Discount Tire..... Anything but.... They are crooks

[osidak]

In fairness I don't know if they are a franchise or all company owned but I just called to see if I could get some tires mounted on my BRZ.

I asked how much and they wanted all kinds of info not in pertaining to the car or tires....

Then they quoted me $180 to mount and balance the tires. These are very run of the mill 225/45 17 tires. Nothing exotic. When I questioned the nearly $200 to mount he said "well we can knock $40 off if you don't want them balanced...."

That is highway robbery.

Well I think so at least. Made an appointment right next door for $80 which I think is also a bit high but damn!


The Discount Tire in question is the one on Concord Mill Blvd in Concord

[hcoles]

The $200 might include a number of items:
- mounting
- balancing (road force?) and weights
- stems
- TPMS reprogramming
- disposal fees
It seems a bit high. However, I would gladly pay that to have a very good job done. E.g - do they hide the weights/etc. Properly torque the lug nuts? Clean the wheel very well before sticking the weights on without removing paint? Align marks on the new tire to the proper spot on the wheel?

[Rick Lee]

How is it crooked when they quote you a price you think is too high? They're in the business of selling tires. If you bring your own, you have to expect they're gonna charge accordingly. Why not just go somewhere else? Around here DT is pretty price competitive. And they usually set up shop across the street from a Costco or Sam's Club and still do a very brisk business.

[masraum]

I don't use them that much, but I've had nothing but good luck with DT.

If you want a bad experience, then you need to go to NTB.

[Gogar]

I Agree the price is high(er) because you brought your own tires in. Still a little much tho.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by Gogar

I Agree the price is high(er) because you brought your own tires in. Still a little much tho.

agreed. I think the extras are pretty cheap at DT when you get the tires from them.

[DonDavis]

Been using Discount since ‘94-ish.
Always have had good luck there.

Example... back in 2004 I took my ‘95 Volvo 850 Turbo in for new tires.
They lightly scuffed all 4 wheels using the wrong chuck while balancing.
It was so minor I didn’t notice till I got home.
Mind you, the wheels weren’t perfect, but I still went right back.
Guy took a quick look and said “Yup, we sure did. I’ll order new wheels for next week. Come back and we’ll swap them out. We apologize.”

They were OEM NOS, not some knock-off clone wheels.

[KFC911]

I had always heard good things about DT. Went in many years ago for "something" (I disremember) and was gonna pay cash. I forgot what info they wanted ... but it was total BS. I'll never go back...

[Arizona_928]

I know they charge $30 to mount and balance locally. Valve stems are no charge.

I take in 12 inch tires and they dismount and mount for 4 each. New valve stem and it's a fair deal.

For my daily I either take them to the Mexican tire shops and they charge 10-15 per tire for mount and balance, or the auto hobby shop. The auto hobby shop I'll run the tire machine.

[David]

At least it’s not Porsche dealer cost. I needed rear tires on my cayman for a track day and my local tire shop didn’t receive my tires in time so I had to go to the dealer since they stock them. The tires were only $30 more per tire which wasn’t bad but $100 each to mount and balance with the wheels off the car!!!

I forgot to pop out both crest center caps and the dealer replaced the one I did pop out for free so they do provide good service on that side. And now I have an extra center cap.

[Dantilla]

Discount Tire tightens lug nuts by hand with a torque wrench.
The invoice has the torque value listed.

Sure beats the places that use an air wrench and BRRRT-BRRRT-BRRRT the lug nuts to 200 ft lbs.

No tire store has seen the Porsches.
I leave the car on jack stands in my garage, and bring the wheels/tires to the tire store in the back of my pickup.
They like it, as I don't take up an entire service bay, and I have a friendly chit chat with the guys while they mount & balance.
The real reason, is I get to watch them like a hawk when they are handling the Fuchs and Fikse wheels.

[450knotOffice]

I've used them for about fifteen years. I stayed loyal to a particular shop that always remembered who I was and earned my business by being the one and only shop around here at the time who had a road force balance machine, which worked wonders balancing out a slightly bent wheel that was on my 996 at the time, while giving me the most personalized service a tire shop had ever given to me. After many years, their building was torn down to make way for a larger parking lot for the Target next door, and I ended up using another local DT. The excellent service has continued. Heck, they are one of the few tire shops willing and able to remove and replace the Centerlock wheels on my GTS.

Over the years I'd occasionally bring in a set of tires I'd bought that they couldn't seem to acquire themselves, and they always happily mounted them for me. Yes, they charge a bit for the service, but again, totally worth it to me. They've literally never screwed up one single tire replacement over the years, and I've used them for 5 different Porsches and a GMC Yukon.

[ted]

Thankfully they don't do commercial jet tires, lol.

The name is Discount tire, lower your expectations.
So many better places to trust with your tires and safety.
Stopped going to DT 20 years ago.

At DT there is a lot of employee turn over.
It's a lottery who and how much if any experience has the tire jockey?
Will the rims get chunked, will the tire balance be correct, is the car secure sitting on 4 hydraulic jacks instead of jack stands?
Jack stands are safer but that would take longer.

I use a place called JBA speed shop in town now.
They have one tire jockey and all the newest touchless tire machines.
Same experienced guy does all my tires every time and I trust him.
https://jbaspeedshop.com/p-31197-tire-shop-san-diego-ca.html

[fastfredracing]

Well , you can always just do it yourself . Just gotta buy a commercial building , hire a service writer, tire tech, purchase a modern tire machine, a balancer, an air compressor, hoses, tpms tool, wheel weights, stems, bead sealer, mounting lube and brushes , then pay commercial insurance, and workmens comp, and it wont cost you anything other than about an hours of back breaking work .
Did you know, that a new high end tire changing machine is 25k?

[Rot 911]

$50 a wheel does not sound that outrageous. Everything is more expensive today than it was 20 years ago.

[ted]

Originally Posted by fastfredracing

Well , you can always just do it yourself . Just gotta buy a commercial building , hire a service writer, tire tech, purchase a modern tire machine, a balancer, an air compressor, hoses, tpms tool, wheel weights, stems, bead sealer, mounting lube and brushes , then pay commercial insurance, and workmens comp, and it wont cost you anything other than about an hours of back breaking work .
Did you know, that a new high end tire changing machine is 25k?

Used tire changer and balancers are available pretty cheap, both for $5K from private parties.
I've had a few opportunities to buy good used equipment.
I don't want it though, too much liability.
I would not want to damage anyone's rim or tire or worse have someone injured from the equipment on my property, so decided against that idea.

But it must be a good business model as the owner of DT has a few private jets and his family is doing very well.

[JackDidley]

Discount is my go to for tires. Great service. Fair prices.

[aschen]

I think I pay about 25-30 per tire for mount and balance around here. I never feel right taking tires to DT because that is their primary buisness and I want to get the tires online.

I think 180 is pretty dang high, but Id rather pay too much than have bent up pinch welds, scratched rims and diesel dully torque settings.


I think I will try one of those mobile services next. I really hate waiting around for tires to be mounted and Feel like I am asking a for a favor. I think the mobile services are a bit more expensive but mounting internet bought tires is in their wheelhouse (a pun!).

For appliance tires it is hard to beat a sale at contco. 4 Bridgestone all seasons mounted and balanced on our odyssey was just a bit over 400 all in.

[ted]

My private shop normal charge is $30 a rim mount and balance.
That's a 16 x 14 rim with a 27 inch tall slick.
They gave me a racers discount and only charged $25.

Yeah 10 years ago the racers price was $15 at the independent tire shop.
Not taking these to DT.

[McLovin]

That’s way outrageous.
I pay $10 cash per.
Yeah, that’s below average, but $200 is crazy.