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Michelin X-Ice Snow Tire Setup and Headaches (with Costco)

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PatrickTM

Always Be Charging
May 12, 2021
875
2,765
Boston
Living outside Boston, winter tires are definitely highly recommended, and I would say a necessity for someone like me that 1 enjoys skiing on the weekends and 2 occasionally must go to work in person regardless of weather. I wanted to build an 18 inch setup for more sidewall height, lighter unsprung weight, and lower cost. Bought some used wheels, 18 x 8.5” dimensions with +40 offset, and purchased tires online at Costco, the Michelin X-Ice Snow in 235/55/18 size. It was a great deal with the $150 off sale last month, came out to $746 out the door with installation fee. I also bought OEM new Bluetooth TPMS valve stems direct from Tesla.

Today I went to Costco to get them mounted, and they told me to that they won’t mount them because they don’t touch any TPMS units that did not come from their inventory. I explained these are brand new TPMS from the OEM, and the manager said nope! Catch-22 here is they don’t even sell Bluetooth TPMS. So they said go take them to another tire shop that will accept the liability of owner supplied TPMS. I asked them to refund the tire installation and tire disposal fees that I prepaid, so I got $82 back.

Took the tires, wheels, and TPMS to Firestone Complete Auto Care and now I’m waiting for them to mount/balance them. Firestone overcharges a bit, it’s $120 for install. Bottom line is replacing existing tires is possible at Costco since you already have TPMS, buying a new wheel package (with TPMS) will not be possible at Costco until they carry BT TPMS. YMMV.
 
Will you still be entitled to the benefits of buying the tires from Costco?
Great question! I didn’t ask because they were adding hours of work to my day, and I got out of there quickly just to get on with it.
Logically speaking, I see no reason why they would withhold benefits. Road hazard coverage should be completely unaffected by Tesla TPMS vs Costco TPMS. But on the other hand, Costco doesn’t seem to exercise much logic.
 
I'm surprised Costco even allowed you to purchase tires that weren't of the OEM size. I had a run in with them 25 years ago; they refused to mount tires to my car because the rims I had on the car were not the OEM size. I purchased the car used, and didn't even know what the OEM rim sizes were supposed to be. The second time I tried to buy tires from them (different car), they refused to even take the tires off after they found out I had anti seize on the lugs. You may save money at Costco if you play by their rules, but its a pretty rigid system they run there.

BTW, it will be my 2nd year of Micheline X-ice on my Y; they performed very well last year. Just don't forget to engage off-road assist mode when driving in the snow.
 
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Awesome to hear about good performance from your Michelin X-Ice Snow! I have them on my 2015 Prius and they are excellent.

But you're totally right about Costco, what a pain in the ass. Really unfortunate that we don't have Discount Tire / America's Tire in the northeast.
 
Awesome to hear about good performance from your Michelin X-Ice Snow! I have them on my 2015 Prius and they are excellent.

But you're totally right about Costco, what a pain in the ass. Really unfortunate that we don't have Discount Tire / America's Tire in the northeast.
My experience with Discount Tire has been great, but they are extreme strict about not working with non-OEM equipment sizes.
 
Costco are fools not to use your sensors. It's not like they had a better option.

Also, you can get the sensors for $40-50 a piece from eBay - Tesla OEM. No need to drop $400 on them from the Tesla store. Not sure how people are getting them directly from Beijing, but I snapped up a set since I doubt they'll ever be cheaper.

Just installed some X-ices on my wife's 2019 Ioniq last night and they are by far the most comfortable snow tires I've ever driven on. Can't wait for some snow.
 
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Great tip about getting Tesla BT TPMS on eBay! Looks like the gray market for these is alive and well. Too bad I didn't know about it, and ended up overpaying for them on Tesla.com. Oh well, they last 10+ years so it's basically a one time expense.

Also, I've previously had great experience both at tirerack.com (which is now owned by Discount Tire, fwiw), and my mom got her winter set up (235/55/18) at Discount Tire for her Model Y. She brought her own TPMS and purchased/installed in the store in WA State. I told her about my winter set up, and she said "thanks for your research, I'll just copy you" and took my tire specs to the store and bought herself some Michelin X-Ice Snow SUV tires. Great price and super friendly service, and most importantly they were professionals who didn't give her any *sugar* about downsizing her wheels or that she will cause an accident and die because she's using her own TPMS.
 
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This is timely for me. I bought some 18" wheels from Tsportline (to downsize from 19" stock wheels) and some crossclimate2 tires from Costco.

Costco wouldn't install them because they were lower load rating (103) than stock Gemini wheels/tires my car came with (104), despite the fact that the 20" induction wheels have a load rating of 103. So if I had upgraded wheels on ordering my car, this would have been ok??

I know I can go elsewhere to get them installed. I'm just worried about roadside support and tire repair/replacement for unplanned incidents (e.g. in the middle of a trip getting flat and needing to go to a tire shop — would they refuse to repair or replace my tires).

I'm leaning towards giving up on the crossclimate2's and going with x-ice full winter tires.
 
I'm just worried about roadside support and tire repair/replacement for unplanned incidents (e.g. in the middle of a trip getting flat and needing to go to a tire shop — would they refuse to repair or replace my tires).
If this is your fear, you are better off getting your tires from Discount/America's Tire, and getting the certs. They will price match anybody. Anyways, if the tire is not repairable for any reason, they will replace for free... Even if you are in the middle of nowhere, and there is not a discount tire around, you can go to any place you want, buy a tire yourself, and have it mounted... And take the receipt to Discount Tire, and they will issue you a full refund for the tire, including mounting and balancing. Note: Discount Tire will patch a tire for free, regardless where you bought the tire.
 
If this is your fear, you are better off getting your tires from Discount/America's Tire, and getting the certs. They will price match anybody. Anyways, if the tire is not repairable for any reason, they will replace for free... Even if you are in the middle of nowhere, and there is not a discount tire around, you can go to any place you want, buy a tire yourself, and have it mounted... And take the receipt to Discount Tire, and they will issue you a full refund for the tire, including mounting and balancing. Note: Discount Tire will patch a tire for free, regardless where you bought the tire.
Great advice, but DT/AT does not operate in the northeast for some reason. I've lived in Washington, Colorado, Georgia, California, etc. and always loved having a Discount/America's Tire nearby, always. But in Massachusetts, none are to be found in the state (and neighboring states).

So while not impossible, it's a little bit more of a hassle shopping from DT without a local shop present.