Question: When Is It Cheaper To Buy Tires?

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Idk about time frame but your best bet is to scour the Internet for prices on the tires you want, print the total page including shipping and see if a local shop will match. I've gotten all my tires this way and saved a lit over what they originally wanted to charge.

tirerack.com, and have a local service station install them.

never really see tires go on sale like that but then again I live in Texas and we we never really need winter tires and summer tires are fine all year. Hell my car has only had summer tires on it for nearly 7 years now. Only had issue with it 3-4 days in all that time. Next day everything would be gone.

Doc750 said:

tirerack.com, and have a local service station install them.

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x2. I saved ~$50 a tire (even w/ the price of shipping factored in) compared to any of the local places that sold the same tires.

And the local place I had them shipped to was totally cool with installing them. I thought they'd be dicks about it since I didn't buy the tires from them. Nope.

I'm glad I live in an area where we don't have different tires for summer and winter!

I used to live in an area (PA) where you could conceivably have two sets of tires, but I never did. Always just bought a good all-season radial. Never had any issues. I did know a few folks who had snow tires, but for my generation, it seemed far from the norm. I think even my father didn't have specific snowtires on his car starting in the 80s.

The only type of tire I can see that would be of benefit in the snow is a studded tire, and in some places, they are outlawed or extremely limited in the amount of time you can have them on your car since they do a lot of damage to the road surfaces.

Get a set of all-season tires, also get a set of 'chains'...they are easy to put on if you have icy or heavy snow situations and will give you the extra traction in those emergency situations. Otherwise all-seaon tires will do you well...at least they had in my snow- and ice-driving experiences.

mstrze said:

I used to live in an area (PA) where you could conceivably have two sets of tires, but I never did. Always just bought a good all-season radial. Never had any issues. I did know a few folks who had snow tires, but for my generation, it seemed far from the norm. I think even my father didn't have specific snowtires on his car starting in the 80s.

The only type of tire I can see that would be of benefit in the snow is a studded tire, and in some places, they are outlawed or extremely limited in the amount of time you can have them on your car since they do a lot of damage to the road surfaces.

Get a set of all-season tires, also get a set of 'chains'...they are easy to put on if you have icy or heavy snow situations and will give you the extra traction in those emergency situations. Otherwise all-seaon tires will do you well...at least they had in my snow- and ice-driving experiences.

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well a big difference between the All Seasons and the winter tires is the winter tires generally have bigger grooves and made out of a much softer rubber that does not get hard a low temps.

I know my tires suck when it is cold and wet has they never warm up they tend to stay pretty stiff and I have a lot less traction.

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By the end of the winter season... Obviously!

Rodimus Prime said:

well a big difference between the All Seasons and the winter tires is the winter tires generally have bigger grooves and made out of a much softer rubber that does not get hard a low temps.

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That's all well and good...just sharing my experiences in the NE US where I never used snow tires and yet didn't have issues.

mstrze said:

That's all well and good...just sharing my experiences in the NE US where I never used snow tires and yet didn't have issues.

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not going against you at all I was just explaining the difference. Of course I am the guy who is running summer tires full time on his car. I also live in Texas so not as huge of an issue but I have driven threw snow on the street that my bottom of my front bumper was scrapping the top of the snow on them (not one of my bright moments in time)

Tires last longest if they are installed during the cool autumn weather. The reason is that tires wear fastest when new because the tread depth is deepest then and this allows more tread movement resulting in faster wear. Heat also accelerates wear. So by allowing tires to wear out the first part during the cool winter weather you reduce the effect of the summer heat. In some cases this can make a dramatic difference in overall tire life.

When you get your new tires, be sure to rotate them at about 1600 miles or shortly thereafter. This first early rotation allows all tires to have a turn on the drive axle when new which will set up an even wearing pattern and help prevent odd wear later in the tire's life. This first early rotation is the most important rotation you can do.

And keep some air in the tires. The vehicle placard is a good starting place but should be modified by your conditions. Hot weather, cold weather, freeway driving, and not checking pressures daily all require an increase in cold pressure (never more than the maximum stated on the sidewall). Think of this way. Heat is the enemy of tires. As the tire flexes it builds up heat. After driving for some time the heat built up by the tires' flexing will be equal to the amount of heat lost from the air passing over the tires. This heat will increase the pressure. You can either start with a low pressure and let the flexing increase the pressure or you can start with a higher pressure and reduce the heat build up.

Rodimus Prime said:

not going against you at all I was just explaining the difference. Of course I am the guy who is running summer tires full time on his car. I also live in Texas so not as huge of an issue but I have driven threw snow on the street that my bottom of my front bumper was scrapping the top of the snow on them (not one of my bright moments in time)

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Well...I too am here in Texas and I am surprised my tires don't melt some summers. LOL

aristobrat said:

x2. I saved ~$50 a tire (even w/ the price of shipping factored in) compared to any of the local places that sold the same tires.

And the local place I had them shipped to was totally cool with installing them. I thought they'd be dicks about it since I didn't buy the tires from them. Nope.

I'm glad I live in an area where we don't have different tires for summer and winter!

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I got new tires this past fall. It would have been much more expensive through tirerack where I would have had to pay freight and installation on top—I went to a tire warehouse where I bought them and installed them for less than the tirerack price before shipping. Your mileage may vary .

Rodimus Prime said:

never really see tires go on sale like that but then again I live in Texas and we we never really need winter tires and summer tires are fine all year. Hell my car has only had summer tires on it for nearly 7 years now. Only had issue with it 3-4 days in all that time. Next day everything would be gone.

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This is why we Canadians dislike Texas ... lol, kidding ... love the Cowboys ... just jealous ... 3-4 days in 7 years I wish. ... 3-4 days in a week would be nice.

OP ... buy winter tires in summer and summer tires in winter will always save you ... Costco usually has great prices.

I popped a tire a while back. The original tires were still on the car... and the car is from the late 90s. Shows you how long those puppies lasted. Ended up getting new wheels and tires for a little over $600.

PS. I too live in Texas. Random fact there.

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Lol lots of Texans here. Add me to that list.

All seasons...I have Continental Extreme Contact DWS. Cannot emphasize enough how much I love these tires!! Good with everything ive thrown at them!

I also use all-season tires, and always have; in Illinois, Colorado and Wisconsin. Buy from a Goodyear or Firestone shop, and wait for the "4th one free" promotion, which happens regularly. Or get their "credit card" and get that deal anytime. (I think.)

Tire prices change with the price of petroleum.

Hubby worked for Firestone for many years, and there was never a set tire sale schedule. The 4th tire free promos are normally not the tires that I want. LOL

We used to live in PA, in the mountains, and we always had Blizzak winter tires...Before we got them, there were a few times our little Ford Tempo didn't make it up the mountain! We bought one set for our car when we moved there, and used them for 8 winters. FANTASTIC tires. I really want them for the car I have now- cause I HATE THE EFFING TIRES that came on it...But I can't afford to replace them right now.

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As noted, if you aren't anal about what tires you get, the local shops are generally competitive because you don't have to pay freight and they often install the tires you buy from them for free - this typically amounts to a savings of $80-120 on a set of 4.

If you live in an area that gets a reasonable amount of snow or cold weather, snow tires are a great investment. If you rotate your tires winter and summer, the cost is marginal, since both sets last twice as long. It always amazes me that people scoff at the cost of snow tires, yet they can be had for less than the price of the typical insurance deductible. They will singlehandedly make the biggest difference in being able to handle winter roads safely -FAR more important than 4wd or AWD, that's for sure!

If you do go with winter tires, Tire Rack becomes competitive - as you should have them installed on a second set of wheels. This will save you $50-100 or more every year over paying to have the tires mounted and dismounted on 1 set of wheels. Don't tell me you don't have time - this can be done for nominal charge during any oil change.

Lastly, NEVER install snow tires on just the front of a FWD vehicle. They MUST be installed on ALL 4 wheels!!

If you have a specific tire in mind which is carried by Amazon, CamelCamel will show you the price history if available. I just did a search for winter tire (random)

Hankook Ventus S1 Noble2 Performance Radial Tire - 225/50R17 94W

and the lowest price was in January 2018, and December 2016. But there wasn't much variation, low of $91 to high of $114, currently 99.20.

I order tires if I can't get what I want locally.

For standard stuff, by the time you pay shipping and have them mounted, balanced, and aligned you're spending the same money as you would locally. That's especially true if you find the buy 3, get 1 free sales. If you're anticipating buying a set of tires, watch for a deal in your preferred brand.

Also, I'll add that for many folks, a good A/S tire is a MUCH better idea than a true summer tire. Summer tires grip like nothing else if the temperature is high enough. With that said, they do that by using soft rubber that also tends to have a short tread life. Grip drops off DRAMATICALLY below 50º F, and by 40º they usually will be hard as a rock and have no traction.

Winter tires are a different story. I run all seasons all year round, but it gets cold enough here in the winter that I really SHOULD get winter tires.

Rodimus Prime said:

never really see tires go on sale like that but then again I live in Texas and we we never really need winter tires and summer tires are fine all year. Hell my car has only had summer tires on it for nearly 7 years now. Only had issue with it 3-4 days in all that time. Next day everything would be gone.

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Would those be all weather tires? I live in Minnesota for three decades and never purchased dedicated winter tires nor used chains.

I see tires get discounted on TireRack.com right before a new revision comes out. Sometimes they will have a rebate if you buy four tires. If you are lucky, you can find both. That is how I purchased my last set of snow tires, the Continental snowtires were being replaced with a new design, and there was also a rebate for continental tires.

I highly recommend TireRack.com, they have decent prices, sometimes allow pickup from their warehouse if you are close, and are very helpful for questions and custom purchases.

I have purchased 4 sets of wheels from them over the years, and they have always had great service.

Huntn said:

Would those be all weather tires? I live in Minnesota for three decades and never purchased dedicated winter tires nor used chains.

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Are you asking if his summer tires are all season tire? or asking if the winter tires he is referring to are all season?

I live in Maryland and have snow tires sets for two of my vehicles. I also have summer tires for two of my vehicles and all season for two of my vehicles.