When I got new tires on my car 2 years ago at Firestone, I added a $100 option for unlimited alignments on my vehicle. I have since used it at least 10 times. Tires rotated? Alignment. New control arms? Alignment. New rotors? Alignment. An alignment at Firestone runs $79.99. The plan as a standalone item is $189.99. NTB also has unlimited alignment plans. Theirs are $124.99 for 1 year, $179.99 for 3 years, and $224.99 for 5 years. I have a 2000 BMW, so Firestone needs some encouraging to do the alignment, since they require a special tool to adjust the toe. But once I talk to someone who's on board with using a pry bar instead of BMW's tool, we're in business. When I get a new car, I'll definitely be using TireRack.com and NTB.
If you work on your own car and don't have a lift and an alignment system, check out these plans. Keeping your vehicle's wheels correctly aligned can dramatically increase the life of your tires. Also, don't be afraid to spend a little more on tires than you have to. Bottom of the barrel tires often have low treadwear and poor grip. After extensive research, I've found that the Continental ExtremeContact DWS 06 is about the best value sports car tire on the market.
January 21, 2018 at 12:51PM
