We woke up this
morning like I said earlier, camped at the Camping World store here in Chichester, NH. After our
parking lot coffee, the store opened at 8am and we went inside to see about
buying those tires for the motorhome, as we knew we would save money here in NH
with no state sales tax.
It wasn’t to be.
The man at the service counter researched the tires to fit our rig and came back with a price of $600 per tire which would add up to somewhere just over $3600.00 once they were all done! Add to that they only dealt in Goodyear. They may be a great tire, but I was hoping for Michelin and they had no other options.
The man at the service counter researched the tires to fit our rig and came back with a price of $600 per tire which would add up to somewhere just over $3600.00 once they were all done! Add to that they only dealt in Goodyear. They may be a great tire, but I was hoping for Michelin and they had no other options.
Yikes, I almost had a heart attack with that price!
The Camping World store in Bath, New York was only $460/tire and $300.00 to install them all. Add state sales tax.
We pulled out of
Camping World and booked into a campground in town called Great Meadow. We
needed to dump our tanks and fill with fresh water anyhow.
As many of you know
Barb is the “Queen” of research and good deals!
So many times I have seen her
research a subject to death to find what is right and the best deal possible.
She pulled it off again!
By joining the FCMA
(Family Motor Coach Association) we were able to get a deal that saved us a ton
of money! The Association fees were only $50/year with lots of other benefits
too. Add to that they were celebrating their 50th year in business
so we got two years of membership for the same price.
The FMCA has a deal
with Michelin tires, which are the ones I really wanted, but so expensive.
Similar to what Michelin does for trucking companies (Fleet accounts) the FCMA
has a similar deal. We registered with FCMA and with Michelin for this. Our
tires are only $352.00 each and when you do the math that one deal saved us
over $1200.00!
What made it better
was that they could have the tires the very next day. Past enquiries at tire
shops ranged from 3-5 business days to one quote yesterday that would take two weeks
to get them in.
I didn’t want to camp out for 2 weeks anywhere waiting for
tires to arrive. So tomorrow we should get our new tires and this will take the
stress out of travelling with our old tires. These old tires were manufactured back in
2002. They had very little tread wear but the sidewalls were really starting to
crack. Its sad but true. Most RV tires get old before they get miled out.
Here's two tips.
1. If you are buying tires for your RV, check with FCMA to see if your tires qualify for this deal. It will save you a bundle of money!
2. When buying new RV tires check the date code on them. Some tires will sit in storage for a long time before ever being installed. This will add up against their life expectancy. A RV tire should be replaced around 5 or 6 years in age even if the tread is like ours, in brand new condition. Watch for damage, bulges, tread issues and cracking on the sidewalls. Always keep them inflated to the proper pressure to ensure a long life and better gas mileage.
By the way, I have found that your regular car tires are way cheaper in the USA versus Canada. If you can, buy in a state that has no sales tax (Oregon and New Hampshire). I bought tires for our Honda Accord in Mesa, AZ a couple of winters ago and all in all it was half the price of buying the exact same tire in Calgary!
Check with Wal-Mart and Costco for prices.
I like Costco's included Road Hazard Warranty!
Check with Wal-Mart and Costco for prices.
I like Costco's included Road Hazard Warranty!
Once we get our new rubber installed we will update you on the experience in case you ever find yourself in the same boat as us.
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