See Tires On Your Car Before You Buy !FREE!
Need help choosing the right products for your vehicle? Our team of highly trained experts has the knowledge and passion to help. Just pick up the phone and give us a ring. Or let's chat via email. We love solving problems and lending a hand (or an ear).
see tires on your car before you buy
Start browsing custom wheels and tires for your ride on the virtual wheel visualizer. The visualizer lets you see your desired rims and tires on your ride before you buy. Featured wheel sizes are available from 15" to 32" for most Tuner, Passenger, SUV or Off-Road vehicles.
If you don't see the rims and tires you are looking for on the RimTyme corporate wheel visualizer, contact your local store. Each location carries a large selection of wheel and tire packages and special rims for sale every day.
When your vehicle rolls off the production line, these items are in perfect alignment with each other using a computerized, laser-guided alignment machine. However, potholes, mileage, collisions, and many other issues can cause these parts on your vehicle to become out of alignment. While a vehicle with a less-than-perfect alignment typically promotes tire wear, worn tires rarely, if ever, cause your vehicle to become out of alignment.
Few people like buying new tires. They are one of the more expensive maintenance items on a car, choosing the right ones for your vehicle can be confusing, and it can take a big chunk out of your day to get them installed.
You have to do it though, as driving on worn tires with little tread left is unsafe and can leave you stranded on the side of the road. You should plan on spending at minimum a few hundred dollars to buy a set of tires and have them installed on your vehicle.
Our article on ways to tell it is time for new tires is an excellent guide to the warning signs that you should look out for with worn tires. You should also check your tire pressures and visually inspect your tires for punctures, uneven wear, and worn tread.
There's more to selecting the right tires than finding some that fit and slapping them on your ride. You need to look at your vehicle's minimum requirements, how you drive, your expectations for tire life, the weather where you do most of your driving, and the surfaces you travel on.
Your tires do more than just carry the weight of your car. They are expected to give you traction when you need to get going, allow the car to steer with confidence, and have maximum grip when you brake. They have to do all that in dry or wet conditions, without making too much noise or hurting your fuel economy.
Most mainstream passenger cars come from the factory on some form of all-season tires. Some performance models are equipped with summer tires, which don't have much grip in wet weather and have even worse performance in winter weather. Keep the typical weather conditions where you drive in mind to avoid choosing tires that compromise your safety.
The placard on the door pillar behind the driver and your owners manual will spell out the minimum tire requirements for your vehicle, as well as the air pressures that the tires should contain. Other requirements are more subjective, and you need to decide which attributes are most important.
If they didn't corner with confidence, you could look for more aggressive high-performance rubber. Was winter traction a problem? Maybe you need more capable all-season tires, or a set of winter tires just to use during the cold months. If your current tires were perfect, the buying process will be quite a lot simpler.
Our guide to tire types describes the different styles that you will find on the market. You want to choose a set that meets your requirements without going too far. Sure, that ultra-aggressive off-road tire would give your Jeep Wrangler great extreme-terrain performance on the weekend, but it would be a handful when you are driving it down the freeway the other five days a week to work.
It is best to be a bit conservative when changing from one tire type to another. If you want a bit more of a performance edge for your sedan, maybe shift from the Grand Touring tire that it came with to a new set of performance all-season tires. Jumping to an ultra-high performance summer tire would likely be a waste of money, as your sedan will only handle so well, no matter what type of tires are on it.
Most mainstream tires will come with a treadwear warranty. While that number might give you some guidance about the expected life of the tire in comparison to others from the same manufacturer, it is often a number fashioned by their marketing department.
There are lots of places to buy car tires, and each comes with positives and negatives. The most important factors are finding a shop you can trust that will give you a good deal in a timely manner without cutting corners.
To get new tires fast and cheap, you may have to give up on getting specific brands or types. If you want something unique, you'll probably have to wait a while and pay more. Before you accept any tire deal, you should look at online reviews, especially from owners of the same vehicle that you are buying your tires for. While it is easy to find low prices on cheap tires, they might wear quickly, ride poorly, or have other performance issues that explain their low cost.
The downsides of buying online include the time and expense that it takes to get the tires delivered to you or a local installer. If the tire is damaged or not right for your vehicle when it arrives, there can be return shipping charges and delays.
For buyers with convenience at the top of their wish lists, many car dealerships now sell tires. Buying at a dealer can save you a lot of time, as you can get your tires installed at the same time as you have an oil change or other service performed.
When buying tires, some costly extras can add up to an unwelcome surprise. Some are necessary; some are not. You'll have to pay installation charges, disposal fees for your old tires, taxes, and the cost of new tire stems (which should be replaced when you buy new tires).
Some tire retailers include a separate charge to fill your tires with nitrogen, which stays in your tire longer. Others (such as Costco) include it for free. If it is just a couple bucks per tire, it's probably worth it. If they want tens or hundreds of dollars for the service, it's time to decline politely.
Some tire retailers include road hazard warranties (which are different from tread life warranties) as part of the installation cost, while others charge extra. Road hazard warranties typically cover things like flat tires and other failures unrelated to tire wear. Some include roadside assistance.
If a warranty is an additional cost option, tread carefully and read the fine print about what is and is not covered, how long the warranty is good for, and how and where you can make a claim. If the policy requires you to get coverage at a specific shop, and you travel long distances away from there, your chances of being nearby when you need the coverage are small.
Think about how much you travel, where you drive, the road conditions on your commute, and the potential costs you might have to incur if a tire is damaged. If, for example, you live in Detroit and it covers pothole damage, buying the warranty is probably a good investment. The policies often run about $10 to $20 per tire.
Before you leave the shop, take a look at each of your wheels and new tires. Sometimes wheels can be damaged in the installation process, and you want any damage noted. If your new tires have a directional tread pattern, make sure that they are all oriented the right way. Everybody makes mistakes now and then, and it is better to catch them before you drive away.
It often takes TPMS sensors a few miles to sense the air pressure in new tires. If the pressures aren't close to matching the numbers on the door placard, or one tire is way off, head back to the shop to get the air pressures adjusted or determine what is wrong.
Wheel misalignment is a common cause of improper tire wear. You can protect your expensive new tire purchase by getting a four-wheel alignment around the time you get your tires. Some tire shops and most auto dealership service departments have the equipment to perform the service.
Now that you have new tires, you want to take good care of them. That means watching your tire pressures and occasionally inspecting them for uneven wear, sidewall damage, or punctures that can develop into leaks and leave you stranded.
If you're in the market for new tires, you can visit TireBuyer.com to find the right tires for your vehicle. The expert researchers and journalists of U.S. News Best Cars can help you answer your car buying and ownership questions. Our new car rankings and reviews will help you find the best ride for your needs and lifestyle, while our used car rankings can assist you in finding affordable pre-owned options.
When you buy a used vehicle, the dealer must certify, in writing, that it is "in condition and repair to render, under normal use, satisfactory and adequate service upon the public highway at the time of delivery." The dealer certification covers the entire vehicle except items that would be obvious to the customer before the sale, such as torn upholstery, missing hubcaps, etc. The vehicle also must have all safety equipment and emissions controls required by state and federal laws for the vehicle's model year.
If a lien is being recorded or the dealer issued number plates, the dealer MUST handle the registration for you. The dealer may charge you up to $175 for this service, plus the actual fees for the vehicle's Certificate of Title (MV-999), registration, and license plates. As a customer courtesy, a registered dealer may submit your completed Vehicle Registration/Title Application (MV-82) to the DMV. The dealer also may provide a temporary certificate of registration and, if needed, new license plates.
Vehicle price is not controlled by any government agency. Take time to choose a vehicle that meets your needs and budget. Before you buy a vehicle, compare prices by checking newspaper ads and visit a number of dealers and/or private sellers. Then take it for a test drive. If you are knowledgeable, examine the engine, transmission, drive axles, steering and suspension, brakes and electrical system. If you do not know what to look for, it may be wise to pay a professional automotive technician to examine the vehicle. 041b061a72