According to the 2018 J.D. Power U.S. Original Equipment Tire Customer Satisfaction Study, overall customer satisfaction with original equipment tires has improved significantly since 2015.
The notable news is that run-flat tires are closing the satisfaction gap with conventional tires.
“The rise in satisfaction helps tire manufacturers’ efforts to meet the demands of OEMs while simultaneously improving the customer experience,” said Brent Gruber, senior director of automotive quality practice at J.D. Power. “The fact that there is little difference in satisfaction between run-flat and traditional tires is a great example. Many OEMs have been replacing spare tires with run-flats to help reduce vehicle weight and improve fuel efficiency. Just a few years ago run-flat tires were a detriment to customer satisfaction but the experience is much more positive now.”
The 2018 U.S. Original Equipment Tire Customer Satisfaction Study is based on responses from 30,477 owners of 2016 and 2017 model-year vehicles, and was fielded in October-December 2017.