[roy@gambitmotorsport]

I want to purchase some ContiSportContact 3 tires for a 335i, have them balanced and installed (retaining TPMS), as well as an alignment with driver in the car. Anyone know of a place near Pasadena or Alhambra that they could recommend? I could give the shop a week or so lead time on obtaining the tires or I'd be willing to pick them up at Tire Rack if the shop is "bring your own"-friendly.

Thanks for any advice!

[wj4]

I went to Tire Central in San Gabriel and really loved the service. Their phone number is 626-698-1182 BTW. If you pay cash, there's no tax. I paid them roughly $300 for 2 new tires for the rear and have them also rebalanced my front tires.

[roy@gambitmotorsport]

Originally Posted by wj4

I went to Tire Central in San Gabriel and really loved the service. Their phone number is 626-698-1182 BTW. If you pay cash, there's no tax. I paid them roughly $300 for 2 new tires for the rear and have them also rebalanced my front tires.

Thanks for the tip! After talking with Donald at Tire Central, on the phone, I get the impression that they treat rims right and can handle TPMS no problem. Their prices, installed, were also pretty good - just a few bucks more than the raw product from a popular on-line retailer.

They're getting some ContiSportContact 3's in for me, which I'll get installed early next week - right after I trash the remainder of my run-flats at the auto-x this Saturday. Decided to go with that brand and make for a lot of reasons - reviews, OE models, price, and tread life - we'll see how they stand up.

One thing Tire Central doesn't handle, I found out, is alignment. They recommended a place nearby called "JC Autohouse" in Temple City - they claim the price is a little more than something like Sears, but the job is excellent. I googled the name and found it brought up positively on a couple of JDM boards, so will give it a shot.

One thing I couldn't help noticing in looking at most every aftermarket brand, is that the rear tire width 255 has a much larger actual footprint than our stock Bridgestone RFTs. 10.2" compared to 9.6" in my case - not a *huge* difference, but I bet it will be helpful in 1st and 2nd...


Thanks again.

[wj4]

Originally Posted by roy@gambitmotorsport

Thanks for the tip! After talking with Donald at Tire Central, on the phone, I get the impression that they treat rims right and can handle TPMS no problem. Their prices, installed, were also pretty good - just a few bucks more than the raw product from a popular on-line retailer.

They're getting some ContiSportContact 3's in for me, which I'll get installed early next week - right after I trash the remainder of my run-flats at the auto-x this Saturday. Decided to go with that brand and make for a lot of reasons - reviews, OE models, price, and tread life - we'll see how they stand up.

One thing Tire Central doesn't handle, I found out, is alignment. They recommended a place nearby called "JC Autohouse" in Temple City - they claim the price is a little more than something like Sears, but the job is excellent. I googled the name and found it brought up positively on a couple of JDM boards, so will give it a shot.

One thing I couldn't help noticing in looking at most every aftermarket brand, is that the rear tire width 255 has a much larger actual footprint than our stock Bridgestone RFTs. 10.2" compared to 9.6" in my case - not a *huge* difference, but I bet it will be helpful in 1st and 2nd...


Thanks again.

NP! Yeah, Donald knows his stuff! Tell him the guy with the white 3 series on black iForged's say hi! I was worried about him using an air compressed wrench to put the lugs back on, like many many other shops. But he torqued them down correctly w/o me even asking.

If you want good alignment at competitive pricing...go to Darin at West End Alignment in the Torrance area. A lot of the guys who autocross go to him. His specialty is suspension. Anything from a basic alignment to corner balance.

[roy@gambitmotorsport]

Originally Posted by wj4

If you want good alignment at competitive pricing...go to Darin at West End Alignment in the Torrance area. A lot of the guys who autocross go to him. His specialty is suspension. Anything from a basic alignment to corner balance.

That's too funny! The posts where I read about JC Autohouse were just generic "wheres a good alignment in our area", on an RSX and the NASIOC boards, and West End was the other place brought up a lot.

I'm giving JC Autohouse the job this time, since they're about a mile away from Tire Central and I'm handling it all over a "long" lunch break.

[roy@gambitmotorsport]

Originally Posted by roy@gambitmotorsport

One thing I couldn't help noticing in looking at most every aftermarket brand, is that the rear tire width 255 has a much larger actual footprint than our stock Bridgestone RFTs. 10.2" compared to 9.6" in my case - not a *huge* difference, but I bet it will be helpful in 1st and 2nd...

Hmm... I was looking at Section Width (sidewall-to-sidewall), rather than Tread Width, for which the numbers aren't published for Continentals and many others. There's a correlation, for instanace:

Bridgestone RE050A (RFT) 255 rear
9.6" section, 8.6" tread

Bridgestone Potenza RE-01R 255 rear
10.3" section, 9.4" tread

So, I'm guessing I'll still hit at least 9.1" rear tread, 1/2" more than stock.

[wj4]

Originally Posted by roy@gambitmotorsport

That's too funny! The posts where I read about JC Autohouse were just generic "wheres a good alignment in our area", on an RSX and the NASIOC boards, and West End was the other place brought up a lot.

I'm giving JC Autohouse the job this time, since they're about a mile away from Tire Central and I'm handling it all over a "long" lunch break.

Sounds good! The downside with Darin is that since he's so popular..he's always booked. I had to make an appointment about 2 weeks in advance, lol.

[E90330iS]

How much does Darin charge for alignment?

[wj4]

Originally Posted by E90330iS

How much does Darin charge for alignment?

I don't recall as it was nearly a year ago since I went to him. It's around $100 for a thorough alignment. After he's done, you go out and drive and come back and tell him how you like it. He readjusted mine 2 times to my liking.

[Arnel_The_Tireguy]

Darin charged one of my customers $95 a few months ago. I send a lot of my customers to him and they've always been satisfied with his work.

[E90330iS]

Thanks guys!