Tow Vehicle Tires and Brakes

[Pat Anderson]

Well, yesterday driving the Expedition I heard that sickening grinding noise that tells me it is time for new brakes (I know, I know), so off to Les Schwab, and the guy says "You ever look at your tires?" To tell the truth, not a lot or very closely, except to check tire pressure twice a year, whether it needs it or not, so he shows me the cord sticking out, and shucks, if they aren't all worn out - even I can see that. So $800 later, we have new tires all around. Friday we have the appointment for the brakes, which I need all the way around too, and which will further lighten my wallet by some uncertain amount (depends he says on the condition of the rotors, whatever those are), even though I had just got new front brakes two years ago BUT I sure don't want to be hauling Daydream down the road with either bad tires or bad brakes, in fact I don't even want to be out driving with bad tires or bad brakes, and if you knew the hill I have to go down each time I leave my driveway, it is not hard to see how my brakes get exercised more than most. Oh, well, Les Schwab probably saved my life and I should be grateful...

[gljjr]

Pat,

Why don't you use Model Garage in Fall City? They have been very good to me when I needed stuff done. And I trust them much more than a tire store.

[lloyds]

Once I weaned myself from Schwab I was really surprised how much money I could save by getting my brake work elsewhere. Tires aren't so different in price, but brake work definitely is.

[Dreamer]

Pat, You have brought up a great point that could save folks much money and grief. After 30+ years in the auto service business, you can only imagine the similar scenarios I've seen.

I'm sure most C-Brats are religious about "pre-flighting" their rigs, but...
and here's the point; No one is going to do it for us. We have to be the tire guy, the brake man, the light inspector, etc, etc. It doesn't take much to walk around the trailer and tow rig, get down on one knee to look underneath and check 6 or 8 tires for bulges, worn tread, foreign imbedded objects,etc. I would check pressure at least once a month.

In lieu of a weekly brake inspection, leave the stereo off and roll down the windows and listen for that tell-tale sound. Of course, as in Pat's case, that only tells you that they're 100% gone. An inspection at the start of each season would be the best bet.

[oldgrowth]

This thread reminds me, I have to replace my breaks. Most shops will not do a break job without replacing the cylinders+ because of liability. I will do it myself and just replace the pads. Bought the pads over three months ago and when I went to put them on, I still had 10% left on the rear and 40% on the front. Figured I might as well put another 10,000 miles on it before replacing the pads. Can't complain, I have 147,000 on the truck and this will be the first time the breaks will be done. Wish I could find tires that last as long as breaks. I only get 85,000 on a set of tires.

[gljjr]

FYI: I just got done doing a FULL brake job on the front of my F250. This included new bearings, new rotors, new calipers, and new pads. Even though I did the work myself and got near wholesale prices on the parts I still spent almost $500 (not including the $180 in tools I bought!).

Had I had a shop do this work it would have been close to $900. Shopping around or doing the work yourself can really make a difference. Having someone in the family who has a commercial account with Napa can REALLY save you money!

[Pat Anderson]

Gary - LS quoted $900 as "worst case" - so not so far off, and there is not a snowball's chance in Hades that I could ever do that myself - and live to tell about it anyway. But I will call Model Garage tomorrow on the off chance they can fit me in and have the parts...

[rogerbum]

I've always loved Les Schwab tires. The first time I went there with a leaky tire, they pulled it off in a few minutes and fixed it in a few more. When I asked how much I owed, they said "Just buy your tires here next time". Service like that is hard to come by these days. I've bought chains for a variety of vehicles for emergency use and never had to use them. When I switched from one vehicle to another, Schwab has swapped my old but unused chains for another set. Their prices have always seemed reasonable to me but I'd be happy to pay a little extra for the level of service they provide. Just my 2 cents worth.

[Sea Wolf]

I'[ll second what Roger said.

I bought a used Durango with Toyo Open Clountry tires, so I took them back there to have them balanced, rotated, etc.

The service was so good (and done for free), that I put new ones on the vehicle when the first set eventually wore out.

I used to buy Michelins at Costco, but getting back into have them taken care of alway involved a long wait. Not so at Les Schwab.

I also belive the Toyos are as good a tire as the Michelins. (Will probably get incoming artillery on this!)

Haven't had any brake work done there yet, but will be willing to give them a try on anything I can't do myself.

Joe.

[gljjr]

I've used Les Schwab for tires as well. In fact last time I had a blow out on the Passat I stopped there to replace it as they were one of the few places that carried my tires. When the car was done I asked how much and they said it was covered on warranty! Was I ever shocked! The tires came on the car new and yet Les Schwab covered the road hazzard and gave me a tire for free! Now that is service!

The problem with having tire shops do other work is that they typically work on commision. So in order to make money they have to sell parts replacement. Thus many of them will want to replace more than is actually needed just so they can make more money. Midas is notorious for this!

However Model Garage here in Fall City is a great shop. I didn't have time to do the brakes on the Passat and needed it done in a hurry so I took it to them. I told them what I wanted to have done and why and got the car back that evening with exactly what I needed and it was less than what I had told them I thought it needed. Saved me a couple hundred bucks in the process too. They remind me of when I was doing that kind of work myself. Only doing the needed stuff and being honest about what is not needed. That kind of shop is rare these days. I'm just glad it is close to home!

[lloyds]

I agree that Les Schwab has a great business model. Probably about the best in the industry. Most fleets and businesses use them because of that. And the tires are good, especially the Toyos. But there are some things that you can save considerable on if you shop around a bit, like brakes and batteries.