Advice on Buying Tires

[SkinsKY]

So, I need to buy two back tires for my truck. I've never actually bought quality tires before (they've usually been cheapos for the POS cars I've owned). I'm looking for advice on places to buy them (in stores or online) to get the best deal on them. Also, what is the importance of matching the tires with the ones I currently have. I know to match front tires and back tires, but does it matter if the back two don't match the front two? Are there any specific things I should look for? I'm not opposed to buying used tires, but I have no idea how to tell a good used tire from a bad one (unless it has holes or nails in it, in which case, the difference is obvious. :)).

[rskinsfan10]

If you are looking for cheap name brand tires, try the Tire Rack. They use to advertise prices in the back of Motor Trend. I think you can find them at tirerack.com. The only drawback to buying from them is they don't offer any type of tire protection, or least they didn't when I bought tires from them for my Mustang Cobra back in the day. If you blow the tire, you have to pay full price to replace it with them if you choose to buy it from them again.

Also, I've went down the used tire route before, and while they were great deals as far as price is concerned at the time, they weren't very dependable in the long run. I wound up spending more to keep replacing used tires then if I would have just broken down and bought brand new ones.

[danny's stogie]

Yup, try tirerack.com or discounttiredirect.com. I've used both and have been happy with both. I'd say that on average they sell at about 75% the price of your local tire place. I'm pretty sure that both of them offer some sort of warranty, but you have to pay for it separately. The other problem though is that you'll have to pay for the tires to get mounted on your wheels and neither of these sites will do it for you unless your willing to ship your rims to them or happen to be close to one of their stores.

As for buying a new pair of tires. I'd buy used and try to match the treadwear of your fronts as much as possible. Yes, you can buy just two new ones, but you'd like them to wear at a relatively even pace so that when you need a new set of tires you need to buy all 4 as opposed to starting a cycle of having 2 new ones and two crappy ones on your car at all times.

Oh, another great thing about tirerack is that they have a really good reliable rating system on all the tires that they sell.

[danny's stogie]

And one more thing, if you blew the back ones and you decide to get new tires then put the new ones on the front and the old ones on the back.

[GibbsRules!]

I've heard nothing but good things about tirerack.com as well. I haven't dealt with them yet, but some of my friends have. One guy I know is mobile mechanic and that's the only place he gets tires from. They sound pretty reputable.

I got my last set from Sams Club and was pretty happy with the deal I got.

Good Luck.

[RedskinsDave]

Costco has great prices. Not quite the selection you'll find elsewhere but the tires are cheap and most are high quality.

[BurgundyNGold]

And one more thing, if you blew the back ones and you decide to get new tires then put the new ones on the front and the old ones on the back.
I think that is only supposed to be for FWD vehicles. If his truck is RWD, shouldn't he put the new tires on the back for better traction?

[skinfan43]

I've gotten KILLER deals on Ebay, both used and new tires. If you want to match up the fronts with the rear, look on the sidewall of one of the front tires, find the size (eg., P265/70/15) and brand, and type that into the "search" space on Ebay.com's home page - you should have a BUNCH of choices, both new AND used, and they've still been WAY cheaper than other tire stores or websites I've checked out, even when you factor in the shipping fees... good luck!

[bfauble83]

I like Futuras from Pep Boys myself...not too expensive either.

[danny's stogie]

I think that is only supposed to be for FWD vehicles. If his truck is RWD, shouldn't he put the new tires on the back for better traction?

That is true, but I don't know any trucks that have RWD. It would kind of defeat the purpose of owning a truck.

[bfauble83]

That is true, but I don't know any trucks that have RWD. It would kind of defeat the purpose of owning a truck.


My truck is Rear wheel drive.

[danny's stogie]

My truck is Rear wheel drive.

What kind and what year?

[BurgundyNGold]

That is true, but I don't know any trucks that have RWD. It would kind of defeat the purpose of owning a truck.
I'm pretty sure that most trucks are RWD. SkinsKY, is your truck FWD or RWD?

[redskin_rich]

My truck is 4WD and RWD when not engaged. The fronts wear out quicker than the rears so I have to rotate them frequently.

[danny's stogie]

I'm pretty sure that most trucks are RWD. SkinsKY, is your truck FWD or RWD?

Well I'm not a truck enthusiast so I don't know for sure, but I'd assume that most trucks are FWD seeing as FWD improves traction and handling in difficult weather conditions. RWD offers more responsive handling on solid surfaces and can handle more torque. You ever see a RWD car try to move from standstill in a decent amount of snow? All it will do is bury itself. On the other hand, stick 400 hp in a light vehicle with FWD and will burn the tires out and not go anywhere. The only reason I could think to have RWD on a truck is if it is handling large towing loads on a very regular basis so maybe the big guys like the F450s use RWD.

[BurgundyNGold]

Well I'm not a truck enthusiast so I don't know for sure, but I'd assume that most trucks are FWD seeing as FWD improves traction and handling in difficult weather conditions. RWD offers more responsive handling on solid surfaces and can handle more torque. You ever see a RWD car try to move from standstill in a decent amount of snow? All it will do is bury itself. On the other hand, stick 400 hp in a light vehicle with FWD and will burn the tires out and not go anywhere. The only reason I could think to have RWD on a truck is if it is handling large towing loads on a very regular basis so maybe the big guys like the F450s use RWD.
Trucks I've owned in the past were all RWD, however that may have changed in the past 10 years since I haven't had a truck in that time. Considering that the payload is in the back, and than many trucks are used for towing, I would think that they would still make them RWD. If they are 4X4, then the base 4X2 config would be RWD and the full time config would engage the FWD components.

[SkinsKY]

I'm pretty sure that most trucks are RWD. SkinsKY, is your truck FWD or RWD?

It's RWD, which sucks in rain, because it takes them forever to catch traction when I'm accelerating.

[SkinsKY]

Well I'm not a truck enthusiast so I don't know for sure, but I'd assume that most trucks are FWD seeing as FWD improves traction and handling in difficult weather conditions. RWD offers more responsive handling on solid surfaces and can handle more torque. You ever see a RWD car try to move from standstill in a decent amount of snow? All it will do is bury itself. On the other hand, stick 400 hp in a light vehicle with FWD and will burn the tires out and not go anywhere. The only reason I could think to have RWD on a truck is if it is handling large towing loads on a very regular basis so maybe the big guys like the F450s use RWD.

That's why the trucks have 4WD. If we do run into an obstacle, you crank it on, and do what you need to do. Most cars won't have it and so if you can't have 4WD, it's better to havd FWD.

[danny's stogie]

That's why the trucks have 4WD. If we do run into an obstacle, you crank it on, and do what you need to do. Most cars won't have it and so if you can't have 4WD, it's better to havd FWD.

That makes sense. I guess I was thinking of the predicament from a sedan perspective and the pros of cons of RWD vs FWD when AWD is not available. So yes, put the new tires on back then.

[bfauble83]

What kind and what year?


98 Dakota Sport. Someone once looked underneath and told me that it looked like it was made to haul stuff, like a construction/work truck or something.

[Axegrinder]

Nothing but GoodYears for me.
Some Sears stores have automotive and tire service,and since they're nationwide......

[WackyJacky]

Well, I'll throw my two cents in here. I bought my car used (2002 Hyundai Elantra 5-door) and it already had LeMans tires on it, which I had never heard of. Turns out LeMans is the "house" brand for Firestone. I was so impressed with their performance that when I replaced them a couple months ago (they had somewhere around 40,000 miles on 'em) I went with the same brand. They're super inexpensive, but I found their handling to be quite good, and they're excellent in wet conditions. Cost is always an issue for me, but I wasn't going to scrimp on something as important as tires. I woulda spent more if I had to, but I was sold in how well the LeMans tires performed.