03 M3 Balance Problem

[edmondM3Meister]

My tire saga continues...

I recently purchased 4 OEM ContiSports from TireRack for my 03 M3. Had 'em shipped to an installer, who charged me 20 bucks/tire to mount and balance them. Seemed steep, but, ok - I'm for it if it works. Which it did not.

Left the installer with a nice vibration in the steering wheel, 4 plastic valve caps to replace my steel ones, a missing wheel lock cap and a bad attitude. Called the installer back on a Thursday and he said sometime NEXT week he could get me in to check it out.

Frustrated already, I took it to the dealership - thinking that they would make it right. They told me that one of the front tires was defective - so I called TireRack and ordered another one. The dlrshp would not *replace* one from their stock with a Tire Rack tires, so, in an attempt to "git 'er done", I just had 'em put a new one on from their stock. Felt a little fleeced...but ohe well - by this time, I was ready to get it over with.

This saga continues...to the point where I've visited 4 DIFFERENT tire stores - 7 different times - trying to get a smooth ride. Turns out the TireRack sent me 2 of 4 defective tires.

Does this happen often? Their prices are awesome - I hate paying retail, but, for crappy tires, no price is right.

Any tips? By the way, I'm STILL not sure the ride's as smooth as it should be! What else could it be - a vibration in the steering wheel is front tires, right???

Help!

[LMC]

Ouch!

The installer is obviously not a good guy... when you called after discovering the problems, they should've had an appointment for you 2 minutes later! If this shop was on Tire Rack's 'recommended installer' list, make sure Tire Rack knows about this.

It sounds like you felt you could not give Tire Rack an opportunity to handle the defective tire issue. I've never gotten a bad tire from them, but I'd think they'd get a replacement tire or tires to you fairly quickly if defective, no?

[mohrgan]

Conti's are the problem. My Dad bought 4 for his C280 a couple of years ago and they could not get them balanced. Road force test finally revealed structural issues on 2 of 4 tires. These were purchased from Tire Rack who made good on the two bad tires but the Conti's never rode well, were noisy, provided poor traction, and wore out fast. I had the same tires(I can't recall the exact model) and, apart from the inital structural problems, had the same bad experience with Continentals.

I think the Tire Rack is Continental's "Factory Outlet" for "seconds"!

They were cheap in more ways than one and I will never buy them again!

[Artslinger]

You need to call Tire Rack customer service.

I had a out of balance tire on my new set I purchased from Tire Rack a couple of weeks ago. First thing I did was call Tire Rack's customer service, they are very nice and helpful. She told me to go back to the installer check the balance again and have them check for any out of round tire and if there was a problem with a defective tire they would send a replacment.

The installer found that no tire was out of round, but that one tire was slightly out out of balance and rebalanced the tire at no charge. He said to drive the car for awhile and if I still had a problem to come back and we would keep working on the problem.

[Gary@Tirerack]

For any vibration/balance issues, please first contact my customer service dept at 1-800-428-8355 ext 360. They can assist in many ways including diagnosis, referral to an installer who won't make you wait a week, and reimbursement if the problem ends up being a fault of ours or a tire defect. Even though you've already taken other action, they may still be able to assist you in some way. 8AM to 8PM eastern time.

[Artslinger]

Conti's are the problem. My Dad bought 4 for his C280 a couple of years ago and they could not get them balanced. Road force test finally revealed structural issues on 2 of 4 tires. These were purchased from Tire Rack who made good on the two bad tires but the Conti's never rode well, were noisy, provided poor traction, and wore out fast. I had the same tires(I can't recall the exact model) and, apart from the inital structural problems, had the same bad experience with Continentals.

I think the Tire Rack is Continental's "Factory Outlet" for "seconds"!

They were cheap in more ways than one and I will never buy them again!

I find it hard to believe Tire Rack is a factory outlet for any tire manufactures "seconds".

Selling "seconds" on something as critical as a tire would be more of a hassle than its worth, especially when you add the cost of shipping and replacing "seconds" when a customer complains not to mention pissing off your customers.

[Artslinger]

BTW Tire Rack has a nice flow chart (PDF) to help diagnose a vibration problem.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=49

[mohrgan]

I find it hard to believe Tire Rack is a factory outlet for any tire manufactures "seconds".

Selling "seconds" on something as critical as a tire would be more of a hassle than its worth, especially when you add the cost of shipping and replacing "seconds" when a customer complains not to mention pissing off your customers.

That was a joke!!! I would find it unconscionable for tire manufacturers to sell "seconds". There is too much at stake for them. It just seems like you hear more issues with Continental tires than any other make of tire. I use Michelins because I've always had great experiences with them!

Sorry if I came across the wrong way!!! :)

I also mean no disrespect for the Tire Rack by my comments!!! I buy all of my tires from them as I feel they go the extra mile to make it right!!! :thumbup:

[Artslinger]

That was a joke!!! I would find it unconscionable for tire manufacturers to sell "seconds". There is too much at stake for them. It just seems like you hear more issues with Continental tires than any other make of tire. I use Michelins because I've always had great experiences with them!

Sorry if I came across the wrong way!!! :)

I also mean no disrespect for the Tire Rack by my comments!!! I buy all of my tires from them as I feel they go the extra mile to make it right!!! :thumbup:


Okay glad you made that clear. :)

[edmondM3Meister]

I did - they sent me a new tire UPS 2-day. I bought a new tire from the dealership - they said they would not trade one of their (identical?) tires for a Tire Rack tire. Guess they just wanted to get PAID - like everybody else!

[edmondM3Meister]

Thanks, Gary - I'm very happy with Tire Rack's service. I'm just bummed that 2 of the four tires were defective. I'm still considering using Tire Rack in the future now that I've found an installer that knows what they're doing. (A to Z tires in Oklahoma City - those guys are AWESOME)