Affordable touring tires that are enjoyable to drive on can be a pain to find. They’ll need to be comfortable and quiet for long distances, and you’ll want to get some good mileage on them.
Primewell tires are a relatively new budget brand, with lots of options for passenger cars. But are they any good?
We give you a full view of two of the company’s popular all-season touring tires in this Primewell PS830/850 review. This includes a comparison of their performance on dry and wet surfaces to help you make an educated pick.
Our review includes:
- Tread pattern.
- Traction in dry conditions.
- Driving in wet conditions.
- Snow performance.
- Tread wear.
- Warranty.
- Comfort when driving.
- Noise level.
What To Consider Before Buying Budget Friendly Tires?
Especially if you’re driving an older car, you might not want to spend a fortune on your tires. Primewell tires are a low-budget option, but they’re not necessarily of poor quality. It would be a mistake to ignore budget-priced items when shopping, even when it comes to car or light truck tires.
However, there are some things you should think about before buying a new set of Primewell tires. We go through all this before we start with our Primewell PS830/850 review.
Safety
You might think that budget tires aren’t as safe as high-end models. But remember, manufacturers test all tires before they go on the market, so you can rest assured that they’re safe for general road use.
In fact, there’s a lot of safety information about your tire listed on its sidewall, including maximum tire pressure and load. To understand that information here’s a guide.
Your Driving Style
Driving style/speed is a definite factor when you’re deciding whether to buy a budget tire like Primewell PS830/850.
Careful drivers, who slow down for corners and go below the speed limit in rainy and snowy conditions, will do fine with a budget tire.
If you often make sudden turns or pass other cars abruptly while driving on the freeway, you might not be happy with them. A tire like the Primewell PS830 or even the more aggressive PS850 won’t have the grip you need, so you should go for higher quality tires.
Your Climate
A good portion of us live in places that get little snow each year, and average rainfall in the summer.
This kind of climate is great for a budget tire. In fact, most all-season tires are suitable for such conditions.
While both the Primewell PS830 and PS850 tires are technically all-season tires, they’re not ideal if you get heavy snowfall. In these cases, consider a more heavy-duty winter tire that can bite through snow and ice. And a budget tire can still be great for the summer months.
Tire Maintenance
There are other factors besides the price that keep your tires safe and in good performance. These depend on how well you keep up with correct tire maintenance.
Tire Rotation
Whether you’ve gone budget or high end, tire rotation is a necessity every six months or so. The Primewell PS830 and PS850 have a directional pattern, which means you can only rotate them from one spot on the car to another.
Tire Pressure
Under or over-inflated tires are unsafe, no matter what type of tire you’ve gone for. They can cause blowouts and crashes, so always keep the pressure in check. The correct inflation also helps with ride stability and comfort.
Look at your car’s user manual or the sticker on the front door to find the optimal pressure for your tires. Check the pressure regularly, at least once a month.
Replacement
Replacing your tires is important once the treads are worn. A good rule of thumb is to replace your tires about every 50,000 to 60,000 miles. High heat wears the rubber down quicker, so summer weather may make you replace them more often.
To determine the wear, you can also try the coin test. Take a quarter and place it upside down into the treads of your tire. The top part of Washington’s head should be covered by the tread. If you can see all of his head, then you need to replace your tires.
Primewell tires generally have a decent lifetime for budget tires. You can reasonably expect the PS830 and PS850 to last for about 50,000 miles. But, these are budget tires, so you can’t expect your Primewell tires to last as long as a high-end model would.
Primewell Tires Review: PS830 Touring Tires
Overall, we’re looking at an all-season touring tire that offers fairly good traction on icy or wet roads. This line of tires focuses on comfort, so you can expect a nice smooth ride.
But what really stands out about the Primewell PS830 is the value for the dollar.
Tread Pattern
Primewell PS830 tires are produced with a symmetrical tread design. Treads like these do best at providing a comfortable driving experience in dry summer conditions.
This all-season pattern is very common in non-high-performance vehicles and light trucks. They offer a smooth, quiet ride and last a long time, but they’re not made for maximum traction.
The directional pattern does allow for fewer options when it comes to rotating tires. You have to keep the tires always facing the same way, so you can only switch them from one spot on the car to another. What you can’t do is rotate the tires themselves, so you may get a slightly more uneven wear.
Traction in Dry Conditions
Primewell PS830 and PS850 tires are both S- and T-speed rated tires. The maximum speed that they can continue to perform is 112 to 188 mph (180 to 190 km), but it’s not a performance tire rating. You likely won’t be driving that fast, anyway, and the rating is enough to maintain traction at reasonable speeds in dry conditions.
The common customer experience is that the Primewell PS830 performs well on dry surfaces, especially in the summer. It’s best when driving at cruising speed on a mostly flat road. On a semi-fast or fast turn, they tend to have a little trouble gripping the pavement. You may experience some sliding in this circumstance.
Sand and dirt also made Primewell tires squirm a bit. Even a light dusting of gravel seemed to cause them trouble.
Traction in Wet Conditions
Like in dry conditions, the wet traction is satisfactory when driving mostly straight or with long gentle curves. Careful drivers will be quite satisfied with the wide shoulder grooves that help with handling on wet bends in the road.
The Primewell PS830 treads have four side circumferential grooves that are in place to ensure effective water evacuation. This helps keep your tires from sliding on wet pavement.
Once you start to push things, by taking a faster turn, the circumferential grooves can’t remove the water. You won’t feel solid on the road when taking a faster turn in rainy conditions.
Primewell tires got a traction rating of AB. The best is AA followed by A, B, and C. This rating measures the tire’s ability to stop on wet pavement. AB is a slightly above average rating.
Traction When Driving in Snow
You’ve probably already figured out the answer here. If they aren’t high quality in rain, how can they be great in snow?
That said, they perform well with careful and low speed driving on a light dusting of snow. Once you add a few inches of the white stuff and a hill or sharp turn, you may need to switch over to those snow tires at the back of the garage.
For occasional use, like a ski trip or rare snow storm, you can also keep a pair of snow chains in the trunk.
Tread Wear
Tread wear is crucial because it has an effect on the value of the tires. Budget tires that wear down quickly and need replacements aren’t really budget tires at all.
Primewell PS830s have a treadwear rating of 460. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that only about 30 percent of tires have a higher rating than these Primewell tires. But that also means that a good chunk of tires have a lower rating. So they aren’t the best, but they certainly aren’t the worst.
Warranty
Primewell tires do have a warranty against premature wear. But it isn’t a free replacement situation.
The company charges a prorated replacement price. You calculate this by using the following equation: multiply your warranty-mileage percent based on treadwear with the current price for tire replacement from the dealer.
Long story short, you’ll get some cash if they wear out too soon, but not a full refund.
Comfort Level
This is where the Primewell PS830 tires shine. The comfort level of driving is enhanced on both city and highway tarmac. Primewell tires are able to soften small bumps, road imperfections, and even speed bumps.
Many customers report having a very smooth ride with Primewell PS830 tires.
Noise Level
These tires underperformed in the noise category, especially at higher speeds, and even at some lower speeds. There was a sweet spot at about 50 mph where the noise was minimal. Over and under that limit resulted in unwanted noise.
They put the advanced variable pitch tread blocks there to give you a quiet ride, but they just didn’t go far enough.
Summary
Primewell PS830 tires do great in light rain and snow. They also perform well with careful drivers who stick to speed limits and slow down in bad weather.
They’re smooth and relatively quiet to drive on city streets. On the highway, you’ll likely get some noise and vibration, which can be tiring after a while. Still, drivers are generally happy with the durability and performance of these tires.
Primewell Tires Review: PS850 Touring Tires
The Primewell PS830 and PS850 are very similar tires, but there are some differences in performance. Let’s see how the PS850 compares to the PS830.
Tread Pattern
The PS850 tires have a more aggressive set of treads, so we can expect a few differences in performance. The channels are deeper, the tread is more pronounced and there’s a large center block to give you better traction.
Traction in Dry Conditions
This tire generally performs well in the summer, and on dry, straight roads with gentle curves. Unfortunately, some of the same complaints surface with the PS850.
This isn’t a high-performance tire, so you’ll notice a loosened grip to the pavement when taking faster corners. Road obstacles such as sand and stones have a negative effect on the way these tires perform.
Traction in Wet Conditions
The PS850 tires slightly outperform the PS830 tires in wet conditions due to the more aggressive tread. You can count on a better grip but again, stick to the speed limit, as you should anyway, in rainy weather for better road adhesion.
These tires have the same traction rating of the PS830s: AB. Considering the top score is AA, this is a higher-than-moderate score.
Traction When Driving in Snow
Like most all-season tires, these are fine in a light snow. Most folks who live in deep snowy areas usually have a set of special tires on hand for those harsher winters. The tread on the PS850s is a little better than the PS830s. But again, use in light snow only.
Tread Wear
Primewell PS850 tires have the same treadwear rating of 460. As mentioned, this means that approximately 30 percent of the tires on the marketplace have a higher rating. That’s not bad.
Warranty
Of course, you get the same warranty as with the PS830s. It’s prorated so you can get some money to put towards your replacement tires. Obviously, the sooner the tires wear down, the more money back you’ll get.
Comfort Level
Like its cousin the PS830, the PS850 focuses on a comfortable driving experience, and the results are there. Expect a smooth ride on unstable road conditions. Owners of these tires report a pleasant experience even when encountering imperfections and speed bumps.
Noise Level
Generally speaking, these tires rate better on noise than the PS830s. Yes, there’s still a humming sound in high-speed driving conditions, but it isn’t as severe. No one reported noise at lower speeds.
The Takeaway
So, as you’ve seen in our Primewell PS830/850 review, these models are a good alternative for drivers looking for tires at an affordable price.
Primewell tires focus on comfort and provide a smooth ride over bumpy road conditions. They can get a little noisy at highway speeds, but overall the driving experience is quite good.
Note that Primewell tires are ideal for careful drivers who live in non-extreme weather areas with only a little snow. However, they won’t perform as well as higher-priced tires in deep snow or extreme rain, or if you take fast curves or change lanes abruptly.