With the rise in the demand for high-quality aftermarket wheels, the number of retailers stocking all sorts of wheels and tires has also increased exponentially.
It won’t be surprising if you have several renowned retailers in your city, each one trying their best to pip the others to the chase and declaring themselves as the facility you should favor. It is the nature of business.
But the question remains: how do you select the most premier tire and rim shop? What are the factors which you should look for?
This is something that bothers countless people, and not only in the United States.
Here are some pro tips that will help you make up your mind.
How to choose a rim and tire retailer?
This section contains advice from some of the foremost professionals associated with this business.
- The retailer must stock all major brands: This is one of the principal conditions which has to be fulfilled. An ideal retailer or outlet should have the best brands like Fuel Wheels, Enkei, American Racing Wheels, Vision, and several others in their inventory. Plus, since most top-shelf aftermarket rims can be pretty expensive, the retailer must also sell models which will appeal to the budget-conscious.
There’s a catch here. As you probably know, unbranded wheels are available for much lower prices. But that doesn’t mean the retailer should also store such unbranded rims.
Brands do matter as far as aftermarket rims and high-quality all-terrain and 4×4 tires are concerned. Unbranded aftermarket rims have no quality control; they will probably fail you when you require them the most.
- The retailer should ideally store all sorts of rims: There has been an exponential rise in the sales of off-roading capable aftermarket rims over the last decade, perhaps a bit more. A competent tire and rim shop will definitely notice the changing tastes of their clients and the emerging market dynamics, which will in turn lead them to stock several high-quality off-road rims.
One mainstay of the latter category is Fuel Wheels. The brand was launched in 2009 to cater exclusively to people who loved off-roading and were looking for fantastic and robust rims for that purpose.
Its parent company, MKW Wheels, has been in the business for more than 50 years and is considered one of the finest manufacturers of premium alloy wheels for luxury passenger cars.
MKW’s gamble paid off; today, Fuel’s different families of rims are in great demand across the United States and worldwide!
- A variety of wheel financing options should be available: One of the reasons (as mentioned previously) why so many vehicle enthusiasts stay away from the best-available wheels in the market is the price factor. It can be pretty prohibitive at times, especially if you are on the lookout for 2-piece or 3-piece wheels.
But a quality tire and rim shop will have several options for wheel financing.
Financial support is a great boon to prospective clients who might not be able to settle the entire amount at one go. If your local retailer has tie-ups with companies like Progressive Leasing, Snap Finance, Balboa Capital or any other player in the same domain, you can quickly get credit to purchase your dream set of expensive Fuel Wheels which will transform the way your vehicle looks!
Other financing options should include the popular ‘lease-to-own‘ policy and flexible purchase options where you repay a certain portion each month as EMIs!
- Professional expertise across the board is a must: Whether you are shopping for rims, tires, lifts, or other products, your retailer should have a professional & experienced team who will be able to guide you wherever you stumble.
Let’s assume you have just purchased a set of the newest Fuel Wheels online from a retail outlet. When you reach home, you realize that the vehicle requires tracking as it is a standard practice provided for free by all professional tire and rim shop!
You call up the customer care number and receive no confirmation on when this essential service will be scheduled, if at all. Worst, the executive seems lost when you pose a handful of elementary questions about the new wheels!
Should any (or all) of this happen, do not ever rely on that particular outlet ever again!
- Don’t miss any value-added service provided: Here, we must mention one of California’s oldest and best-known retailers- Audio City USA. We spoke with them while working on these points and got excellent insights and feedback.
Look for any other service the retailer provides. This might include fast and cheap shipments across the USA, a free balancing session (preferably using Hunter’s Road-Force equipment) with every purchase, lowest-price guarantees, and some others.
Value-added services are a good indicator of how business-savvy the retailer is.
We noted that Audio City USA delivers all of these additional services plus some more. Perhaps you can try them out sometime!
To sum up
Now that you have a fairly good idea of how to select the best tire and rim shop near you, that’s one less headache!
Oh, and always read the fine-print on anything you are signing, especially if it’s related to wheel financing options.
A quality retailer can change your life for the better; so, be careful and do your research well.
