I hate tire shopping

[local]

Just rears should be easy. Matching fronts can be difficult depending on size - I finally managed to find a matching set in stock for my C5 Z06...one tire option from one retailer.

Yeah matching set, I'm not a fan of mismatched tires. 295/35/18s and 275/40/17s there used to be a lot more options.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Here's another option, if you can still find a Sears.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-sears-amazon-tires-20180828-story.html

 

[mindless1]

Abusive drivers who insist on a particular set of tires then wear them out prematurely. I don't see the problem, this is a clear cut case of decisions and consequences.

 

[mdram]

18" rims? theres the problem
17 are cheaper, so are 16 and 15

 

[NutBucket]

That's not a hard and fast rule. It depends on how common the size is too.

 

[jlee]

Yeah matching set, I'm not a fan of mismatched tires. 295/35/18s and 275/40/17s there used to be a lot more options.

If you go to a 265/40 front, you can get Toyo Proxes T1 Sports (and the 265/40's are nearly free):

https://simpletire.com/toyo-265-40zr17-252330-tires
https://simpletire.com/toyo-295-35zr18-252950-tires

They have a 15% coupon for Toyo as well...I paid $416 shipped for a set.

 

[Meghan54]

Another possible source to investigate.....and I hate to mention it......but it's WalMart.

I just put a new set of Michelin Defender LTX tires on my truck last month, having worn out the set of Michelin LTX M/S 2's I put on it 5 years ago. Got 68K out of that set.

WalMart was $15/tire cheaper than any other source, and I looked/searched darned near everywhere, incl. TireRack, Amazon, Discount Tire. Never looked into Costco since the closest one takes over an hour to get to. Took one day to arrive at the store. Tires were 7 weeks old, so fairly recent manufacture.

Took them to a highly rated Firestone shop for mounting, which was cheaper than the WM from which I bought the tires.

 

[NutBucket]

I love DIY but for tires I call my guy and he makes a recommendation. I go in, get them installed and have the alignment checked/adjusted and drive home happy. It's the one time im happy I have "a guy".

 

[Midwayman]

I wish I could use costco, but they have a terrible selection of tires. They're okay if you're shopping for a generic tire and want economy, or premium options basically. Not that what they sell is bad, but if you're looking for something specific, they're not likely to have it. OTOH it was great for my wife's CRV where generic passenger tires were fine.

 

[pandemonium]

Discount Tire Direct is where I order from. My last 4 sets on my car, and the current set on my girlfriend's are from them, delivered to my house with free shipping (they also ship to any shop you wish, but I like to inspect the merchandise for myself). Then I take the tires to their sister company, Discount Tire and have them installed. These guys have a great selection of brands and models from budget all the way through DOT track tires. I option for the replacement warranty that helps cover the remaining life of the tire in the event of a nail or something, as it's already saved me once. Dealing with DTD and DT is an absolute pleasure and they're always willing to go out of their way for you. Also, they commonly have sales that reward a sizable refund in the form of prepaid VISA credit cards. I usually time my purchases to take advantage of those large deals. I believe they will match or beat any listed price of tires they have with competitors, but I usually see their prices as the lowest when you include the total costs from some others (e.g. shipping).

Last set I tried out the BFGoodrich G-Force Comp 2 A/S's and absolutely love them. I drive a 2006 Acura RSX Type-S through the mountains a few times a year and enjoy hugging corners and spirited driving in general. I've had exactly 1 time where these tires felt like they reached their limit. I bought my second set of these tires because they performed so well, and lasted 40k as advertised. Wet traction isn't amazing, but it's better than most others I've tried. Prior to the Comp 2's I used Nitto's NeoGen's. They're great tires as well, but their wet traction wasn't as good. Since I daily drive this vehicle, I need a jack-of-all trades tire with an emphasis on traction for lateral control.

Anectdotal story time: The last time I had my baby in for work I had the new set of tires balanced and put on. After I drove away I noticed I had an audibly louder exhaust note than I drove in with. I got home and quickly inspected my exhaust to see if I was hearing things and sadly I was not. I drove back to the shop and told them that something wasn't right. After a quick investigation, the manager took it upon himself to start an internal incident investigation and requested I had the vehicle inspected so their investigator could determine their level of fault. After this I dug into it more and discovered the accordion flex-pipe had a hole in it, on the top side (inches from the underbody). This was likely due to wear from rust and not anything that the shop could've done and purely coincidental. I informed the investigator of that and they still offered to help pay for half of the cost of the replacement exhaust header, downpipe, and midpipe I ordered already. I declined, as I couldn't in good conscience accept money for something that wasn't their fault. It was an opportunity for a small upgrade anyways.

 

[sze5003]

Discount Tire Direct is where I order from. My last 4 sets on my car, and the current set on my girlfriend's are from them, delivered to my house with free shipping (they also ship to any shop you wish, but I like to inspect the merchandise for myself). Then I take the tires to their sister company, Discount Tire and have them installed. These guys have a great selection of brands and models from budget all the way through DOT track tires. I option for the replacement warranty that helps cover the remaining life of the tire in the event of a nail or something, as it's already saved me once. Dealing with DTD and DT is an absolute pleasure and they're always willing to go out of their way for you. Also, they commonly have sales that reward a sizable refund in the form of prepaid VISA credit cards. I usually time my purchases to take advantage of those large deals. I believe they will match or beat any listed price of tires they have with competitors, but I usually see their prices as the lowest when you include the total costs from some others (e.g. shipping).

Last set I tried out the BFGoodrich G-Force Comp 2 A/S's and absolutely love them. I drive a 2006 Acura RSX Type-S through the mountains a few times a year and enjoy hugging corners and spirited driving in general. I've had exactly 1 time where these tires felt like they reached their limit. I bought my second set of these tires because they performed so well, and lasted 40k as advertised. Wet traction isn't amazing, but it's better than most others I've tried. Prior to the Comp 2's I used Nitto's NeoGen's. They're great tires as well, but their wet traction wasn't as good. Since I daily drive this vehicle, I need a jack-of-all trades tire with an emphasis on traction for lateral control.

Anectdotal story time: The last time I had my baby in for work I had the new set of tires balanced and put on. After I drove away I noticed I had an audibly louder exhaust note than I drove in with. I got home and quickly inspected my exhaust to see if I was hearing things and sadly I was not. I drove back to the shop and told them that something wasn't right. After a quick investigation, the manager took it upon himself to start an internal incident investigation and requested I had the vehicle inspected so their investigator could determine their level of fault. After this I dug into it more and discovered the accordion flex-pipe had a hole in it, on the top side (inches from the underbody). This was likely due to wear from rust and not anything that the shop could've done and purely coincidental. I informed the investigator of that and they still offered to help pay for half of the cost of the replacement exhaust header, downpipe, and midpipe I ordered already. I declined, as I couldn't in good conscience accept money for something that wasn't their fault. It was an opportunity for a small upgrade anyways.

That's really good service, I'm inclined to think you may live somewhere in the west or south as I've never found people to be this customer service friendly in the east coast. I do wish there was a discount tire somewhere near me. It would save a lot of headache.

 

[Thump553]

Another possible source to investigate.....and I hate to mention it......but it's WalMart.

I just put a new set of Michelin Defender LTX tires on my truck last month, having worn out the set of Michelin LTX M/S 2's I put on it 5 years ago. Got 68K out of that set.

WalMart was $15/tire cheaper than any other source, and I looked/searched darned near everywhere, incl. TireRack, Amazon, Discount Tire. Never looked into Costco since the closest one takes over an hour to get to. Took one day to arrive at the store. Tires were 7 weeks old, so fairly recent manufacture.

Took them to a highly rated Firestone shop for mounting, which was cheaper than the WM from which I bought the tires.

That's a heck of a good idea (except maybe the Firestone installation idea-they are horrendous around here)-I'll add them to my list of options next time around. Just bought new tires for both cars a few weeks ago-the wallet is suffering but won't need to do that for a while. I switched over to buying via tirerack,etc. maybe 15-20 years ago, was a great decision.

 

[pandemonium]

That's really good service, I'm inclined to think you may live somewhere in the west or south as I've never found people to be this customer service friendly in the east coast. I do wish there was a discount tire somewhere near me. It would save a lot of headache.

As long as a shop you know accepts customer supplied tires, I believe DTD ships nationwide. I know that's a policy at some service shops to avoid liability and promote their own sales however. If that's a possible avenue, at least one can take advantage of their selection, pricing, and sale offers that way.

Oddly enough, I do live in the south. These guys are uncharacteristically awesome in their level of care though. Of the ~15 years of living in this area, I'm confident in saying they're better than any other service related experience I've ever had. Also, to note, the investigator that offered half of the cost of the repair even after I accepted full responsibility for the cost was in Phoenix, AZ. I just think DTD and DT have a very strong mission statement to be wholesome people that enjoy their work and do it well. Of course, I'm not beyond admitting since I'm a repeat customer, they could just be making sure I stay that way.

 

[BarkingGhostar]

Here's another option, if you can still find a Sears.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-sears-amazon-tires-20180828-story.html

I noticed that, too, but then I realized in my county of 900,000 residents the only remaining Sears closed.

Abusive drivers who insist on a particular set of tires then wear them out prematurely. I don't see the problem, this is a clear cut case of decisions and consequences.

Who in this thread are you referring to?
BTW, folks, after speaking with my dealership service department regular adviser he came back with $200 of the tires and installation and a hundred off the alignment. I had already accepted in my mind if they met on price somewhere in the middle then I would go forward. Appointment is tomorrow.

 

[Meghan54]

That's a heck of a good idea (except maybe the Firestone installation idea-they are horrendous around here)-I'll add them to my list of options next time around. Just bought new tires for both cars a few weeks ago-the wallet is suffering but won't need to do that for a while. I switched over to buying via tirerack,etc. maybe 15-20 years ago, was a great decision.

Well, only used Firestone because Tire Rack had over a dozen glowing reviews of this particular Firestone dealer for tire installs, which weren't overboard after using them. In general, Firestone dealers are very hit-or-miss, mostly on the miss side, sadly.

But the concept is sound, esp. with the free shipping to store WM offers for tires not in stock.

 

[compcons]

18" rims? theres the problem
17 are cheaper, so are 16 and 15

The wheels might be cheaper, but tires are not. I had purchased 18" tires for some wheels I bought that ended up not fitting. I had to return the 18s and stick with the 17" wheels on the car. The tires were the exact same price.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

The wheels might be cheaper, but tires are not. I had purchased 18" tires for some wheels I bought that ended up not fitting. I had to return the 18s and stick with the 17" wheels on the car. The tires were the exact same price.

I save enough money on 215-width winter tires (instead of 245s) to pay for a set of 17x7 rims and then some.

TPS should be interesting though.

 

[pandemonium]

That's really the underlying factor to tire costs: the tread width. The further from common OEM sizes you get, the more expensive it'll be due to less demand (and more material, to an extent). The larger the diameter the wheel, likely the larger the width of the wheel as well. Also, the lower the profile usually also increases cost since there's going to be more R&D/material to stiffen that sidewall to make it sufficient.