Hi, I am a 17 yr old girl and I know next to nothing about my '97 z28 camaro.

I got a flat tire today and as I read over my owners manual, I decided to check my tires to see if I need new ones.

According to the manual I do. Badly.

I am unsure about what I need to know when buying new tires. :confused: I don't want to spend crazy amounts of money on crazy tires if I don't have to.

I just need good tires at a reasonable price. If anyone could help me out with what I need to know about getting new tires that would be great.

Thanks smile.gif

www.discounttire.com (http://www.discounttire.com)

www.tirerack.com (http://www.tirerack.com)

welcome to T/C kristen,first it would help to know what size tire you are dealing with.Second how did you determine you need tires?When buying tires you usually get what you pay for,personally I use BF Goodrich they are middle of the road in price and wear very well,ride good.You can save money sometimes by mail order tires but watch out for shipping,probably your best bet is to go to a local tire dealer.Like I said price also depends on the size you need.Hope this helps

Ron graemlins/thumbsup.gif :D

it depends on how much you are willing to spend and what size......I am thinking that they are 235/55/16, which is not a very common tire size. I run a tire shop and keep like one set of that size. I would consider maybe going to a 245/50/16. They will be a little wider, but will stay the same diameter. Also, they should be lower in price. You may want to think about the new Fuzion HR1, not to be mistaken for the ZR1. Nice looking tread and very nice price.

MASTERCAREUSA.com

If you need tires like you have said then you will need to know the size. If you look at the side of the tire it will have a number like 235/50/16 that is the size. Also how far did you drive once you discovered you had a flat? Did you just pull over or did ou keep going? If you just pulled over than there is a chance you might be able to just patch the one you have. A patch will run you less than $20 at a tire shop. Why do u think you need new tires? If you have a decent amount of tread left then you should be ok. The best thing for you to do is goto a local tire shop and have them check them out for you. It might help if you take a guy frined or your dad with you. That way there is no chance of the tire shop trying to sell you stuff you don't need or scraeing you into buying extra stuff. Good luck and let us know how it goes..

my advice would be determine the size and price shop - walmart, discount tire, and sam's or costco if you can. Get prices on the exact same tire - brand, model and size. Make sure you understand all the pricing that is including - mounting, balancing, valve stems, disposal. Discount tire will provide you with lifetime balancing and rotation. Also, consider a road hazard warranty, the warranty will let you prorate the mileage on your tires and buy a tire at a reduced price if you happen to ruin one before it wears out.

Thanks for all the help smile.gif

I deliberated over whether or not I could just get a patch, but there were four or five nails in my tire. :eek: And as far as I could tell, the tread (?) that the manual says to look at was worn down. I figured that means I need new tires.

I asked my mom last night when she bought the ones that are on there and she said that we got them about four years ago. So I'm assuming that it's time to let these babies go.

I took a look at my tires and the size is 245/50/16 and they are goodyears. So I guess I'll look around for the best price of that tire.

Thanks again for the help smile.gif

JMHO but get that size in a BF Goodrich

I would shop around and try to get the tire shops to want to do business with you. Most will try to beat the other tire shop's price. The best warranty in the business is handled by Bridgestone/Firestone--three year free replacemnet against manufacturing defect. Road hazard will only pro rate the tire if it was ruined by a road hazard, it would not be free replacement. Yes, five nails is too many, the most is three. They also come with a 30 day test drive. if you do not like them, take them back and they will try another. You have nothing to lose.

Hi Kristen,

There are little, "rubber-bump", wear bar indicators located cross-ways to the tread that are down in the bottom of the tread pattern. They are spaced say every 6" to 8" around the circumference of the tire.

And if you can see/feel them and the tread is the same depth as they are, you really need to get new tires fast!!

Fwiw, I have bought several sets of tires from The Tire Rack, and located in centrasl Missouri, the UPS shipping charges are like $8 to $10/tire, plus about $10 or so for mounting and balancing locally.

I figure I save some on my tires b/c I can't get the selection locally that I get dealing with them! And save on the Taxes too! (Hassle factor, it's a wash)...

Open up "The Tire Rack" homepage and type in your tire size and hopefully you will find some tires that are discounted/on-sale that are4 the needed size and that have a high mileage wear rating along with a decent tread pattern that will suit your driving needs.

That's what I do.

And the other way to do this that I also have done is to just go to Walmarts or PepBoys, (or whoever you have locally), and look at their "Store" tire brands and see if they have a size that fits your car. (Walmarts is "Douglass")..

I just bought a set of (4), P/U truck tires yesterday from Walmart b/c they were actually cheaper then The Tire rack...

Tires are rated A, B and C and have a tread life number on them like from 280 to 620 or so. The higher this number, the supposed longer a tire will wear.

Cheaper, A and B rated tires with wear ratings above 400 are good value for the money, imho..

Sumitomo HTR Z and Yokohama Avid Touring are both GOOD, inexpensive, tire values for the money, imho... And I figure now several others that are newer brands too..

I have Sumitomo HTZ's on my car now..

Good luck with buying tires AND watch out for the B/S tire Sellers!!

And the only way you will be protected from them is by reading up on tires and learning about them!!

Hope this helps, but definately go out and see if you can see the wear indicators I described above!!


pdq67

also, the "A" heat, etc can only be compared to another tire of the same manufacture. Same with the tread wear number, i.e. 400. Lets say you have a Goodyear with a treadwear of 400. This only states that it will last 4 times longer then a goodyear with a 100. This is a little known fact. It should be an industry standard, but it is not. Using these numbers can only be effectively used while comparing the same brand of tire.