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best way to get new tires?

gorobei

gorobei

Diamond Member
So I had a tire blow out, no biggie as i was only pulling out of the driveway. it was an old tire with a slow leak, so i was probably due. but now I need a new tire, and should probably replace all 4 to be safe. its an old camry that i dont drive other than once a month to charge the battery and will likely get rid of it in a couple years. so what is the cheapest option?

i read that due to volume it is better to buy tires from a costco, walmart, etc. and have them install it. the problem is the nearest walmart with an autocenter is probably an hour away and i wouldnt want to drive on the emergency tire that long. i can have the tires shipped to me and take them to a local shop which seems like the simplest option.

any suggestions?

thanks in advance.
 
Check online sellers like Tire Rack, Tirebuyer, Discount Tire Direct, etc. Sometimes even Amazon or ebay have decent deals but beware of 3rd party sellers who may have slow sales of old or blemished tires.

They may participate in the manufacturer rebate programs, and some have seasonal savings, for example ending TODAY, Discount Tire Direct has an additional discount.

Tire Rack has some deals too, as does Tirebuyer. You might also search for promo codes. I found one for Tirebuyer when I bought there a year ago but I don't know what's out there today.

Official TireBuyer Coupons and Promo Codes | TireBuyer.com

Get a great deal on tires at TireBuyer. We offer coupons and rebates on all of the best tire brands. Tires are always delivered fast and free to an installer near you, and installation rates are guaranteed. If you aren't completely satisfied with your order, we have free 45-day returns.
www.tirebuyer.com www.tirebuyer.com

Most online tire vendors will ship to your installer within a day or two, and some even have it set up automated to show participating installers in your area to choose from including their rates.

However some of these installers may be annoyed that you didn't buy the tires from them... and yet, it is they who chose to be on the affiliate installer list.

You didn't mention the size (and the older a vehicle gets, the less likely it even has the same size as factory) but sometimes there's additional savings to be had if you go "slightly" up or down on the size. I mean like 2.0% or less diameter difference, but you must replace both tires on same front or rear *axle* with same exact size which you already stated you intend to with replacing all 4. You can use a site like this to compare them:

tiresize.com

Tire Size Calculator

The best tire size calculator. Use our tire size calculator to find tire size specs and suggested tire sizes. Then check prices for all available tire sizes.
tiresize.com tiresize.com

Anywhere you buy tires, your odds go up of getting a more recent manufacture date, fresh tire by choosing a popular brand and size from a popular merchant. Certainly the factory size for a Camry is going to be popular.
 
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thanks for the links, i need to look at my tire specs to avoid using the website's finder apps as they are kinda crap.
 
The last time I bought tires for my wrx I went to Costco. They beat the piss out of tire rack on price plus got free install.
 
Look up Solar 4XS tires on Walmart.com. IIRC the OEM is Sumitomo tires and they are produced in Indonesia.
 
One of my car's tires I bought from Discount Tire Direct on Ebay during a nice sale, and had them installed at the local Tires Direct store.

The last set I got I just found the tire I wanted, found the lowest prices online, and had Tires Direct store match the price (plus it had a MIR debit card from Continental when buying 4 tires).

Costco has good prices, but their tire center is always backed up at my local locations, which makes it hard to get the tires rotated.
 
Costco never has performance tires in the sizes I need so I generally don’t even bother to check them anymore.

My rear tire is a 285/30ZR19.
 
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gorobei said:
thanks for the links, i need to look at my tire specs to avoid using the website's finder apps as they are kinda crap.
Click to expand...
Your factory tire specs may be on a sticker on the door, or listed on a VIN lookup. This site is helpful if you know your rim size, I randomly picked a model year but at bottom of page you can choose another:

www.wheel-size.com

2003 Toyota Camry - Wheel & Tire Sizes, PCD, Offset and Rims specs

Wheel size, PCD, offset, and other specifications such as bolt pattern, thread size (THD), center bore (CB), trim levels for 2003 Toyota Camry. Wheel and tire fitment data. Original equipment and alternative options.
www.wheel-size.com www.wheel-size.com

It would have been easier if you did this work ahead of time, telling us model year and having the current tire size already. 😉
 
mindless1 said:
Your factory tire specs may be on a sticker on the door, or listed on a VIN lookup. This site is helpful if you know your rim size, I randomly picked a model year but at bottom of page you can choose another:

www.wheel-size.com

2003 Toyota Camry - Wheel & Tire Sizes, PCD, Offset and Rims specs

Wheel size, PCD, offset, and other specifications such as bolt pattern, thread size (THD), center bore (CB), trim levels for 2003 Toyota Camry. Wheel and tire fitment data. Original equipment and alternative options.
www.wheel-size.com www.wheel-size.com

It would have been easier if you did this work ahead of time, telling us model year and having the current tire size already. 😉
Click to expand...
sorry, only reason i was driving was to get a vaccine shot. changing a tire the next day with a sore arm sucked so i stopped wanting to think about it. [edit: i also had to fix a toilet at the same time]

92 camry v6 jdm

current tires:
toyo a05
p205 65 r15 92h
rim is 16" outer dia (so im guessing its the 15") backspace looks like 135mm
ita05y dot cx9L
5 lug hub
 
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I think the reason they talk about volume is that you don't want to buy a set of tires that's been sitting in a warehouse for very long. Rubber tends to breakdown in around 6-10 years and you never know what the temp variations are where they're stored (which may even make that go faster). It's best to buy tires that are manufactured relatively recently. The good news is that tires are stamped with this information, so if you buy some....you can figure that out.

I actually ordered tires recently from Walmart.com....but they're very disconnected from the local Walmart locations, so scheduling them to be installed was a nightmare. Even worse, with Covid, I had limited interaction with the guys doing the work so they didn't do anything extra but install the tires with no communcation.

I ordered some other tires for my wife's van from a volume warehouse and everything was fine with those as well. The tires showed up, were under $95 each and I took them to a local tire shop with no issues. Most shops will quote you prices...the only thing they typically ask is whether or not the tires are new.
 
Scarpozzi said:
I think the reason they talk about volume is that you don't want to buy a set of tires that's been sitting in a warehouse for very long. Rubber tends to breakdown in around 6-10 years and you never know what the temp variations are where they're stored (which may even make that go faster). It's best to buy tires that are manufactured relatively recently. The good news is that tires are stamped with this information, so if you buy some....you can figure that out.

I actually ordered tires recently from Walmart.com....but they're very disconnected from the local Walmart locations, so scheduling them to be installed was a nightmare. Even worse, with Covid, I had limited interaction with the guys doing the work so they didn't do anything extra but install the tires with no communcation.

I ordered some other tires for my wife's van from a volume warehouse and everything was fine with those as well. The tires showed up, were under $95 each and I took them to a local tire shop with no issues. Most shops will quote you prices...the only thing they typically ask is whether or not the tires are new.
Click to expand...
ah good to know. I have been trying to call the nearest walmart auto centers and that is a deadend. the direct line just goes unanswered and even calling the basic walmart number is the same. i dont expect much from a lowest cost provider, but geez answer a phone or at least have an automated message.

im going to order online and just have it installed by a local shop.

thanks for the feedback all.
 
Scarpozzi said:
I think the reason they talk about volume is that you don't want to buy a set of tires that's been sitting in a warehouse for very long. Rubber tends to breakdown in around 6-10 years and you never know what the temp variations are where they're stored (which may even make that go faster). It's best to buy tires that are manufactured relatively recently. The good news is that tires are stamped with this information, so if you buy some....you can figure that out.

I actually ordered tires recently from Walmart.com....but they're very disconnected from the local Walmart locations, so scheduling them to be installed was a nightmare. Even worse, with Covid, I had limited interaction with the guys doing the work so they didn't do anything extra but install the tires with no communcation.

I ordered some other tires for my wife's van from a volume warehouse and everything was fine with those as well. The tires showed up, were under $95 each and I took them to a local tire shop with no issues. Most shops will quote you prices...the only thing they typically ask is whether or not the tires are new.
Click to expand...
Tires are some of the most durable items on the planet(one can say too durable)...performance will probably suck on those rock hard ones....true. But in terms of blowing up in regular commuting...unlikely UNLESS they are also underinflated.

Sometimes priority tire has exactly that old stock they want to get rid of and the discounts can be significant. I got 195 65 15 Michelin Crossclimates for $70 each but they are a couple years old.
 
gorobei said:
sorry, only reason i was driving was to get a vaccine shot. changing a tire the next day with a sore arm sucked so i stopped wanting to think about it. [edit: i also had to fix a toilet at the same time]

92 camry v6 jdm

current tires:
toyo a05
p205 65 r15 92h
rim is 16" outer dia (so im guessing its the 15") backspace looks like 135mm
ita05y dot cx9L
5 lug hub
Click to expand...
Roughly $60 per tire, which will be hard to beat unless you buy a Chinese brand.

www.walmart.com

Solar 4XS + All Season 205/65R15 92H Passenger Tire - Walmart.com

Buy Solar 4XS + All Season 205/65R15 92H Passenger Tire at Walmart.com
www.walmart.com
 
gorobei said:
shows out of stock for my local walmarts.
they do have Douglas tires which are apparently made by goodyear. would they be any better than a chinese brand?
Click to expand...
In general I'm not anti China (most of our consumer goods are produced there), but auto tires is one thing I'd avoid from them. An extra $20 per tire is essentially a rounding error over the life of the tires.

They charge a bit much for installation, but my go-to shop is America's Tire, aka Discount Tire. They do have a price match policy that may sometimes apply (the one time I tried, they flat out said no):

Discount Tire | Tires and Wheels for Sale | Online & In-Person

www.americastire.com www.americastire.com
 
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