Burlington VT area: best place to buy snow tires?

[NobodySpecific]

So I need to buy snow tires for the car, but I don't want to get raped. If I can get a place that has cheap mounting/balancing I will just stick with my 215/45R17s and swap the tires every spring/fall. If not, I will switch to a 205/55R16 for the winter tires and get dedicated rims as well. I'm willing to buy online as well, just wondering where everybody buys their stuff.

Also, is anybody familiar with the TPMS on the new civics? Can I swap them over from the summer rims or should I just get new ones for the new rims (if I go that route)?

[wylee]

I got a set of 205/60r16 Firestone winterforce tires from tirerack for just under $320 to my door. I'm sure they're gonna be noisy on the road, but I think they'll get me home.

I suspect the TPMS will only recognize one set of sensors at a time. Assuming that is the case, if you get an extra set of wheels you'll either need to swap the original sensors over or go back to the dealer to have the sensor serial numbers changed in the cars computer in the spring and fall.

Swapping the sensors isn't too bad. It can be done by just breaking down the front/outside bead; no need to dismount or rebalance.

Based on the tire size, it sounds like you got the SI. How ya like it?

[NobodySpecific]

Based on the tire size, it sounds like you got the SI. How ya like it?

Love it, just hope the snow tires help winter performance, because it was abysmal before (I expected that though with the "all-season" tires).

I was actually looking at the Winterforce on tirerack, but with rims, new TPMS, and shipping it was going to be $1,000. I might just go with straight up tires and swap them on/off the rims every year. How much does that usually cost?

[markbvt]

Vermont Tire (I think is what it's called... it's that place over by the airport on Williston Rd).

I got 4 Hakka RSi's on 15" alloy rims for my Scion tC for well under a grand through them. You could knock off another $150-$200 by going with plain black steel rims instead of alloy ones (I picked the cheapest alloys they could get, American Racing Estrellas, and did this primarily because steelies rust so badly around here).

I would recommend NOT swapping your summer and winter tires back and forth, not only because repeated swapping weakens the bead, but also because 17" rims with low-profile tires suck for winter use. With the number of slush-covered potholes we end up with around here, you will inevitably hit some without realizing they're there, and having a low-profile tire is a great way to end up with a bent rim because the tire's just not tall enough to absorb the impact. You're much better off going with a 15" rim (if it'll fit over your brake calipers, otherwise 16") and higher-profile tires.

Also, just pony up and get Hakkapelliittas. There's a reason practically everyone around here runs them. Nokian knows how to make good snow tires.

--mark

[Doc]

I go to John Leo's and have never had a bad deal.

[Doc]

I go to John Leo's and have never had a bad deal.

Although I doubt the sell wimpy car tires...

[noodles44]

Wouldn't it be more fun to but snow tires on your stock wheels and buy summer tires and wheels in the spring? I did 5 winters in Burlington, working in Enosburg Falls, and or hitting Sugarbush pretty much everyday - with no trouble at all on my low profile Dunlop M3 snow tires. Sure the Hekkas are awesome, and sure it would be better to go narrower width and taller side wall. But I did fine, and to me it was worth it to go to a wider summer tire!