Westlake Tires Background
Westlake Tires is a budget tire brand that’s manufactured in china to provide affordable replacement tires for budget-conscious consumers. Don’t let the nation of origin dissuade you, though – the Westlake RP18 tire is a great value & offer a lot of durability for the dollars spent.
The Westlake RP18 tire is the least expensive tire Westlake offers – which makes sense when you consider that it’s made primarily for small cars, minivans, & some crossovers. The tire is offered in a range of sizes for wheels from 13-16 inches in diameter.
Westlake RP18 Features
Westlake provides a surprising amount of information on the tire, considering how low-end these tires position themselves. Notable features include a variable pitch tread pattern (Great for reducing road noise and ride quality) as well as a Goodyear-inspired houndstooth tread edge which helps on days where slick roads are just waiting to make you crash.
Also impressive at this price point is the quad-circumferential groove setup that helps draw more water away from the most worn parts of the tire to avoid the dreaded experience of hydroplaning.
The Verdict
How do those all those fancy technical terms translate into driving comfort and safety? Pretty well, all things considered. This tire will never go pound-for-pound with its more expensive competition, but it performs nothing short of admirably for a budget tire in its price range.
Snowy / Wet Road Handling
This is technically an all-season tire but you’d be best off swapping to winter tires when snow starts to fall, if you happen to live in a snowy climate. It handles rain admirably, though – it should have no issues handling your typical wet road, even when the rain really starts to fall.
Is the Westlake RP18 a good tire to buy?
Yes, it is. The Westlake RP18 is an affordable tire that should take care of you for tens of thousands of miles to come. Just don’t expect great handling & performance from a tire at this price point, and for god’s sake stay on the road!
We give it a 4/5 – it handles snow worse than an all-season tire should but is otherwise an excellent value.
