Tires

Why you should expect more from your tires with VIP
VIP Parts, Tires and Service has one of the largest selections of tires in New England. From pickup truck tires to commercial truck tires to trailer tires, VIP carries what you need. And best of all you’ll get the lowest prices on the best tire selection in the business. How do we know? We shop our competition every day.  And if you find a lower price, VIP will match it and give you back double the difference with our 200% Low Price Guarantee. Plus, VIP is 100% focused on helping you get the most for your money. This is why we created the Lifetime Tire and Alignment package that you can purchase with your tire installation for just $120.07!

The Lifetime Tire and Alignment package includes:

• Free Tire Mounting
• Free Multi-Point Vehicle Safety Inspection
• Free 30-day ride guarantee
• Free flat repairs for the life of the tires
• High-speed computer balancing at the time of installation
• Free tire rotations and tire rebalancing for the life of the tires
• Road Hazard Replacement for the life of the tires
• Free winter tire changeovers (includes rebalancing)
• A full four-wheel alignment at the time of installation and free four wheel alignment every 6 months or 6,000 miles, for the life of the tires

VIP takes tires seriously

With a large, well-trained staff of ASE certified technicians in all of our 56 stores in Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts, VIP can help you maximize the life of your current tires or provide you with the best products and services if new tires are needed. There is a reason why New England drivers depend on VIP for their tire needs. In combination with our extensive tire selection and our 200% Low Price Guarantee, VIP also offers you expert advice on every tire we sell. All tires are backed by a VIP 30 Day Ride Guarantee. VIP Road Hazard Replacement Guarantee is also available on all tires to ensure your complete satisfaction. If you need a tire repair or tire replacement at any point, check with VIP. We are just as committed as you are to maintaining and extending the life and safety of your tires. Call VIP today!

When to maintain, repair, and replace your tires
With its straightforward construction of polyester, steel, and rubber, our tires are designed to take us where we want to go, and last for tens of thousands of miles. However, this durability is not a guarantee without the right care and maintenance in place. Unfortunately, many drivers neglect proper tire maintenance and care. According to different reports, we don’t give our tires enough attention and more than a quarter of passenger vehicles have incredibly underinflated tires. When you combine this with the normal wear and tear of daily driving, our tires may be missing the mark in terms of fuel efficiency, vehicle performance, and overall safety.

Ensuring proper tire inflation
In your daily driving, focus on activities that protect your tires and vehicle. Routinely check your tire pressure, tire tread depth, and try to avoid potholes that can knock your alignment. Have you ever driven with your parking brake on accidentally? If you have underinflated tires, you are essential doing this every day. This puts tremendous added pressure on your vehicle and makes it less efficient.

More specifically, almost 150 million gallons of gas are wasted on simple problems like underinflated tires. In order to reclaim some of this lost money, you need to understand how to properly inflate your tires. Each vehicle has an owner’s manual with specific details and pressure recommendations for your front, rear, and spare tires. It is also printed on the inflation information sticker located on the drivers’ side door jam. Once you have these details, check your tires. This can be done with an accurate tire pressure gauge (small enough to keep in your car console) or with a professional mechanic. It is very important to check these inflation numbers in months that have extreme temperatures. Hot summer days can stress tires, and the winter can be brutal. You may be surprised to learn that you should check your tire pressure weekly in the winter months to avoid potential safety problems. When your tires are properly inflated, you will experience better fuel efficiency, improved vehicle handling, braking ability (especially essential in inclement weather like rain and snow), and overall vehicle performance.

Maintaining tread on your tires
Understanding your tire tread is another critical component of tire maintenance.  When you are looking at a tire and see the thickly imprinted grooves, this is the tread. The tread is the only part of your vehicle that touches the road, and is responsible for wicking away elements like water and snow to help maintain a solid traction to the road surface. While you may not hear about tread that often, it is incredibly important to both the safety and performance of your vehicle. The law states that your tread must be at least 1/16th of an inch or more. Are you in compliance with this?  To check your tire tread, use the “Penny Test.” Place a penny into a tread groove. If part of Lincoln’s head is covered by the tread, you are driving with the proper amount of tread. You can also use a tread depth gauge, but make sure to use this instrument in several different spots (outside edges and center) of the tire since tires wear unevenly. However, sometimes the best way to get an accurate read on your tread health is to inspect the car for some visual signs. All tires, including passenger tires have tread wear indicators. If you see these indicators (often the letters “TWI” and an arrow) have become flush with the tire tread, you are driving with an unsafe amount of tread and need a tire replacement. If your tread is worn, you run the risk of safety hazards like tire explosion. If you are looking for a solution, come to VIP. We can advise you if your tires can be fixed, or if they need to be replaced.

Replacing your tires

Whether you need passenger tires, all season tires, snow tires, winter tires, winter tires package, truck tires, pickup truck tires, light truck tires, commercial truck tires, trailer tires, or performance tires, VIP has it all for you. If you aren’t sure where to start, here are some common tire types to consider:

All-Season Tires
All-Season Tires, or All-Season Touring tires, are designed to offer good traction in a wide variety of weather. These tires will handle dry, wet, and light snow driving conditions and provide a confident ride year round.

Performance
No longer limited to sports cars and hot-rods, an increasing amount of today’s vehicles are coming equipped with High Performance and Ultra-High Performance (UHP) tires. These tires feature advanced tread compounds and state of the art construction to deliver improved handling, precise steering response, and enhanced high speed capabilities.

Light Truck
Whether used for work or play, towing and hauling, on or off-road, you expect the tires on your truck to get the job done. VIP has a wide variety of light truck tires available that will match the type of driving that you do with your truck:

• Highway / All Season Tires are recommended if the truck is primarily used on the highway for daily commuting or is seldom taken off-road. These tires will offer good year-round traction and very little road noise, providing a quiet, comfortable ride. These tires will also typically carry a longer treadwear warranty and are commonly available in higher load-capacities, making them a great choice for towing and commercial applications.
• All-Terrain tires offer a more aggressive or open tread pattern and are designed to provide improved traction in severe weather or off-road conditions while still delivering a quiet comfortable highway ride. Many all-terrain tires offer additional features such as reinforced sidewalls and deeper tread depths to help resist cuts, punctures, and other potential road hazard damage.
• Mud / Traction tires are designed to provide maximum traction in off-road or deep mud driving. These tires typically feature large tread blocks and a self-cleaning tread design that will keep you rolling, no matter what. Due to their aggressive design, mud tires are often a bit noisier on the road and typically do not offer mileage warranties, but provide the traction you need when the going gets rough.

Crossover / SUV
Crossover Sport Utility Vehicles (commonly called CUV’s or SUV’s) are designed to give versatility and extra capacity for more cargo or passengers, but still deliver ride and handling similar to a passenger car. Today’s CUV / SUV tires are similar in design to passenger and performance tires, offering a smooth quiet ride in various driving conditions. These tires often have a higher weight carrying capacity to accommodate the extra weight (and cargo) of these vehicles.

Winter
Winter tires are designed to provide maximum traction and stopping ability in snow and ice. Available in both studdable and non-studdable tread designs, winter tires typically feature larger tread blocks and a more open tread pattern that helps to evacuate snow and ice. Winter tires also feature enhanced rubber compounds that allow the tire to remain flexible at lower temperatures, which improves handling and traction.

Specialty / Off-road
In addition to a full selection of Passenger and Light truck tires, VIP also offers New England’s best selection of specialty and off-road tires, including:

• Trailer Tires
• Trailer Wheels
• Trailer Tire & Wheel assemblies
• ATV Tires
• Turf tires
• Lawn & Garden Tires

Wheelbarrow tires

Repairing your tires

If something seems to be wrong with your tires, your first instinct may be to replace them right away. Since frequent tire purchases can get expensive over time, it is important to understand your options when it comes to tire repair and service.  One common problem that people have with their tires is a puncture or tear after running over something sharp (like a nail) in the road. If the puncture is located in the tire tread and fixable, it is a good idea to see a professional. While tire plug kits are available, research has shown that many of these do-it-yourself repairs are done incorrectly and do not solve the problem, still leaving your tires and vehicle vulnerable to danger.

If your car begins to vibrate on a pretty frequent basis or feels like it is shifting to one side, even when you are driving straight, you may have an alignment issue. When your car is misaligned, there is a problem with the suspension. In your daily driving, including the instances of running over potholes or getting into a small fender bender, the springs can get stretched and the wheels can be thrown into incorrect angles. This can mean uneven tire wear, bad fuel mileage, and reduced safety since your car cannot perform like it is supposed to, such as stopping short.  Part of alignment can include tire rotation. If you are buying new front tires on a frequent basis, you are not alone. Front tires hold the weight of the car and impact of braking so will wear faster than rear wheels. A simple tire rotation can help you even out the wear and extend the life of your tires, and should be done on a regular basis depending on your vehicle specifications. VIP offers both tire rotation and full four-wheel alignment seven days a week. To truly get the investment from your tires, ask us about our VIP Lifetime Tire and Alignment package.

Call VIP today for all your tire needs!