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Tue Aug 18, 2020 9:54 am

Just got home from a tire center manager saying that Costco will not put any tires on your Vanagon that are not to the specification listed inside the door. I told him that I have after-market 15" wheels and the tires I ordered were a 102T load index, which isn't a 6 ply wall, but certainly enough of a weight rating for a Westfalia (Michelin Agilis CrossClimate 205/65R15C = 1875@54psi lbs). He said that my options were to walk out with them not mounted and with no warranty, or return the tires.

I asked if that was a specific Costco policy, why they didn't put it on the website? Seems simple enough and would prevent people from waisting time. He let me know that he didn't feel like discussing that. The only thing they have on their site is "The tire must meet all vehicle manufacturers’ safety standards and specifications" at the end of the FAQ. Just know that they mean exactly what is there and with no exceptions. Ended up returning them.

So... lesson learned. Don't buy tires from Costco unless you are matching exactly what is specified inside the door. So unless you're putting on 14" C rated tires, don't waste your time. Now, if I could only get my 2 weeks back waiting for delivery and my installation appointment. :evil:

One interesting thing to note that did sound legit was he mentioned that tire manufacturers won't honor a warranty for a tire that isn't the correct load rating listed on the vehicle. So it seems like unless you're buying tires with a specific load range of C, you don't really have a warranty. I wonder if that is anyone else's experience.

Tue Aug 18, 2020 9:56 am

Ask Costco if they will mount tires on rims that are not on the vehicle. You take in your rims with another vehicle and have them mounted. Go home and put them on your Vanagon. BTDT.

Tue Aug 18, 2020 9:59 am

I just installed tires from the Tire Rack for my street car. I have access to tire changing equipment, but I noticed they list authorized installers. I think you can even have them drop shipped.

Costco, Walmart etc probably just don't want to get in the middle of it period. Sort of like them refusing to plug a tire. Just not worth it.

There must be a local shop that can help you out or, put the rims in your car with your new tires and just find a tire shop to mount them.

Realize, I'm in Florida where there are a zillion businesses. If you're in the sticks, there may not be so many places to help.

Tue Aug 18, 2020 10:00 am

dobryan wrote: Ask Costco if they will mount tires on rims that are not on the vehicle. You take in your rims with another vehicle and have them mounted. Go home and put them on your Vanagon. BTDT.

I'm already done and home with the tires returned, and honestly don't want to give them my money anymore. Wasn't a pleasant experience.

That could be a great work-around, but my guess would be a hard no.

Tue Aug 18, 2020 10:09 am

While on a trip to California last year, one of our tires was punctured with a hole in the sidewall. All of the tires were near the end of their life, and the search for a comparable used tire was coming up empty. I planned to replace all 4...just not yet.

I opted to replace all 4 tires at Costco. Bridgestones were on sale, and I was on a serious budget. Once the service manager saw my vehicle, I was given the same treatment. The option I exercised, was to remove the wheels and bring them in by hand. They put the tires on the wheels, and I rolled them outside and put them on.

I did receive paperwork with the tires, and have used a local Costco to rotate, balance, and repair the tires as needed. I don't know if they would ever honor the warranty through the manufacturer...

Tue Aug 18, 2020 10:10 am

Time to find a general auto repair business that can mount and balance tires. You can usually spot them by the pile of tires outside waiting to be properly disposed of. Some used ones for sale is another clue.

Tue Aug 18, 2020 10:11 am

dobryan wrote: Ask Costco if they will mount tires on rims that are not on the vehicle
Buddy of mine did exactly that for tires on his '69 GMC van -- engine wasn't even installed at the time because we were waiting on the torque converter -- with no problems at all from the local Costco.

Admittedly this was in like .. 2014 .. so it may be different now.

Tue Aug 18, 2020 10:28 am

Actually, that tire is 6 ply rated, Load Range C, according to Michelin.

205/65R15C

The C at the end of the size descriptor means "Commercial" so it is a truck tire, like the 185R14C that came on many Vanagons.

So it actually exceeds the original tire load rating. But the Costco guy is correct that it isn't the same size as a factory spec tire and that means it is outside of their installation policy.

BTDT, gave up on Costco tire installation years ago because of this hassle.
They have installed tires on loose wheels I brought in but there are closer independent shops I'd rather give my money to.

Nothing new here. This has been going on for decades with chain tire places in my experience.

Mark

Crooked Designer wrote: Just got home from a tire center manager saying that Costco will not put any tires on your Vanagon that are not to the specification listed inside the door. I told him that I have after-market 15" wheels and the tires I ordered were a 102T load index, which isn't a 6 ply wall, but certainly enough of a weight rating for a Westfalia (Michelin Agilis CrossClimate 205/65R15C = 1875@54psi lbs). ........

Tue Aug 18, 2020 10:33 am

I took my CLK rims into them, said I wanted the light Truck tires installed on my 1999 Mercedes CLK 320, they said "OK" and I picked them up a few hours later.

I knew going in they would not install the tires on my Vanagon ( it is 14inch stock tire :) )

I also warned them not to mess up the fresh powder coating either ! They did a good job.

Tue Aug 18, 2020 10:35 am

Yes, California Costcos will mount tires to rims you bring in. I did it that way for my CLKs and 215/65 BFGs. No issue. Left the rims. Came back in an hour and picked em up. They even asked what pressure I wanted to spec. Now granted, it's a PIA if you aren't running this way with a spare set of wheels etc. Lawyers!!

Tue Aug 18, 2020 10:41 am

I always bring loose rims regardless of where I get tires. It's less work than fixing the screw-ups even if the place will mount the tires on the vehicle.

Tue Aug 18, 2020 10:51 am

My van has 15" alloys. When needing new tires, I wanted a specific brand, model and size. Discount Tire had the brand and model, but not the size. I printed out the spec sheet from Tire Rack, took it to my local Discount Tire where they proceeded to order the tires and price-matched. They had no problem mounting them.

Discount Tire also mounted tires to my Cabriolet wheels off the car (hard to bring a car in for a tire change when it's not running... that and I don't like others touching the car if they don't have to🤪).

Discount lists the CrossClimate, so it's an alternative chain to try.

Tue Aug 18, 2020 10:55 am

kamzcab86 wrote:

Discount lists the CrossClimate, so it's an alternative chain to try.

Good to know. Trying others and confirming by phone now.

Can't really bring just wheels off the van for a number of reasons.

Tue Aug 18, 2020 11:01 am

I once took my wife's car to Costco to have them remove our winter tires/rims from the car, swap our winter tires onto new rims, and put new summer tires on the old rims and mount the summer tires/rims onto the car.

I forget what all went wrong but they botched that job horribly. When my wife went to pick up the car and told them about the mistake the person who took our order said, "sorry about that, I'm really hung over today".

No more buying tires from Costco.

Tue Aug 18, 2020 11:40 am

Here is another thing to consider.
When I bought my KO2s in Albuquerque a few years ago , I asked if my warranty and free rotations would still be valid even if I let my membership lapse.
They said yes and I never had a problem rotating.
However a few years later I tried to get them rotated in California and was told that without a current membership I was SOL and did not even have a warranty with them any longer.
The tire manager was very nice and even helped me sort out a valve stem problem but he did so in the parking long and would not let my van into his shop.

Tue Aug 18, 2020 12:00 pm

I've always used Discount Tire and never had an issue. The Michelins on my Van are not "C" tires, but I just brought the specs, showed them with the derating for P tires they still meet the load requirements and they have no problems. I checked with Costco years ago on the Van tires and found they're policy wouldn't allow them to mount a 15" tire on the Van, so it's been their policy for a long time. I wouldn't risk my job for the rare Vanagon customer either.

I did use Costco earlier this year for shoes for the Golf - first time actually buying - since they were $150 a set cheaper than Discount. I had zero problems and great service.

Tue Aug 18, 2020 12:37 pm

?Waldo? wrote: I always bring loose rims regardless of where I get tires. It's less work than fixing the screw-ups even if the place will mount the tires on the vehicle.

One issue with that is if you clearance issues on bigger rims....I did that on my last set and my front weights were knocked off immediately by the knuckle...So it is another trip and waste of time to get them to re-balance and install.

Tue Aug 18, 2020 12:43 pm

The original tires on many of these vans were essentially extra load passenger tires, 205/70r14 reinforced with a 97 load rating before being derated 10%. You tires exceed that handsomely.

Tue Aug 18, 2020 1:02 pm

Franklinstower wrote: ?Waldo? wrote: I always bring loose rims regardless of where I get tires. It's less work than fixing the screw-ups even if the place will mount the tires on the vehicle.

One issue with that is if you clearance issues on bigger rims....I did that on my last set and my front weights were knocked off immediately by the knuckle...So it is another trip and waste of time to get them to re-balance and install. Yep, ran into that with 17" aftermarket rims on my Wife's Mini Cooper since the offset was a bit different than stock. Just enough for the calipers to hit the stick on wheel weights. I had to take the rims, all 4, back to work and move the weights 2 inches inward to make sure all rims would clear the calipers if mounted on a front position. Rears of course have all the room in the world since the brakes are smaller back there.... :P :P

Tue Aug 18, 2020 7:17 pm

Up here in the Great White North, Costco has the same policy on non-stock tire installation. I had to bring in my rims and have them install the BFG tires on my rims.

Can't wait for the new Kirkland Vanagon rims to come to market!