Tirerack

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How many of you actually buy tires from Tirerack? I know alot of people shop there for pricing,but don't know any that have purchased.

Is their pricing usually cheaper than the local shops?

Is it hard to find a shop to install them for you?

It seems to me that it would be way more convienient to buy from a local shop even if it did cost a bit more.
 
I have used TireRack exclusively for many of my purchases, mainly because they beat all my local retailers. In one instance they found me an obscure size that nobody else was willing to help me with...that little bit of customer service meant a lot to me. I do have a friend with a garage do all my mounting and balancing in exchange for a 12-pack of Michelob Light, so there's not much of an expense I have to consider for that aspect of a new set of tires.
 
I have bought a lot of tires from TireRack over the last 15 years or so. However, by the time you add in shipping costs and mounting costs, the savings start to really shrink, especially if you are far from one of their warehouses.

I continue to buy tires via the net, but find that I can often get deals that are just as good or very close from some of the local tire shops with a sharper pencil, or, believe it or not, the local car dealer service/parts department. They do not keep an inventory on hand, but can get tires in a day or two. By having no inventory related cost, they can offer some sharper deals at times.
 
I've bought 5 sets of tires from TR without any problems.
Just ordered a set of Goodyear Silent Armor's for my Explorer.
Will save about $110 over buying them locally.
Saved $140 on a set of GoodYear Assurance Triple Treds I bought from TR last month for the wife's car.
One of TR's local recommended installers took delivery and installed the tires.
 
With regards to TireRack.com the convience factor is available if you use an installer with drop-shipping. Basically the tires are shipped to their shop and they install them.

The pricing completely depends on your locale. Do your research and then decide. Also remember no sales tax on the tires which negates the shipping cost usually.

The customer service is superior and they go the extra mile to have you return. Years back I ordererd 13" steel rims/snows (cheaper) without asking and they did not clear my brakes. I called back expected to have a hassle but instead they apologized for not confirming the model, paid for return shipping on tires and then sold me the second set less than asking price on website and waived shipping.

So I am a customer for life except for my other favorite tires the Nokian winter tires that they do not sell unfortunately.
 
I bought a set of tires and rims from them before. No problems.

As far as installation, you can find a list of authorized rocommended installers in your area on TR's website. Then either take your tires to them or have TR ship the tires directly to them.
 
I purchased three sets from Tirerack and have been very satisfied. Wal-Mart mounts new carry-in tires for low cost if you don't have a local installer. Nice if you can get a local dealer to match but in my area they don't carry a selection of winter tires like Tirerack. Even with the $30 shipping I have to pay there is still a savings.
 
It's been a few years, but last time I bought tires the Tire Rack price was cheaper even with the shipping and independent installation. I just loaded the tires up in the back seat and drove them over to Wal-Mart where they were installed.

Shipping costs seem to have gone up since then, though.
 
I use a trustworthy local shop that buys wholesale from TR and picks up tires from thier Delaware warehouse. The shop will match TR's online pricing w/o shipping and install the tires for a reasonable fee. The only drawbacks are the tires I need MUST be in the DE warehouse(TR has 4 warehouses, nationally) and I have to pay PA sales tax.
 
I tried them for the first time about a month ago. Between their service and the good local shop that received my drop shipment, I'm very pleased with how the whole thing worked out. And even with the shipping cost included, I still saved about $100 compared to what I would have paid a local store. Do note, however, that this saving may not be typical. My car spec's an unusual tire size (215/55-17), and my sense was that the local prices were less competitive than they are on more readily available sizes. All that aside, this is how I plan to purcase tires in the future. No more of that, "gee, we don't have what you want in stock, why don't we give you a set of [what we're being paid to push this week...]".
cheers.gif
 
Yep, use them regularly. The biggest savings is if you need a wheel and tire package because they mount and balance for free. Even when I'm just ordering tires, I save. I have them shipped to a local shop and he mounts and balances them on his Hunter for about $70. I have yet to find a local retailer that will match their prices
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I had an out-of-round tire last summer and Tirerack shipped out a replacement and reimbursed me for labor to remount/balance.

Tirerack maintains a large inventory but does not carry every popular manufacturer. That's the only shortcoming I can think of.
 
I used them and was satisfied. The tires were drop shipped to an installer near my work. They tend to have the newest tires and many local dealers are trying to unload obsolete designs, not a problem unless you need one matching replacement tire a year or two later.
 
I have ordered several set of tires from Tirerack. Even if you buy thier roadhazard, you come out miles ahead of most retail stores package deals on namebrand tires.

The key is to have a shop that won't soak you for the install.

Many people say shops won't install because they didn't turn a profit on the tires. I have never run into this...most shops look at mouting and balancing a set of tires as a $40-$80 service that is near 100% profit....surely more profit that those 4-for-$99 sales rake in.
 
The only thing about Tirerack that I don't like is not knowing when the tire was manufactured. I like their prices but hate to not know when the **** tire was manufactured -- there was this interesting program on "60 minutes" that talked in length of manufacture date to avoid injury.
for example, if a tire was manufacted in 2002 and if they were put on a vehicle in 2005 and potentially wear out by 2008, the tire in fact would have been 7 yrs old, which can be dangerous...

Hence this time I got my tires from Costco knowing very well when the tires were manufactured.
 
Just has a set of Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza's ordered from Tire Rack installed on my Explorer by a local Tire Rack installer this afternoon for $68 with tax.
The 5th time I've used Tire Rack and no roblems.
Also more importantly saved $100 on the tires ovwr local shop pricing.
 
Originally posted by Colt:
[QB] Just has a set of Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza's ordered from Tire Rack installed on my Explorer by a local Tire Rack installer this afternoon for $68 with tax.
The 5th time I've used Tire Rack and no roblems.
Also more importantly saved $100 on the tires ovwr local shop pricing.



Colt,

I know you just had the Bridgestone tires installed, but what do you think of them so far?
 
quote:

Originally posted by 74 Laguna:
Originally posted by Colt:
[QB] Just has a set of Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza's ordered from Tire Rack installed on my Explorer by a local Tire Rack installer this afternoon for $68 with tax.
The 5th time I've used Tire Rack and no roblems.
Also more importantly saved $100 on the tires ovwr local shop pricing.



Colt,

I know you just had the Bridgestone tires installed, but what do you think of them so far?
Just drove a few miles home.
Mostly highway.
They seemed nice but I only drove a few miles.
Checked the air pressure when I got home and it's too high.
Waiting for tires to cool and will drop them down to 34 lbs.
 
Ive purchased 2 sets of tires through tirerack, had them mounted by a local Firestone shop, and both times I came out $50-75 ahead of where I could get the exact same package installed by the same place. If youre up for a bit of haggling, you might be able to get a shop around you to match the Tirerack price, but then they'll try to gouge you on mount and balance. So, Ive been more than satisfied just having the tires shipped to my house.
 
I use tire rack several times (5 or 6) in the last 3 years. I have the tires dropped shipped to the installer who mounts and balances them. For high end (e.g. max performance) tires. I end up saving about $200 (out of $1000*) compared to the local NTB even when using them as the drop ship point!

[*] tires go on my Ferrari F355B
 
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