Considering we’ll be driving more than 14,000 km in the next month and that in that drive we’re likely to hit every driving condition imaginable I figured it might be time to get a new set of tires on our Prius. Which turned out to be an excellent idea: Inspecting the existing tires proved that stock tires really do only last about 60,000 km (ours clocked in at 65,000 and were – as the tire guys put it – “bald”).

Now, buying tires is a bit of a pain, especially if you are as indecisive and obsessive about research and I am. Not only do I want the absolute best product available, but I also want it for a reasonable price (”reasonable” meaning as close to $0 as possible). As a result Angela and I spent almost all of Tuesday going from tire dealership to tire dealership looking for advice, prices and service. That meant visiting 10 different dealerships, all of which recommended different tires at different prices which of course did not make things easier. But then I didn’t exactly make it easy for the dealers either: Even though an all-weather-tire that performs well in both hot climates, on rain, on ice and in snow sounds like a great idea it is aparently very hard to create.

“All-season” does not mean all weather!

I grew up in Norway, a country where snow tires are mandatory from November to April, so all-year tires have always been a bit of a mystery to me. Nevertheless I was surprised to learn that most “all-season” tires are really only three season tires with snow performance ratings that range from “poor” to “useless”. And even those tires that are rated as “four-season” still don’t have a proper snow rating. In the end I was only able to find two tires with the little snowflake logo on them, a Finnish Nokian and a Korean HanKook. Unfortunately the Nokian was priced way too high for my liking and was non-negotiable.

With the Nokian eliminated along with most of the other choices we were left with two options: Goodyear TripleTreds from Fountain Tire and HanKook S4s from OK Tire. Both tires had excellent reviews on multiple sites and though both were listed at around $170 per tire they were covered by different dicounts that brought the prices down to an acceptible level. So do you go with the trusted name brand with excellent water handling or the Korean snow-rated tire the Germans are raving about? Taking the last leg of our trip crossing the Rockies in the beginning of November into consideration the snow handling won out and we headed to OK Tire for some new treads.

Drop-in tire service

Getting your tires replaced is a surprisingly quick and easy experience, especially if you book yourself in first thing in the morning. In our case we simply pulled up and drove the Prius on top of a lift and within five minutes it was wheel less. Two guys took all four wheels inside the shop where they put them on massive machines that lifted the tires clean off the rims and stuffed the new ones on. A single tire took no more than 5 minutes in all. Then it was on to the balancing machine. Rims and tires are not 100% perfect or balanced so the tire installer uses a machine that spins the wheel fast and notices if it wobbles or swirls due to slight differences in weight. If it does it marks the areas on a computer and tells the operator to attach small weights on the opposite sides (inside or outside) to compensate. After balancing the guys gave the wheels a quick wash and then they were mounted back on the car. I think the whole process – from driving the car up on the lift to driving it off – took 25 minutes. And that was with me asking a million questions and getting the guys to move around so I could get better photos.

Tips when buying new tires

• Do extensive comparison shopping – even between different stores in the same chain
• If one store gives you a price that is substantially lower than another, ask that your store of choice matches the cheaper price. Chances are they will.
• Don’t be fooled by the tire price alone. You also need to pay for balancing (varies between $10 and $30 per tire) and an environmental levy of $5 per tire.
• Some tire places (like Costco) offer nitrogen instead of air. This is a good idea because the nitrogen molecules are bigger and the tire is less likely to lose pressure over time. But it’s a small gain so you should only consider it if the price makes sense.
• As about maintenence plans. For example OK Tire offers free tire rotation every 10,000 kms and lifetime pressure adjustment etc at any Canadian location.
• Some shops will tell you you need to reset your alignment. Although it is true that alignment is important there is no guarantee you need to have it fixed. If your current tires have an even wear pattern chances are you don’t need this extra service. If you’re in doubt ask if they can check your alignment for free and then say you’ll do the realignment if necessary.
• Ask a lot of questions. You’ll get more information than you need but also information you didn’t know you needed in the first place.