Explain Tire rack to me

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Looking at the big picture:

Tire Rack has a HUGE selection. An ordinary tire shop just can not stock all those.

OTOH, it does take a few days for your order to arrive - something most shops can also accommodate.

Price? Tire Rack has pretty decent prices, but what many people fail to consider is that the price posted doesn't include shipping or mounting and balancing. I am of the opinion that a local tire shop should be able to beat that price.

Then there is the issue of who takes ownership if there is a problem. Tire Rack is pretty good about taking ownership, but they do this at a distance, so it's inconvenient for the consumer.
 
Originally Posted By: CapriRacer
Looking at the big picture:

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Price? Tire Rack has pretty decent prices, but what many people fail to consider is that the price posted doesn't include shipping or mounting and balancing. I am of the opinion that a local tire shop should be able to beat that price.

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I priced out tires for my Saturn, and when everything was said and done the price was about the same. Except the local/regional chain shop (Dunn Tire) offers free rotations for life and warranties their tires with roadside assistance...
 
I was at the LOCAL tire shop getting a flat fixed...twelve bucks....it rarely happens anymore with new tire tech. Anyway, I heard a quote for installing a decent brand tires on a minivan...680 dollars....yikes.....you can buy a decent TireRack tire with a good brand, have them installed and shipped etc for about 500 dollars. That's 180 dollars in your pocket.
 
Originally Posted By: rjundi

2) charges high prices to install other stuff(smart!!!!)
Ya the going rate is $40 to mount and balance a carry in in tire here!

That's $160 to mount and balance your 4 mail order tires unless you like to mount them your self by breaking the beads with a heavy truck then prying them off and back on with screwdrivers. I stopped doing that 15 yrs ago.
 
well the going rate at the dealer for mount and roadforce balance for carry-in tires is 20$ Each here.

I've given them options to pricematch but they always try to pawn some oem tire off on me..
the ones that are 200$ each and suck.

I then go mail order tires for around 120$ that are much better than their 200$ tires they would "give me a deal on"

pay their 88$ out the door and save $$$ still.
 
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Again, once these tire web sites start to charge NY State Tax, I'll still be saving ~ $100-$120 on a set of 4 tires(price dependent).

I've never been one for ONLY saving $20 bucks. For $20 bucks, I'll buy local on the same exact tire/brand/model/size.
smile.gif
 
Originally Posted By: Rand
well the going rate at the dealer for mount and roadforce balance for carry-in tires is 20$ Each here.

I've given them options to pricematch but they always try to pawn some oem tire off on me..
the ones that are 200$ each and suck.

I then go mail order tires for around 120$ that are much better than their 200$ tires they would "give me a deal on"

pay their 88$ out the door and save $$$ still.


This is my experience. I save real money by ordering from Discount Tire Direct or another retailer. I generally find Tire Rack prices aren't competitive after adding TR's shipping costs.

The way to real online savings is when there are sales that can be stacked with rebates. When that happens, good luck getting a local shop to beat the price. In many cases, I don't know if you will be able to.

I paid $80 to have four tires mounted/balanced (with a roadforce machine) at my local Firestone. I have lifetime rotate and balance at Firestone Complete Auto Care centers nationwide and I've used it several times at multiple stores.

Waiting for a sale and having the tires mounted locally came to a total price of $380 installed for a set of Hankook H727 tires. No local place in my area could come close to that price.

Ordering tires online may not work for everyone, but it works for me.
 
Forgot to mention..the rims i ordered and had shipped were packaged incredibly well. I took into account cost of bringing them into canada and mounting tires to them etc. For the right price, wouldnt hesitate to buy from them again.
 
Tire Rack sponsors and has a fitment expert available on the Camaro forum I spend a lot of time on. The constant expert advice is invaluable. I decided I wanted a second set of wheels and tires ready to mount so that I could be completely free from the unstable world of tire shops. So I got wheels, tires, TPMS sensors pre-installed, Hunter Roadforce balancing and a tool to reset TPMS on my own. I even paid sales tax because I'm in Indiana where one of their big DCs is located. TR earned my business.
 
When I got new tires for our camry a few weeks ago, I asked the tire guy if they accept direct shipment from tire rack, he said no, it doesn't make sense to pay for shipping when you get them cheaper here.
Like the OP said, unless it's something that the tire places don't sell, I don't see it being cost efficient.
The one thing I like about tirerack though is that they sell name brand tires.
 
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Perhaps it's been mentioned before, but I suspect many B&M tire stores have caught on to or up with TireRack.

I have successfully taken the quotes from TR to local tire stores and asked that they meet the price with shipping. I.E. if the four tires are $300 and $60 for shipping, then each tire would be $90.

Tax is a significant cost. Sales tax has gone from 5% when I was a child to almost 10% in some local municipalities. That's a serious consideration and may make TR the better deal.

It's like anything else, you have to do your homework and look at the whole picture. I'm looking at the Pirelli CINTURATO P7 as the next tire for my Protege5. TireRack has them for $133.35/tire shipped. Sam's Club has them for $133.32 + tax. But the $15/tire mounted, balanced and lifetime road hazard is worth getting my tires at Sam's and paying the sales tax.

So sometimes it works, other times, not so much.

I do agree, if you are buying wheels and tires mounted and ready to bolt on, TR is often a very good way to go.
 
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