Tires

I would be extremely wary of anything a tire salesman says, especially one from Discount Tire. I recently went to Discount for a new set of Michelin XPS Ribs, after I blew one of the Towmaster ST junk tires that came as original equipment on my 5th. I spoke to 2 reps and arranged for an appointment a few days later. When I brought my 5th in for the new tires, they had jacked it up on 4 jacks and removed 2 of the tires when another rep came along and said they would not install the XPS Ribs on my unit because the weight ratings were not as high as on the ones that came originally on my 5th. The originals were Towmax ST junk but had a load carry rating of 3500# as opposed to the 3042# XPS Ribs. I pointed out that my axles were only rated for 5200# each and the Ribs were easily capable of handling that but the rep insisted they would not install them on my 5th. He then said they could put on Goodyear Load Range G tires that would be acceptable, as they had a 3775# rating and they had 4 in stock so they could proceed with the installation right away. They were almost $100 per tire more but I bit on this and had them installed as I was traveling home from our winter vacation and I needed to get new tires and get going. Later that day I just knew something was wrong and it finally came to me..... my rims were aluminum rims rated for 80psi and the new tires were 110 psi. I drove back to Discount and told the Mgr what they had done and he stated "Ooops, forgot about that". He then proceeded to tell me that I could: 1. Just drive them like that as the rims would probably be OK or 2. Deflate the tires to 80# as they were much heavier tires and would likely be OK even at the deflated pressure. To my uneducated mind, either one of these alternatives would have been MUCH less safe than installing the XPS Ribs that I had requested. To make a long story a bit shorter, I returned the tires to Discount and got a refund and then went elsewhere and had the XPS Ribs installed. I've been a happy traveler ever since, but would NEVER deal with Discount again.

Funny how things go. I have never been able to deal with Discount Tire in Yuma, AZ. Spring of 2013, before leaving I priced six Michelin XPS Ribs. Just didn't like the price plus the usual "well we don't sell many and they aren't easy to get", you know the usual runaround. So our first stop after leaving Yuma was Las Vegas/Henderson. Called several places and got prices. As I was going past Discount Tire in Henderson, not expecting much, I stopped in and asked for a price. Well the price blew the Yuma prices clear out to Lake Mead! The employee said I don't have them in the store but can have the six here this PM (Friday). I said how about mounting them Monday first thing and that was a done deal. Then last fall on our way down from Montana to Yuma I was pricing Michelin LTX for the dually. Tried during the summer in Montana, trying to beat the sales tax, and couldn't do anything. Tried different joints in Idaho to no avail. Then jumped on Discount Tires website, while we were in Idaho, and put in the store in Henderson. It priced the tires out with a 30 day price guarantee. We were back in Henderson in that 30 day period. Then my wife did the website thing again,, the tire dropped $3.00 a tire with a new 30 day period. So off I go to Discount with price sheet in hand and asked if this was good. "Sure is, the only problem I only have one here but I can have the other five here this PM". So the next A.M., they were mounted. And all 12 tires had fresh build dates.

I started buying tires from Discount Tires about four years ago. I was on a trip to San Antonio and had a flat. Pulled in to a Discount in S.A. and had them fix the flat. There was no charge, I told the manager I did not buy the tires there. He said it didn't matter, just think of them the next time I was ready. I am a steady customer now on all my vehicles and rvs. The are great.

Thanks for the replies so far, and keep them coming.

brirene wrote:
I don't recall ever seeing any complaints here or elsewhere. They've been around a long time and seem to be a reputable company. A lot of stores, which I would see as a pro. I've not purchased from them but they're on my short list for the next ones I need.

X2. Have only had to buy a single replacement from them once due to a blow out but have heard nothing negative about them over my years

They've taken very good care of my tire needs.

Now my brothers, both work for different tire chains, claim that it's standard for all tire shops to do this, but DT fixed a flat for me and rotated/balanced my wheels for me as well - all for free.

Sure, it's small and cheap stuff, but great customer service even as simple as that will win me back every time.

I don't recall ever seeing any complaints here or elsewhere. They've been around a long time and seem to be a reputable company. A lot of stores, which I would see as a pro. I've not purchased from them but they're on my short list for the next ones I need.

In my dealings with them over the years there have been no cons.