Tire Dismount / Re-Mount Prices - Ugh!

[Auae1985]

Had a tire blowout on my utility trailer about 5 miles from home on Labor Day. Michelin LTX M/S, P215/75R15 takeoff from a Jeep Cherokee I once owned. I estimate this tire and its axle mate are about 30 years old, so I got my money's worth. Tire carcass stayed together enough to prevent the rim from riding on the pavement and get boogered up, so "hats off" to Michelin.

A coworker gave me a pair of 5 year old P235/75R15 takeoffs from a pickup, but they were still mounted on rims. These rims had a bigger bolt pattern than my utility trailer rims, so I had to get the tires swapped over.

Went to a local shop. Total cost to do the swap was $60, no balancing at all. Wow, I guess I'm old. The last time I did this, I think I paid $20.

Oh well, at least it was cheaper than buying new tires.

 

[2010Civic]

Discount tire still charges about $100 to install and balance 4 tires. Which considering how much work that is it is cheap.

 

[Rand]

eww 15 a tire with no balancing is terrible.
instead of guessing the tire date just check for the date code on them.
(XXXX) 2digit week 2 digit year

That size hasnt been used in awhile. might be older than you think.

 

[Johnny248]

Had a tire blowout on my utility trailer about 5 miles from home on Labor Day. Michelin LTX M/S, P215/75R15 takeoff from a Jeep Cherokee I once owned. I estimate this tire and its axle mate are about 30 years old, so I got my money's worth. Tire carcass stayed together enough to prevent the rim from riding on the pavement and get boogered up, so "hats off" to Michelin.

A coworker gave me a pair of 5 year old P235/75R15 takeoffs from a pickup, but they were still mounted on rims. These rims had a bigger bolt pattern than my utility trailer rims, so I had to get the tires swapped over.

Went to a local shop. Total cost to do the swap was $60, no balancing at all. Wow, I guess I'm old. The last time I did this, I think I paid $20.

Oh well, at least it was cheaper than buying new tires.

As the manager of a "larger" tire store, I can tell you that customer supplied tire installation should ALWAYS cost more than install cost when someone is purchasing tires. We are here to sell tires. Not install someone else's. Min is $45/tire to M&B, and if there is dismounting involved it's higher. If they are big truck tires, or low profile high performance tires, prices increase some more.

 

[Chris142]

Firestone charges $360 to mount and balance carry in tires.

 

[sloinker]

Buy a used Harbor Freight tire mounting machine for chump change online or new at HF. They also sell balancers and weights. If you got the bodily horsepower, manual tools are available. Spoons and prybars. Walmart may be your best bet nowadays but still an investment.

 

[2strokeNorthstar]

Firestone charges $360 to mount and balance carry in tires.

Each

 

[Rand]

As the manager of a "larger" tire store, I can tell you that customer supplied tire installation should ALWAYS cost more than install cost when someone is purchasing tires. We are here to sell tires. Not install someone else's. Min is $45/tire to M&B, and if there is dismounting involved it's higher. If they are big truck tires, or low profile high performance tires, prices increase some more.

so if I wanted you to move my full size spare from the spare wheel (steelie) to the normal wheel to replace one destroyed by a spark plug it would be $60? oof.
(tire was on national backorder at the time and awd but only worn 1/32)
I get it overcharging is just another way of saying we dont want to do that.

Of course gouging someone might make them buy elsewhere next time too.

Making 100bucks for 30min of tires doesnt seem too bad 200$ abit ouch.

 

[Chris142]

Each

All 4

 

[Egg_Head]

You will be perennially frustrated by half-assing your way through life. If you had bought new (and correct) trailer tires in the first place, you would have paid lower prices back then and not had the issues you're stewing over now.

 

[2strokeNorthstar]

Buy a used Harbor Freight tire mounting machine for chump change online or new at HF. They also sell balancers and weights. If you got the bodily horsepower, manual tools are available. Spoons and prybars. Walmart may be your best bet nowadays but still an investment.

Our local Walmart won't mount used tires. They told me because they can't prove they aren't stolen. I usually mount my own truck tires then look for a special on balancing.

 

[dubber09]

What's going rate per hour now? Shops charge $120/hr now on average, $60 bought you 30 mins of labor and tire machine use.

 

[RedSpider]

Discount Tire only charged me $23 to mount and balance a used tire on an old wheel I had (I provided both).

 

[Johnny248]

so if I wanted you to move my full size spare from the spare wheel (steelie) to the normal wheel to replace one destroyed by a spark plug it would be $60? oof.
(tire was on national backorder at the time and awd but only worn 1/32)
I get it overcharging is just another way of saying we dont want to do that.

Of course gouging someone might make them buy elsewhere next time too.

Making 100bucks for 30min of tires doesnt seem too bad 200$ abit ouch.

Every situation is different. I'm more so speaking of when some customer buys tires from some website or something like that and then brings them in to have installed.

 

[paulo57509]

Years ago, a local Goodyear shop honored their free rotation on the Camaro. I was expecting to pay for this but the manager insisted that I keep my money. It was the same shop where I purchased the tires.

It wasn't a simple remove the wheels and move them around to different corners.

• These particular Goodyear tires had directional thread
• The Camaro has front/rear specific wheels.

Requires mount/demount/re-balance four wheel/tire assemblies.

I would have gone back to that shop but it had changed ownership (management?); I later found out that their method of centering the steering wheel was to just remove the steering wheel and re-clock it so it pointed straight.

 

[Hermann]

Discount tire still charges about $100 to install and balance 4 tires. Which considering how much work that is it is cheap.

I was charged $88.00 recently at Discount Tire 18 minutes start to finish. Of course 3-4 people working on it at once.

 

[ChrisMU]

There’s a small independent shop my father-in-law goes to in Del Rio, TX that does it for $5/tire if you don’t need balancing or a new valve. Last time, I had some eBay-purchased (reputable seller) Suretrac 1.6” whitewalls mounted, balanced, and new valves installed for about $10 each. I brought them home and installed them on my ‘63 Cadillac.

 

[Auae1985]

eww 15 a tire with no balancing is terrible.
instead of guessing the tire date just check for the date code on them.
(XXXX) 2digit week 2 digit year

That size hasnt been used in awhile. might be older than you think.

I checked and the "new" tires were made in mid 2020 (3520 date code), so my original estimate on their age (5 YO) was off.

You will be perennially frustrated by half-assing your way through life. If you had bought new (and correct) trailer tires in the first place, you would have paid lower prices back then and not had the issues you're stewing over now.

I bought this trailer new in 1996 and it came with 15 inch white spoke rims and some takeoff tires. It gets used on average once a month (if even that), so investing in new tires is somewhat of a moot point IMHO. The tire that blew out had been on there since 1998, when I replaced the originals, and it and its axle mate were only 5 years old. Even if the trailer tires had been brand new (in 1996), they would be 27 years old now. At least they weren't the dinky 10 or 12 inch tires I see on a lot of utility trailers, going 80+ MPH while being towed on the interstate.

 

[UG_Passat]

Had a tire blowout on my utility trailer about 5 miles from home on Labor Day. Michelin LTX M/S, P215/75R15 takeoff from a Jeep Cherokee I once owned. I estimate this tire and its axle mate are about 30 years old, so I got my money's worth. Tire carcass stayed together enough to prevent the rim from riding on the pavement and get boogered up, so "hats off" to Michelin.

A coworker gave me a pair of 5 year old P235/75R15 takeoffs from a pickup, but they were still mounted on rims. These rims had a bigger bolt pattern than my utility trailer rims, so I had to get the tires swapped over.

Went to a local shop. Total cost to do the swap was $60, no balancing at all. Wow, I guess I'm old. The last time I did this, I think I paid $20.

Oh well, at least it was cheaper than buying new tires.

Price of everything has gone up, which includes labor.

 

[Sequoiasoon]

Every situation is different. I'm more so speaking of when some customer buys tires from some website or something like that and then brings them in to have installed.

I think I paid $25-30 each at local shop for the ones I bought on TireRack and DTD. The shop is listed as a recommended installer on TireRack website that I think helps set the price.