Maintaining your vehicle tires is a vital part of safe driving. Buying the best set of vehicle tires you can afford is advisable. Once purchased, a vital part of safe driving is maintaining the quality of those tires. Saving money is important to you and all consumers, however. Fortunately, ways to save on high-quality tires are available.
Did you know tires are cheaper at certain times of the year? Tire insurance to protect your investment is also available at surprisingly affordable prices. Keep reading to learn all you need to know about how to save big on tires this season and where to find the best deals today.
Your Tires Are Important - Here’s Why
Explaining the importance of having high-quality tires on your vehicle is possible to do using only two words. Safety and savings are those two words, although the important role tires play is more nuanced and detailed. Ultimately, however, safety and savings are reasons enough to buy the best set of tires for your vehicle you can afford.
Your tires support the literal weight of your vehicle and everything (and everybody) in it. For this and numerous other reasons, it is therefore vital to have the best tires possible installed. Each one of your tires supports twenty-five percent of your vehicle’s total weight. If even one tire begins to wear down and not function properly, it puts your entire vehicle at risk of sustaining further damage. Well-maintained, high-quality tires help you stay in your lane, handle turns safely and control your stops without skidding.
Spending money on the best set of tires you can afford also saves you money in the end. This might seem illogical until you look at the facts. Cheaply priced tires might cost between $50 and $150 per tire. Mid-level tire prices range between approximately $100 and $300 per tire. The most expensive tires cost between $300 and $1,000+ each. Tires with $1,000 price tags are often for specialty vehicles or other expensive automobiles. Not all expensive tires are of excellent quality, however. Not all cheap tires are of poor quality either. How do you know what tires to buy? How does buying better tires save you money in the end?
Tire Savings Explained
Better quality tires last longer on average. If you buy a set of cheap, low-quality tires you might have to replace them every two-three years or more. This ends up costing you the same amount you would have spent on better tires, albeit with much more hassle and inconvenience. When a tire blows out or even simply goes flat, it puts your wheels at risk of further damage. Cheaper tires tend to wear down more quickly as well, putting more strain on your braking and steering systems. Tires with thin or worn-out tread also wobble, which creates issues pursuant to staying in your lane and driving safely. This forces your engine to work harder, which drains more gasoline. This also puts more pressure on the oil in your car to do its job. Finally, and simply put, bad tires cause accidents. Is spending a little more money on high-quality tires worth protecting your vehicle and passengers from damage and injuries due to an auto accident? In the end, investing in the best set of tires your budget allows saves you from larger preventable expenses.
Performance, Comfort and Control
Driving in today’s world is stressful enough. No driver needs the additional stress of worrying about whether their tires will fail at any point on the road. Driving on a high-quality set of tires increases the control you have over your vehicle. This is highly important when traveling in inclement weather. Even during shorter trips or trips during good weather, you want to enjoy your ride and always be as comfortable as possible. The best tires keep your ride smooth, making driving more enjoyable overall.
Your Seasonal Tire Savings Start Here
Tires go on sale during certain months every year. Tire sales are also available year-round, however, through random manufacturers and retailers. Ultimately, the best time to buy new tires is before you need them, so you never end up stuck on the side of the road due to a preventable blowout or more serious accident. This requires planning in advance to buy high-quality tires when they are available at their lowest prices. Most major tire sales happen during major and minor holidays. The biggest tire savings also happen during two specific months every year.
April and October Bring Big Savings on Tires
October is the month when the weather starts turning colder in most parts of the country. This fair-warning about the imminent arrival of winter lets drivers know it is time to change tires for the winter season. Therefore, most tire manufacturers place their products on sale in October because they know purchases will increase. Stores stock tires heavily in October as well, which means great deals on your choice of high-quality tires are likely to be available either in-store or online.
April is another great month to save on tires. People tend to take more road-trip based vacations in the summer months. Tire sales in April help drivers plan ahead for these trips by having brand-new tires installed on their vehicles. Many stores offer discounts and coupons in April to compete for business, so be sure to spend time researching the best deals available each spring.
Average Tire Installation Prices and Best Tires to Buy
Each company charges its own prices for mounting and balancing new tires. Prices vary nationwide but some averages are available. Most nationwide service providers charge approximately $24 to mount four new tires. The average cost to balance all four tires ranges between $36 and $40. The price to place four tires on rims averages to approximately $50.
It is advisable to change your tires at least once every six years. What type of tires should you purchase? Standard all-season tires are the most commonly purchased types of tires today. High performance all-season tires are also purchased frequently. High-performance tires provide better handling and cornering performance but also tend to offer shorter tread life. Additional types of tires available for sale include:
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Touring.
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Summer (performance, high-performance and ultimate performance).
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All-terrain.
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Winter.
Tire Prices Based on Vehicle Type
New tires cost different prices based on size, brand, type and quality of tread. Tire prices also vary based on your vehicle type. The average cost per tire for sedans is approximately $100 per tire. SUV tires cost approximately $175 per tire, while pickup truck tires cost about $200 per tire. Snow tires cost between $60 and $550 per tire, whereas luxury vehicle and sports car tires run anywhere between $100 are $1,400 per tire.
Types of Deals and Best Places to buy
Deals on tires vary in nature as much as the types of tires available. Certain Walmart Auto Centers offer ten percent discounts on tires every Tuesday. National Tire and Battery (NTB) runs special sales promotions four time each year. Most deals are found using coupons through tire stores (online or on-site) or third-party discount/coupon sites. Some e-coupons offer buy-one-get-one (BOGO) discounts. Other promotions offer free installation or additional discounts when you purchase a brand new set of four tires. Some companies also offer free installation when you purchase optional tire insurance for your new tires.
Best Places to Buy New Tires
Great deals on tires are available in physical stores as well as through online superstores. For example, National Tire and Battery (NTB) is currently offering a buy-three-get-one-free deal. Discounted Wheel Warehouse offers package discounts for online purchases. Several more of the best on-site and online options to buy new tires this season includes: