Food for thought, Importing tires from USA
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 21,095
Likes: 47
From: Toronto, GTA north
Food for thought, Importing tires from USA
Is it really worth it?
I buy from the US myself & save some good coin, gut i deal directly with a shop in Buffalo. (drive over).
I have thought about just importing them to save the hassle of driving over.
After reading the following experience of a member on another forum that I frequent (known member, not a troll), there's no way that I'll deal with this type of online tire company below.
Since this isn't my personal experience, I edited the Tire company name (Co. XXX).
keep in mind, he went through all this BS in the USofA.
Imagine how much fun it would be with border issues to deal with as well.
I buy from the US myself & save some good coin, gut i deal directly with a shop in Buffalo. (drive over).
I have thought about just importing them to save the hassle of driving over.
After reading the following experience of a member on another forum that I frequent (known member, not a troll), there's no way that I'll deal with this type of online tire company below.
Since this isn't my personal experience, I edited the Tire company name (Co. XXX).
keep in mind, he went through all this BS in the USofA.
Imagine how much fun it would be with border issues to deal with as well.
So,,,is Tire Co. XXX really such a good deal.....?
________________________________________
Long rant. I will NEVER use Tire Co. XXX again.
Way back in June, I purchase a tire and wheel package from Tire Co. XXX for my M. Done it many times in the past through companies such as EAS, Discount Tire, etc...without ever having an issue.
My Ultraleggera wheels and Hankook Ventus tires arrive, already mounted and balanced, I'm told by Tire Co. XXX, using their Hunter Road Force balancer. Great. Put them on...and wow. The balance is simply HORRIBLE. Awful. Indescribably bad.
OK..no big deal...I'm sure they'll take care of it. I go to one of their local authorized installers, who re-balances the tires, but warns me that it "ain't coming out too good". We road test. He did the best he could. It's a little better, but still very bad. I'm out a hundred bucks or so. I call Tire Co. XXX to get reimbursed, and the trouble begins.
First, they don't believe me. They put me on hold, while they call the installer to get "his side of the story". Then, they get back on the phone with me, and ask if I wouldn't mind going and PAYING for another kind of balance...a Tire Matching balancing, involving removing the tires from the wheels and starting over. I ask why do I have to pay for it, why not just deal directly with the installer and have it taken care of? No, they don't work that way, I'm told, I must pay and submit receipts.
OK...off I go back a couple days later to the same installer. Tire Match balance. I'm out another $130 bucks this time. No better. he road tests it with me, and agrees it sucks. He investigates, and figures out that the two front tires are a little out of round, causing the issue. Wheels are perfect. OK. This is getting awfully inconvenient, but I'll play along.
I call Tire Co. XXX again to explain. Again, they won't take MY word for it. After playing phone tag for a morning, it's agreed that they'll send two new ones to the installer. They CHARGE me for the tires...saying I'll be reimbursed for the new tires AND all the labor, once they receive the old tires back. Really? You mean, all the burden is on me? Correct.
OK. I still play along. Take ANOTHER day off work, and go in again when the tires arrive. One of those are out of round too. We use the one good one, and keep the "best of" the old ones, and re-balance everything again. Closer. still not right, but at this point, I just want the car. I'll live with a little shake. I call Tire Co. XXX to let them know they can pick up the tires. "oh no", they say, our policy is not to pick tires up directly from the installer. We've had too many issues, they say. They will only send a call ticket to my house. I ask them if it ever occurred to them that the reason most people have the tires shipped directly to an installer is so that they don't have to worry about schlepping filthy tires in their car...especially a two seat car! Oh well, too bad, I'm told. Live with it. If you want to be refunded, you must take the tires home, then ship them from there. So, of course, given little choice, I do. I then spend three hours cleaning the leather on my passenger seat, after making two trips to take the tires home one at a time.
So, after talking ANOTHER day off to wait for the UPS man to pick up the tires, I call back after they receive them to ensure that they got the tires. I submit my receipts to the Customer Service Department, and am assured my account will be credited shortly.
This was five months ago.
Yesterday, I realized that they STILL hadn't reimbursed me. My fault for not checking sooner, but I travel a lot with work. I call again. the customer service rep brings up the account, sees the receipts in the system, apologizes, and tells me she is immediately submitting them for PAYMENT...not for approval.
Today, I get an email from the original customer service agent from five months ago, telling me that my tire return has been credited, and could I please resubmit my labor receipts so she can submit them for approval! I told her that no...I no longer have them, and if I am forced to go back to the installer for duplicates, I will submit them to my attorney instead. I asked why, if they received the tires in June, are they just being credited today. No response.
So...for the "convenience" and "savings" from Tire Co. XXX, I have still unbalanced front tires, three lost days wages at work, a migraine headache, and STILL have not been reimbursed from Tire Co. XXX. Tire Co. XXX gets an interest free loan from me for 6 months.
Then the REAL Kicker. I call Mr. Tire tonight, and find out that ordering the same package through them would have been a whopping $49 more expensive. And this is for all-inclusive service...on the rim and out the door, as they say.
Of course, my attorney now has all the receipts as well, and he just LIVES for this sort of stuff. He believes I should be reimbursed for my time from work, my aggravation, etc. etc. At this point I am inclined to agree...I may just let him "play" with this one.
Suffice to say, I'll never use them for anything again. They're customer service after the sale absolutely sucks. The onus to do EVERYTHING falls on the customer. Worse, was the completely uncaring attitude of the customer service employee through the whole process. Katrina, if you ever read this, you should take heed.
Rant done. Sorry. Just had to get it out. It's time for tires for my Mini...guess who I WON'T be buying from?
________________________________________
Long rant. I will NEVER use Tire Co. XXX again.
Way back in June, I purchase a tire and wheel package from Tire Co. XXX for my M. Done it many times in the past through companies such as EAS, Discount Tire, etc...without ever having an issue.
My Ultraleggera wheels and Hankook Ventus tires arrive, already mounted and balanced, I'm told by Tire Co. XXX, using their Hunter Road Force balancer. Great. Put them on...and wow. The balance is simply HORRIBLE. Awful. Indescribably bad.
OK..no big deal...I'm sure they'll take care of it. I go to one of their local authorized installers, who re-balances the tires, but warns me that it "ain't coming out too good". We road test. He did the best he could. It's a little better, but still very bad. I'm out a hundred bucks or so. I call Tire Co. XXX to get reimbursed, and the trouble begins.
First, they don't believe me. They put me on hold, while they call the installer to get "his side of the story". Then, they get back on the phone with me, and ask if I wouldn't mind going and PAYING for another kind of balance...a Tire Matching balancing, involving removing the tires from the wheels and starting over. I ask why do I have to pay for it, why not just deal directly with the installer and have it taken care of? No, they don't work that way, I'm told, I must pay and submit receipts.
OK...off I go back a couple days later to the same installer. Tire Match balance. I'm out another $130 bucks this time. No better. he road tests it with me, and agrees it sucks. He investigates, and figures out that the two front tires are a little out of round, causing the issue. Wheels are perfect. OK. This is getting awfully inconvenient, but I'll play along.
I call Tire Co. XXX again to explain. Again, they won't take MY word for it. After playing phone tag for a morning, it's agreed that they'll send two new ones to the installer. They CHARGE me for the tires...saying I'll be reimbursed for the new tires AND all the labor, once they receive the old tires back. Really? You mean, all the burden is on me? Correct.
OK. I still play along. Take ANOTHER day off work, and go in again when the tires arrive. One of those are out of round too. We use the one good one, and keep the "best of" the old ones, and re-balance everything again. Closer. still not right, but at this point, I just want the car. I'll live with a little shake. I call Tire Co. XXX to let them know they can pick up the tires. "oh no", they say, our policy is not to pick tires up directly from the installer. We've had too many issues, they say. They will only send a call ticket to my house. I ask them if it ever occurred to them that the reason most people have the tires shipped directly to an installer is so that they don't have to worry about schlepping filthy tires in their car...especially a two seat car! Oh well, too bad, I'm told. Live with it. If you want to be refunded, you must take the tires home, then ship them from there. So, of course, given little choice, I do. I then spend three hours cleaning the leather on my passenger seat, after making two trips to take the tires home one at a time.
So, after talking ANOTHER day off to wait for the UPS man to pick up the tires, I call back after they receive them to ensure that they got the tires. I submit my receipts to the Customer Service Department, and am assured my account will be credited shortly.
This was five months ago.
Yesterday, I realized that they STILL hadn't reimbursed me. My fault for not checking sooner, but I travel a lot with work. I call again. the customer service rep brings up the account, sees the receipts in the system, apologizes, and tells me she is immediately submitting them for PAYMENT...not for approval.
Today, I get an email from the original customer service agent from five months ago, telling me that my tire return has been credited, and could I please resubmit my labor receipts so she can submit them for approval! I told her that no...I no longer have them, and if I am forced to go back to the installer for duplicates, I will submit them to my attorney instead. I asked why, if they received the tires in June, are they just being credited today. No response.
So...for the "convenience" and "savings" from Tire Co. XXX, I have still unbalanced front tires, three lost days wages at work, a migraine headache, and STILL have not been reimbursed from Tire Co. XXX. Tire Co. XXX gets an interest free loan from me for 6 months.
Then the REAL Kicker. I call Mr. Tire tonight, and find out that ordering the same package through them would have been a whopping $49 more expensive. And this is for all-inclusive service...on the rim and out the door, as they say.
Of course, my attorney now has all the receipts as well, and he just LIVES for this sort of stuff. He believes I should be reimbursed for my time from work, my aggravation, etc. etc. At this point I am inclined to agree...I may just let him "play" with this one.
Suffice to say, I'll never use them for anything again. They're customer service after the sale absolutely sucks. The onus to do EVERYTHING falls on the customer. Worse, was the completely uncaring attitude of the customer service employee through the whole process. Katrina, if you ever read this, you should take heed.
Rant done. Sorry. Just had to get it out. It's time for tires for my Mini...guess who I WON'T be buying from?
Ouch that is not good to hear.
What a nightmare. I always try to purchase locally or in Ontario for that very reason, that is, if I can get what I'm shopping for nearby. I don't mind paying a bit more because if I have a problem, I can deal with it locally.
Having said that I do purchase some things from the US that I can't find in Canada.
I just purchased something from the Company I think you are talking about, I did do extensive research about the item, but nonetheless, I sure hope I don't have problems and have to deal with that crappy service.
Thanks for posting that Ian.
Oh, I forgot to mention, I love your new Avatar, What a Sweet shot
What a nightmare. I always try to purchase locally or in Ontario for that very reason, that is, if I can get what I'm shopping for nearby. I don't mind paying a bit more because if I have a problem, I can deal with it locally.
Having said that I do purchase some things from the US that I can't find in Canada.
I just purchased something from the Company I think you are talking about, I did do extensive research about the item, but nonetheless, I sure hope I don't have problems and have to deal with that crappy service.
Thanks for posting that Ian.
Oh, I forgot to mention, I love your new Avatar, What a Sweet shot
Last edited by GEE35FX; Jan 7, 2011 at 09:49 AM.
Ian, I read that scary story too. It makes one really think twice about internet purchases. However I've bought 3 sets from them but then again no issue with the tires. That experience just sounds so absurd though??
Just my opinion but perhaps the OP is exaggerating a bit on this a little too. When I read about 2 trips; 3 hours to clean one leather seat; when a blanket or tire bag would handle most of the issue. What about the trunk?
My experience with attorneys in law suits is the meter runs pretty fast at pretty high rates. It would be interesting to see in this case it's worth it.
Like Wayne says I love that shot of your car on the track too. The compressed suspension makes it looks even more special.
Ordered my CC pads this am. Gonna pull the trigger on the diablo too.
Just my opinion but perhaps the OP is exaggerating a bit on this a little too. When I read about 2 trips; 3 hours to clean one leather seat; when a blanket or tire bag would handle most of the issue. What about the trunk?
My experience with attorneys in law suits is the meter runs pretty fast at pretty high rates. It would be interesting to see in this case it's worth it.
Like Wayne says I love that shot of your car on the track too. The compressed suspension makes it looks even more special.
Ordered my CC pads this am. Gonna pull the trigger on the diablo too.
Yeah thats terrible to hear.
I honestly just stick with discount tire
... Great people ... Weve bought 7 sets of tires over the last 2 years ( for 4 different cars ) ... We do a lot of driving LOL
I dont bother looking up any other company's for tires... I really respect these guys because there was a misunderstanding where there was an addition $100 off in rebates ( $40 mail in, And $60 instantly ) .... The mix up was that the $60 is only if you get the Discount tire credit card and in order for that you have to be resident of US ... So they didint put up any bit of a argument... They said because they didint clarify that they gave us the $60 off per set so $120 for the two sets... Got my mail in rebate of $80 about 4 weeks later plus the $50 for two sets that we negotiated lower so ended up saving $250 off of 2 sets than the actual listings on line plus free shipping within US !
Just because of the experience i will continue to make future tire purchases from discount tire whenever i need to
!!
I honestly just stick with discount tire
... Great people ... Weve bought 7 sets of tires over the last 2 years ( for 4 different cars ) ... We do a lot of driving LOL I dont bother looking up any other company's for tires... I really respect these guys because there was a misunderstanding where there was an addition $100 off in rebates ( $40 mail in, And $60 instantly ) .... The mix up was that the $60 is only if you get the Discount tire credit card and in order for that you have to be resident of US ... So they didint put up any bit of a argument... They said because they didint clarify that they gave us the $60 off per set so $120 for the two sets... Got my mail in rebate of $80 about 4 weeks later plus the $50 for two sets that we negotiated lower so ended up saving $250 off of 2 sets than the actual listings on line plus free shipping within US !
Just because of the experience i will continue to make future tire purchases from discount tire whenever i need to
!!
I use Tire Option a vendor on this site with outstanding service when I am looking for tires. I was looking for KDW's and Kal tire wanted over 1200 for them. Tire Option was like 750US to my door with no hidden fees and no duty. I will use them for every set of tires i need. So with having 3 projects on the go that will be a few.
So i think it can be worth it if you can find the right place but i am sure cases like this happen but it will not scare me off from gettting tires from the US
So i think it can be worth it if you can find the right place but i am sure cases like this happen but it will not scare me off from gettting tires from the US
Last edited by red35; Jan 7, 2011 at 06:46 PM.
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 21,095
Likes: 47
From: Toronto, GTA north
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It's not worth it, unless your some sort of dealer and do bulk orders. Even then it's still a pain in the ***. You can actually get good pricing in this country, believe it or not. You just have to deal with the right people and look in the right places. Durp. Kal tire for instance; I made friends with one of the managers, an low and behold, I got the same pricing and I would have from some jackwagon in the states.
It's not worth it, unless your some sort of dealer and do bulk orders. Even then it's still a pain in the ***. You can actually get good pricing in this country, believe it or not. You just have to deal with the right people and look in the right places. Durp. Kal tire for instance; I made friends with one of the managers, an low and behold, I got the same pricing and I would have from some jackwagon in the states.
(* I run summers on the front - you only need snows on the back
)
