[Surferdude]

I've recently come across these tyres through customer enquiries.
In fact, it turns out they are imported to Australia by the same people who bring in the well known Cooper brand which is essentially for 4 wheel drive vehicles.
Anyway the Mastercraft are American and are marketed with a mileage warranty similar to Cooper.
I'll provide a link to the website for anyone who's interested to investigate further.
It seems our stores have sold quite few sets of these and the initial feedback is that they are quiet and give good grip. I've not driven on them myself but talked to the guys who've been fitting them and wheel aligning.
Now the real POD is that they guarantee up to 80,000 klm of tread life. (195/65R15 - i30 size - is 70,000 klm).
The only requirement is that you have a rotate, balance and alignment every 10,000 klm.
The "Avenger" car tyre is only a four rib pattern and I prefer five but there's plenty of 4 rib brands out there.
Might be worth a look if you are in the market.
In any case, I'd appreciate feedback from anyone who knows anything about them.

Trev

http://www.mastercrafttires.com.au/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1:mastercraft-avenger-lsr-australias-only-car-tyre-with-a-mileage-warranty-up-to-80000-kilometres&catid=1&Itemid=14

Have a bit of a wander around their website.

[Dazzler]

Cat amongst the Pigeons stuff again Trev...

They look OK and the warranty is impressive and I don't have a problem with the rotation every 10,000kms.

However,  the way I see it for people like Rusty nutz and I that don't usually bother with balance and alignment unless there is an issue wouldn't the cost of these stipulated balances and alignments offset any financial gain from the extra mileage 

[Surferdude]

Cat amongst the Pigeons stuff again Trev...

They look OK and the warranty is impressive and I don't have a problem with the rotation every 10,000kms.

However,  the way I see it for people like Rusty nutz and I that don't usually bother with balance and alignment unless there is an issue wouldn't the cost of these stipulated balances and alignments offset any financial gain from the extra mileage 

Absolutely Dazz.
However, there are a lot of people out there who never get anywhere near the true potential out of their tyres because of wheel alignment problems and see these offers as a godsend.
The Cooper warranty has been around for years and in my experience, most people who don't take advantage of the 10,000 klm services still get the promised mileage, or close to it. Those who do the services get much more.
Whenever I make the offer to potential buyers I make sure I explain both sides of the argument to them but most people are happy to take advantage of it and religiously turn up for their services. Especially with 4WD vehicles which are put to the use for which they are designed, regular alignment and balance checks make good sense to correct rim buckles and suspension misalignment as soon as possible.
And that's the Cooper market segment.

[Dazzler]

It' a bit like Hardly Normal pushing the Extended warranty on some very reliable products.. I can see why they do it (money for jam )

Blame my parents .. I was bought up always looking to save a $$$ (it hasn't done me any harm) 

[rustynutz]

What sort of dollars are we looking at, Trev?
I assume they would be sold at a fairly premium price negating much of the advantage of the longer life of the tyre, yes?  :-\

[Surferdude]

What sort of dollars are we looking at, Trev?
I assume they would be sold at a fairly premium price negating much of the advantage of the longer life of the tyre, yes?  :-\

To be honest I don't know the price Rusty.
I'll check next Friday when I'm working again.
In Cooper's case they are in line with the other brand names, no premium so I'm guessing the Mastercrafts will be similarly priced

[rustynutz]

Ta for that....cheers 

[rustynutz]

Just got a price, $189rrp for 205/55R16 tyres.....  :-\

[Surferdude]

Just got a price, $189rrp for 205/55R16 tyres.....  :-\

And $134 for 195/65R15

As I thought, on a par with the better known brands.

Trev

[rustynutz]

It must be a while since I bought tyres, I thought $189 was bloody expensive....

[Surferdude]

It must be a while since I bought tyres, I thought $189 was bloody expensive....

Not for a 205/55R16.

However, as I said elsewhere recently, you can get the same size for probably 120+ if you're not too concerned about quality.

[rustynutz]

I like quality, Trev....but it's a bugger having champagne tastes when you're on a beer budget.... 

[beerman]

Every 10k? That would be every 3 months for me, which seems excessive for a car that does the Brisbane/Gold Coast run 5 days a week. If they reckon 80k I would be expecting close to 100. If the tyres tread is level waranty should be honoured, obviously if one edge is worn and the 10k thing hasn't been done it is different.

Wheel alignment and balance costs suck. You won't get much change from $80. Which means at the 70 k mark you could have bought a new set.....and your about to need new ones.

Plus the warranty is pro rata so if you hit 50k and they die you'll get $40 a wheel back. Which is nice to get, but you've spent $400 to get it.

That said I might have considered them on the old XD.....it spent more time on the wheel alignment machine than the road.

[Surferdude]

Every 10k? That would be every 3 months for me, which seems excessive for a car that does the Brisbane/Gold Coast run 5 days a week. If they reckon 80k I would be expecting close to 100. If the tyres tread is level waranty should be honoured, obviously if one edge is worn and the 10k thing hasn't been done it is different.

Wheel alignment and balance costs suck. You won't get much change from $80. Which means at the 70 k mark you could have bought a new set.....and your about to need new ones.

Plus the warranty is pro rata so if you hit 50k and they die you'll get $40 a wheel back. Which is nice to get, but you've spent $400 to get it.

That said I might have considered them on the old XD.....it spent more time on the wheel alignment machine than the road.

Which is pretty much what I said above. In essence, if the manufacturer is prepared to give you a mileage warranty, you can bet he's confident you'll reach it if your alignment and balance are OK. So, if you as a customer elect not to do the 10,000 klm services and your balance and alignment are OK, then you can be pretty sure of getting to the promised distance. And even if you're a few klm short, you're still in front financially.
One thing though,  If the tyres tread is level waranty should be honoured, . Sorry. Can't agree with you on this. The manufacturer will honour a warranty on the tyre as required by law (no manufacturing faults) but I see no reason why they should be forced to honour what is essentially a "bonus" offer unless you meet their criteria.

Having said all that, I imagine you'd get pretty good mileage out of your tyres running back and forth to the Coast every day.

[beerman]

Yeah, got 80,000 out of a set of yokohama's on the EL. Brake pads last forever too.

The downside is the car i picked up on 4/6/10 now has close to 22k on it.