Falken Tires from Wal-Mart
 

So I am asking for anyones experience on this. The parts manager at my local dealership is trying to tell me that Wal-Mart sells "watered down" or "rip off" versions of tires which makes them cheaper. Is there any truth to this at all? I am considering Wal-Mart since the P265/70R17 AT3W's are on Rollback for $114.29 a piece. Plus I get 5% cash back so there is another perk but thats irrelevant. The dealership is selling them for Buy 3 get 1 Free for a total for $703 plus mount and balance vs $457.16 at the mart. Has anyone bought AT3W's from Wal-Mart and seen any differences? The part numbers match up with Falken's website so I feel like he's loading me with a bunch of BS to get a sale. Any help is appreciated!

The first set I ever bought, I got through Wally world because they were by far the cheapest price. No visible difference in the details, however I did have some balancing issues with them, so mayyyybe they were factory seconds? Complete speculation though. I would find that hard to believe they could sell anything but the same tire that DT or any other shop would get!

I recently bought ones from Amazon, that were sold directly from Falken at $120 per tire. They were brand new with a manufactured date within 2 months of my purchase.

Youll have a warranty either way. I wouldnt listen to a pushy tire salesman. If they can match the price great, if not, go elsewhere.

The parts guy at the dealer is using classic pressure sales technique. Walmart sells the same tires. The problem I've faced at Walmart is they have a ton of roll over when it comes to employees so there are a lot of rookies doing the balancing and installation which sometimes leads to less then stellar workmanship. You can order the tires there and get em installed where you want or keep going back and get it done right.

Awesome, thank you guys for the feedback!

tell the guy at the dealer hes full of CRAP & telll him to back up his claim with some proof... walmart sells the exact same tires as anyone, they just sell so many more than almost any other place that they get better deals & can sell for less. & their mount & balance is a lot cheaper than most other places & included lifetime rotation & re-balance!

same for anything they carry, they sell a box of cheerios for almost half the price of local grocery stores... its the same cheerios!

if you do get your tires from walmart take them to a reputable tire shop and have them mount/balance.

tires are one of the most important things on a vehicle. do you trust some random walmart worker to mount and balance them correctly? post #4 hits the nail on the head.

i agree with that to a point. all depends on the store you go to, my local walmart has had the same employees for 5+ years & their tire guy is as good or better than local tire shops. also, most local tire shops are small businesses & dont pay as well as walmarts auto center, plenty of turn over for small shops too & ive seen some yahoos at even reputable shops as well as young kids that are new hires.

walmart may have a reputation for questionable work, but it all depends on the store & can vary greatly. but the lower cost & lifetime rotation & balance is well worth it & if by chance you get a out of balance tire, you can bring it back & rebalance for free... & the biggest advantage is that if you travel somewhere, you can go to any walmart in the country for the service.

i'm all for supporting your local shops, but when they want $25 or more per tire to mount & balance one time... i will save some money & take my chance at walmarts. plus save on cheerios & everything else when im there! ;)

Wal-Mart does sell what are called "program tires". Some of the tires they sell are made specifically and ONLY for them. I'm a Goodyear dealer and dont have ways to get some of the tires they sell, like the Goodyear Authority AT tire. So just do your research before you buy.

that is true, they do have some models that only they sell, doesn't mean they are bad, they are usually decent quality... for the price.

most tire companies have a house brand or special model that other places dont offer. for example walmart has a goodyear wrangler "trailmark" only they sell, its supposed to be comparable to the trailrunner that is a common goodyear tire but they cant order the trailrunner. but then goodyear sells the kelly brand "edge" model that is a copy of the trailrunner with some minor differences.

every brand has crappy models of tires.

I grabbed mine there a few weeks on a great deal. Was going to pick the up and scoot but the tire guy offered to get them on right then and there. He did a great job too. No issues, balance is perfect.

well youre in iowa, there are lots of walmarts outside of where you are. maybe youre in a small town, idk. i can tell you if you lived where i live you wouldnt buy anything from walmart other than oil, filters, and shop towels.

there is no 'may' have a reputation for questionable work. they do where im at. you seem to have gotten lucky (again, maybe youre in a small town). where i am at, i guarantee you higher end tire shops are paying their employees more than my local walmart (which employs all sorts of 'winners' whom i dont even want looking at my rig). it also helps if you go to a reputable tire shop and do your research before hand.

your iowa walmart may be good, but what if you go next door to another state (or say a town) and you get shoddy work done on your rig and you have issues? now youre stranded in a different state/town thanks to questionable walmart work.

25 a corner to mount and balance too much for you? so you're going to take your chances with something as important as tires? thats where you lost me. you dont even want to know how much shops charge for tire swaps on cars with TPMS sensors. plus most of us have 33" tires. its not like getting these balanced is the easiest.

brakes and tires are the most important things on your vehicle. im glad you can trust someone at walmart and save money. most of us cant because we know what goes down at walmart.

Never has anything that I heard or read made me think that the following applies to it. This post above did.

“what you’ve just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.

well i for one am glad you and the other guy save so much money getting your tires done at walmart.

because you know, like i said earlier, tires arent anything important to worry about. do both of you get your eyes checked there too?

Dont go judging. Walmart employ's a lot of good people who do good work. Thousands + satisfied customers can extend their dollars with the cost savings, That's a good thing.Toyota Dealers have their share of problems. Expensive doesn't always mean good work.