Have looked so far at local dealers, Canadian based internet sellers, and then various delivery options from Tire Rack in the US. My local dealer will match any Canadian supplier price but can't or won't match Tire Rack prices.

The price spread is shocking. The same brand and size of tire (set of four) at my local dealer lists for just under $1000.

He will match the CDN internet price of $867.

Tire Rack delivered to a Canadian address would be $749.

Tire Rack delivered to the US side of the border is $534.

All prices are inclusive of taxes, duties etc but exclude mounting and balancing.

I'm trying real hard to 'buy local' but a dollar is a dollar. Especially when there's a few hundred of them at stake. Have I missed something?

 

Wow, those are some serious customs/duties charges. I had no idea that the fees involved would be that much. It would be understandable shipping overseas, but right next door? Sounds like there's some international gouging going on....

Do you have an American friend living near the border that you could have Tire Rack ship to? Then you could drive the car there, have the tires mounted, and drive back home. Since you say you've checked all the Canadian online tire sources, that's the only idea I have for you. Sorry....

 

Tire Rack will ship the tires to any number of installers, you just pick one from their website and make an appointment for the day and time you like. I live less than an hour from the border so this would be a simple and easy day trip for me.

I guess what I don't understand is why there's such a large difference between the Tire Rack rack price delivered to Canada ($749) is so much cheaper than a local guy in Canada ($867). If anything it should be the other way around as the local guy imports the tires directly not via a third country.

 

As a fellow Canadian who has looked and is looking for tires, like you I found Tire Rack the cheapest of all sources. Now, I have an STR and those tire sized are even harder to find, especially in winter tires! I ended up buying from Tire Rack and just having them shipped up to me. All my local places either didn't have any tires in stock (for winter especially) and they would have to bring them in from somewhere else in Canada, usually they tell me there are none in Canada and they'll have to bring them in from the states. Umm, that is exactly what I do when I order from Tire Rack and it costs be less than they would charge at the local places. I don't understand when they tell me it'll be expensive since they have to get them shipped in from the US, the CDN dollar is basically the same as the US and has been for a while now, and even if they have to pay the duties and such, why is it more (usually several hundred more) from the local place than Tire Rack? I will never understand why tire places chage what they do when now you can go online and find tires for much less. My advice, just go with Tire Rack. If you can go down and get them installed and drive back, go for it and save some money. Either way, Tire Rack will be the best deal.

 

Dude, I live in Quebec. Home of high taxes. I always buy off of the net. Got my tires from Tire Rack and am glad everyday to have an additional $300 in my pocket.

 

I was hoping you'd comment. Looks like I'm beating a dead horse trying to contribute to the health of the local economy. Besides, lunch on Church St in Burlington is always a nice treat.

 

I found the same thing. My wife & I drove from Calgary to Kalispel (U.S.) and stayed overnight in the nicest Hotel, ate at the best restaurant in town and had a great time without kids (). And we still had money we saved in our pocket for the set of tires we bought at Big "O" Tires. I emailed a few places to get prices before we went, which only took a few minutes. They ordered them in and had them ready to go when we got there. When we pulled into the tire shop, we were the only customer. They rolled it in, had 5 guys working on it (no lie) and it was done in about 10 or 15 minutes at the most. And they were very appreciative of the business. Great experience and fun weekend.

 

Of course you made a customs declaration for the tires you bought when you came back into Canada...

Tire Rack is based on sheer volume serving a market 10x bigger. Your local tire store has to charge more to pay their overhead (bricks & mortar, wages, insurance, etc) plus put some dough in the owner's pocket on a much smaller scale. I've used Tire Rack for years for all our cars and had them ship to me in Canada. Never one complaint. Best deal is for any tires manufactured in North America as there is no duty.

Latest example was my 18" Conti Extreme DSWs for the X. Crappy Tire could order them for me for $320 each another local national chain could bring them in for $280. Tire Rack, including shipping and all taxes, enviro fee, duty etc got them to me in five days @ about $175 CAD a corner.

I get them installed locally by my tire guy who is very understanding as I bring him other "mechanical" business. Maybe he hoses me when he does a brake job instead but, I don't think so. Go with the Rack, save some money.

By the way I just ordered my Akebono pads and Centric rotors from them as well since the dollars are so close to par.

 

Living in Quebec City, I do my best to help the local economy. Going to Montreal often, I do the same thing there. Spread the wealth, eh?

Still, I can't be expected to spend money for no reason. I have a 1999 Honda Civic (winter beater) that needs a new IAC. My favourite garage needs $480 to change it. What? I found a new IAC online for $200 and will install it myself. 1/3 the price (factoring in taxes) means that I will do the wrenching.

Freaking corrupt gov't! Freaking taxes! With dollar parity, we shouldn't have to work so hard to save a few bucks.

 

It is a shock. However, I do not agree that the Canadian tire shops have to cover the cost of bricks, insurance, etc when the American tire shops have to do exactly the same. Big "O" Tires is a string of tire shops and they sold me a set of the exact brand name tires I priced in Canada for 40% less (@ par), installed and balanced. Also, there was no duty, just 5% GST. Tire Rack does have an obvious edge though, as all they need are warehouses to ship from. They do sell tires installed on rims and balanced as well. So they do need personnel and equipment to do so. Unless they farm it out I suppose. I think the big culpret is the middle man. The Canadian agents for international products. Taxes are definitely a large part of it as well though. When the middle man realizes the market is by-passing him and threatening the local tire shops as well as themselves, they should realize that it's time to be realistic and decrease their share of the end costs. With free trade and high product demand, they should be removed from the picture altogether. Unless they drop their share, buyers will continue to try to by-pass them.

Best regards,

 

Attention! Before you go taking the hammer to the piggy bank, packing your bags and hopping in the Jag for a quick trip across the boarder on a spending spree, you should consider the warranty issue. You're now sayin', "What warranty issue?". Well, the warranty is not in effect in Canada for many products purchased in the States. Like tires, cars, sex toys, whatever. So if you buy tires across the border and in a month your but begins to sway while driving your car at walking speed, telling you your belts have separated in your tire(s), you'll likely have to take your swaying but for another trip to the American tire shop where you bought your tires for a warranty claim. Many manufacturers require you to make warranty claims through the distributer (middle man) in the region they have exclusive rights to. So you'll have to weigh the potential consequences of buying across the border. The buck stops at the manufacturer though, so they should acknowledge all warranty claims for their products. They handle claims this way to help protect the middle man.

I should have mentioned this in my above post. Sorry for the geriatric delay.

 

Thanks for the heads up. Being a total cynic, I don't believe that tire warranties are worth the paper they're written on. If I could opt out of warranties and save money, I would. Here's the way I look at it: Buying the tires in the US will save me about $330 for the set, minus the gas to go get them, let's say $300 even.

I'll put that $300 in the bank to deal with the worst case scenario when I can't drive back to the US to deal with any tire issues under warranty, or it's not worthwhile. $300 would buy me 1 and 1/2 new tires locally so the odds of probability still end up in my favour. Most often the pro rata payable won't make it worthwhile even making a fuss, based on previous experience. We won't mention a certain manufacturer that starts with M and has a fat white blobby thing as a mascot. That would just get me upset and I'll start ranting.

 

In more than 40 years of driving, I've never had a tire fail due to a manufacturing problem. Only by running over objects in the road or my wife hitting a curb. I don't even consider that when I buy tires. Of course, I do plenty of tire research first and I buy the right tire for my particular application. But I don't buy tires without warranties, either. Therefore, I haven't bought a Michelin tire in at least two decades....

 

Agggghhh you said the 'M word. Gack, sputter, choke, arrgh- Those farquing icehole cork soaking bastidges....

 

With technology being what it is today, effectively researching product performance, warranty and cost is easy. I am of the same school of thought as Jon89. Good research pays off big time and I don't consider warranty a high priority. That's why I purchased my last set of tires across the border, as well as many other products. As you may have discerened, my big bone of contention is the agents for American products sold in Canada. Look at Harley Davidson (CDN agent - Deeley out of Vancouver) for a perfect example. It's easy to log on the net and compare bike costs. Yet Canadians cannot go across the border and buy a new Harley from an American dealership. Try it and you'll see. The American dealerships are not allowed to sell new bikes to Canadians.

 

Just as a follow up, things have turned even rosier. The Canadian dollar has once again reached parity with the US and is expected to surpass it over the summer. This has resulted in a huge increase in cross-border shopping.

Last night's national news had a segment on this and interviewed a Montreal resident who was picking up a set of brand new tires for his car that he had just bough from Tire Rack. How about that I thought. The camera panned around, showing his car. What was he driving? Why a silver Jaguar of course, albeit an X type and not an S. What a co-inky-dink.

The fellows' family name was Silva, or deSilva. Wonder if he's member here?

 

I just used "The Rack" again today for my truck tires because of parity of the US and CAD dollars. $926 all in for Bridgestone Dueler Revo 2's that cost quote over $1200 CAD locally.