Les Schwab pricing/value

S

Soobs

Joined
Aug 15, 2009
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509
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Colorado
Hey folks,

I'm looking at possibly getting a set of Vredestein Quatrac tires for my Subaru. In terms of availability it seems like Les Schwab is the only brick & mortar location in my state that stocks them. Including tax it's just over $1,000 for a set. Alternatively, I could buy them on TireRack for $564 (including tax) and have either Discount or a mobile installer mount them for $100-$130 extra. So, this seems pretty obvious right? I can't believe the price disparity. I'm just curious if I'm missing something here and curious why is Les Schwab so much more expensive than their competitors? They do have locations all over here so in terms of flat repair/tire replacement I do know that's easy, but the TireRack deal comes with 2 years road hazard. Anywho, thoughts?
 
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The Tire Racks ASAP mobil install service installed new Yokohama Avid Ascend GT tires on my wife's Audi a few years back. Came to the house and did a perfect job. Very professional. Don't hesitate to use them.
 
I have never bought tires from Les Schwab because of their prices. They use to have the inclusive Toyo contract but lost it. 3rd tier tires at 1st tier prices. I bought many sets of Vredestein tires from Tirerack and had them shipped to my local Firestone and they charged me $78.00 to install. They were on Tirerack’s preferred installer list.
 
So if you buy from TireRack and need to utilize their 2 year road hazard warranty for an unrepairable tire do you just buy a new tire anywhere or does it need to be ordered through TireRack? Is installation covered or just the replacement cost of the tire?
 
Les Schwab used to have competitive prices and carry good tires, but since Mr. Schwab passed away, their prices have skyrocketed and many of their tires are no-name made in china tires. I know all businesses put profits first, but they seem to have gone from a customer service oriented company to only caring about the bottom line. I remember the freezer being full of free Bomb Pop popsicles during the summer that you could eat while you waited for your tires to get fixed/installed. Used to be a great place. They sold to some investment firm a couple of years back.
 
Trashman said:
Les Schwab used to have competitive prices and carry good tires, but since Mr. Schwab passed away, their prices have skyrocketed and many of their tires are no-name made in china tires. I know all businesses put profits first, but they seem to have gone from a customer service oriented company to only caring about the bottom line. I remember the freezer being full of free Bomb Pop popsicles during the summer that you could eat while you waited for your tires to get fixed/installed. Used to be a great place. They sold to some investment firm a couple of years back.
Click to expand...
Now I want a bomb pop.
 
Trashman said:
Les Schwab used to have competitive prices and carry good tires, but since Mr. Schwab passed away, their prices have skyrocketed and many of their tires are no-name made in china tires. I know all businesses put profits first, but they seem to have gone from a customer service oriented company to only caring about the bottom line. I remember the freezer being full of free Bomb Pop popsicles during the summer that you could eat while you waited for your tires to get fixed/installed. Used to be a great place. They sold to some investment firm a couple of years back.
Click to expand...
We just got a les Schwab store a year or so ago. Never heard of them before then.
 
I would agree that the prices Les Schwab charges are not high-they are "ultra high". Can't help to wonder how they are really doing.....the investment group is privately held and the family wanted 3 billion for the business. The sale price was not disclosed. They were (still are?) the fifth largest independent tire retailer in the country.
 
I avoid Schwab for my personal vehicles. They personally made me mad a few times over some issues i would rather not get into.
But for My work truck i bought schwab tires for it. They were probably %5-10% more than other places but their free rotate and balance plus their road hazard that goes til the tire is worn out saved my company money in the long run. They also had convenient locations pretty much everywhere I worked.
The tire for the truck in question was a good all season and for the weight carried in my truck held up very well for 70k-80k miles.
 
Not sure about now, but many years ago when I bought a set of tires from Les Schwab, their business model was based upon selling store branded tires. At that time at least, store branded tires were priced somewhat fair. Less expensive than the tires they were intended to compete against, but if you priced them against other second tier tires, they were no bargain.

If you try to buy name brand tires at Les Schwab, they are no bargain at all. It seems that they don't even care if they aren't competitive with name brand tires.

I also had a bad experience when buying a set of tires from Les Schwab. I've never since stepped foot into a Les Schwab store. And I have no intention to ever do so.

I think Les Schwab caters to commercial customers, so perhaps they feel that the rest of us don't matter.
 
pdxglocker9mm said:
I avoid Schwab for my personal vehicles. They personally made me mad a few times over some issues i would rather not get into.
But for My work truck i bought schwab tires for it. They were probably %5-10% more than other places but their free rotate and balance plus their road hazard that goes til the tire is worn out saved my company money in the long run. They also had convenient locations pretty much everywhere I worked.
The tire for the truck in question was a good all season and for the weight carried in my truck held up very well for 70k-80k miles.
Click to expand...
I could see it making sense for this type of situation, but I'm a bit bewildered how their model continues to thrive. They are all over Colorado now and always nestled into dense suburbs. I really don't mind paying a higher price when it makes sense, but this just doesn't add up. Anyway, thanks for the comments.
 
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I bought several sets of Toyos from Schwab over the years. They literally ran out to help customers. Their warranty was excellent and free rotations and flat repairs saved money over time.

I haven't needed tires since Les died and the chain was sold.
 
Tier 3 tires at tier 1 prices. I think les schwab thrives on "easy credit", people pay off their tires over a year or more making minimum payments. I'll give them credit for the amount of stores, there is literally a les schwab in every little town all over WA, ID, OR. Recently, I was quoted $800 for a set of 40,000 mile Chinese off brand tires installed (245/70/17).
 
For the amount Les Schwab charges, I might as well go to Costco and pay less for Michelins than what they want for Chineseium. I have a friend or two in Portland who avoid that place.

If I want Chinese, there’s plenty of tire shops in Oakland that aren’t a highway robbery. Hell, even Firestone or Big O is a deal compared to Les Schwab.
 
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