Most truck tire dealers are optimistic.

For some truck tire dealers 1991 was a very good year.

More than 53% of those surveyed in Modern Tire Dealer's 1992 Truck Tire Dealer Survey said their 1991 truck tire sales were up. Gains they reported averaged 10.6% over 1990.

But for others, the year wasn't so hot.

Some 23.3% of those surveyed reported declining sales. Their average drop was 17.3% compared to the previous year.

The remaining 23.3% said their truck tire sales were about the same in '91 as in 1990.

But regardless of how they fared last year, most survey respondents are optimistic about the future.

And their optimism is shared by industry experts who say the economy is on its way to recovery.

The price is right?

Tire prices obviously have always had a major impact on truck tire marketing.

But the rough economic conditions of 1991 and early 1992 have made them even more important.

Both dealers and their customers named truck tire pricing as their number one overall concern.

Historically, tire prices have remained fairly constant while prices of most other products have skyrocketed.

"If you look over the past 10 years," says Ron Rumble, marketing manager of commercial truck tires for Goodyear, "there have been tremendous price increases in nearly everything except tires."

But Rumble sees this changing.

In the past 12 months, manufacturers have made a number of successful attempts to boost tire prices.

"We're seeing the price increases stick," says Rumble. …