Most tire retailers in Canada have a noticeable spike in tire sales twice a year. They correspond with the late fall November season (when everyone is prepping for winter tire installation) and then again in April (when all those winter tires are coming off). Accordingly, all tire manufacturers seem to have fallen into a pattern of competing with each other by offering a variety of rebates around these times in an attempt to entice consumers to their brand.
However, a couple of questions come to mind. If all manufacturers are offering similar rebates, is there any real winner? When a customer is spending approximately $1000 on a decent set of tires, is a $70 mail in rebate a big deal? And why can’t rebates be claimed at the point of purchase instead of making you, the consumer, wait for that rebate cheque or prepaid credit card in the mail?
From my perspective, there are two types of tire purchasers. The first comes from the well-known customer who comes through my door for regular repair and maintenance. When we indicate to them that their tires are in need of replacement, they declare that we should just make the decision for them and all they need to know is how much the total bill is. When I hand them a rebate form at the end of the day, some are enthusiastic about the freebie they weren’t expecting. Many others couldn’t care less.
Alternatively, the other tire sale comes from the avid shopper who spends hours travelling from facility to facility searching for the best deal. They are typically very brand loyal and know exactly what they want. The rebate is a real incentive for them to buy a set of tires, but that doesn’t mean that without a rebate, their need for tires would disappear. All the rebate did was influence their timing.
So I ask my question again: What’s the point of these rebates at all?
From the manufacturer’s perspective of course, this is a golden opportunity for them to gather your personal information. Additionally, they are banking on the fact that 40 to 60 per cent of rebates are never claimed. The rebate application process in some cases can be intentionally difficult, intended to slow you down. Hence the reason why the rebates are never offered at point of sale.
In my humble opinion, tire manufacturers should just offer the savings year round, mitigating the cost to promote rebates and refund customers. Unfortunately, I’m confident the tire industry in general is not going to uniformly discontinue this practice any time soon just because I say so.
To make the process a little bit easier for yourself, ask your retailer to send you your invoice in PDF format so you have it readily in hand when you submit online. Also, if your rebate requires the DOT numbers of your new tires to also be submitted, ask your retailer to record these numbers on your invoice as well.
Your automotive questions, answered
We own a 2016 Ford Fusion which has developed an issue. It is throwing a “check charging system now” error intermittently. Battery is 1 year old and testing ok, new alternator belt, new alternator, new sensor between alternator and battery. We have detected that it would appear that after a fill-up is when we are getting the error. It is not immediate. Error has a box with OK in the center, and a battery light is on. When we press the OK button on the steering wheel the error disappears, and the battery light goes out within a minute or so. Usually do not see the error for the rest of the tank of gas. What could be causing a gas fill up to cause a charging system error? We have read that we should not overfill the tank (which my husband happened to remember doing (double clicking) after the gas pump stops) on the re-fill, but he has not done so on the last two fill ups and we still get the error.
Have had someone suggest a short in the fuel system? Any suggestions?
Rita P
Wow, that is an odd one. I have searched through my professional databases for someone with a similar problem but have not come across anyone who has those same symptoms. You shouldn’t make a habit of over filling, but I believe that has nothing to do with you charge light problems as your previous repairs would indicate. My best guess is that the most likely scenario is that a problem exists within the gauge cluster. Somehow a short circuit is occurring between the fuel gauge and charge light that only occurs when the tank is reading full. This sounds to me like it problem that will be a very tricky to isolate as your repair facility may have to swap in a known good gauge cluster or Body Control Module (BCM) in order to offer a process-of-elimination style diagnosis.
I have a 2001 Mercedes SLK320 with 157,000 kilometers. Owners in some Mercedes forums suggest replacing the voltage regulator at around my current kilometer reading. The service manager at my Mercedes dealer tells me he has never replaced a voltage regulator and doesn’t see the need. The folks on the forum maintain that the replacement is much better than the original regulator with longer pins. They also suggest that failure of this part is the one thing that can get you stranded on the highway.
Do you have an opinion on this?
Geoff S
I refuse to search online when something ails me, as all it will do is cause me lost sleep and inspire thoughts of sickness that simply do not exist. For this reason, I leave myself and my family’s health to a professional, our family physician. Accordingly, reading car forums is the same thing for me; I have no time for them. Simply, there are just those who believe that popping the hood on their car makes them an expert and they will argue till the end of time.
Don’t waste your time replacing your voltage regulator, instead spend the funds on a decent roadside service package. Because, once you spend money repairing something that isn’t actually broken, expecting it to break, you will be taught a comedic life lesson. Namely, everything else will leave you stranded, except for the item you just replaced.
Lou Trottier is owner-operator of All About Imports in Mississauga. Have a question about maintenance and repair? E-mail globedrive@globeandmail.com, placing “Lou’s Garage” in the subject line.
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