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PS, I only really got into buying tyres this way because my Panda 4x4 needs mud+snow tyres and most UK tyre fitters can't be bothered to stock or even price these, although on the continent they're popular and frequently fitted.
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Just looked at Blackcircles and noticed that, despite them paying the fitter £10 per tyre, the difference between mail order and full fitted is around £15 so they are pocketing a further £5 for arranging fitting of the tyres.
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I got some prices from a well known internet based company, then went to a local one and showed them the price. They matched the price for my wife's car and dropped a bit more again for my car.
A chain tyre depot, nearish where I live was asking over £30 per tyre more than what I eventually paid, which when you consider I did all 8 tyres in one go is quite a lot of saving, nearly £300 in fact.
Rough price comparison from memory. Pirelli P6000 for Jag S Type, 17", well known tyre fitting chain £135 each, local tyre shop after discount £105 each
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Oilrag,
I've been buying tyres off the net for some years now, i am regular at both camskill's and mytyres, and i tend to start looking some time before i need them, as very often they have specials deals on certain tyres and you can pick some real bargains up.
Camskills take some beating really, and i've had their tyres the following day or the second day at latest.
I also go on to 'tyretest' and 'tirerack' (american so only cover certain european tyres) to see what others think of the tyres they have bought, bit late when you've bought ditchfinders. Usefull to keep an eye on the magazine tyre tests also.
I do like buying in this way as its possible to pick up some of the best (not always the most obvious names) european tyres for the same price as those from the far east.
As others have said, costco take some beating for michelins, but i don't have a card and the nearest is 60 miles away.
Its worth finding a few prices from the net though and then (after adding a tenner a wheel for fitting), phoning some local places for a package price, they can be good still, but some have a seriously aggressive and poor attitiude.
I know who's meant by 'phone us if you get a better quote and we'll match it', wouldn't give them the time of day.
As doctorchris says, and i use winter tyres as well, some of the regular tyre places are just not interested, well they're the losers.
As an aside, getting them fitted is a bit of a gamble these days, some places don't have the foggiest idea how to balance tyres, and always the danger of getting nice alloys scraped by uncaring fitters.
Only last week i had to get the hilux tyres rebalanced by a place in town (different to first fitting shop) and they were as carefull as could be, and torqued up properly and now perfect balance. I'll be using them from now.
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Forgot to say, do keep an eye on mytyres for your sizes, twice i've bought tyres that were obviously way underpriced and the price shot up couple of days after i puchased, in one case i saved £30 per nokian car tyres and £40+ per yokohama 4 x 4 tyres.
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Gordon, thanks for recommending Camskill, I've added them to my favourites.
Sadly, my puny 14in wheels are too small to be of interest to them so I'll stick to Mytyres just now.
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Doctorchris, if you click on 'car tyres' on the camskill site, you will find (and i assume you are on 185/65 x 14) vredestein quatrac 2 on sale, they dont always put tyres in both categories. They are M&S by the way, but i dont know about any of the others.
Bout the same price for that tyre on mytyres anyway.
Nothing wrong with 14" wheels when you can get good qual M&S tyres for £40 each, my 16" M&S qual tyres are around £110 mark normally.
Wonder if the oily one has found himself a bargain yet?
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I used tyreshopper last time. cheaper than black circles or mytyres and used the local national autocentre for fitting.
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Sorry Gordon I missed that bit.
Amazing, isn't it, how the general public waste so much money going to the big tyre dealers when a bit of research would save them a fortune.
In fact, I know of folk who don't even check their tyre wear before an MOT then get stung for whatever the MOT station stock, even worse if they take the car to the main dealer for its MOT.
Bet these same people would agonise over how much they pay for a tin of beans and maybe waste fuel driving from one supermarket to another to save pennies.
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In fact I know of folk who don't even check their tyre wear before an MOT
Doc, you'll probably find that the same people think the entire circumference of their tyres are in full contact with a bone dry road at all times as well, similar to a tracklayer.
I was a late and reluctant computer/internet user, but its opened my eyes and saved a fortune, and if i can get the hang of the blessed thing one day before i kick the bucket, it'll be a good thing.
Baked beans are getting expensive though.......not as i can eat them any more, give me palpitations, conditioned to a good diet now thanks to SWMBO (roast lamb and 5 veg later on mmmm)
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cheers for the responses ;) Its a while off yet GB, just starting to think about it.
The vans on firestone F590 165 70 14s so it won`t break the bank to get a couple for the front end in a few months time.
Its done nearly 20,000 now, the fronts are at 4mm centre and 3mm at the sides. while the backs are just under 7mm (from 8mm new)
took the wheels off last night to check the pads and they look like new. suppose that`s my thrift driving LOL and horror of horrors, using the box to slow down.
I won`t change my habits at this stage regarding braking and also won`t fit new tyres on the rear instead of the front to satisfy `Health And Safety` and tyre fitters pandering to a motoring public who will sue if there`s a twitch from the back end.
Stuffing it, oversteering and aquaplaning, into the motorway barriers at a sharp curve on a wet road with 3mm on the front and new tyres on the back is fine of course.
Regards
Sorry for the topic drift;)
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Oily, why not switch your tyres back to front and vice versa every 6000miles. I do it because 4x4 systems don't like tyres with big differences in wear between front and rear. However, with any car, you don't end up with hardly worn but old tyres on the rear (assuming front wheel drive) and only have to visit the tyre fitters half as often to replace 4 rather than 2 tyres. In addition, you sometimes get a better deal on replacing 4 tyres. It also helps to cancel out some of those inevitable front tyre uneven wear issues that are seen these days even if steering geometry is spot-on.
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After trying everywhere including the online places, the cheapest (by £20 per tyre on a £125 tyre) was an independant local firm.
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Cheers Nick, Will be sure to check the locals. Amongst the independents here there`s a new Glass Palace ( well high rise metal ) of a tyre dealer. The cheapest is a back street place and all I can think when driving past the former, is where the profit came from ;)
regards
Edited by oilrag on 04/05/2008 at 18:35
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"why not switch your tyres back to front and vice versa every 6000miles."
I always fit new on the back when they are half worn Chris. Never wanted to test out whether the rear tyres have worn slightly out of balance and would cause problems if put on the front.
Plus I think the back tyres are basically for just holding the back end up and prefer new grip on the front ;)
That attitude dates right back to the 60`s when it snowed a lot, we had snow tyres on the front of minis and any rubbish on the back. No problem, we used to twitch the steering and catch the back coming out- if - we could provoke it to do it. Then handbrake turns on ice and snow..
The front end going straight on into the curb would have been another matter though, little control over that, not as much control to us as over the back end.
I think that sort of learning to drive is not around though much these days due to lack of interest, snow and practice.
Regards
Edited by oilrag on 04/05/2008 at 18:28
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I use etyres: tinyurl.com/mx7mo because it seems easier to get them to come to me.
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Thanks for that A11. I had been looking for that site having found it earlier and then lost it. I will check it out.
regards
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Yeah, but when you open the site you have to listen to the awful Eamon Holmes wittering on!
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Yeah but when you open the site you have to listen to the awful Eamon Holmes wittering on!
Could be worse. In fact it used to be. Previously it was Vicki Butler-Henderson with a stupid cheesy grin on her face.
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In other words 2, 2, 4, 2, 2........ The two`s being new fronts and about `every 6 years, 4 new all round, followed by 2 sets of front new, then all four again.
depending on the condition of the rear`s of course.
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Local "railway arch" fitter for me after I have researched on the net. He will supply and fit for less then the internet sites charge just for supplying and he does a good job when fitting.
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Ford Focus zetec wth sports pack 17" wheels - Continental Contact 2's size 205/50/17 the cost was £168 wherevever I went.
This is a lot for a Focus tyre dont you think.
Why are they so expensive ?
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size 205/50/17 the cost was £168 wherevever I went. Why are they so expensive ?
I had similar problems when I needed to replace 2 tyres on my Vectra. The tyre size is 215/50/17 and it's not a common size, hence very expensive to replace. Saw it mentioned on another forum (vectra-c.com) that I could fit 225/45/17's for a lot less money as they are more mass produced and more widely available. Speedo now overeads by approx 3 mph, but so what.
215/50/17 (Goodyear NCT5) from blackcirles £105.88 (delivered)
215/50/17 (Goodyear Excellence) from mytyres £109.60 (delivered)
Both the above didn't stock Goodyear F1 GSD3 in the 215/17/50 size.
The alternate size:-
225/45/17 (Goodyear F1 GSD3) from blackcirles £92.44 (delivered)
225/45/17 (Goodyear F1 GSD3) from mytyres £78.20 (delivered)
225/45/17 (Goodyear F1 GSD3) from camskill £69.50 (delivered)
Camskill came up trumps for me.
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 05/05/2008 at 02:06
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I tend to use internet prices to knock down reputable local suppliers.
Last two rear tyres though I had to get from Mytyres @ £140 each as nobody local could get hold of them.
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For what it's worth.....
I've used Event Tyres and am always impressed with price and good cust service.
www.event-tyres.co.uk/
Prices quoted are including valves, balanced and fitted & VAT.
They are mobile with fully equipped Mercedes Sprinters and will travel to either your place of work or home and fit them on the driveway........ie no driving around town on a Saturday morning waisting time & money & petrol.
They will phone you back usually within an hour or 2 of you requesting a quote and confirm where and when you want them fitting. I've never been let down or disappointed by them. I've even recommended them to my Dad !
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I buy tyres from my local family-owned Ford dealer. Their price is very competitive and I know that the car will be raised on a hoist and treated properly. I've seen the way cars are jacked up with a trolley jack under whatever comes to hand at some discount tyre places.
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Now this issue is almost the basis for a new thread, ie where tyre fitters use their trolley jacks on cars.
The fitter I use and trust uses the jacking points for the jack supplied with the car. With all our cars I find that this is appropriate as the jack is applied to strengthened points on the sill.
If I was not happy with his use of jacking points I would tell him and I know he would listen but then I know what I'm talking about.
There was a time when I ran a Nissan Terrano 2 which had a live rear axle with a diff. Common practice then was to put the jack under the rear diff but the handbook said no, use jack on the rear axle at the point where the shocks were installed.
Told tyre fitters about this and none complained though maybe after I left they said "bolshy old so-and-so".
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Nissan Terrano 2 which had a liverear axle with a diff. Common practice then was to put the jack under the rear diff but the handbook said no
Doc, i don't think its a problem putting a decent large trolley jack under the diff of a live axle on a full size 4 x 4, i think the handbooks recommend using the axle tube at a point nearer to the wheel for safety's sake, as the book is written for the jack supplied with the car in mind, and keeps 3 wheels on the ground.
Also the castings for the live axle should be far too strong under the diff to suffer damage as they are usually the lowest point on the vehicle and are designed to take a bashing off road.
I agree about the jacking points on normal cars though, how many vehicles have we seen where the front chassis rails have started to collapse where trolley jacks have been used on what looks like a strong point, but isn't.
Not always easy to get a trolley jack under the front cross member on many cars though, my old merc being one of them.
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Some feedback. E tyres came in with this price, all inclusive and fitted at home with a mobile fitter. That`s around £10 cheaper than a place i rang in town. Given the low cost anyway I wont look further, in particular as they come out to your drive.
How have people found E tyres mobile fitters? do they use rubber pads on the jacks and do a good job with balancing?
FIRESTONE - F590
165/70R14T
View detail... Quantity: 2
£89.80 inc VAT
Regards
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Not sure if E Tyres use rubber pads to protect or not.
Maybe ask them before they start or provide them with some when they fit them.
Balancing was spot on.
Only place that was cheaper was Costco wholesale
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Oilrag,
I have used Etyres several times and had no problems with them at all. Friendly professional fitters who know what they are doing.
Last time they came out they had a problem removing one of the wheels that I guess had been put on with an airgun from the garage I use for servicing and I think it had stuffed the thread or something. He offered to come back on a 2nd visit free of charge to do the tyre when the garage sorted out the wheel. In the end I got the garage to put the tyre on for nothing as they were the ones that caused the problem. I was impressed the guy was prepared to do that though.
Cheers,
Nick
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Good to hear that others have had good service from E Tyres.
My son hit a minor snag when he got them to fit new tyres on his company Range Rover as he hadn't thought about access for their full-size Transit to the office carpark he specified. But they came back next day to another site and did the job there for no extra charge.
(In contrast to a "you can't get better" fitter who didn't bother to tighten the studs properly so causing a wheel to come off and over £1000 of damage!)
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Thanks for the feedback guys.
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I used one of these mobile companies a while back. I was concerned that a trolley jack might leave marks on my paving. However he used some inflatbale things which left no marks whatsoever. And it was so much better than hanging around a tyre centre, and cheaper with it.
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i had 4 tyres from blackcircle recently and found they were the cheapest by far,also i found there all inclusive price worked out cheaper than paying for the fitting and balancing to the firm that fitted them if i had used mytyres.turned out to be the same company who fitted them.just paid extra for them to be fitted at my home,excellent job he made of it as well.
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oilrag
I've used e tyres a couple of times recently. Excellent prices, excellent fit at home service. Very careful with the alloy wheels, balance was fine. Did things like carefully cleaning the wheels so the stick on balance weights held properly. I'd recommend them.
JS
Edited by John S on 17/06/2008 at 20:38
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oilrag .... I'd recommend them.
Too late to help oilrag. See
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=64203&...f
Hoilyraggy has found his tyres from some internet place but unfortunately, he feels "uncomfortable" sharing the information with backroomers who have done their bit to help him! ;-)
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Another vote for eTyres here. Bought four Dunlop SP10's for £138.42p fitted and balanced at home in November 07. Super service - no problems. + free puncture repairs (haven't tried this part of the service however). Fitter was a franchisee - smart corporate van and equipment / uniform / paperwork. Came from fairly nearby town (Devon) via a central call centre. Would use again.
KB.
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