Buying tires

JDLefebvre · Posted: Thu Oct 04, 2012 1:42 pm Post subject: Buying tires

I'm told I need new tires for my 09 Altima, that has 37K miles.

I'm clueless when it comes to cars so I had a few generic questions that I know the great minds of FF will know...

1. How do you know you need tires... I've heard of the quarter test (forget details, and the tread on my tires don't look that bad) but are there other things to look for as an indication?

2. Any brands or types that you would recommend?

3. I am moving to a location that gets some snow... not a ton of snow and I hear you usually don't get much snow sticking but I hear icy roads is a problem. Should I look at an all-weather tire or any other type of speciality type tire.

Thanks for the help.

And feel free to use this to ask any other tire/car related questions.
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latinoaustino · Posted: Thu Oct 04, 2012 1:49 pm Post subject: Re: Buying tires

scar988 · Joined: 05 Apr 2005 Posts: 29416 Location: Charleston, SC

Normally altimas come with 50k mile tires...

eagles101 · Joined: 15 Feb 2005 Posts: 7556

first if you live in an area with discount tire go there. they will check your tires to see if you need new ones. usually they are pretty honest and wont try to cheat you.

second get all-weather. snow is nothing to drive through. if i had a choice between 5 inches of snow or ice i would pick the snow. ice is not something to mess with.

third talk to a tire salesmen. there are a lot of things to take into account when picking tires. some brands have amazing tires but dont have them in all sizes and some sizes have better options then your normal car.

but if you really want to know personally if the tires tread is good or not get a tire gauge. it measure the tread on the tire. pretty easy to use. but 27k seems awfully low to change a tire at but i dk how good of tires they are on there now.

did you get them rotated properly?
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JDLefebvre · Posted: Thu Oct 04, 2012 2:11 pm Post subject:

acowboys62 · Joined: 06 Feb 2006 Posts: 10127 Location: NJ/Phila

TireRack has always been my go to for tires, then head over to a local sears or other other tire shop and can usually get a mount and balance for cheap.

Personally I always use All Seasons as most have mentioned. I also generally buy Kumho, much more affordable than Michelin, Good Year, Bridgestone etc... and to be honest they are very comparable in terms of performance, I prefer them over most of the "popular" brands.
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acowboys62 · Joined: 06 Feb 2006 Posts: 10127 Location: NJ/Phila

milanb · Joined: 04 Jan 2008 Posts: 5624 Location: Ottawa, Ontario

JDLefebvre · Posted: Thu Oct 04, 2012 2:48 pm Post subject:

A lot of good things to consider... appreciate it a lot.

I will probably be looking to get new tires in about a month (if my 2nd opinion still thinks they need replaced) ... because in about 6 weeks I will be driving from NW Florida to NE New Mexico. SO definitely don't want to risk any problems while traveling.
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MrDrew · Posted: Thu Oct 04, 2012 5:11 pm Post subject:

The easiest way to check your tires is to use the wear bars. They'll be little bars inside the groves that go around the tires. The wear bars run side to side in the groves. If the rest of the tread is even with the wear bars, you need new tires.

Are you PCSing to Kirtland? If so, you may want to invest in some Winter tires. They'll do far better than anything else on the ice, and in the cold. It sucks that you have to change them out for all-season, or Summer, tires in Apr/May, but the benefits are well worth it.

Shop online, and find the vest price on what you like. Get a print out of the cart with the final price (including shipping). Take the Printout to Discount Tires. They'll match the price, and add installation. Saved me a few hundred last time I did it.
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JDLefebvre · Posted: Thu Oct 04, 2012 6:43 pm Post subject:

[UMN] · Joined: 13 Nov 2007 Posts: 12932 Location: Desolation Row

how often do tires need to be rotated?
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IrishGreen · Joined: 22 Mar 2007 Posts: 32054 Location: Wisconsin

tires are tires tbh. the whole brand loyalty on tires is pointless. i put on 60,000 mile generic tires (roadrunner) from fleet farm and they do great. i mean unless you have a sports car and are planning on ripping the road up, no need for pirellis or even cheaper name brands.

i agree with the others, these days, all weather tires are your best bet.

quarter test is a good test, but overall just be smart. look at your tires. are they bald (aka very little tread), then they probably need to be replaced, especially if you live in a place that gets snow and ice. if you still wanna double check, get an oil change and ask them to check, they'll give you a pretty precise number on how much wear they have (out of 32nds of an inch)
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JDLefebvre · Posted: Thu Oct 04, 2012 8:03 pm Post subject:

QUARTER TEST RESULTS:

I saw all of Washingtons head... tread was right at the top of his head.

So... replace soon, or in the clear?
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MrDrew · Posted: Thu Oct 04, 2012 8:29 pm Post subject: