRST reasonably priced seller of collector car tires that I can remember in this hobby. They were the biggest company handling all the available brands of tires back in the days when there was extremely little available to keep our cars rolling on original looking stock. Stan Lucas is the man that should be credited with keeping a tire industry alive to serve our hobby. It was he that bought old molds from Firestone specifically and perhaps others and sent them off to New Zealand to get some 600X16 whitewall and blackwalls made for old Fords and others and that was the most needed tire in this hobby. He expanded from there. He became a stocking dealer for the high end collector tires because of all the high end collector cars around his Long Beach, CA first store. We owe him a debt of gratitude. Stan always stood behind his tires despite the fact that in the early days of providing tires to the hobby there was very small volume and I'm sure a lot more problems in manufacture. Then along came Corky Coker who saw an opportunity and spent hundreds of thousands of dollars with flashy advertising and promotion at every possible car show and publication and produced cheap collector tires under his own name because he knew that if there is anything Americans like it is low price. Lucas still has low overhead which allows them to compete on price and it is the only way they survive but if they have your tire, they deserve and will earn your business. |
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Location: Netherlands | Steve, I'm pretty sure the crossed flag-tires only have a whitewall on one side, so they can be reversed if you want a black wall.
But I think they should also be able to make an entire black wall tire I guess.
Here's the website I got the image from:
http://www.radirwheels.com/contents.htm
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Posts: 1352
Location: Springville, CA | Is anybody familiar with how Diamondbacks' process works.
Loyd |
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Posts: 1053
Location: Ny | http://www.widewhitewalltires.com/howtiresmade.html
StillOutThere: That is great information to be had. Unfortunately I haven't been in the hobby as long as some of you, but it's important to support those who make it great rather than those who cheapen it or only put a pricetag on it.
Edited by Jessica 2010-01-07 1:46 PM
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Posts: 1490
Location: Florida | Danny, can those Hurst tires be used on an everyday street-driven car, and still expect decent treadwear? I had called them months ago and they wouldn't commit to anything more than their site states - "For Racing Use". I ran retreads as a 16 year-old on my 1963 Newport I had in High School with nary a problem - and I beat the crap out of that car for 100,000 miles. The retreads did have a little less life in 'em than did a medium-priced "new" tire - but then, I was looking for value, not appearance/performance as I am now.
I sure do like the looks of the ones I have pictured below, though for my Chryslers, they are a bit narrow - but Hurst's offerings change and evolve some since I've been watching their site.
With all that said, I'll probably end up with some Diamondbacks. I've only heard good things about them and their service.
Edited by Chopper John 2010-01-07 2:37 PM
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Location: DFW, TX | John, all the tires mentioned here are a compromise for looks. Hurst especially, since they are trying to make an old-style tire that is usable for drag racing. I wouldn't plan on getting many miles out of them...
That second picture you posted brings up an interesting point. Be aware that the yellow Hurst logo is not a removable sticker; it is painted on the tire. |
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Location: Valley Forge, Pa. | Hello again and thanks for all the interesting reading.
I see all these different suggested manufacturers. The only reason I went with the expensive Coker is that I thought they were the only ones making a wide white radial[?]. I'd be more than happy to try a different brand if I can find them. I live a short ways from Hershey, Pa. and they have a Coker dealer.
I also found that as soon as I rotated them, I developed a lot of road noise that I can only attribute to the tires.
No ideas to the factory original tire? My spare has a 1/2" whitewall "GOODYEAR POLYESTER 8.25 X 14 2 PLY".
Thanks again,
Karl. |
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Veteran
Posts: 143
Location: Atlanta, GA |
I just read on the Goodyear website that they developped the polyester cord in 1962. I don't think Goodyear introduced polyester tires until the mid 1960s. Kelly Tire sells the Goodyear Power Cushion which is a polyester cord and says it was introduced in 1965. Thus I don't think you have an original spare from 1959. In 1959 they would have been rayon or nylon cord. I have the original spare in my 1961 Chrysler Newport. It is a Goodyear Bluestreak and the sidewall shows the word nylon.
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Posts: 1348
Location: Valley Forge, Pa. | Thanks,
that too bad, it is a very nice tire.
Maybe I can find an orginal usage for it and find someone that could use it. I personally don't feel all that comfortable with a nearly 50 year old spare and can deal with not being totally correct.
Thanks again!
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Coker tire issue? and orginal itre ?
