Getting the best tire price?

[HoosierJeeper]

Doing some shopping for my next set of tires... Falken Wildpeak AT3Ws for my Liberty in P245/75/16, full set of 5. Just curious if I'm missing out on any retailers. Here's the ones I've looked at: 1. Tirerack - doesn't carry them 2. Simple Tires - so far best price 3. Discount Tire direct - second best price 4. Easy tires - more expensive 5. Onlinetires - best per tire price but no free shipping I'm also exploring local options, it seems like no one wants to match prices. One shop that I like/admire can't get them, but he said if I bring them in, he'll mount/balance for $20/tire. The closest Discount Tire is an hour away and they'll match anyone. I've used them in the past before and been very pleased but thought I'd go local first. I'm in the La Crosse, WI area if anyone has any connections...lol.

 

[dishdude]

Do you have a Discount Tire in the area? They'll match DTD pricing, they won't upsell you on an alignment or anything else you don't need, and when you need rotation or rebalance, you'll be in and out without a long wait.

 

[oilstudent24]

Tirebuyer.com

 

[HoosierJeeper]

I think I just edited my post after you posted - closest DT is an hour away, which I'll do, used them before. One concern I have is what if I got a bum tire that wouldn't balance or something. If I buy them from an online vendor and take them somewhere to be mounted, that would kind of be a messy situation, no? If I just find a place to order them and install them, it's all on them. Is that an unfounded worry?

 

[thescreensavers]

Another vote for Discount Tire, I ordered Cooper AT3s from them and brought it to my installer no issues.

 

[Panzerman]

Walmart. They have insane online tire prices. They will ship them to the store and install with warranty. Example. I bought 4 Nankang 17" Load E tires for my Dodge 2500. $535 installed for all four. Last time I paid over a $1100 for 4 Michelins and I like the Nankangs better.

 

[BrocLuno]

Simple Tire. Fast and free shipping

 

[dlundblad]

Darn, you just missed the Discount Tire Black Friday rebates. I haven't heard of the other stores you mention aside from DT. At least here, the tire chains are pretty dang close to each other in terms of price. Much like certain parts stores being priced nearly identical to their competition. They all price match and I want to say I could have saved about $20 all together if I had one store match another. Not good, not bad.. but it's $20. I am personally a fan of our local Tire Barn. Get there early enough on a Saturday especially when it's super cold OR right after work and it's a nice 30 min wait for a set of 4. Going to try DT today though.

 

[CapriRacer]

Originally Posted By: HoosierJeeper

I think I just edited my post after you posted - closest DT is an hour away, which I'll do, used them before. One concern I have is what if I got a bum tire that wouldn't balance or something. If I buy them from an online vendor and take them somewhere to be mounted, that would kind of be a messy situation, no? If I just find a place to order them and install them, it's all on them. Is that an unfounded worry?

It appears to me that you've made your decision. You've decided that the hour drive to Discount Tire with their slightly higher price is better than the ordering the tires on line and risking that there may be a problem you will have to deal with.

 

[Mr Nice]

Originally Posted By: CapriRacer

Originally Posted By: HoosierJeeper

I think I just edited my post after you posted - closest DT is an hour away, which I'll do, used them before. One concern I have is what if I got a bum tire that wouldn't balance or something. If I buy them from an online vendor and take them somewhere to be mounted, that would kind of be a messy situation, no? If I just find a place to order them and install them, it's all on them. Is that an unfounded worry?

It appears to me that you've made your decision. You've decided that the hour drive to Discount Tire with their slightly higher price is better than the ordering the tires on line and risking that there may be a problem you will have to deal with.

Sometimes buying local is better.

 

[aquariuscsm]

Discount Tire seems to be such a hit or miss with sloppy work,I'm highly considering going to one of those small mom and pop tire shops next time I buy tires. They may be a little more expensive and not as fast,but if you've ever seen them do their work they're MUCH more meticulous and take their time being careful.

 

[law3500]

Great choice for tires, I am running 4 of those on my '12 Xterra Pro-4X and am about 13,000 miles into them and they are GREAT especially for the price that I got them for.. I find the best deal I can online then I email [email protected] at DTD and he ALWAYS beats the price by a good margin and has FREE shipping to my door. Then I get them mounted where-ever is most convenient to me, (Usually DT but not always) I have bought 6 sets of tires through him and he always has the best price and great customer service.

 

[CleverUserName]

Try searching craigslist for the tire size and model. If you find a place that has them and advertises on CL, call and get a price for installation OTD. Call Americas Tire or any other nationwide tire chain and see if they will beat the price. I did this a couple years ago on some Falken 235/45/17s. Americas Tire price was ~ $120 each + M/B installation. After finding them on craigslist for $90 each, I negotiated the price down to $80 each with everything included, even tax and disposal fees. Basically $320 installed. I don't think they made any money on that job but they got the sale.

 

[HorseThief]

Originally Posted By: CapriRacer

It appears to me that you've made your decision. You've decided that the hour drive to Discount Tire with their slightly higher price is better than the ordering the tires on line and risking that there may be a problem you will have to deal with.

really starting to hate all the posts like this on this forum.... If you don't have anything of value to add, then just stay out of the conversation. Whether you intend it or not, all these types of responses do is intimidate people into not asking questions. It's not like one more thread is going to break the site. What are you trying to do? Shut down the conversation? I don't get the point of what you said. The OP knows what he said in his posts and doesn't need you to recap. Tirebuyer has em @ 120 each after the $75 rebate. Otherwise, I've found it can be hard to find small dealers that sell falken - I don't know why. Most of the small shops around here are pretty heavy into cooper or continental. When it comes to truck/suv tires, I always recommend checking Sams and Costco. Even if you're pretty set on a tire, they sometimes can make you an offer you can't refuse on a set of something different - my father picked up a set of 4 Kanati Trail Hogs for his 05 FX4 F-150 for just over $600 installed a few years back (on clearance, can't remember normal price). They've been great tires.

 

[jeepman3071]

Originally Posted By: Panzerman

Walmart. They have insane online tire prices. They will ship them to the store and install with warranty. Example. I bought 4 Nankang 17" Load E tires for my Dodge 2500. $535 installed for all four. Last time I paid over a $1100 for 4 Michelins and I like the Nankangs better.

WalMart can be a huge PIA sometimes though, especially if the door sticker is different than what size you actually have on the car. My Jeep has factory 16" wheels that came on certain trim level 2000 and 2001 Cherokees. The tires are the stock size for that wheel size. The door sticker on all Cherokees lists the base size wheels and tires. WalMart refused to mount the tires on the vehicle. Same thing happened on my GF's BMW. She has an upgraded trim package with 17" wheels, most come with 16" wheels. The door sticker lists the 16". Walmart refused to mount them, even if I took just the wheels to another WalMart. My sister bought snow tires for her '13 Jetta, just the fronts for now since it would be better than nothing, and all she could really afford. WalMart wouldn't mount them, since they claimed they didn't match, even though the tire and wheel size was exactly the same as the rear. I've stopped bothering with WalMart. The best solution I have found is to order online (Discount Tire Direct is great) and have them mounted at a local mom and pop tire shop. The mom and pop tire shop would probably mount a bicycle tire on a car wheel if it fit properly with no questions asked.

 

[LotI]

Did you try John's Omni Auto or Tires Plus? If you're willing to pay higher MN taxes check out Brown's Tire & Battery in Rushford. TP is part of Bridgestone/Firestone and I'm surprised they won't match prices. The dealers will often have buy 3, get one free but those sales are probably over for the year.

 

[bullwinkle]

If they're new, and you carry the tires in to a WM TLE, you won't have any issues. I do have a few of them I don't trust, though!

 

[pandus13]

Originally Posted By: HorseThief

Originally Posted By: CapriRacer

It appears to me that you've made your decision. You've decided that the hour drive to Discount Tire with their slightly higher price is better than the ordering the tires on line and risking that there may be a problem you will have to deal with.

really starting to hate all the posts like this on this forum.... If you don't have anything of value to add, then just stay out of the conversation. Whether you intend it or not, all these types of responses do is intimidate people into not asking questions. It's not like one more thread is going to break the site. What are you trying to do? Shut down the conversation? I don't get the point of what you said. The OP knows what he said in his posts and doesn't need you to recap....

[off-topic] HorseThief, I think maybe you got CapriRacer's post wrong: He's just trying to say the local option may be better for the OP than the online which sometimes may be troublesome (return, balance, ...). Also, I come here from 2011, and I NEVER saw CapriRacer saying something bad about any user.... He was always a professional and very helpful. [/off-topic]

 

[Rand]

To:hosethief Yea I'm sick of people who speedread, misread posts, and complain too.. add that to your list of complaints. PS you obiviously misread Capriracer's post. He was saying something totally different than what you got out of it when you read it. TO OP: I think DT is your best bet you missed the black friday sale.. (just got $390 off on mine) There may be a first of the year sale or presidents day if you can wait that long. Like any tire place.. wipe your wheels off and take pictures if they are in very good condition. Inspect before leaving to make sure they are mounted correctly ---Not mounted inside sidewall facing out or directionally wrong (depending on tire type asymetrical or directional) That you have 4 valve stem caps. That your tpms is working (if applicable) That there are no gouges on your wheels (why you take pics before they work on it) etc. and check pressure.

 

[Driz]

Originally Posted By: jeepman3071

Originally Posted By: Panzerman

Walmart. They have insane online tire prices. They will ship them to the store and install with warranty. Example. I bought 4 Nankang 17" Load E tires for my Dodge 2500. $535 installed for all four. Last time I paid over a $1100 for 4 Michelins and I like the Nankangs better.

WalMart can be a huge PIA sometimes though, especially if the door sticker is different than what size you actually have on the car. My Jeep has factory 16" wheels that came on certain trim level 2000 and 2001 Cherokees. The tires are the stock size for that wheel size. The door sticker on all Cherokees lists the base size wheels and tires. WalMart refused to mount the tires Same thing happened on my GF's BMW. She has an upgraded trim package with 17" wheels, most come with 16" wheels. The door sticker lists the 16". Walmart refused to mount them, even if I took just the wheels to another WalMart. My sister bought snow tires for her '13 Jetta, just the fronts for now since it would be better than nothing, and all she could really afford. WalMart wouldn't mount them, since they claimed they didn't miatch, even though the tire and wheel size was exactly the same as the rear. I've stopped bothering with WalMart. The best solution I have found is to order online (Discount Tire Direct is great) and have them mounted at a local mom and pop tire shop. The mom and pop tire shop would probably mount a bicycle tire on a car wheel if it fit properly with no questions asked.

Screw Sam’s Club Walmart I’m not gonna deal with those idiots ever again.I did the same exact thing is you squabbling over a size and a tire that didn’t exactly match Origionl equipment. No more never again. Besides they throw in thrir mounting and tax and with all that you’re not getting any great deal. I just get mine from discount tire direct and get them mounted by somebody local no problems and I don’t get my handheld unwillingly.j I bought a couple sets of tires from Tires Easy. the first set was OK but the second set I got generals that developed a crack in real short order like within nine months of getting it so I got the deep suspicion that they were at old set of new stock. It was around then that I started reading that some of those tire companies buy old new stock and discount them so I stuck a discount tire direct after that with no problems since.