the Cost of Wheel Alignment and Tire Installation

I purchased new tires at a local tire center and had them installed. The tires cost $110 each, with the fourth one being free due to a promotion. The installation was free - or perhaps included in the price of the purchase - depending on how you want to see it. They were also willing to dispose of the old tires for free - as it was part of the service and somewhat handy if you have nowhere to store them and no use for them anyhow. However, the tire center did not do wheel alignments, so I had to go to a nearby dealership to have that done. It was somewhat over 90 dollars, and with tax came to $97. There were no additional fees. They kept my vehicle overnight, but only because I took it in during the afternoon (around 1pm) and it was a busy day. I was told that they can sometimes get it done in one day, since it technically only takes about an hour, but when they're busy they can't guarantee anything. I didn't question this further since my boyfriend was available to drive me home and to pick up the car with me the next day. There was no additional perks received with the alignment, no oil change or check up or fluids check. Also, the car was still under warranty, but the warranty did not cover this service so it was entirely paid for by me.

The service at the tire center was excellent. I called in advance to make an appointment and verify that they had the correct tires in the correct size. I talked to the person at the front desk who was also very nice and made me feel like my car would be taken good care of. The tire installation took less than one hour, and it was an hour I could easily spend shopping in the area. There were a few perks with the tire installation/purchase. They said they would do tire rotations for free in the future, and I could go in and have them check the pressure and such on my tire whenever I felt I needed to.

The alignment service at the dealership was also excellent. I tested the alignment of my car after I picked it up, and it drove straight as a bullet at both high and low speeds. Before, the alignment had been awful due to a few too many grazed curbs - which was the reason the tires needed to be replaced in the first place. I was a little disappointed that I had to wait until the next day to pick up the vehicle, but since it wasn't too inconvenient for me I didn't mind enough to complain and think about taking it in later or to a different location.

If you want to get any of these services done - and done fast - it's a really good idea to call ahead. My first attempt to purchase tires and get them installed failed as the tire center was too busy. Upon calling ahead, the service was quick and efficient. Perhaps if I had called ahead for the tire alignment it would have also been a bit better organized.

When I looked into the cost of getting an alignment, I found that the places I contacted had prices that were in the same ballpark, so I went to the dealership since I felt like I would get the highest quality of service from the maker of my car. It may be possible to get better deals elsewhere, but I failed to find any myself (I could have maybe saved $10, from the impression I got).

The most important tip though is that if you think you might need an alignment, go and get it done sooner rather than later. My tires were misaligned for about a year, which caused them to prematurely wear out the tires that were on the vehicle and cost me a fair bit of money since I had to purchase new tires. If I had gotten the alignment a year earlier I may have been able to extend the lifetime of my tires by a few years, so the $97 spent then could have saved me a fair bit of money.