New tire vs Recap tire

ck with dealer new brigestone or goodyear can be had for same $ as recap at T/P prices.

 

new tires are always better than recaps so like baha said check the dealer. Being on a trailer you can get away with the recaps but its just not worth the savings, another option you can do is look for used tires, some drivers will replace their tires at half use.

 

I can speak with 10 years tire experience behind me. Personally I'd stay away from recaps. I've seen the damage they cause when the cap flies off one of them. yes I know new tires blow out. But recaps, especially in hot weather are far more susceptible to blow outs. Sure the initial price may seem lower and more appealing than a new tire, but in the long run it could cost more through downtime and/ or equipment damage, like ripped fenders, torn airbags, air hoses ,etc.

If you go the used tire route, I'd suggest checking the DOT number on the sidewall of the tire as it will tell you the month and year the tire was manufactured. Also check the tire for dry rot . I've spent many a night , 3 am in the pouring rain beside the interstate replacing a blow out where an unsuspecting driver bought an old tire.

 

i run michelins all around they have excellent wear and low rolling resistance. cannot stress enough the importance of tire psi. i check mine every day. yes the initial cost is high but very good wear and long life.

 

IMHO, it's a wash. New tires will cost more initially, but they will last longer. Recaps are less expensive, but also less reliable, and the mileage you will get out of them will likely be less than you will get out of the new tires, and whatever money you save on the price may well be offset by the cost of the damage when one of the caps peels off and slams around like a big dead blow hammer....

New tires are more forgiving of being run with low air pressure, or run flat even. Run a cap flat, or on low air.... and it's a goner.

The real trick is getting new tires at a low price, you've got to shop around and negotiate. Don't accept the asking price as the final price, negotiate with the salesman. If the salesman won't negotiate, thank him for his time, move on, and find one that will.

There is always someone hungry for a sale, you just have to weed through them all to find the one who is motivated to sell 8 tires. That's your leverage, you're buying 8, not 1. Buying 1, and he's going to stick to his retail price, but purchase 8, now we're negotiating...

 

And once you get what you think is a great low price, write it down and take it with you and continue looking. Now, when you go into the next tire shop, ask about the prices on the tires that you have the quoted low price on. When the salesman goes into sales mode, snap him out of it by laying the quoted price on the counter, right in front of him. Calmly tell him you already know about the tires and aren't really interested in listening to a sales pitch, just tell him you can get those tires for the price on the paper in front of him, ask him if he can beat that price....

If he says he can beat it, great. Take the new offer and shop it around.....

When you decide to accept an offer and buy, get them to throw in some extra incentives, stuff like free mounting, free balancing, or free balancing beads....

 

Have you considered regroving them? I regrove all my tires when they get close to min. and get another 130K miles. Most tires state on them regroveable.
A regrover knife is quite cheap, usually pay for itself in just a couple tires.

 

im assuming your talking about more "mom and pop" type of tire shops? I guess it would be harder to negotiate with someone like Petro or Loves.

 

If your an OOIDA member, you have access to the national account pricing. Also alot of companies have this.
The national account pricing is a quite a big discount depending on how many tires overall they buy.