Buy now or wait?

[xBa380]

My tires on my 2008 xB are just about shot... Currently, I am using Falken 912 tires, and the thread is down to 3/32 on front and rear tires. They are getting noisy, rough, etc...

I was going to replace them with General Altimax HP's... I can order them online to my door for $457, and would cost another $80 to mount/balance locally. Tire size is 225/45R17.

Should I wait to replace my tires a bit longer, or order up the new ones and get them put on? Dry traction has slipped a bit (will skip if dry sometimes when accelerate) and although these tires were amazing in the rain, are starting to get a bit worry some in heavy standing water. In a way I guess I answered my own question, but should I try to make it through summer (I have General Altimax Arctics for winter, amazing tires), and hope for some discounts/rebates? The site I am buying from is always $50 cheaper then DiscountTire or TireRack.

One more question, is it worth road hazard for $12 extra per tire? For a $90 tire? I never bought it in the past, I suppose.

Thanks for the help guys!

 

[The_Jeff]

Yeah I guess you answered your own question!

Skip the road hazard.

If you use an american express or other "really nice credit card" you can get price protection. Buy now and mount when you're really ready. At least you won't be waiting for shipping.

 

[pbm]

I'd buy now as tire prices are tied into petroleum prices.
What site are you getting such good deals from?

 

[xBa380]

Alright guys, thanks... I just purchased them!

Pbm, the company is http://www.tireteam.com/

For the same tires, Discount Tire was $508 to my door, and TireRack was something like $515... My final price with TireTeam was $457.29!

 

[daves87rs]

I'd get them before the 25% hike I heard about......

 

[PandaBear]

I think the 25% hike is already here, but the massive amount of new rubber harvest (new trees) will hit the market sometimes in 2012 if you can wait till then.

 

[sciphi]

I'm sitting on a set of Michelin HydroEdges while wearing out the current tires on my Buick. The rebate Michelin has going on right now helped sway me to get them now, instead of waiting until I needed the tires before ordering. Now I can have them put on at my leisure.

I've bought tires on sale before, and waited to have them put on while wearing out a set.

I'm a firm advocate of buying tires when on sale and sitting on them, instead of waiting for circumstances to dictate a purchase.

 

[xBa380]

Got my tires in yesterday, they look excellent! I got them next day, as TireTeam is located in Ohio as well. Very impressed!

I will probably get them mounted next weekend sometime!

Question though... I checked my current tire tread depth across the entire face of the tire, and it always seems like one thread is deeper then the rest. Probably a design of the tire, but wear looks pretty even around 3/32 left. If the ride is smooth, no pulling or vibration and tire wear looks good, I can skip an alignment correct? I know its a good idea to do, but I don't want to waste money either. All my tires look pretty even.

And my car has a solid rear axel (2008 Scion xB), does this require a 4-wheel alignment or just two? It does not look like there is any adjustment on the rear for alignment, unlike the front. Dealer charges like $60 for an alignment, but if they are aligning half the tires, I wonder if I can talk them down to half if/when I get an alignment.

Thanks!

 

[PandaBear]

You don't need alignment if you are not replacing suspension parts, hit something big, or have uneven tire wear.

 

[johnsmellsalot]

i would wait till it gets a little cooler because when the technician gets in your car, they get their sweat all over the seat.

 

[xBa380]

I figured so, thanks!

 

[The_Jeff]

Originally Posted By: xBa380

And my car has a solid rear axel (2008 Scion xB), does this require a 4-wheel alignment or just two? It does not look like there is any adjustment on the rear for alignment, unlike the front. Dealer charges like $60 for an alignment, but if they are aligning half the tires, I wonder if I can talk them down to half if/when I get an alignment.

Thanks!


You'd be shocked if they just set the toe, and just did one tire, as that sets the whole toe, barring steering wheel recentering.

$60 is cheap, relatively speaking. If you had an adjustable rear suspension they'd charge you more, saying it was special unique circumstances blah blah blah.

But you don't need an alignment anyway probably.

 

[daves87rs]

Originally Posted By: johnsmellsalot
i would wait till it gets a little cooler because when the technician gets in your car, they get their sweat all over the seat.



He's got a point...

 

[xBa380]

I got these tires mounted this weekend and they seem great so far! They do have a softer sidewall then my Falken 912's, but I also now have 10/32 of tread depth vs. 3/32... So the feel will be quite different.

Look forward to putting some miles on these tires. They feel great so far, a bit softer on bumps and quieter as well. Always welcome.

Only downfall is it costed me $128 to dismount/mount/balance these tires at NTB. Was like $16 per tire to mount, $10 per tire to dismount and then lifetime balance and tire disposal. Good thing is I do get lifetime balance though, so I can get them checked every spring before I remount them (summer only tires). They are slightly lower profile tires and larger rims, so it increased the cost a bit... 225/45/17's on 17" aftermarket aluminum rims. One of the few people I called that had the scratch-free mounting equipment as well as the cheapst price when calling around.