tire shopping for the wife's Kia = boring (but now complete)

Jayne

Jayne

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Normally tire shopping is kinda fun, you research and read and compare and try to figure out what makes sense on a product you can't try before you buy (and reviews from real people are worthless as any new tire is better than the dead tires they just replaced).

That said, shopping for tires for the wife's Kia is boring. "round" and "black" are about the only criteria.

Looks like $300-500 is about what she's going to have to spend for a set of 4 mounted up with the TPMS 'rebuild'.
 
I feel your pain but honestly... when it comes to shopping for daily driver tires like what you're talking about the only criteria I have is black, round and good tread wear. Weather around here is very mild so tires don't need to be very specialized, a good all season does fine. I have brands I prefer for specific applications and I think I'd grow a rubber tree before I bought another Goodyear tire.
 
Michlin premiere's. I put a set on my mothers Kia Soul and she loves them. Plus they will last dam near forever. I also put the same thing on my full size lowered Silverado. The tires will stick even in the rain and they handle like they are on rails.
 
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I go to the tire shop, and ask what they have in stock. "How long will they last? How much will they cost?" If I find both answers acceptable, I have them mounted.
 
I had to buy 2 tires for my daughter's '15 Kia Optima a couple months ago. Went with OEM for they were available through Tire Rack and wanted to match the other tires. Because they were an odd size, Tire Rack delayed shipping for the size did not match up with their database. I had to call them and confirm the tire size as listed on the door jamb before they would ship. When I get home this afternoon, I will post up the brand and model of the tires I bought. Good overall handling, ride and traction. I would recommend them.
 
Well depending on what you want to spend, I would say Michelin for longevity as I put Premiere A/S 215/55z16 on my wifes '16 Passat. It rides 100% better than the factory Hankook cheapies. But they cost $900...so they damn well better be good.

Hankook and Kumho arent the value they once were in the market. Prices increased and performance decreased. However there is a value brand thats been around a LONG time out there - Ohtsu. Actually the parent of Sumitomo which is a great overall tire company. I found a set of Ohtsu FP0612 A/S 215/60-15 for around 365 at Discount Tire with replacement warranty installed. Theyre a hell of a value, quiet ride and handle good. I put them on my sons 98 Accord V6

BTW i highly recommend Discount Tire Co for their service, but they wont give me any wheel weights except my own [emoji2]
 
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"Round" and "black" are the important criteria.

You want anything else, then make some stencils and go to town, in my opinion.

I'm not concerned with whitewalls, trademark names, etc.

Besides...you said it's a Kia. What more do you really need, anyway? Next thing you know you'll be going on about spoilers, hood scoops, chopped suspension, and undercarriage LED lighting.
 
RetiredUSNChief said:
What more do you really need, anyway? Next thing you know you'll be going on about spoilers, hood scoops, chopped suspension, and undercarriage LED lighting.
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Kia-Soul-Wallpaper-3-Shadow-2650x1440.jpg
 
Mad Dawg said:
I had to buy 2 tires for my daughter's '15 Kia Optima a couple months ago. Went with OEM for they were available through Tire Rack and wanted to match the other tires. Because they were an odd size, Tire Rack delayed shipping for the size did not match up with their database. I had to call them and confirm the tire size as listed on the door jamb before they would ship. When I get home this afternoon, I will post up the brand and model of the tires I bought. Good overall handling, ride and traction. I would recommend them.
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FWIW, when I bought tires last fall, I couldn't get a single shop to come close to the prices on Tire Rack. I had them shipped to my door mounted on rims (paid for the rims as well) and balanced, thrown on the car and checked at a local place for $20.... all for less than the price of tires alone at anywhere I checked.
 
WeepingAngel said:
FWIW, when I bought tires last fall, I couldn't get a single shop to come close to the prices on Tire Rack. I had them shipped to my door mounted on rims (paid for the rims as well) and balanced, thrown on the car and checked at a local place for $20.... all for less than the price of tires alone at anywhere I checked.
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It seems that if I'm not too picky on the brand (staying away from the good stuff and more low end) that tire rack + shipping is not cheaper than local + tax. In some cases not even close, the local shops are cheaper.

She was getting it serviced today (at the dealer in Apex because she bought the service pack which makes oil changes cheap) and they quoted a not-unreasonable price to replace the tires with the same that are on it now, Optimo H426. Actually cheaper than the tire rack and the same as discount tire.

Now, clearly they're making it up on other services. They want $170 for a "fuel system cleaning" and $185 for spark plugs, $130 to replace the coolant and $180 for the transmission fluid. I haven't priced any of these services in the last 5 years since I used to do all that myself on my 4runner, but damn that seems nuts. Especially the fuel system thing, sounds like a blinker fluid situation.
 
You better not buy a "fuel system cleaning". EVER..

Have you ever used gas to clean something? Your father or grandfather ?
 
Mike Overlay said:
You better not buy a "fuel system cleaning". EVER..
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Come on man, it says right there on her report saying "CAUTION". :)

I also just noticed it doesn't actually say brake fluid flush for $130, it says "fluid exchange". Who would we be exchanging fluids with? They just move the fluid between cars? I hope their fluid is better than what's already in there.

I made her help me flush the brakes on her Sentra after I replaced the pads and rotors so she knows it's not rocket surgery.
 
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What year is the car and how many miles are on it? Most cars do not need a injector cleaning until the 150k mark. However there are some exceptions to that rule. Any of the gm vortech motors from 1994 till 2003 that used the spider injector setup with the poppet valves and newer cars with direct injection. The direct injection cars are more of a intake system cleaning though as you no longer have fuel passing over the back of the valves to clean them of deposits that build up quickly and cause valves to stick. Also most cars now have valves in the intakes to redirect airflow during various conditions. If these valves are allowed to gum up the linkages and servo motors will break causing on some vehicals very expensive repairs. A excellent injector and fuel system cleaner is BG44K it is usually only sold to shops but can be bought on the internet, it is much stronger than seafoam or other parts store cleaners. The prices they guoted you are high in my opinion call local shops for their charges as these are normally flat fees set for these.
 
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I bought some Toyo Extensa A/S tires earlier this year and I would NOT recommend them. The ride seems decent but there is a lot of road noise from the tires.
 
I've got a set of Falken G4's on my Focus, and I like them a lot more than the Goodyear Assurance tires on my other Focus.
 
Jayne said:
Dragging. Not this weekend because I've got a list of things to do, but next weekend is likely.
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If it's a vehicle you plan to keep and drive, put some miles on....Michelin or Continental are the two tire manufacturers I have had the very best luck with. BFG is right up there but they are specific applications. Michelin or Continental for a quiet, smooth, trouble free street driven vehicle. Yes, they cost a bit more up front but they last longer and are trouble free.
 
spittinfire said:
If it's a vehicle you plan to keep and drive, put some miles on....Michelin or Continental are the two tire manufacturers I have had the very best luck with. BFG is right up there but they are specific applications. Michelin or Continental for a quiet, smooth, trouble free street driven vehicle. Yes, they cost a bit more up front but they last longer and are trouble free.
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She'll have 60k on the OEM tires, that seems pretty good in my book. I won't let her get the $60 specials, but not sure she'll see value in spending more than $100/tire.

I used to autocross a lot and burnt up a lot of high end tires, and it was all worth it. She, not so much.
 
Jayne said:
She'll have 60k on the OEM tires, that seems pretty good in my book. I won't let her get the $60 specials, but not sure she'll see value in spending more than $100/tire.

I used to autocross a lot and burnt up a lot of high end tires, and it was all worth it. She, not so much.
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What came on it?
 
At 57k the fuel injection service is not needed. I wouldn't do the coolant either. That seems kind of low mileage for the plugs also but it should say in the manual when they are due. Most cars these days are 90k for plugs if they are iridium. I would because of age change the brake fluid as it absorbs moisture over time which will lead to corrosion and failure in the hydraulic system. Check the manual for transmission fluid change intervals too. Thoose prices are high for those services even more so on that car as it is super simple to work on. The highest cost stuff on the list material wise will be 10-12gts of tranny fluid reqiured for a complete flush.
 
Short Fuse said:
the manual when they are due.
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It's on my list for this weekend to pull out the manual and see what's really needed. The hazard of going into her car though is I'll see how much goat/horse hair is built up on the seats and want to vacuum the thing out. She's not carrying live stock around but somehow all their hair ends up in her car.
 
Jayne said:
It's on my list for this weekend to pull out the manual and see what's really needed. The hazard of going into her car though is I'll see how much goat/horse hair is built up on the seats and want to vacuum the thing out. She's not carrying live stock around but somehow all their hair ends up in her car.
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If you buy Goodyears, I can give you a 20% discount.
 
...and we're done.

I helped her shop/price compare online, read reviews, etc, etc and she picked out the Pirelli Cinturato P7 (which sounds like an Italian 9mm to me) and got them ordered from discount tire and mounted up. She now understands tires a bit and I didn't have to actually take the car in to get it done. Win win!

tires.jpg
 
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