For most Americans that live in populated areas or the suburbs of a major city, standard all-season tires will do the job just fine when it comes time to replace your tires. But for those of us who live in challenging environments where snow is a constant concern in the winter months, it makes sense to upgrade to winter tires.
Online shops–such as Cheap Tires ASAP–are the cheapest place to get tires. This is because we cut out the middleman and ship our tires directly to you or your mechanic. Below, we’ll discuss how to choose a set of winter tires, and whether cheap ones will do the trick or if you should invest in a higher-end set.
If you’re wondering whether it is cheaper to buy tires at the dealership, it’s not. Dealerships offer discounts on tires when they know they’re going to charge you double or triple the standard labor rate because they are using “dealership-certified mechanics” and they’ll get their money back on the hourly charges.
Cheap or Expensive Winter Tires?
The price of the tire you decide to purchase hinges on three things—your budget, your tire size, and your expected driving conditions.
Because we don’t control what size tire our car comes equipped with, we’ll just have to deal with the fact that larger or rarer tires are going to be more expensive. This is simply a supply and demand equation that tire sellers have little control over.
The conditions we’ll be driving in are another important factor. If you’re a suburb dweller whose only job is to drive around a well-maintained city, purchasing expensive single-purpose tires doesn’t really make financial sense. All-season tires will probably be fine for your driving habits.
However, if you’re someone who lives in the mountains or has to drive into rough, snowy, or icy terrain on a regular basis, you’ll definitely want to invest in a set of winter tires–especially if you live in a rural area where snow plows are not always present.
Lastly, there’s the in-betweener–the person that lives in the city but likes to spend their winter weekends in the mountains. For these people, a budget-friendly winter tire is a good choice. You can put them on and take them off as needed, or you can opt to have a mechanic install them for a few weeks of heavy snow or icy conditions.
Cheaper Doesn’t Always Mean Low Quality
Once again, it all comes down to how and why we use our vehicles. For those with disposable income or those who drive in challenging environments and want the maximum performance from their car, upgrading to specialty tires might make sense–but budget-friendly tires are fine for the vast majority of people.
For the highest quality affordable tires, Cheap Tires ASAP has you covered.
Make sure you purchase the right tire for your personal driving habits and be sure to properly maintain them. The world’s most expensive tire will begin to perform poorly the moment you stop taking care of them, so be sure and visit your mechanic for a rotation and balance as often as the manufacturer recommends!
Want to know if cheap tires make noise? Check out our latest post.