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How To Avoid
Being Oversold For Your New Tires
The bottom line ... buying tires may not be as simple as you think
when buying at
a discount retail store
Related Topic
Where
To Buy New Tires
Calculating Tire Dimensions
A lesson to learn about
buying tires in this story sent to us....
First of all, I do not buy tires. Secondly, I know very little about buying
new tires. My husband takes care of that, but I do have a general idea about size, length of wear, and the fact that the automobile dealer does not warrant your tires, instead the tire manufacturer. So, now that we have cleared up some of my basic qualifications for writing about buying
new tires, let me tell you a recent experience.
My car is a 1998 Honda EX Sedan with a V-6 motor. It is a
great car, and came with Michelin MXV4 Radials, in a
205/65R15.
Recently we had the snow tires removed. When the store
employee came out and told us that two of the tires had worn
so badly that they were no longer safe, we felt that at
45,000 miles, someone was just trying to make a sale. Upon
returning home we examined the tires, and sure enough, they
were just as the salesperson had said.
Next step was to check with the local Michelin dealer, and
what to our amazement did we discover that this was a “high
performance” tire which was rated at 147 miles an hour and
to replace them would be about $200 each.
The Michelin dealer made several other suggestions of new tires that would be more suitable for our driving and gave us prices ranging from $98 each to $112. That certainly made more sense economically.
Okay, the next step was to check with our local Costco.
They told us that they had to sell us new tires the same as
those put on at the factory. Now, wait a minute! This is a
free country. So we contacted the Honda dealer, spoke with
both sales and service, and they said there was no such
requirement from Honda for new tires, and we could put any
tire we wanted on our vehicle. Back on the phone to Costco
informing them that they must be mistaken. They really dug
their heels in, and said under no circumstances would they
sell us any other tire than the one we had on it presently.
As I said before, we all have a choice in brands, ratings, warranties, and service when we make a purchase. This experience must have happened to other people, and they “bought in to it”.
Consumer ...remember,
buy new tires from a reputable dealer.
Make sure your warranty is good if you relocate. However, do not let any dealer, salesperson, or the like tell you that “you have” to put a certain tire on your vehicle. That is utter nonsense, and as a consumer could damage your budget.
Related Topic
Where
To Buy New Tires
Calculating Tire Dimensions
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