I just replaced all the tires on our Saturn Vue with Toyo from Les Schwab when we were in Washington just two months ago. Nothing wrong with the Toyo, they have a great reputation as a premium tire. Here's my predicament:
- We full time and are on our third trip around the country. Replaced all my tires on the Vue tow vehicle in May this year with Toyo Eclipse.
- On July 27th in Durango, CO one of the tires was losing air. Located a Toyo tire dealer in Durango. Found a large nail close to the sidewall and the tip has rubbed against the sidewall exposing the cord. Cannot be fixed.
- Toyo dealer cannot order a replacement tire because the Eclipse is a proprietary model only available from Les Schwab. Where is the closest Les Schwab? Price, Utah, 300 miles from Durango, CO.
- They will honor a road hazard warranty but, only at one of their dealer locations. To get a replacement to match the set, we have to spend the time and money to re-route to Price, UT. A few days and fuel cost. What if I was on the east coast? I would be out of luck.
Update:
Made it to Price, UT from Farmington, NM, about a 315 mile trip to visit Les Schwab.
I kept the punctured tire with internal sidewall damage. They replaced it free of charge, no questions asked.
If I have more issues with these tires further away from the western area where they do business, I might be out of luck.
The Toyo Eclipse tires offered by Les Schwab are not "proprietary." It appears Les Schwab just has an exclusive distribution agreement for certain Toyo model tires in the United States. If you look at the Toyo Canada website, the Eclipse is listed just like any other tire model. There is a video, specs, completely above-board and not second-class.
I LOVE these tires, which I put on my 2007 Suzuki SX4 this weekend at a Les Schwab in Fremont, CA. My biggest complaint about the car was road noise and the shaking of the steering wheel when I exceeded speeds of 72 mph. I just thought it was because I bought an economy car. With these Toyo Eclipse tires, it is like I'm driving a brand new car. I cannot believe the difference. The shaking was apparently a tire-balancing issue, and Les Schwab took care of it.
Hi Rhys,
I agree; they are great tires.
Proprietary or Exclusive means pretty much the same to me in the USA. Availability in Canada is of no help.
My problem is if I have a tire issue outside the Les Schwab dealer area, other Toyo dealers will not honor the warranty and cannot get replacements for the Eclipse. If I need a replacement, it is a pain to have to wait for Les Schwab to ship it to me.
Thanks for your heads up and good experience.
I purchased the Toyo Eclips for my 2007 Monte Carlo, I put 20K miles on them & finally had to have them taken off. These damaged struts, shocks, front brake pads, rotors,and General Motors (Chev. Div,) hasn't been able to find out why it is still riding rough. This car has to have a Touring Tire on it which the Eclips did not meet for the manufacture tire requirements. Good Year Eagles aren't any better for this car & I still don't know what is going to fix the rough ride, but so far it has cost me a fortune.
Hate to tell you this, but a tire will not damage your shocks, struts, pads, and rotors. just a heads up.
put on cooper tires. problem solved and they are made in the USA
I just purchased some Eclipse tires for my 1995 Chev Silverado in Colfax, WA., but the tires will be used in Mountlake Terrace, WA (near Seattle). If something goes wrong with the tires, is there a dealer near Mountlake Terrace who can honor the warranty and supply me with an exact replacement tire? Dated 10/24/16
Jim,
I would call Toyo. My experience was with Les Shwab with stores all over the northwest. Any Schwab store honored the warranty.