Tire Insurances opinions....

[AzNKiD]

Got my new car jan 4th, I was interested on buying tire insurances because I knew its going to be expensive to replace. They couldnt offer me tire insuraces back then due to some Cali law, but was changed with new year. I can confirm its legit about the delay due to law. anyways, they just called me and offer me the following package

Hazard coverage
3- years $950
5- years $1100

Its a no brainer to go with 5 years, it covers pot hole dmg rim, nails, etc.. Here is the thing, the tires cost 300+ each, (tirerack) and they are run flats which means I am not suppose to patch nails. I bascilly have to use it at least 3 times over five year to break even. Over the past five years, i have ran over two nails that were patched, and a tire rash which i replaced.
Basiclly, if i have the insurances, i could just take my car to the dealer and get a new tire. What you guys think? I need to get back to them by tomorrow becuase this is only offer to new purchase, and my car is already 4 weeks old.

Clif: I need to decide by tomorrow to pay for tire insurances. 300+ each tire, offically cant patch them, 5 years for 1100.

 

[bctbct]

Why on earth would you pay $1100, to insure $1200?

That would be like paying 110k to insure a 120k house.

 

[AzNKiD]

Originally posted by: bctbct
Why on earth would you pay $1100, to insure $1200?

That would be like paying 110k to insure a 120k house.

The coverage is for five years with almost unlimited useage. I was just saying that I have to replace my tires 3 times over five year to break even. anything after 3 tires is gravy, for example, I can get a nail every month for the next 5 years, and they will replace my tire with new one since dealership CANT patch them, always new tires....

 

[PCMarine]

eh, I'd be inclined to skip the insurance and just drive carefully

if the insurance were maybe half that price then maybe...

 

[bctbct]

Just buy 4 new ties and put them in your garage, replace as needed.

 

[AzNKiD]

like to also add, i live in SoCal. the tires are low profile, 40/35 series, which means can easliy get rim dmg or rash when hitting potholes.

i cant decide...............hmmmmm

 

[ponyo]

I think you're crazy to buy the insurance IMO, but I'm not a big fan of insurance like this. You can patch run flats but most shops won't touch it. Personally, I would just pay out of pocket as you need. You can also go regular tires instead of run flats.

 

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: PCMarine
eh, I'd be inclined to skip the insurance and just drive carefully

if the insurance were maybe half that price then maybe...

cause you can see nails at 50mph.

 

[desy]

Jebus
How many times do you pick up nails? in 15 yrs I've had 2 flat tires and I drive a lot.
I can't remeber much further back than that for flats

 

[AzNKiD]

i am leaning towards buying... from reading other forums,

"Not if you drive on them and the whole point of RFTs is to drive to safety after a puncture and not wait for a tow. With the insurance, you won't hesitate to just drive on them and ruin them, thus the added peace of mind it provides which is very hard to quantify"

even if i only get two puncture over five years, which is understandable, losing 300 over five years is acceptable to me for peace of mind to never have to worry about stopping to check tires.

 

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: desy
Jebus
How many times do you pick up nails? in 15 yrs I've had 2 flat tires and I drive a lot.
I can't remeber much further back than that for flats

You don't drive alot or are not driving much outside the beaten path.

 

[desy]

I drive about 35K miles a year
More than double the avg of 15K miles, I picked up a nail this summer driving in construction zone at the university and and I had a blow out in a rental car in 92

 

[jagec]

Originally posted by: alkemyst

Originally posted by: desy
Jebus
How many times do you pick up nails? in 15 yrs I've had 2 flat tires and I drive a lot.
I can't remeber much further back than that for flats

You don't drive alot or are not driving much outside the beaten path.

Or maybe you're just unlucky!

I don't think I've EVER had a flat tire while driving, and that's all across the country, on and off road.

 

[boomerang]

You've already made your mind up. You're just looking for support.

Go get the insurance and be done with it.

 

[thedarkwolf]

Hell no. Just wear the tires out which shouldn't take 5 year anyway and buy another set from tirerack and pay $33 per tire for their road hazard package which is the same crap they want $1100 for.

 

[bruceb]

Tire insurance is a waste of money.
Unless they are very costly tires such
as for off road / 4wd vehicles or if it
covers damage to the rims.

 

[StageLeft]

TOTAL INSANE WASTE OF MONEY. I don't understand why people want to insure everything. Don't you realize who generally makes money on this? You insure things you cannot afford to replace, like a house. Tires? Come on!

Since 2000 between various cars and a total of around 200k miles I have had three flats, one of which was my fault for driving over a curb, the other two from road debris, so I'm doing one flat every 100,000 miles.

At the most, take this money and put it in an ING account and in five years you're likely to end up in the black.

even if i only get two puncture over five years, which is understandable, losing 300 over five years is acceptable to me for peace of mind to never have to worry about stopping to check tires.

Then you're looking at this on an emotional and not financial level in which case nobody can help you. Go buy it then. It's probably easily worth $4000, so you're getting a great deal :thumbsup:

 

[KK]

get the insurance, its the best thing since sliced bread.

 

[Mermaidman]

Most tire "insurance" offer pro-rated coverage, so if your 3 yr old tire is damaged, you will get only a little compensation. Better go read the fine print.

 

[KDKPSJ]

Guess you got a Bimmer. The dealer offered similar coverage when I bought mine, which I denied.

First of all, RFTs are fixable. I also thought they were not. Just go to big tire repair chain, like Goodyear's Gemini, where they know how to handle RFT. They will fix most of flat in no time.

Second, stock RFTs are expensive, but crappy ride/performance. Mine has Bridgestone Potenza RE050 A, which is $ 215 F/$ 270 R each. And I can say that they are only as good as 100 bucks cheaper normal sets. I'll definately switch them to normal sets when the time comes.

 

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: jagec

Originally posted by: alkemyst

Originally posted by: desy
Jebus
How many times do you pick up nails? in 15 yrs I've had 2 flat tires and I drive a lot.
I can't remeber much further back than that for flats

You don't drive alot or are not driving much outside the beaten path.

Or maybe you're just unlucky!

I don't think I've EVER had a flat tire while driving, and that's all across the country, on and off road.

Yeah. I've had exactly one flat tire in 10 years, and that was my own fault. It was 8 years ago and was because I misjudged a corner and hit a pothole hard, tearing the sidewall of my tire.

Paying $1100 for tire insurance is ridiculous. First of all, if you can afford the insurance, then replacing a $300 tire shouldn't be any financial burden. As a general rule you should never insure against anything that won't ruin you. If you insure against things that you can afford to handle then you will lose money in the long run.

ZV

 

[Mxylplyx]

Originally posted by: AzNKiD

Originally posted by: bctbct
Why on earth would you pay $1100, to insure $1200?

That would be like paying 110k to insure a 120k house.

The coverage is for five years with almost unlimited useage. I was just saying that I have to replace my tires 3 times over five year to break even. anything after 3 tires is gravy, for example, I can get a nail every month for the next 5 years, and they will replace my tire with new one since dealership CANT patch them, always new tires....

I wouldnt buy a tire you couldnt patch.

 

[thomsbrain]

Whoa, whoa, whoa.

Why would you pay to cover something for five years that you likely wear out and need to replace in less than half that time? Those performance tires are usually pretty soft, and they don't last very long at all. I would wear out a set in 6 months. As others have mentioned, if you are so SURE of blowing all four tires before they wear out that you are already willing to pay UPFRONT almost the entire cost of four new tires... why don't you just BUY four extra tires?

I've needed two tires patched because of slow leaks over ~200,000 miles of driving. Both were done for free by the tire store, even when I didn't buy the tires there.

 

[Dunbar]

I live in SoCal and I've picked up two nails in the past two years but they only cost me $25 each to patch (not run flats.) You shouldn't have a problem finding a shop that will repair run flats as long as it is not too close to the sidewall (just like any tire.) I think some shops are reluctant because they can't tell by looking at a run flat how long you have been driving on them with low/no air. As far as "peace of mind" the tire pressure monitor will let you know instantly if one of your tires springs a leak.

 

[AzNKiD]

just an update, I went ahead and gotten the insurances. I did whole bunch of research on bimmer forums and it appears like the people who got them were happy with it. Feedback says each tire costs 400~450 each to replace (tax+balance+etc.) and all i need is use it three times to break even. Like i said, i already had two nails within the last five years, and had to replace one with rash bubble. With these low profile, i heard they are very easy to break when running over potholes. heck, the oem rim costs 600+ to replace, so a big pothole hit could already break even with me if it dents the rim. I rather to just take advantages of run flats and ruin them by running with no air then worry about it by stopping to fix it on the spot.

+ unlimited usage with 0 deductible
+ covers rim dmg
+ covers aftermarket rims/tires if i ever swap them out
+ could take it to any shop and get refund check
- doesnt cover curb scratch on rims
- will only replace tire if tread is 2/32, otherwise pro-rated

I dont mind paying the premium to just drop my car off to the dealer when the tire goes and take a loaner for the day with almost zero hassle on me. according to other forums, it used to only cost 600 to insure, but a lot of boneheads where abusing the system by intentionly running over nails to get new tires before tread goes under 2/32.Thanks for everyones feedback.