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Apple fanboy

macrumors Ivy Bridge
Feb 21, 2012
57,108
56,157
Behind the Lens, UK
Ah I avoid Kwik Rob and ATS here as they try and spot things like leaky shocks and anything they can sell you on top lol. Yeah tyres and repairs do seem cheaper here I think.


I’ve never heard of that sort of cover to be honest here, but tyres can be a murky thing as so many garages are looking to rip you off as it is. When a puncture repair is around a tenner anyway, I take my chances. I’ve had a few screws in my tyres over the years but usually been quite lucky. The worst I had was a Stanley knife blade in a week old Pirelli and that stung a bit.

I have a feeling many garages here would find something else wrong under the car if they were offering a complimentary tyre repair lol.
Never heard of it either. I’m not a big fan of extended warranties. Generally your better off saving your money.
 
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Apple fanboy

macrumors Ivy Bridge
Feb 21, 2012
57,108
56,157
Behind the Lens, UK
I went ahead and got a deal from Discount Tire. Got 16' rims and went with the Michelin Defenders like the ones on my Yaris. It doesn't look as good as the bigger stock rim but the car rides 100% better.
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Function over design. Sometimes you wish Apple would remember that!
 
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SactoGuy18

macrumors 601
Sep 11, 2006
4,733
1,800
Sacramento, CA USA
I went ahead and got a deal from Discount Tire. Got 16' rims and went with the Michelin Defenders like the ones on my Yaris. It doesn't look as good as the bigger stock rim but the car rides 100% better.
dd1c558431747dd4cf82001fdf1f5818.jpg
I usually tend to go with OEM rim and tire sizes due to the fact the manufacturer usually tunes the suspension for a specific rim/tire size and also for keeping the accuracy of the speedometer.
 

The-Real-Deal82

macrumors P6
Jan 17, 2013
17,331
25,495
Wales, United Kingdom
Never heard of it either. I’m not a big fan of extended warranties. Generally your better off saving your money.

I think us Brits have been taught by every consumer watchdog going that extended warranties are unnecessary and cash grabs by companies selling you a product. It seems different in other countries though and a big example of that is AppleCare. It’s popular amongst American users on here but we are told it’s a waste of money. Then again we have better cover generally here I think. In regards to tyres i’ll always take my chances with damage as it’s just unlucky if you get a puncture and it rarely breaks the bank. If I had paid an extra £10-20 insurance per tyre I’d be wanting it to pop on principal lol.
 

Apple fanboy

macrumors Ivy Bridge
Feb 21, 2012
57,108
56,157
Behind the Lens, UK
I think us Brits have been taught by every consumer watchdog going that extended warranties are unnecessary and cash grabs by companies selling you a product. It seems different in other countries though and a big example of that is AppleCare. It’s popular amongst American users on here but we are told it’s a waste of money. Then again we have better cover generally here I think. In regards to tyres i’ll always take my chances with damage as it’s just unlucky if you get a puncture and it rarely breaks the bank. If I had paid an extra £10-20 insurance per tyre I’d be wanting it to pop on principal lol.
£10-£20 per tyre would not be good. I’ve had about three or four tyre punctures in my lifetime. Got through a lot more tyres than that.
 

44267547

Cancelled
Jul 12, 2016
37,642
42,495
Rally ride west of Detroit. I didn’t get to attend unfortunately, but in a way that’s fine, as it was a 101° that day and actually was cut short because of the heat/roads buckling.

Just a few of the participants:
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4F16E442-78D1-4127-85E4-D925F1262278.jpeg
E397ABA0-0799-4E56-AD12-B8604ADE7644.jpeg
FD9CB540-6198-4F59-923C-BDAC4C8EB82E.jpeg
 
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Nütztjanix

macrumors 68000
Jul 31, 2019
1,535
985
Germany
I think us Brits have been taught by every consumer watchdog going that extended warranties are unnecessary and cash grabs by companies selling you a product. It seems different in other countries though and a big example of that is AppleCare. It’s popular amongst American users on here but we are told it’s a waste of money. Then again we have better cover generally here I think. In regards to tyres i’ll always take my chances with damage as it’s just unlucky if you get a puncture and it rarely breaks the bank. If I had paid an extra £10-20 insurance per tyre I’d be wanting it to pop on principal lol.
(emphasis mine)

Preferably just before it's worn out!
 

Nütztjanix

macrumors 68000
Jul 31, 2019
1,535
985
Germany
No, no, no. Come on. You know how it works. A new tyre is likely to get a puncture that can’t be repaired. An old worn out tyre never does! It’s Sod’s law.
I know. Just like with plates and cups and stuff. The ones that have dents or are chipped last for ever — it’s the knew and flawless ones that get knocked off the table or fall maybe 5 cm and break completely.
 

Glideslope

macrumors G3
Dec 7, 2007
8,336
5,795
The Adirondacks.
I live in California so not sure if this is a US thing or a california thing.
Even taking my car to the dealership, plugging a tire is about $20.

On many tires the manufacturer warrants "road hazards". I also purchased from tirerack.com and they offer a similar thing I think for $5 per tire. I've gotten 2 tires replaced for free (plus $20 mounting charge from the actual shop), once because of a pothole that made it bulge and once because of hitting a curb that sliced the sidewall.

Quite an amazing warranty that doesn't cost me anything extra because I'm saving from not buying it from the dealer or tire shop which usually mark everything WAY up.

I‘ve used Tire Rack for a long time. Installed by a local approved shop for the warranty. Great service and customer support. 👍
 

jimmy_uk

macrumors 68020
Oct 19, 2015
2,484
3,310
UK
I think us Brits have been taught by every consumer watchdog going that extended warranties are unnecessary and cash grabs by companies selling you a product. It seems different in other countries though and a big example of that is AppleCare. It’s popular amongst American users on here but we are told it’s a waste of money. Then again we have better cover generally here I think. In regards to tyres i’ll always take my chances with damage as it’s just unlucky if you get a puncture and it rarely breaks the bank. If I had paid an extra £10-20 insurance per tyre I’d be wanting it to pop on principal lol.
My tyres are £140+ a pop, so I'd pay the £40 - £80 to insure all 4 tyres.

In the South of England there is continuous, 365 days a year building and development work taking place with new housing estates, lorry depots and offices been constructed. This has led to loads of loose builders rubbish and tools being stroon on the roads. The amount of screws and blades I've had in tyres due to careless builders not securing their van gear/rubbish is not funny. As soon as one development starts and I change routes to avoid it, another starts somewhere else. :mad: And there's the loose rubble chipping my car paint......can't have nice things.
 
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The-Real-Deal82

macrumors P6
Jan 17, 2013
17,331
25,495
Wales, United Kingdom
My tyres are £140+ a pop, so I'd pay the £40 - £80 to insure all 4 tyres.

In the South of England there is continuous, 365 days a year building and development work taking place with new housing estates, lorry depots and offices been constructed. This has led to loads of loose builders rubbish and tools being stroon on the roads. The amount of screws and blades I've had in tyres due to careless builders not securing their van gear/rubbish is not funny. As soon as one development starts and I change routes to avoid it, another starts somewhere else. :mad: And there's the loose rubble chipping my car paint......can't have nice things.

It would certainly great to have the option. The tyres on my CRV were £120 each (225/60 R18) but I don’t have a regular issue with punctures. It has happened but not so often as I’d pay additional insurance on them.
 
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bunnspecial

macrumors G3
May 3, 2014
8,353
6,497
Kentucky
At least here, when I've had "lifetime" warranties and needed a replacement, the full replacement was only good for ~1 year from purchase I think. Past there, the replacement has been pro-rated based on miles driven on the tire vs. the rated life. It's still not terrible when you lose one with ~30,000 miles on it and you're only on the hook for half the price or so.

Granted the last time I had a tire replaced under road hazard, it was because it had bubbled. The tire wasn't super old(maybe a year and a half). They billed me something like 1/3 the cost. Within two months, the other three had bubbled.

I took it back in and had a serious talk with them. Basically, even though they claimed bubbled "only" come from curbing tires or other impact damage, I pointed out the fact that all four had bubbled within 3 months, and with nearly identical sizes and locations. They looked at the other three, then called me that afternoon and said they'd be replacing all of them at no charge.

BTW, these weren't cheap tires. They were Michelin MXM4s that were around $250 each IIRC in that size(I think I was at $1200 out the door for all four). Fortunately the replacements have held up well. Still, though, after having four do it, I'm tempted to go with Bridgestones when these are ready to be cycled out.
 
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Huntn

macrumors Penryn
May 5, 2008
24,034
27,115
The Misty Mountains
Your Fiat? Of note, I’ve owned a 1975 and a 1982 Fiat 124 Spiders and had good experiences with them.

Update on my 2012 Fiat 500, still at the shop and the new/rebuilt engine is enroute from Detroit. This is the longest repair I have ever experience with any vehicle I have owned. The first (car I owned) was a 1968 Cougar.
I got my Fiat back on Saturday. It cost me $100, total bill somewhere in the $8-9k range, still waiting on paperwork. It drives nice. :) I’m sobered by the fact that if it had been me paying the cost, not under warranty, I would have likely sold it for scrap. 🤔
 

Huntn

macrumors Penryn
May 5, 2008
24,034
27,115
The Misty Mountains
I'm surprised that FCA agreed to cover the cost of the engine since I'm guessing the value of the car has diminished over the years. I know that they usually buy out the warranty if they don't want to cover it, wish I got the lifetime warranty on my grand Cherokee but I don't expect any major issues with the v6 and trans.
Sorry I missed this reply before now. I just assumed lifetime would mean as long as I owned the car, but realize that might be a foolish notion. :) So now I have either a new or rebuilt engine, and a standard transmission which usually hold up well, so this car may continue to provide years of service.

Regarding buying out a warranty, would that be what they deem is the current value of that model car, that age, in decent running condition?
 

macsound1

macrumors 6502a
May 17, 2007
835
866
SF Bay Area
I‘ve used Tire Rack for a long time. Installed by a local approved shop for the warranty. Great service and customer support. 👍
The only thing I'm always wondering about though - does the local tire shop like or care that I didn't buy the tires from them?
Am I pissing them off that they didn't get their cut on the tire sale?
 

Glideslope

macrumors G3
Dec 7, 2007
8,336
5,795
The Adirondacks.
The only thing I'm always wondering about though - does the local tire shop like or care that I didn't buy the tires from them?
Am I pissing them off that they didn't get their cut on the tire sale?

Ive never felt that reaction. They are compensated a certain percentage by Tire Rack for the service. It’s all built into the overall pricing structure of Tire Rack.
 
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44267547

Cancelled
Jul 12, 2016
37,642
42,495
I‘ve used Tire Rack for a long time. Installed by a local approved shop for the warranty. Great service and customer support. 👍
Just echoing here:

I don’t suspect there’s a better source than Tire rack on the market, and not just in terms of selection, but the customer service to boot and incredibly fast shipping. Totally agree with what you said, and that’s coming from a long time customer of theirs.
 
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Septembersrain

Cancelled
Dec 14, 2013
4,347
5,451
I usually tend to go with OEM rim and tire sizes due to the fact the manufacturer usually tunes the suspension for a specific rim/tire size and also for keeping the accuracy of the speedometer.
Understandable. It doesn't void the warranty though for me since it's still within manufacturer specs. Less rim but more tire, it's the same circumference according to Discount Tire.

Those 17' rims had barely any tires available unfortunately.
 
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bunnspecial

macrumors G3
May 3, 2014
8,353
6,497
Kentucky
FINALLY have the MG back on the road after I quit dragging my feet.

Total list of things done:

Remove all rear suspension components
Clean/sandblast and paint all brackets
Replace suspension hardware
Replace suspension bushings with polyurethane bushings

Remove hub and brake backing plate, sandblast, paint.
Replace hub seal
Reassemble brakes with new cylinders, adjusters, and hardware including springs(ebrake lever reused, so cleaned and painted)
Reassemble hubs

Drain differential(tip-do it more often than once every 50 years-the oil is nasty)
General clean-up of differential, clean and sandblast cover and plaint
Reassemble with new gasket. Note that MG axles require GL-4 spec gear oil, which you most likely won't find at your local auto parts store. The current spec is GL-5, which is listed as backwards compatible, but the thrust washers in MG axles are bronze and GL-5 doesn't play nice with yellow metals
Fill with gear oil-Sta-lube 85W90 GL-4

Derust and paint rear axle

Remove old brake lines and flex hose to rear axle
Cut and flare Cu-Ni tubing with the proper bubble flares and fit with Girling type flare nuts(not easy to find, but there's a GREAT supplier for anything brake related I found)
Route tubing and secure with clips and clams as appropriate
Bleed brakes(surprisingly stubborn to do)

Disassemble Armstrong lever action shocks
Drain 50 year old(nasty and smelly)
Clean shocks by flooding and working fresh oil through
Reassemble
Fill with the correct amount of the correct oil. There is expensive shock fluid out there rated at SAE 20 which works, and is about $15/qt. On the advice of the Armstrong shock expert, I bought a 2 gallon jug of AEW68 hydraulic oil for $12 at Rural King. Filling is a surprisingly fiddly task that involves filling most of the body, sealing it up, then fill through the valve port while slowly working the arm back and forth to be sure the oil is everywhere it needs to be and there are no bubbles. This is tedious as working the arm too fast can introduce bubbles, and working them out too fast also cause oil to either spit out or foam

This turned into a lot of work, but I shouldn't ever have to do it again.

BTW, this is all under the category of "maintenance" and not "Breaking down", even though I've been accused of the car "breaking down a lot" in this thread. Old cars need more routine and preventative maintenance than new cars(find something in production where you actually take the shocks apart rather than just buying a replacement you drop in) and while doing other tasks sometimes it's worthwhile to do other things with unknown history or while access is easy.
 

44267547

Cancelled
Jul 12, 2016
37,642
42,495
I’m a bit early, but happy Fourth of July!


This is the one car I wish I had time to drive more, but I do think it’s more of a track car, because it’s that violent in terms of how it pulls. (Over 650 HP/550 TQ)

Meet my Camaro:

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A3B65C0D-B1B8-4E17-8CEB-CB4C0502E8A9.jpeg

61F60336-5DFB-48FF-8663-707E591F0B0D.jpeg


So here’s the details:

It’s 5th Gen Camaro with a stage two Edelbrock belt driven supercharger, with a Lingenfelter performance fuel pump, Kooks long tube headers [as photoed], Flowmaster catback exhaust, MSD wires/NGK plugs, 3.91 rear end gears, and a GPI SS4 cam, Air-raid intake with carbon fiber trim and custom ‘Chip Foose’ wheels. This is a 2SS trim, so it comes with everything from HID headlights, Boston Acoustics sound system, leather/stitched, ambient LED controls ,etc.

I mentioned a while back, I purchased it from an older gentleman, who spent a lot of money, and never really drove it, I just turned it over at 6000 miles today, and I plan on driving it more for this holiday weekend. I’ve owned a lot of sports cars, but you can’t even find dirt or grease anywhere in the engine bay, it’s that clean and it was never driven in the rain.
 
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44267547

Cancelled
Jul 12, 2016
37,642
42,495
Pretty eventful day. This was the main highlight I got to drive, which is my neighbors 2002 Viper GTS-ACR. Only 1of 25 actually made in this color. As much as it is fun to drive, the ground clearance is exactly 4 inches, so you literally feel every bump in the road, but nonetheless, a lifetime experience that I will never forget. The exhaust note on this car is like nothing I’ve ever heard before, just totally unique with the burble from the V10 and screams once you hit about 6000 RPM.

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