Tire Insider Archives - Spencer's Tire Shop

Everybody Beats Town Fair Tire. Everybody!

February 21, 2021March 22, 2023spencer51966@gmail.comKenwood Tire, Tire Insider

“NOBODY BEATS TOWN FAIR TIRE…N-O-B-O-D-Y”.

At least that’s what the TV commercials are screaming.

But I do. Every day!

I don’t mind most commercials, but Town Fair Tire calling my business a nobody in front of my family and friends takes it to a new level!

So this is my spite-post because I know what they’re really like —

Besides paying minimum wage to their technicians, here are a few truths about Town Fair Tire’s free services —

“Free front-wheel alignment” is bait. There’s no such thing as a “front-wheel” or “front-end” alignment on today’s cars. (4-wheel alignments cost extra).
“Free lifetime flat tire repair” and “Free lifetime road-hazard guarantee” means you’re buying a new tire every time
“Free lifetime tire rotations” are made as inconvenient as possible. Got 4 hours to spare?
“Free winter change-overs” don’t include balancing. That costs extra.

Yes, these are “free services that nobody like me can match”, that’s because they’re a gimmick to get you in the door no matter what happens next.

The allure of free services is a distant memory after you’ve been waiting for 4 hours on a cold plastic chair, next to a grumpy vending machine for a rotation.

That’s my problem with Town Fair Tire.

If you value a hassle-free experience and good quality tires at a fair price, shop locally. Find an independent tire store with good reviews, hand them the keys and trust them to do the right thing. They will — their reputation rides on it!

Spencer.

Can’t Fix a Shimmy? Try Road-Force Optimize

January 20, 2021January 18, 2022spencer51966@gmail.comInternet Tire Installations, Road-Force Balance, Tire Insider, Tire Service

If you have an annoying shimmy or shake in your car that no-one can seem to fix, we can diagnose and road-force optimize them.

Every tire and wheel has a high and low spot.

A standard high-speed, dynamic wheel balance, is where we put weights on the inside and outside of the wheel to correct a shimmy at highway speeds.

There is no measurement for the wheel-hop and this can be annoying at all speeds.

Our Hunter Road-Force Elite wheel balancer goes the extra step.

While checking the dynamic, high-speed balance, a roller comes down on the tire and using 1000lbs of force measures the wheel-hop.

Road-force is measured in lbs and in my shop, anything over 20lbs of road force gets optimized.

Road-force optimization involves spinning the tire’s rotation on the wheel, then re-balancing, something we will do on every new tire we install, including customer-supplied installations.

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About Kenwood Tire - internet tire installation

Making My Way in the Tire Business

January 10, 2021January 18, 2022spencer51966@gmail.comKenwood Tire, My Tire Advice, Tire Insider

The business of tires used to be simple. When I started in 1990, no-one knew more about tires than we did and we made a good profit.

Like everything, the tire business has changed. Tires are expensive and everywhere. And thanks to the internet, customers often know more about the features and benefits of a tire than we do!

Today every chain store, franchise, car dealer, and corner gas station sells tires.

Then there are the online tire stores: Amazon, Tire Rack, and TireBuyer. But as cheap as they are and as much as they try to simplify things, it’s still up to you to get the right size, order the right tires and find someone who does internet tire installations.

The business of tires may have changed, but the best place to buy tires is still your local independent tire dealer.

You get personalized tire recommendations. We believe that the best tires are not the most expensive.
For us, one size does not fit all. Matching tires to drivers is what we do best!
We’re specialized and professional. You’ll save time and money
You’ll have somewhere to go when you need tire repairs, wheel balancing, and TPMS diagnosis.

Next time you need tires, give me a chance to earn your business because there’s more to tires than the price and most of the time, you’ll come out ahead buying from a tire dealer rather than the internet, chain stores, and franchises.

Click here our top tire choices and get a fully-installed tire price in seconds.

You can also schedule an appointment and put down a deposit on your new tires.

I’m a tire professional and this blog is about helping you make good choices in tires.

Seriously, forget the chain stores like Town Fair Tire and franchises like Monroe, Mavis Discount Tire, and Midas, They’re all one big unhappy family.

“For them, it’s all about market share, controlling the distribution, and feeding the machine. For you, that means bait and switch, worthless add-ons, and not so free tires.”

Tires are confusing enough without ending up at a Town Fair Tire to wait 4 hours for some tires you’ve never heard of and get a worthless alignment.

I’m here to help.

Call me – (508) 583-5031
Email me – spencer@kenwoodtire.com
Facebook message

BFGoodrich Advantage T/A Sport tire sipes

What Are Tire Sipes? Is More Better?

August 24, 2020January 18, 2022spencer51966@gmail.comBest All Season Tires, My Tire Advice, Tire Insider

Tire sipes are the small slits in the tire tread that give your tires grip in wet and winter conditions.

On snow and ice, tire sipes act as biting edges. In wet conditions, they act as a sponge to absorb standing water to reduce hydroplaning.

Siping was invented and patented in 1923 by John F. Sipe, a slaughterhouse worker who brilliantly cut slits in the soles of his shoes to stop slipping on wet floors. Siping was not incorporated into tires until the 1950s.

Sipes work on tires the same as they do on shoes. Generally, the more sipes a tire has, the better it is in snowy, wet, and icy conditions, In extreme weather locations, there are tire companies that will add sipes to tires – Check out how Performance Tire Siping is done at Les Schwab Tires with has locations in Alaska, Montana, and Idaho.

But more sipes can also lead to mushy handling on dry roads as the tread blocks squirm under the weight of your car. So what do tire manufacturers do?

The point of this post is to demonstrate that not all tires sipes are alike. Most tires look good and perform well when they’re new, but during the last 50% of tread wear it’s hit or miss, literally!

Check out these General Altimax RT43 tires – the sipes disappear faster than the tire is wearing and at 70% worn, these tires have so few biting edges for winter driving, I would recommend replacing them.

General Altimax RT43 New Tire Siping — New tire tread -General Altimax RT43.

30% worn General Altimax RT43 Used Tire Siping

But didn’t you pay 100% of the price of your tire?

By comparison, look at these BFGoodrich Advantage Sport tires. At 70% worn, the tire sipes are still there!

That’s because BFGoodrich has the technology to give their tires full-depth siping without the trade-off in handling, and that’s what I like about these tires the most.

When you need tires, don’t mess around with the chain stores. Check out my shop, Kenwood Tire & Auto Service in West Bridgewater MA to shop for tires and schedule service.

Family-owned and operated since 1963, I’m focused on creating a memorable customer experience. Shop local!

Call me – (508) 583-5031
Email me – spencer@kenwoodtire.com
Facebook message

Thanks, Spencer.

The Tire Rack Problem

August 21, 2020March 22, 2023spencer51966@gmail.comTire Insider

Tire Rack is an online tire store, they make it easy for you to buy tires and their prices are lower than you’ll find locally.

So why is this just a fraction of all the tires sold?

Good tire shops don’t like to install customer-supplied tires. That’s why most of Tire Rack’s touted “8,500 Independent Recommended Installers” are national chains.

A corporate store is not going to install Michelin tires that you bought on the internet for $13 unless there’s an upsell — A good independent shop won’t touch them for less than $40.

And that’s why most of the good shops won’t be listed on Tire Rack

Yes, Tire Rack is a good place to start looking for tires, but my advice is to research your next tires online and then call your local tire shop. Most of the time you’ll come out ahead buying locally.

I hope this helps you in the realm of online tire buying and internet tire installation – Stay safe and let me know if you have any questions or comments.

Spencer

Internet Tire Installation Made Easy

August 14, 2020November 19, 2020spencer51966@gmail.comInternet Tire Installations, My Tire Advice, Tire Insider, Tire Service

The Internet makes buying tires easy if you know what you’re looking for.

With a little research, online tire stores like TireRack, TireBuyer, TireAmerica, and SimpleTire can help you can make a good tire choice, and save you money.

Tire Rack recommended internet tire installer near me — TireRack’s recommended tire installers near me are mostly chain stores!

The problem with buying tires online is that you need to find someone to install them for you.

At Kenwood Tire and Auto Service, we welcome internet tire installations, no matter where you buy them.

But other tire stores will do their best to make you regret buying your tires online.

How do you think Tire Rack’s “recommended installers”, who are the chain stores and franchises like Pep Boys that you were probably trying to avoid in the first place, will treat you when you show up with your own tires?

The best way to find a professional tire installer near you is to call around, read reviews, and ask for a recommendation.

I also recommend checking out the TireBuyer installers in your area, because they partner with local independent internet tire installers like us.

At Kenwood Tire & Auto Service we’ll professionally install your tires no matter where you buy them.

Our customer-supplied tire installation includes replacing the tire, high-speed balancing including road-force optimizer, hand-torquing the wheel nuts, and resetting the tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS)

For most vehicles, we charge $30-40 per tire for internet tire installation.

Stay safe and let me know if you have any questions or comments about customer-supplied and internet tire installation.

Spencer.

Dry-Rot & Tire Cracking Explained

March 15, 2020June 9, 2022spencer51966@gmail.comMy Tire Advice, tire damage, Tire Insider

If you have seen cracks on the sidewalls or between the treads of your tires, it may be dry-rot and that’s not good.

When is it time to replace cracked tires? Check out this handy chart from Michelin —

Just like us tires weather and age, their rubber becomes brittle, breaking down and creating cracks in the sidewall, tread, and around the rim.

Dry-rot is also known as weather cracking, and ozone cracking.

Tire manufacturer warranties will cover tire cracking and dry rot, as well as other defects, but most warranties expire after 6 years.

Most tires will wear out before cracking becomes a warrantable condition.

That’s because antiozonant, the rubber additive manufacturers use to resist tire cracking and tire-blooming too, is only released as the tire is being used, going through its normal heating and cooling cycles. That’s why RV, trailer, and classic car tires don’t get used that much, so cracking and dry-rot appear faster.

There is no way to fix dry-rotted and cracked tires, but you can slow down the process by using a tire cleaner and protectant.

I use Superior Products Dark Fury to clean wheels at the shop, but for occasional use, I recommend Chemical Guys Diablo Wheel Gel – Used with a soft brush, both of these are awesome at dissolving brake dust without hurting the wheel finish.

And to keep your wheels looking good after cleaning, you can use a non-solvent protectant Wizards Tire and Vinyl Shine.

Check out examples of dry-rot in tires – If you’re concerned about your tires, e-mail me some pictures and I’ll give you my honest opinion.