Winter tire package - discount available

Interested in purchaseing a Winter tire package at a group discount?

  • Yes, where do I sign up?

    Votes: 15 83.3%

  • What is Winter? We only have one season - HOT !!

    Votes: 3 16.7%
  • Total voters
    18
  • Poll closed .
Other than this wheel balancing thing, I think most of the "stuff" that happened with our group purchase was out of DTD's hands. Michelin was slow on the draw with manufacturing, the DVD promo was very popular and we all sent in our info at the end so I'm not surprised they ran out... The brake caliper thing concerned me, but it was easily resolved (again, I think this was a manufacturing problem, and not DTD's fault).

All in all, I am very satisfied with the tire package. I think DTD was very proactive in making sure we all knew what was going on, they even called me to make sure I knew about the brake issue. Imagine how we would have been thirsting for someone's blood if they hadn't kept us so well-informed through the whole process!!!
 
Agree. DTD was very proactive and Mitch is a sales associate that I wish was working for me. If you had to grind the wheels, then re-balancing would be needed. That's life.

It never even occured to me when I bought my Marauder that snow tires were not made in that particular size. And now I just discovered yesterday that I can not find any company but Goodrich that makes an 18 inch 245-55 tire at all. I took a good luck at my OEM tires now that they're off, and there is some uneven tread wear in spite of always being perfectly inflated and a lot of tread wear. My tires have less than 11,000 miles on them, and I'll be happy to get 15,000 out of them.
 
I drove in the snow on the way to work this AM, and I have to say the tires are doing their job. The worst type of road is not the one with snow, but the one with half melted snow which glazed over into ice, which is what I drove on today.

The tires seem to be working fine. Now if I could just get the other idiots out of my way . . .. The first day of snow always seems to catch people by surprise in that they find out too late they need to change their driving habits.

I slid once starting from a stop going around a corner/uphill -- for less than 2 seconds.

As long as the wheel that I ground does not split at high speeds as a result of the grinding, I will be happy with this purchase. I agree that much of the problems are not things that DTD would have been able to control. It is a bit frustrating, but try not to misplace blame.

I got a card in the mail saying my DVD player would be another few weeks.

Thanks,
-A
 
rubbing concern

I sanded off the weld spatter as suggested and after putting the tires on there is a rubbing coming from the front. There is no more spatter, only actual weld that I believe is holding the two rim pieces together? Is the rubbing dangerous, perhaps causing the caliper to not function properly? The rubbing should eventually go away after the spatter wears off. Please advise me as to the safety and as to the necessity of getting rid of all rubbing. Any help would be appreciated.

John T.
 
I haven't yet

dealt w/this problem, and even though it probably isn't all that difficult to resolve, I really don't look forward to it since it's just something else I have to do that shouldn't have been required IF the wheel dealer did his homework.
But to answer your question, what I'm hearing from other members of this board is that in addition to grinding down the "weld splatter" on the wheels, you also will need to grind down the front brake calipers a little, but only in the spot that they're rubbing. And you should be able to tell that by the mark that the wheels left on each of the two front calipers. And after grinding that area just a little bit(don't over-do it) then you can use some flat black spray paint, spray some into a plasic cup, and use a paint bruch to paint the area of the calipers that you ground if you want. I hope this helps you.
 
Finally had the time to put my winter tires and wheels on tonight. Man is this ugly! The good news is that there were no problems with rubbing nor did I need to grind anything. I got my tires and wheels from The Tire Rack (Cy) This is the same Michelin Artic Alpin set that DTD was selling in their $500 package (I missed that deal). Cy at Tire Rack said they had investigated the wheel fitting over the front calipers and could not find a standard stock wheel to fit properly. Cy told me they had a special wheel made with, I think he told me a 52mm offset. Whatever size it was they work! I paid $600.00 delivered and there is a $40.00 Michelin rebate I am mailing in. Come on spring!

Greg
 
Forecast for Western PA is calling for at least 6 inches of snow. I'm looking forward to trying these babies out. The wife said this morning, "Lets wait to get the Christmas tree until the weather passes." I replied, "Between our two cars, we have spent $1600 getting ready for winter. We're going out in this stuff tonight."

_______________________________
There is no substitute for cubic inches.
 
I hear ya...

That's the way I look at it too....I just spent $500+ just to get around okay in the snow, and so when it does snow, I'm not gonna stay home. Those tires are getting used every time it snows!!!
And today I installed the 4 tires & wheels in my condo parking lot while it was snowing, and w/a couple already on the ground, but boy am I glad I did. These Arctic Alpines work better than any snow tire I've ever bought before. I purposely went up every big hill I could find, and those babies came through!! I put a little weight in the back by filling up the gas tank, and leaving the two back tires w/the stock mags in the trunk which is in addition to the full sized spare tire my MM has back there. Yesterday I had to drive around in the snow w/the stock tires, and I couldn't get anywhere. And forget about hills w/the stock tires. But what a giant difference those Arctic Alpines make. Those tires are excellent!!!!! And what made it even better is that I didn't have to grind down the wheels nor the brake calipers at all. They didn't rub.
 
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I just posted pics with the steel wheels mounted and with the aftermarket C.V.P.I. full wheel covers while the snow storm was starting to pick up. I must admit the covers look good. will give it a test drive now that they are saying there will be about 12-22 inches in the early morning. also to report that none of the steel wheels rub on the calipers.
mxmas.gif
 
BillyG - Glad to see you are a happy camper again, with you snow tire setup.
Have you done anything yet for hubcaps or centercaps?
 
I placed an order

with Fordparts.com but there was some mix-up, because they used the wrong expiration date for my credit card. Therefore even though I had enough funds in my account, my bank declined the charge because of the wrong exp date being submitted. So I'll have to call them on this to clear it up.
I was really kinda upset about the idea of having to grind down the brake calipers, because I live in a condo, and I cannot use my garage anymore due to the fact that I've turned it into a home gym. So I was simply dragging my feet about installing the tires because I didn't want to ask my brother to use his lift again after just tying it up for three days w/my exhaust work.
So I was really glad about not having to grind anything.
 
wheel covers

ADELG670,
I wish i was as lucky with no grinding. This has been a real headache. I still can't use the car because of the rubbing. Can you tell me where you ordered the wheel covers? I guess eventually I well clear up the rubbing and will need them. Thanks,

nice photos

John t.
 
rubbing wheels...

For anyone interested,
I called Mitch and asked him to contact a service shop in my area to clear up the rubbing. He did as I asked and I brought it in today. 45 minutes of grinding and sanding and now the two front wheels do not rub. This was not an easy fix. The wheels do not fit the car. They had to machine off quite a bit of the caliper in order to make the wheels fit. I wish I had not purchased this package. It also cost me $30 to have the shop repair the rims. What a joke. It was nice that Mitch offered a full refund after this was uncovered but at that point it was really too late. They needed to do a better job matching wheels to this car. thumbs down for this experience.

John T.
 
I bought the Michelin tire setup from tirerack.com, but they're shipping new Ford 16x7 steel wheels (in the 2003/2004 design [i.e. 7 slots]) that fit perfectly. The total cost was $600 (including shipping) and before the $40 dollar Michelin rebate.

Here is a site for center caps, lugs nuts, and trim ring kit for the Ford wheels that will 'complete' the look. The caps are used and are $58 for the set, about $45 for the nuts, and about $45 for the trim rings. I'm not sure if I'll install the trim ring, but ordered it just to see the look, its only $45.

http://hubcaphaven.com/police_2003.htm
 
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I'm interested. Did you buy Ford lug nuts to use with the winter tire setup?
 
The original lug nuts are on for now, until I get the lugs that go with the center caps.

I tried to buy lug nuts from tirerack.com (the set was $20, so my real total from was $620), but the ones I received were too small. They're investigating what they shipped and I'm getting a refund.
 
I also bought the same deal from The Tire Rack, however unless they have just changed wheels, in the last couple of weeks, they are NOT Ford wheels. Yes they have 7 slots and are black steel, but that's about it. Cy at the Tire Rack told me they did not have any type of hubcap that would fit the wheels for the Marauder. I went to a Hub Cap Shack here locally and the owner told me he had never seen a wheel like these! The "dog dish" will not fit! The only thing that will fit the wheels I was sent are a type that hook onto the outside of the rim. I'm glad I checked because I was going to use your link and order the "dog dish" and lug nuts. I'll be interested to hear if you got them to fit.

Greg
 
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