spankis Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 FYI - I wanted to add that Tire Rack sells more than just tires. My buddy ordered all his suspension lift components (all eibach as I recall) through them as they ended up being cheapest after shipping. Obviously we installed everything in my garage, but there may be a market for that work also if you're referred to as an "installing vendor" or whatever. I could see folks ordering parts through tirerack (avoiding additional shop mark-up) and then still potentially coming to you guys for installation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Green Bastard Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 I am shopping for tires currently and tire rack is not any cheaper than anywhere around town. I was thinking that if you order 2 sets that they may just discount the shipping a little ($70+ for shipping a set, LOL), but they don't. I will probably just shop around local. Edit: I am a lot like Clay, I also look for the best deal on tires that I can (for my daily). Family hauler and racecar will get better tires. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iwashmycar Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 I have always ordered to my house and just taken them to places I trust. Like E.T. Paul (RIP) Ordered some suspension bits from them before too. Did that install myself though. I know I have seen mention of 'installer' on their site, but have never even looked into it. Just figured it was every Discount, NTB, or Tire Kingdom in the nation lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dammit Charlie Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 All depends upon the tires. Snow tires I buy from TR, DD tires I buy local. D/R's I always bought from Summit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRTurbo04 Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 Responses are certainly going where I expected them to, no one uses the "Installer Network" just orders the tires and takes them to whatever shop/friend they are used to working with. Now do we take that with a grain of salt because this is CR and we are all "enthusiasts".. To be completely honest I cant imagine any one but an enthusiast using tire rack. your average joe probably isn't aware of it and will just go down to there local tire shop. Never used it, but ive priced out tires on there, and all the times ive checked its no cheaper then using a normal store when you factor in shipping. Frankly I don't want to go through the hassel of ordering it and waiting for shipping and then get the place to schedule me and yada yada yada. Only thing I could see my self using it for is something very specific. If I were to use it though, I would have it shipped to my home and pick a place to go. would determine where to goby finding some one I know that wont messs up my wheels, and then cost and then location. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craig71188 Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 I use Tire Rack for most all my tires (street & race), Yes, I have the "local hook up" for mounting and balancing too. My experience is they have name brand tires for the price of the off brands locally. Factor in the local mount and balance costs (vs. free for me) and it more than offsets the shipping. As several have mentioned, if you're an enthusiast, they have the 200TW tire selection and the 40TW tires that no one locally will typically stock. As for the "mini-van moms", they often just want a hassle free experience with a known shop vs. having to go to someone else for tires. For a shop that wants to be in the tire business without stocking tires, I think Tire Rack is a no-brainer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cdk 4219 Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 Sounds like what you were going to do is spend a lot of time on the phone giving quotes out for changing out for tires and then more time disposing of the used tires . I would guess that many of the people who use the tire rack are probably trying to save money. They are probably going to look for the cheapest mount balance as well. I couldn't imagine making much on strictly mounting and balancing tires all day, without selling the tires. If the customer is trying to save a few bucks on tires, then I would guess they would also look for a bargain with other repairs as well. Is that the customer you are looking for? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B3NN3TT Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 I've found that TR's regular price stuff isn't really much different, and your advantage goes away with shipping charges. However they often have very good promotions/rebates, and that's when I usually jump on something there. I always include them in my shopping list just for that reason. Sometimes it's a better deal, other times it isn't. And sometimes Discount Tire will be able to match whatever they are offering, so it's a moot point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greg1647545532 Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 For your racecar/autox folks how do you handle your wheel and tire purchases and installations? I order tires when I have money and then take the wheels down to my mechanic at my leisure to have them mounted. I'm not sure what I get out of using a TR certified installer -- a small discount? I used the service once and I found it to be a pain. My tires showed up at this NTB and then I felt like I had to drop everything and go get my tires mounted, and when I got there they tried to upsell me on a bunch of crap. For non-performance tires I just drop my car off at my local Firestone and have them call me back when something black and round is mounted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robochan Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 So your "local authorized installer" is a shop that's listed through the TireRack site or someone you have done business with previously? For your racecar/autox folks how do you handle your wheel and tire purchases and installations? Its listed on the site as a authorized installer. I also take my used tire purchases to them to mount and balance. Discount tire or Best one seems to be the place to go to for steet tires. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verse Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 I have a tirerack wholesale account, so I order them and mount them myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 I've ordered from Tire Rack and just had them shipped to the house and then taken them locally for install. If I could of had them shipped someplace like Lucore that I trust not to screw up the install I would have done that. The last set I priced out at all the CR hook up deals and couldn't get close to the final price from TR and having them installed here. I've had issues with one of the tire places everyone on here seems to love. First was a set of directional tires not installed the right way resulting in having to waste time having them fixed. The second time they gouged a ring all the way around 2 wheels nearly to the metal. While they paid for them to be refinished I still had to waste half a day running the wheels up and didn't have use of the car for a week while they were being done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El Karacho1647545492 Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 I've found that TR's regular price stuff isn't really much different, and your advantage goes away with shipping charges. However they often have very good promotions/rebates, and that's when I usually jump on something there. I always include them in my shopping list just for that reason. Sometimes it's a better deal, other times it isn't. And sometimes Discount Tire will be able to match whatever they are offering, so it's a moot point. Not to mention IMO its the best site on the web for aggregating tire reviews. The data is all subjective but there's a ton of it and I've never found it to be blatantly wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
99StockGT Posted March 2, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 Thanks for all the quick feedback, glad to see so many responses so quickly! A few quick responses. Are we after the customer that's absolutely after the lowest cheapest price? Not in the least bit. While we don't mind taking care of customers and being fair we aren't in the business of fighting to the bottom and cutting our own throats. The option to ship directly to the shop is nice, also all pricing is stated and agreed upon on the site so that should keep things pretty much on the up and up. You order, get your pricing sheet that comes with it and whenever your appointment to get taken care of you should be in and out. Of course there are always the worn components/alignments/etc that will come up at any decent shop when we have the tires off if there's something to talk about. That should be an advisory role not a hold you over a barrel and make you buy something kind of situation. Pricing... selling tires is a terrible business. Profit margins are so tight I have no idea how tire shops stay in business without gouging for "extras" but TR seems to always beat most retail shops unless you have a pretty serious hookup. The vast majority of CR folk I imagine have some sort of go-to person for tire discounts so that isn't exactly comparing apples to apples. But it's good to know! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El Karacho1647545492 Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 Thanks for all the quick feedback, glad to see so many responses so quickly! A few quick responses. Are we after the customer that's absolutely after the lowest cheapest price? Not in the least bit. While we don't mind taking care of customers and being fair we aren't in the business of fighting to the bottom and cutting our own throats. The option to ship directly to the shop is nice, also all pricing is stated and agreed upon on the site so that should keep things pretty much on the up and up. You order, get your pricing sheet that comes with it and whenever your appointment to get taken care of you should be in and out. Of course there are always the worn components/alignments/etc that will come up at any decent shop when we have the tires off if there's something to talk about. That should be an advisory role not a hold you over a barrel and make you buy something kind of situation. Pricing... selling tires is a terrible business. Profit margins are so tight I have no idea how tire shops stay in business without gouging for "extras" but TR seems to always beat most retail shops unless you have a pretty serious hookup. The vast majority of CR folk I imagine have some sort of go-to person for tire discounts so that isn't exactly comparing apples to apples. But it's good to know! I think you have the right outlook for your business. I would do business with you. And the homie hookup I mentioned was me working at the dealership...which I no longer do. I'll keep you in mind when my tires are due to be replaced in 10k or so miles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stretch Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 I've always bought locally. Tire rack has always been more expensive every time, usually because of their shipping charges. Great resource for information though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Green Bastard Posted March 3, 2017 Report Share Posted March 3, 2017 So, here is a thought (likely not feasable, but possible). If everyone were to order tires at the same time from tire rack (it would likely have to be one large order) then pick them up. The tires for my cars were able to be picked up in South Bend, IN., so if everyone chipped in for a U-haul and fuel (lunch and stuff for the driver) there would be hardly any shipping cost. Then make a day of mounting them at Lucore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TurboRust Posted March 3, 2017 Report Share Posted March 3, 2017 the soul reason tire rack ever beats me is because of tax. if and when they ever catch up and start charging tax I will beat them almost everytime. Austin we are a TR installer and have been for years we see a couple jobs a month from it but some/most of those are because of our mobile install and the people that dont mind paying for convenience. good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dammit Charlie Posted March 3, 2017 Report Share Posted March 3, 2017 Thanks for all the quick feedback, glad to see so many responses so quickly! A few quick responses. Are we after the customer that's absolutely after the lowest cheapest price? Not in the least bit. While we don't mind taking care of customers and being fair we aren't in the business of fighting to the bottom and cutting our own throats. The option to ship directly to the shop is nice, also all pricing is stated and agreed upon on the site so that should keep things pretty much on the up and up. You order, get your pricing sheet that comes with it and whenever your appointment to get taken care of you should be in and out. Of course there are always the worn components/alignments/etc that will come up at any decent shop when we have the tires off if there's something to talk about. That should be an advisory role not a hold you over a barrel and make you buy something kind of situation. Pricing... selling tires is a terrible business. Profit margins are so tight I have no idea how tire shops stay in business without gouging for "extras" but TR seems to always beat most retail shops unless you have a pretty serious hookup. The vast majority of CR folk I imagine have some sort of go-to person for tire discounts so that isn't exactly comparing apples to apples. But it's good to know! In my experience tires are not a huge margin item, so you need to move a lot of them in order to be successful. Wearables like tires, filters and friction products are tough because of how many people are in the market selling them. It takes a real salesperson to show value in the service and close the sale when you're not the cheapest kid on the block. Unfortunately the workforce is drowning in meer "order takers", not salesmen. if you don't have ordertakers working for you, then you could be successful. If you do, either sales training/couching is a must before introducing a new product line. I'm dealing with this right now myself. Best of luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
99StockGT Posted March 3, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 3, 2017 the soul reason tire rack ever beats me is because of tax. if and when they ever catch up and start charging tax I will beat them almost everytime. Austin we are a TR installer and have been for years we see a couple jobs a month from it but some/most of those are because of our mobile install and the people that dont mind paying for convenience. good luck! I absolutely understand the appeal of the mobile installers, I spoke with our rep at TR about that when we were getting the account up and running. Nice part about mobile installers is you guys show up as 0 miles away from pretty much everyone, very handy feature. We'll see how the relationship works out. Tires are not a big part of our business, just a nice extra way to get a warm touches with customers. Can't hate getting a future potential customer for little to no work Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DTA09 Posted March 3, 2017 Report Share Posted March 3, 2017 As derek already said he usually meets or beats TR prices so for me its just a matter how it convenient it is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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