looking for good tires installed in GTA/Markham area

[akz]

Hey.. been looking around for snow tires... found that these are the best so far

-Toyo S950
-Toyo Garit HT
-Kumho KW17
-Hankook W300

however all Toyo\'s and Kumho\'s are sold out .. anyone know a store in Markham/GTA available with stock of these tires w/ steelies?? However only Hankook\'s are left lying around ... anyone have any experience with these or know if I should give em a try?

Need a good place and tires fast ~_~.

[billyfo]

try tires23.com or E-Spec, which all mention in this section.

[akz]

its too far... its in missauga .. >.<\" way too out of the way for me to get there.. would have already skidded out and died before I got there to change the tires.

[billyfo]

then you can call Ed at E-Spec, I think he will be nice to have the tires for you to pickup somewhere near GTA.

[The Dude]

Gyro Mazda, at Eglinton and Laird, has good prices on Pirelli Winter Carving on steelies 205/55/16. Looks like a very good tire with a very Euro-type tread pattern.

$720 + tax installed. Call them up at 416-421-5730.

[akz]

any of you guys know any in the Markham / Scarborough area a little closer .. eglington is pretty far ~_~ + I need em installed sigh ~_~ Tire23 has the best price .. but too far >.<\"

[///M]

Try Steelcase tires near Woodbine/Denison. I got my Toyo Snowprox S950 from there - came to about $1040 installed w/ tax. (they\'re expensive because of the sizing - I\'m running 205/50/17 on the stock rims - 16\'s should be a bit cheaper).

The Toyo Garits should be around the same price if not cheaper, but they will be noisier (and grippier) due to Toyo\'s \"walnut shell\" technology in them. They actually have ground walnut shells embedded into the tread! - helps bite into ice.

The Kumho KW17s are very good from what I\'ve read but they\'re pretty much sold out now.

[Dr Butcher]

Originally posted by akz


any of you guys know any in the Markham / Scarborough area a little closer .. eglington is pretty far ~_~ + I need em installed sigh ~_~ Tire23 has the best price .. but too far >.<\"

Try Wheels Direct at McCowan and Sheppard. They have decent prices but they deal in volume so customer service can be sketchy. Also, try Steelcase Tires and Mags and Nantucket Tire. You may have to take something they have in stock as most people have been buying their winter tires since October. ;)

Some guys have the Kumho KW19 which I believe is a knockoff of one of the Nokian tires. They are reasonable and I haven\'t heard any complaints about them.

Nantucket Tires\' N\'Mags
416-288-9399
300 Nantucket Boulevard,
Scarborough, ON M1P 2P4

Wheels Direct
416-754-0997
4732 Sheppard Avenue East,
Scarborough, ON
M1S 3V6

Steelcase Tires N Mags Inc
905-479-8884
187 Steelcase Road West,
Markham, ON
L3R 2R9

Don\'t say I never did nuthin\' for ya! ;)

[akz]

Originally posted by Dr Butcher
Don\'t say I never did nuthin\' for ya! ;)


Lol thanks man :) I wont

also thanks autoexe

Wellps I found a place and they suggesteed

bridgestone tires 16\" 170/tire
60/rim


is that a good price are the bridgestone snow tires any good?

[///M]

Which Bridgestones are they? The Blizzak LM22s are very good but tend to be expensive...I was quoted $975 for them on 16\" steelies.

The other Blizzaks use a softer compound for the first 50% of the tread that grips well, but wears really quickly. So basically, you have a tire that\'s only really good for the first 50%.

[akz]

Well heres my quote

BridgeStone LM25 Tires
16\" = 170/Tire (680)
Steel Rims $60/Rim (240)

17\" = 200/Tire (800)
Rims = $150/Rim (600)


So either $920 or $1400 installed.


He also recommended these tires:
Nexen 16\" = 105/Tire (420)
Steel Rims = $60/Rim (240)
$660 Installed

Any recommendations on Nexen or LM25\'s ? (LM25\'s are new but read some good stuf about them.. dont know anything about Nexens..)

Friend at store said tires are just tires... its just the name that I would be paying for if I bought all the brand name stuff.. any tire if u hit black ice or whatever would be screwed anyways.. so Nexens would be ok too..

Any suggestions? :)

[///M]

I think I read somewhere that Nexen is made by Kumho, but don\'t take my word for it.

Also, if you get the Blizzak LM25s in 17\", you won\'t need the rims. You can mount them on your stock rims and save the $600. (assuming that you\'re planning to get new rims in spring it wouldn\'t be a big issue to use the stock rims in winter)

[akz]

duno .. cuz everyone keeps telling me not to use my stock rims in the winter and it would not be good for my car... ~_~

Nexen there is no info on them what-so-ever ... I think im just going to get the Blizzak LM25\'s ... any more suggestions? ^_^ btw autoexe thanks man~

[majic]

frm what i heard.. nexen is a dauhter company of kumho..unfortunately i haven\'t heard anything about those tires.. tried googling?

you do not need blizzacks unless u live up north.. and since u don\'t.. u\'ll just pay a LOT more and your tire will wear out much faster due to the really soft compound..

i just had my W300 installed so i can tell u how they fare at the next snow fall (and rain)

[akz]

hrmm I dont know .. cuz had some real bad experiences with winter ... and driving without some good winter tires ~_~ ...

Blizzak LM25\'s arent that bad... peopel are buying Toyo\'s etc for even more pricier... I think the LM25\'s are ok ... netherless please tell me how your W300\'s fear against the winter.. Ive been recommended them also .. however wasnt sure about them.

[///M]

If you\'re able to, try getting hold of some LM22s. They\'re almost as good as the LM25s but wear a lot slower.

[akz]

alright.. what if I cant get a pair of LM22\'s any other suggestions for snow tires *sigh* thought the solution was solved but turns out there are so many problems ~_~

maybe I should just get the Nexen\'s and then tell you guys how it is lol

[majic]

Originally posted by akz


alright.. what if I cant get a pair of LM22\'s any other suggestions for snow tires *sigh* thought the solution was solved but turns out there are so many problems ~_~

maybe I should just get the Nexen\'s and then tell you guys how it is lol

just search the forums and see what others have gotten and how happy they are..

[akz]

yeah .. ive been doing that but everyone says every tire is good lol then I find some other info such as how other people dont like this one or that one etc.. Really hard.. well in my head I want Safety and Quality gotta find out which tire fits that description..

[majic]

check out this forum
http://www.canadiandriver.com/cgi-bin/discuss/search.pl
and put in the tire u want.. one weekend i spent the whole tiem looking at what\'s good and what would suit my needs..

umm.. nice sig :sarc

[akz]

thx man :) my inspiration was yours :P lolz

[majic]

Originally posted by akz


thx man :) my inspiration was yours :P lolz

heh.. mine\'s better :p
anwyay.. the yellow text is really hard to read

instead of playing with your sig.. go research your tires.. lol.. seriously.. read up car and driver.. and search it.. u\'ll get good results..

[akz]

yeah man I took your advice searching it up right now ...

currently since all kumho\'s and toyos are out of stock in the GTA area and the ones that are left over are EXTREMELY over priced... Im currently leaning towards the : Hankook W300 16\"

been looking around and apparently everyone had the Bridgestone LM25\'s are always in peoples choices.. but were never ever recomended or given a recomendation at all lol .. gonna read up yo thx again man!


BTW can anyone shed the light on the difference between V Rated and H Rated Tires?? thanks in advance..

[chaser]

Originally posted by akz
BTW can anyone shed the light on the difference between V Rated and H Rated Tires?? thanks in advance..

H = good for speed up to 210km/h
V = good for speed up to 240km/h

but obiviously, our stock 3s can\'t reach it ;) ...

Dunlop\'s Winter M3/M2 are very good choice but they\'re expensive and I think they\'re done for the season. Hankook W300 is also good. I\'d suggest you to make the decision quick as the snow tires are going fast!

[chaser]

Nokian is also very good. I used Hakka 1/2 before. They cost more than W300.

[akz]

yeah im gonna call the place I goto and have them reserve a set of W300\'s for me asap :)

[chaser]

Have you tried E-spec? They\'ve good price and they deliver.

[Melenium]

You can also try \"Nu-Tech Auto Centre\" - They\'re around Bayview and John (south of Hwy7): 905-764-1440 -- two weeks ago they would have been able to get a Kumho KW17 for fairly reasonable whilst everyone else was sold out. Probably not much chance of getting any Kumhos now, but you can try them to see what price they\'ll give on any other tire you find.

In Scarboro, you can also give Scarboro Mazda a call, their prices on tires were also pretty good, and you can get an additional 20% off. Check out the dealer reviews section for their #.

Try to get H or V rated tires and not go into anything lower (I think the Blizzaks are Q, which is lower), or you\'ll find that you lose the crisp handling.

[ZoomZoom Girl]

I can\'t give you a place to buy since I live further north, but for tire options, I\'m using the Yokohama Iceguard IG721 in Sudbury winter conditions. Yesterday we got freezing rain following by ice pellets, followed by 16cm of snow/slush and they worked great! Only time I spun the tires was going up a very steep hill. Even this morning, driving out on an unplowed road with past ankle deep snow and no prior tracks, my blue HB plowed through with no problems!

At least you\'re in the GTA where your options are much better than further north. I lucked out on the Yokohama (dedicated winter tire, not performance oriented although they have been working much better, even on dry pavement, than the stock tires!) since a friend of mine knows a tire dealer in town. Anyhow, if you opt for a more heavy duty winter tire, I can highly recommmend the Yokohamas. They weren\'t cheap though, costing me $720 with taxes for a full set. Rims are a whole OTHER matter...all of Sudbury was sold out of any type of rim fitting the Mazda3s (yes, I called every single tire place). Finally my Mazda dealer had to order some in from out of province for a serious premium. Count yourself lucky to have more options down there in the GTA...:(

[xxxi]

you can try green bay tires @ green lane (bayview and 407), right next to the apartments at that interection.

905 - 881 - 0548

just got my pirelli 210 for $761 (including tax), a bit cheaper than wheels direct ($770 cash only).

I pay by credit card so i can get some dividends

they also have Pilot Alpin for 177 each plus tax

the size for the wheels are 205/55/R16

:)

[bluntman]

It\'s not exactly Markham, but I bought my summer and winter tires and rims from Extreme Wheel and Tire up in Richmond Hill (Yonge Street north of Elgin Mills).

[Sammy]

FYI,

Got my KW17\'s installed yesterday by ESPEC (Derek). According to Derek, they have some KW17s and W300s left. I was very happy with ESPEC\'s service and would reccomend them to anyone.

[chaser]

E-spec does installation as well? Free of charge? I did it myself and it\'s not difficult at all except finding a 3/8\" 21mm deep socket :p

[Sammy]

Yeah, ESpec does installation for a nominal fee of $20. It only took 20 minutes to do, in the future I might invest in some tools and do it myself. The ride into work today was pretty good with the kw17s, they do sound quieter than the stock RSA\'s. After my experiences with the RSA\'s in last weeks snow fall, I am so glad I got winters now.

[Melenium]

Originally posted by chaser


E-spec does installation as well? Free of charge? I did it myself and it\'s not difficult at all except finding a 3/8\" 21mm deep socket :p

Are you using a Torque wrench thats 3/8\"? Better double check that its in foot-pounds and not inch-pounds. If you\'re using a regular socket wrench, ignore this message. :p

On another note, the clicky type torque wrench is on sale at Canadian Tire! Its $20 off, so $79.99 instead of the regular $99.99! I don\'t know how long it will last, so now is the best time to get it. Canadian Tire Website (http://www.canadiantire.ca/assortments/product_detail.jsp?FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=140847439 6669794&ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=1408474396670271&bm UID=1102831929464&PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524441901 099&assortment=primary&fromSearch=true)

[chaser]

Originally posted by Melenium


Originally posted by chaser


E-spec does installation as well? Free of charge? I did it myself and it\'s not difficult at all except finding a 3/8\" 21mm deep socket :p

Are you using a Torque wrench thats 3/8\"? Better double check that its in foot-pounds and not inch-pounds. If you\'re using a regular socket wrench, ignore this message. :p



I got a 3/8\" clicky torque wrench for US$17.99. It\'s in-lb and the max torque on it is 960 in-lb (= 80 ft-lb). I should get the 1/2\" one since it\'s longer that requires less effort to tighten up.

[ESpec]

Hi guys if you guys still looking for W300 or KW19 with Rav4 steelie?? Email me or post a reply~~
i will take good care of you guys~~ :p
E-Spec