Stacking Savings: Purchasing 4 New Tires

Photograph Credit: Microsoft Images

Last weekend’s events changed my plans for the week. Though I was not planning to spend $800, I was able to stack savings to stretch our dollars while meeting our family’s needs.

Driving on Tires

When we ventured out the previous Thursday evening, the tire indicator light in our van lit up. Paul checked the tires, and everything looked fine – with *looked* being the operative word. (Side note: When we purchased our van, this light came on, and the problem ended up being the spare tire tucked under the van.)

Seeing that the tires looked fine, we concluded it was the spare tire, and I planned to get the van into the shop the next week. I drove on Friday with the light on and without any apparent problems. On Saturday, our van sat in the garage, and then we drove to church last Sunday.

Between Sunday school and the morning service, we went to the van to drop off a few items. At that time, we found a member of the security staff at our van as he had noticed our flat tire. Thankfully, this gentleman had managed a tire department and offered to change our tire. After figuring out how to release our spare, he replaced our flat with the spare. Bless his heart!

Upon arriving home, we discovered black tire marks out of our garage onto our driveway which means we drove from home to church on a flat tire. We are amazed at how the Lord protected us as we never felt a thump or inconsistency on the way. From this experience, I have learned that we need to take that indicator light more seriously and get it checked out immediately.

Researching our Options

On Sunday night, I researched the size of tires we needed in our purchasing area. I compared 2 tires verses 4 tires as well as brand options.

I then took our van to our mechanic the next morning. Explaining that we had a warranty on the blown tire, I asked our mechanic for his recommendation, and he initially recommended getting 2 tires. When asked when the front tires would need replacing, our mechanic recommended 6-9 months.

Since the tires would need replacing this year and one of the current tire options carried a $100 rebate, we opted to purchase 4 new tires. Our mechanic then suggested the Michelin tires over the other brand, so I went to our most cost-effective and reliable source, Discount Tire.

Purchasing our Tires

They did a great job helping me on Monday. The tires we needed were not in stock, so they ordered them. Then, they placed a loaner tire on our van and returned the spare under our vehicle. I then made an appointment for Thursday.

On Thursday, I called before coming to verify that the tires were available. Confirming this information, we came and purchased our tires. I purchased one tire with installation and the insurance to submit for reimbursement from our warranty. Then I purchase the other three tires. I was then given the rebate information for purchasing 4 new Michelin tires which will result in a $100 visa gift card.

Stacking Savings Results

For those of you with a minivan, you understand the expense of purchasing new tires. At a cost of $203 per tire, we shelled out $824. However, we are expecting to get back around $300 between the warranty coverage and the rebate, making our purchase for 4 new tires around $524 which is a great deal!

By stacking our warranty coverage with a rebate, we solved our immediate tire problem and prepared for the future. Though we did not anticipate purchasing 4 new tires last week, we researched and stacked savings to stretch our dollars.

When life throws you a curve, stay safe, research, and stack the savings to stretch your dollars. In using time wisely, our research helped us make the best decision for our family.

We could have spent less and purchased 2 tires, but then we would have missed the opportunity to save $100 for purchasing 4 and would still need to purchase 2 more tires later this year. In addition to delaying the cost, we would have spent double the time as another round of research and a trip to Discount Tire would have been necessary.

With our solution, we have 4 tires with the same tread depth and a fresh start. For us, purchasing 4 tires was the best decision, and we stacked our savings by combining our warranty with a rebate. Stretching our dollars was nice, but we are thankful that the Lord kept our family safe. Blessed for sure!

Question: How do you stretch your dollars when purchasing tires?

Saving money in the long run may require spending money at the onset. For example, I took my car to the mechanic for routine maintenance. The car needed an oil change and tire rotation. Since I get free tire rotation where I bought the tires, I paid for the oil change and drove to Discount Tire.

When the tires were rotated, the Discount Tire technician found my new front tires were worn down. The recommendation was to apply the credits from our warranty on the existing tires to purchase two new tires. With the credits, I would owe $130 for two new tires, which is about the price of one.

Though I could have driven with the existing tires, I would have worn them out in about a year and had to purchase two new tires at full price, costing around $260. My husband and I chose to pay the $130 now to save $230 in the long run. My husband then took the car for a front-end alignment which should correct the wear on the tires.

I love to save my family money. Whether it is finding deals on items, events, memberships, or insurance policies, I desire to get the most out of each dollar spent.

Did you know you could get free toothpaste at CVS this week? Yes, in the CVS sales flyer (Feb. 13-19), All Colgate Sensitive 6 oz. or Total Advanced 5.8 oz. tubes are on sale for $3.79. After purchasing the toothpaste with your CVS card, your receipt will print with a $3.79 Extra Bucks (which is store credit) at the end. You could then use the $3.79 Extra Bucks for anything you need at CVS.

The scenario above would be getting the toothpaste minus tax for free. Since I currently have two coupons for Colgate Total in the amounts of $1.00 and $.75, I would use the coupons and get two tubes (limit of 2 per the advertisement). I would checkout with $3.79 (one tube) + $3.79 (2^nd tube) = subtotal: $7.58. Then I would use my two coupons: subtotal $7.58 -$1.00 (coupon)-$.75 (coupon) = total $5.83 + tax. I would pay around $6.20 and receive a store coupon on the end of my receipt for $7.58 ($3.79 for each tube). I would have made $1.38 in store credit and have 2 tubes of toothpaste.

The cabinet under our bathroom sink houses the 30+ tubes of Colgate toothpaste I have acquired by playing the drugstore game. Stay tuned each Saturday as I share more money saving tips.