Primewell PS830/850 Tire Review and Rating

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Primewell PS830/850

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Dry
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Wet
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Snow
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Comfort
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Noise
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Treadwear
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Pros

  • Decent aquaplaning resistance
  • Comfortable over uneven roads
  • Very quiet
  • Among the cheapest options

Cons

  • Traction and grip are not the best
  • Not the longest-lasting

The growth of the tire industry has been following people’s demands since the begging of time. The result of this is tire models that adhere to our requirements, offering everything that we want. Today, the most popular type of tires you’ll find on the market are touring.

Considering that most of us want to spend our time commuting to work, it shouldn’t surprise you that we have so many of those. I’m a huge fan of pushing my car to the limit, but that will mean I will need to sacrifice comfort. With touring tires, you make another type of sacrifice. Since the tires aren’t designed for performance driving, you will be giving up the sporty driving for comfort.

In the tire world, there are several tire classes, and every one of them is attacking the touring segment. There are tons and tons of touring tires coming from both cheap and premium brands. On the more affordable side of the spectrum, we have Primewell.

If you haven’t heard of the brand, don’t feel bad. This is a sub-brand of Firestone that positions itself as a cheaper option, something people on a tight budget will like. The tires get some of Firestone’s technology, but don’t expect them to be as good.

In Primewell’s lineup, you have the PS830 and PS850, designed to be all-season touring tires. Don’t be confused about the two models – both are identical, with the PS850 featuring a slightly more aggressive tread pattern.

What are the features of the Primewell PS830/PS850?

As a low-cost brand, Primewell doesn’t offer a lot of features in terms of tires. Technically, the don’t expect some game-changing features from this tire.

Primewell PS830/850 Tire Review

As I mentioned, in terms of the tread design, there are some subtle differences between the PS830 and PS850. The second one features a bit more aggressive design that should offer a bit better snow. To be fair, the tread pattern is made for improved snow performance, enabling the tire to bite into the snow and find traction.

Wet performance is something that the PS830 and PS850 should be good at. Primewell designed the tread with 4 circumferential grooves made to channel water. Plus, plenty of lateral sipes and groves should evacuate the excess water to the sides.

The PS830 and PS850 are sold as all-season tires, meaning they should be good in summer and winter. Primewell also tweaked the tread by adding open shoulders and claims that they would enhance performance throughout the year.

On the performance side of things, the PS830 and PS850 have a few features worth mentioning. They feature extended shoulder grooves and a stiffened central rib. The result of these should be good cornering stability and lateral traction. On top of that, the tires should be stable at higher speeds thanks to the central rib.

Primewell also included some features that aim to improve refinement. The PS83 and PS850 have an Advanced Variable Pitch Tread Depth, a technology designed to enhance ride quality and reduce noise levels.

How does it behave on dry tarmac?

In dry conditions, the PS830 and PS850 are decent enough to be called safe, as long as you don’t expect them to do wonders.

Traction seems to be the biggest issue, significantly when you are accelerating a bit more aggressively. The tires will struggle to find traction, which may sound fun if you want to do burnouts, but it will get tiresome after a while.

If you are a more spirited driver, the grip also isn’t something that you should rely too much on. When you chug the tire into a corner, you will instantly notice the tire slipping, which isn’t something you want to see. In most cases, you should expect to see quite a lot of understeer, a characteristic you don’t want to see in a tire.

In terms of driving capabilities, the PS830 and PS850 are both equally unimpressive. They won’t be the fastest ones to respond and with almost no feedback through the steering wheel. You will also feel some sidewall flex if you push the tire too hard.

The PS830 and PS850 will perform safely enough if you drive them carefully and don’t drive them like high-performance tires.

How does it behave over wet and slippery roads?

Wet performance with the PS830 and PS850 seemed a bit better, but, again, as long as you don’t push them too much. With that said, there is a catch, which is a weird one.

Grip and traction levels are decently good and will provide a relatively safe driving experience at lower speeds. Both of them will stick decently well to the road, with the PS850 performing a tad better, but not by much.

I know that tires may have reduced performance at higher speeds, but the PS830 and PS850 have quite disappointing performance even at legal speeds. Highway driving isn’t the worst experience, but you will always be on an alert.

It’s not all negative, though, and the PS830 and PS850 have some positive sides to them. The aquaplaning resistance is surprisingly good, something which I wasn’t expecting.

Braking distances are not the tires’ strongest suit, and you shouldn’t expect the shortest braking distances in the world. the are safe enough but still longer than any premium tire.

How is it over snow?

Another area where both tires perform okay is on snow. I’m well aware that all-season tires are not very good snow performers, so I didn’t expect these two to be any good.

You can expect to have a decent amount of traction as the tires can dig into snow and get you going. This is another area where the PS850 has a slight advantage and seems to better cope with snow.

With that said, the overall performance isn’t something that would get a lot of people excited. There are better performing all-season tires, but despite that, the PS830 and PS850 will be decently safe as long as they are driven in light snow conditions.

In more difficult snow conditions, the tire will struggle a lot. Ice performance also isn’t something particularly good, so I would recommend caution.

Is it comfortable and refined?

Comfort and noise are an area of the PS830 and PS850 that are surprisingly good, to a point where the tire almost has some premium-like feel.

The ride quality is pretty good, and the tire rides are very comfortable. There is an excellent amount of comfort, and the vibrations are pretty low. It does a fantastic job at ironing out road imperfections, making it very comfortable.

Noise levels are also relatively low, which is impressive. At lower speeds, there is almost no noise, and on the highway, the tires are decently quiet

Is it good for off-roading?

When it comes to off-roading, the PS830 and PS850 are not very good at it. You could do a short drive over a dirt road, but don’t make a habit out of it.

On the sand, both tires will perform quite poorly and are almost undrivable. Mud performance is slightly better, but it’s far from anything that would be of use.

Is the Primewell PS830/PS850 ideal for sporty driving?

Sporty driving with the PS830 and PS850 isn’t something that you should expect. Despite Primewell’s aims to make the tire have some sporty characteristics, it’s not ideal for sporty driving.

The responsiveness of the tires isn’t very good, and in some cases, they remind me of winter tires. Feedback is also very muted, so you won’t know what the front tires are doing.

Primewell PS830/PS850 Warranty

Considering the price of the tires, a warranty option is available, at least not in the way that most brands offer.

There is a 40,000-mile treadwear warranty that covers against premature wear, but you won’t be getting a free replacement. Instead, a calculation will determine how much off you will get for the new tires.

Primewell PS830/PS850 Pricing: Is it worth the money?

The PS830 and PS850 are worth it, as long as you are aware of the many tradeoffs you make. With prices starting from around $45, these are among the cheapest all-season touring tires on the market.

Should I buy the Primewell PS830/PS850?

It depends on your driving habits, but it’s not the worst tire in the world, and some people may end up buying it. The performance is safe enough if you drive the tires normally and don’t expect to go racing with them.

Since the price is so low, I cannot compare them with mid-range or premium tires, so I’ll make a few comparisons with the cheap Chinese options. Put the PS830 and PS850 against other tires from that price range, and you will get a slightly better option. The performance won’t wow you but will be safer to drive as long as you don’t push the tires too much.

Overall, the PS830 and PS850 are cheap tires and relatively safe if you don’t expect them to do wonders. My recommendation is to install them on an older car and preferably one that isn’t too powerful.

What Vehicles Will the Primewell PS830/PS850 Fit?

Here’s a sample list of cars that the Primewell PS830/PS850 will fit:

  • Audi A3
  • BMW 1 series
  • Ford Focus, Fiesta
  • Honda Civic, Accord
  • Hyundai i10, i30, Lantra
  • Mitsubishi Colt, Lancer
  • Nissan Micra
  • Toyota Avensis, Camry, Corolla, Yaris
  • Volkswagen Golf, Rabbit, Jetta

Tire Sizes for Primewell PS830/PS850

13″

  • 155/80R13
  • 165/80R13
  • 185/70R13

14″

  • 195/70R14
  • 195/75R14
  • 205/70R14
  • 205/75R14
  • 215/75R14
  • 175/70R14

15″

  • 205/70R15
  • 205/75R15
  • 215/70R15
  • 225/75R15
  • 235/75R15

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