Where should I get new tires installed?

[SteveR]

Should I bring the tires to the dealer, or just look for a Discount Tire shop with decent mounters and balancers? I'm mainly concerned about the shops ability to lift the car without damaging it.

[M3R8]

Any competent shop should be able to do it for you. Aside from lifting the car and not damaging it, make sure they are careful not to damage your rims cosmetically.

You can help them with lifting the car by showing the right lift points. There is a thread showing them on this forum, use the search function.

Go to a shop that seems competent and or services decent cars.

[kthacher]

My dealer quoted me on tires and the costs were a lot higher than I could get online. When I explained that to my service rep, he volunteered to order the tires in from my source (Tire Rack), pass along their dealer discount, and install them. The tires were delivered straight to the dealer. Very convenient and I ended up saving a lot on the tires. The owner of the dealership got an e mail from me afterwards telling him what a great guy he has there. I wouldn't want anyone but Audi touching the car.

[gazza1]

A suggestion is to get your wheels balanced with a Road Force balancer once the new tyres are fitted as they are the absolute best in fine adjustment for out of round rims and tyres both inside and out.

But you probably already know the above

I used the info off this site to show where the lift points were and it caused no probs for the newbies.

[desperado]

At the mainstream tire dealers you always run the risk of someone treating your rims less than carefully. Even if the front desk guys are sharp, the man doing the work may not know or care.
If you are looking for an alternative to the dealer, the best bet may be a quality tuner/performance shop selling upgrade wheels, or a racing shop that works on high end cars.

[SteveR]

Thanks for the input.

Living in a relatively small city, my dealer has been unwillling to do anything but stock Audi parts, so I not sure they would help me put anything on but OEM Pirellis. I stopped by the Discount Tire near me and they didn't have a lift that would work, but they said they could do it with floor jacks, as they have done for a guy with a GT2.

I like desperado's speed shop idea, but I'm not sure I can find one nearby.

[M3R8]

So far I've had my wheels changed several times with a floor jack. No problems at all.

Your dealer's point of view sucks... try to avoid them at all costs anyway. dealers are all stealers

You might be interested in the floor jack puck/insert that rmicroys is selling here on the board... although it is not a necessity.

Check this thread FS: Audi R8 Aluminum Jack Pucks (Part 2)

[KfabR8]

Bring the car down to me Steve - we can do it all right here.

[harrison]

I have complete trust in my local Tire-Pros shop. They match Tire-racks' and Discount Tires' prices. I can rely on these guys to get any tire, even slicks, and mount'em up. I am not the only wild-man that shops there either. I have been to some race shops who just could not deliver---MOUNTING OR pricing.(Hoosiers can be hard to seat the bead on.WARM the tires in the sun if you can). I tried the rest, and it seems I found the best. My truck has a lifetime warranty on alignment. I am told I can go into ANY statewide store. I prefer to take my wheels off at home and take them in for mounting/bal.

[SteveR]

Bring the car down to me Steve - we can do it all right here.

That sounds like fun, thanks. I'll keep it in mind when the time comes.

No Tire-Pro around here.