pickncrew

I upgraded to 18's on my '06 RL and went with the Michelin Primacy MXV4 tires, which were some $40 cheaper than the Bridgestone Turanza Serenty. The Primacy is ranked #1 in the Grand Touring All Season category and has a high mileage rating with a UTQG of 620AA. I travel about 30k miles per year in all weather and was looking for a good set of tires that would hopefully last 2-years.

I bought the tire & wheel package online and they came pre-mounted. After installing them on the RL I noticed bad vibrations, shimmy etc. First thing I did was get an alignment at Acura to make sure things were spot-on there. They also ran it on the lift and saw noticeable wheel hop. Long story short, one by one I had the tires re-checked on a Hunter Road Force balancer at a local new car dealer and the end result was that 3 of the 4 tires were defective and could not be forced-matched to the rim. After 7 trips to the garage and more $$$ spent, I now have a good set of tires & wheels. The wheels were never the problem but for some reason these tires are not very round, even though they balanced okay. All 3 replacement tires force-checked fine, so go figure. From this experience I will always specify my wheels/tires be balanced on the Hunter Road Force machine, which checks all kinds of things.

On a positive note the RL's steering and cornering is more responsive with the 18's, though the ride is a little stiffer and you can feel more bumps over stock wheels, as was expected. I averaged 27.3 mpg on a 100 mile trip with the AC on and cruise set at 75 so I am happy about that. In hindsight I wish I paid more money and got the Bridgestone Serenities; just figuring I wouldn't have had all these problems. I've had quite a few Michelin's but this may be the last set of Michelin's I ever buy to be honest with you. This is just my experience and it does not mean you will run into the same thing, but just wanted to give you a heads up. Obviously vibrations could be caused by many things but when you put a new set of tires on you do not expect to be shaking down the road.

TampaRLX-SH

Sorry to hear. It is hugely frustrating to get new tires and have to go into triage with them.

I personally have had good luck with Michelins. But I have to say I hear many recent complaints (and reviews) that make me thing the quality is dropping. And we all know Michelins are not cheap.

My brother just put BS Serenity on his Avalon and I am keenly in interested how they settly in. They were less expensive than the Michelins that came with the car and had a better warranty.

The Serenity is also manufactured in Japan, not the US, so even that detail caught my eye.

lumpulus

IMHO, I just don't get why Honda uses Michelins for there OEM suplier for almost the whole line. The ONE thing they have going for them(across the board) is tread life.

I've had Hondas\Acuras since 1984 and every time I've replaced the stock Michelins with something else(mostly Dunlops) I am astounded by the quieter ride, better handling, BOTH in the wet and dry, but especially the wet, and usually cheaper price. This time I just got the General Exclaims for $113 a tire, and so far I am very impressed...much less noise, but still waiting for it to rain, and to test it on my favorite off ramp.

Chas2

I am assuming you got the tire/wheel package from the Tire Rack? How were they to deal with in the warranty and service process? Did they have you go to a local Michelin dealer for diagnosis? What did they advise?

I always hear that they have good after sale service, but have never actually had to use them for after sales service.

pickncrew

Yes / Excellent / No / Advised they would cover up to $25 per wheel for Road Force balance check done locally. Sent replacement tire when it could not be brought within spec, x3 times in my case and paid shipping both ways. They basically file the warranty claim for you and in this case they did the consulting with Michelin. They took care of me and I am impressed and will buy from them again, even though theoretically they should have higher standards for low profile passenger tires before shipping them out the door. Low profile tires tend to amplify imperfections in any tire.

kmcheney

My experience was different than yours. I also bought the Michelin Primacy's from Tire Rack but I had them mounted locally on a new set of A-Spec 18 rims. They were Road Force balanced with no issues and have been superb. Good grip, quiet, and smooth.

Like you, I noticed crisper handling when I changed to the 18 inch wheels and a slightly firmer ride, but I found it to be a big improvement.

CadiGTi

Was the problem the aftermarket wheels????

Many aftermarket wheels do not run as true as OEM and the wheel becomes the issue, not the tire.

Ken1997TL

Rolling resistance or lack thereof, which means a hard tire thats noisy, had a choppy ride and little stiffness in the sidewalls.

But.. your gas mileage is (in theory) better than most other tires.

pickncrew

The Hunter Roadforce did not detect any problems with the wheels but high and low spots in the tires.