From: Wade@cooler.net   
      
   On 12/9/21 4:32 PM, Andy Burnelli wrote:   
   > I'm buying tires at SimpleTire and the default sort is "recommended" but   
   > other options are "highest to lowest" and "lowest to highest" choices.   
   >   
   > It got me wondering...   
   > Who sorts a set of 4 tires by price high to low? Or by brand?   
   >   
   > I'm 75 and have replaced my tires for decades where my current philosophy is   
   > that (a) tires are tires, and (if you're replacing all four as a set), then   
   > you (b) you buy that set by the spec and finally, (c), if the specs are   
   > almost or exactly the same, then you decide by price (lower is better).   
   >   
   > Hence I sort tires online by spec first, not by price nor by brand.   
   > 1. It has to fit (for example, P225/75R15 if buying for all four wheels)   
   > 2. It has to be right (for example, All-Season, load range 102S or better)   
   > 3. It has to be good (for example, TRACTION=AA TREADWEAR=500 TEMPERATURE=A)   
   >   
   > I know people who buy by warranty, which means that what they care about   
   > isn't the price performance qualities of the tire itself since warranty is   
   > an artificial marketing component of the tire sale.   
   >   
   > Others will tell you that they buy the most well advertised brand (for   
   > example, Michelin or GoodYear) but they usually don't even know WHERE their   
   > tires are built (Indonesia for example) before that brand is stamped on the   
   > tires (the point being that multiple brands are the same exact tire in many   
   > cases).   
   >   
   > And yet, others buy by price, but from highest to lowest, and they're often   
   > the same people claiming that "you get what you pay for" which is never   
   > correct (you get what others set the price at which is almost always a   
   > function of brand marketing and almost never of quality in tires).   
   >   
   > In the end, the price is a function of the basics:   
   > A. The cost of the tire (for example, $100/tire)   
   > B. The cost of sales tax (for example 10%)   
   > C. The cost of shipping (for example $15/tire)   
   > D. The cost of mounting/balancing/valves/disposal (for example $20/wheel)   
   >   
   > While any online tire seller (Tire Rack, Simple Tire, Carid, etc.) will ship   
   > directly to the tire mounting shop, I mount/balance my own so I save on a   
   > few things (e.g., SimpleTire doesn't charge for shipping and dynamic balance   
   > DIY tests are free, or if you don't trust your own dynamic balance tests, I   
   > think Costco will check the dynamic balance for $5/tire last I asked and   
   > they will dispose of old tires for $1/tire plus local sales tax).   
   >   
   > Anyway, I was just shopping for tires and wondered why the default sort   
   > order is what it is, given the default should be lowest-to-highest within   
   > spec, in my humble opinion.   
   >   
   > What's your humble opinion?   
   > How do YOU choose a set of new tires when you order them online?   
   >   
   > (Maybe I can learn something from your experience and acumen.)   
   >   
   For the first tire replacement on a purchased-new vehicle, I usually   
   install the same ones that the manufacturer supplied. Of course that   
   assumes I liked how they handled and gave reasonable tread life.   
      
   --   
   If a man says he will fix it, he will. There’s no need to remind him   
   every three months.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)