24th Dec 2006, 14:45
Shouldn't a high end car, come with high end tires? just wondering. Where else did they cheap out in?
25th Dec 2006, 10:08
"What else did they cheap out in?"
Interiors, quality, chassis components, etc.
One automobile pub had a CTS-V, the top of the line, for a long term test and it had endless quality problems during its tenure with them.
11th Jan 2007, 13:15
Disliking a car because of it's tires is like disliking a person because of their hair.
6th Mar 2007, 11:48
It's interesting that Mercedes now has the WORST reliability ratings of ANY car in Consumer Reports surveys. Fully EIGHT of the Mercedes line has "worse than average" reliability. In terms of reliability the CTS exceeds most BMW and Mercedes models easily.
20th Jul 2007, 19:16
Stock tires are notoriously lousy, especially on base models. Car makers primarily put on tires that a) maximize fuel economy (i.e. tires with less traction), and b) are cheap, because it's so easy to "hide" a subpar tire in a sales brochure. Most everybody understands things like horsepower and fuel economy, and can instantly judge whether an interior is nice or not, but unless you take your test drive on the track or in inclement weather, you'll have no idea whether the stock Michelin/Bridgestone/whatever is any good or not.
I was amazed at the improvement in grip when I replaced my stock Ford Contour tires with some Fuzion ZRIs (Firestone sub-brand). Even when brand new my stock tires were a little slippery in the rain and downright scary in snow. The Fuzions were a huge improvement, but at a price of $500.
12th Sep 2007, 09:55
I have a 2003 CTS and I love my car. I am not happy with having to get tires so often. Has anyone ever heard of a different alignment that would make the tires last longer? My husbands saw somewhere about not setting up the CTS as a sports car, but as a regular car and the tires would last longer. Anyone else ever heard that??
4th Nov 2007, 17:10
I don't own a Cadillac, but my Lexus es 330 2005 has 24000 miles on it and it needs a second set of tires already.
27th Jan 2008, 14:01
Sure it is a Cadillac and you hope the stock OEM tires would be better, but they are not. Rest assure the same happen with other manufacturers too. Those are usually the first thing I look forward to replace as some OEM tires aren't just cheap, but downright dangerous to drive on!
If you love the CTS, you would want to enhance that experience with better tires for a few hundred dollars. Your life worth at least that much I hope.
8th Jan 2018, 00:33
If CTS owners want to drive their cars on ice and snow, they will need to buy winter tires. And keep a light foot on the accelerator. If they want longer tire life, they will need to rotate the tires more often. Or maybe trade some cornering grip for tire life, and run a tire made with a harder, longer lasting compound.
If you ask people that own other cars with larger wheels and low profile tires, and or have lowering springs installed, they will have same stories of wearing the inside edges of the tires from the negative camber, and possibly some tire cupping from other alignment settings and/or bad wheel bearings, tie rod ends.
8th Jan 2018, 09:27
9:55 heard correct. I have had sports cars with massive factory tire sizes and it works. Rotations front to back were impossible due to different tire sizes. Had the alignments done at dealerships with nice alignment equipment. The other issue is softer tire compounds for better gripping on many cars, reducing tread life. Our tires were nitrogen filled and monitored through the dash display. Some tire brands are a factor. Worst for us were Goodyear run flats. Replacement 10-15k miles. One puncture and new tires had to be replaced (yet another). The tires were nice to get you home or to a tire store only. And likely the tires were not in stock when arriving.
29th Nov 2006, 16:46
Sadly, the CTS base models do come with some very poorly sized and under-engineered tires. As the previous comment states, it is a very sound and wise investment to upgrade to some high-end performance tires. I found out the hard way about cheap tires. I wanted to save money on one of our vehicles and opted for some rather inexpensive off-brand tires with very poor road-holding ability. One week after installing the tires another driver pulled out in front of me on a rain-slicked road and I might as well have been on ice. The tires had no grip at all and I skidded into the other car, totalling both vehicles. My vehicle DID have anti-lock brakes, incidentally. The cheap tires skidded anyway. Not long after that, I was driving my wife's luxury SUV and an identical incident occurred. It was raining and a careless driver pulled directly out in front of us. Her car, equipped with 17" Michelin all-weather radials, stopped so quickly I couldn't believe it!! It felt as if we were on dry pavement rather than in the middle of a downpour. Do yourself and your passengers a big favor and invest in some high-end tires.