Experienced help

DieselMatt · 03-26-2014, 04:23 PM

I am getting ready to purchase new tires for the hauler. While I am concerned about the brand of tire, I am also concerned about where I buy it from. We will be doing quite a bit of traveling all over the U.S. As a result, I would really like to do business with a company that has locations all over. The two places I am considering at this time are Discount tire (America's Tire) and Costco. Both of these have locations all over that we could get to fairly easily in the case of a blowout and I need to warranty a tire with the company. By warranty the tire I mean utilize the "certificates" that Discount Tire and Costco sell along with their tires that covers replacement in the case of incidentals.

Am I being logical or would you guys recommend just going to some local shop that sells the tires cheaper? Please share your thoughts!

bsmith0404 · 03-26-2014, 05:09 PM

I love Discount Tire, but am finding they are not as common in the Midwest as they are out west. Costco wasn't as common in the southwest. I don't consider driving 2 hours for a warranty coverage feasible. Big O would be another one that would fall into the same category. But, if you are serious about buying from a place that is easy to find for warranty, look at Walmart. Another option you may want to look at is Tire Rack. I think they use local shops for warranty coverage. Not 100% sure on that, but worth looking in to.

outwest · 03-27-2014, 10:07 AM

Not to start a debate on walmart, but if you want to avoid purchasing from them, I'd look at either Tire Rack or look at the various states you will be traveling through and which chains have locations there (for example, there are no Costcos in my state

).

Personally, I'd avoid Big O Tires, but that's just me. Had to get a tire on car replaced while in Albuquerque and went to nearest tire shop, which happened to be a Big O. First they tried really hard to upsell me nitrogen (not a huge thing, but..) then they tried to convince me that the car needed new shock absorbers (car had relatively low mileage and was only a couple years old, no major leakage on shocks, and rode just fine), then tried to convince me that it needed the brake system flushed to eliminate contaminates (say what? it's a sealed system!), then tried to add on extended warranty to the bill without even asking! To top it off, they messed up the installation of the tire valve on replacement tire, causing it to leak air

Of course, that may just be that one Big O Tire location and not typical of their service, dunno. That was my first experience with them and my last.

DieselMatt · 03-27-2014, 10:32 AM

So far I'm getting that I should focus more on the actual than the place I purchase it from. Sound about right?

SAABDOCTOR · 03-27-2014, 11:46 AM

If you buy a name brand tire you will most likely be able to get service from any reputable tire shop. i buy all my tires from a company called town fair tire,They are a north east company. but the one time i had an issue with the michelin tire on my truck a tire dealer in the south took care of it. that is why i stick with name brands like michilen good year toyo yokohama etc. just my best advice is buy the BEST tire you can afford

outwest · 03-27-2014, 12:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DieselMatt

So far I'm getting that I should focus more on the actual than the place I purchase it from. Sound about right?

That's what I do. I figure brand/model is more important (along with constant inspections and proper inflation). After all, if you have a blowout you'll have a lot more damage than the price of the tire. Father had a blowout on old aluminum avion trailer once and it damaged the neighboring tire, wheel well, and even a little bit of the aluminum underbelly. 'Course, even the best brand can have a failure.

therink · 03-27-2014, 12:31 PM

I would he more concerned about a brand name tire more than anything. In my case I have a set of Firestone LTs on mine. Not that they won't fail but if I do have a problem I can get an identical tire just about anywhere. If I was running St tires, I would buy from a reputable dealer that carries Maxxis.
What ever you decide, pay a few extra to have them balanced.

bsmith0404 · 03-27-2014, 04:27 PM

I believe mileage warranties are from the manufacturer, if you pay for the road hazard replacement certificates, I believe that is through the dealer. Not 100% sure on that. Personally I don't buy those. IMO, the biggest reason to get from a chain that has locations across the country is for the free balance and rotation. You can't get that from anyone. I get mine balanced and rotated every 5k miles and it's not always convenient to wait until I get back home. Or more importantly in my case being military, I'm not paying for that service only to find out I can't get it done when I move to the next location.

DieselMatt · 03-27-2014, 08:17 PM

Decisions, decisions!

Taking all of your suggestions in to account I have come up with 3 options.

1.) Buy Towmax tires from Costco. Benefit: multiple locations nationwide and free balance and rotations. Negatives: Towmax tires have mixed reviews.

2.) Buy Carlisle tires from Discount Tire. Note, they have the Goodyear tires, but only in "D" not the "E" rating that I need. Benefit: same as Costco. Negatives: Carlisle tires have mixed reviews.

3.) Find good Maxxis or Goodyear tires from a small local place that I have yet to identify. Benefit: Good quality tires. Negatives: Can't just go to the same shop where ever I may be. Balancing would need to be paid for each time.

More thoughts?

Festus2 · 03-27-2014, 08:39 PM

Matt-
I bought a set of Maxxis tires (LR E) from Discount Tires in WA. They didn't have them in when I phoned but arranged to have them ready for me within a week. Plenty of these chain tire stores around so you should be fairly close to one ....but I think you are being relocated to CA.

I thought that Carlisle's reputation and quality has taken a turn upwards ??????

DieselMatt · 03-27-2014, 08:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Festus2

Matt-
I bought a set of Maxxis tires (LR E) from Discount Tires in WA. They didn't have them in when I phoned but arranged to have them ready for me within a week. Plenty of these chain tire stores around so you should be fairly close to one ....but I think you are being relocated to CA.

I thought that Carlisle's reputation and quality has taken a turn upwards ??????

That is great information because when I tried to find a Maxxis dealer near me on their site there was nothing! Although, truth be told I would prefer to buy them in Oregon to avoid the sales tax.

I'll give my local discount a call and see if they have something different than what is on the website.

Yes, I'm being relocated to San Diego so I was hoping to use a place that has locations there too.

Really?! I guess the reviews I'm seeing aren't up to date then. Seems things are changing too quick for me to keep up these days.

Festus2 · 03-27-2014, 08:50 PM

Matt -
I think a phone call to a nearby Discount Tire outlet would be worthwhile rather than going by what is on their website. I believe that they are now "promoting" Carlisles but could be mistaken. As a matter of fact, there were several Discount Tires stores located between Bellingham and Seattle that said they could get Maxxis tires on short notice.

I paid about $735 (if I remember correctly) -- out the door which including balancing. You should note that the price may vary slightly from store to store.

bsmith0404 · 03-28-2014, 02:28 AM

I had Carlisle on my last RV, put about 5,000 miles on them without any problems. I agree that many of the poor reviews are on the older tires. I also had Maxxis on my utility trailer, got them from Discount Tire. They can get just about anything you want, will just have to order them.

jsmith948 · 03-28-2014, 03:35 AM

We put a set of LRE Maxxis 8008 on our Cougar. Got them from Discount Tire. The sales guy beat everyone's prices. Have about 3500 miles on them so far. We are really happy with them. Don't know about Carlisle, their website touts 'made in USA' but they get to put that on their website because some (not all) of their tires ARE us made. Boils down to buyer beware - like you, I read the reviews and bought Maxxis. Good Luck!

On edit: Watch the manufactured dates. Got a great price on a set of Michelins for the DW's explorer. Learned later they were 2 years old before I bought them (I think that was why they were on sale) FWIW

DieselMatt · 03-28-2014, 09:14 AM

This thread has been a fantastic help! I'm going to take the DW's Tahoe in for rotation and balancing @ Discount tire this weekend so I'll talk to them while I'm there and keep you guys informed.

mazboy123 · 03-28-2014, 12:37 PM

you are over thinking this issue....way over thinking the issue.

just buy a name band.

goodyear
firestone

whatever fits your fancy.

DieselMatt · 03-28-2014, 12:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mazboy123

you are over thinking this issue....way over thinking the issue.

just buy a name band.

goodyear
firestone

whatever fits your fancy.

No offense, but when it comes to the safety and security of my family I can never over think the issue.

C130 · 03-30-2014, 08:49 AM

I bought my Michelin XPS Ribs for my Fuzion 322 at Discount Tire. Very happy with their service. I called and spoke to the manager and told him a time I'd be there. I pulled up to their dealership and their parking lot was small and crowded so I just parked on the side street and they came out and took the wheels off right there and had me going in no time.

CWtheMan · 03-30-2014, 09:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by C130

I bought my Michelin XPS Ribs for my Fuzion 322 at Discount Tire. Very happy with their service. I called and spoke to the manager and told him a time I'd be there. I pulled up to their dealership and their parking lot was small and crowded so I just parked on the side street and they came out and took the wheels off right there and had me going in no time.

Obviously they don’t practice what they preach.

“Make sure the tire has load carrying capacity equal to or greater than what the vehicle placard suggests.”

In the reference it's #1 under determine tire size.

http://www.discounttire.com/dtcs/inf...tRightTire.dos

CW

C130 · 03-31-2014, 06:29 AM

Just because the load rating is a couple of hundred pounds higher doesn't mean it's a better, safer tire. I understand the legality part of it but I highly doubt any of the trailers are ever at their "max axle weight". I've had this discussion before and still believe I bought the best, safest tire. Definitely wasn't the cheapest. I'm not trying to argue the point at all and not saying I'm right but I'll take the Michelins over the others any day. The numbers on the sidewall are a joke along with the DOT certifications.

If we had good, dependable tires, ST tires installed from the factory we wouldn't be having numerous threads about tires and blowouts. Anyone had a blowout on an LT tire here? I know they occur as every tire has an occasional issue but the LT tires seem pretty dependable. Guys will argue over a 200 pound tire load rating then pull their trailer with a truck not even in the ballpark of being legal.

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