Tires a key point in lease negotiations

John Mahler

SPECIAL TO THE STAR

Q: I have a 2007 Acura MDX, on a three-year lease. My issue surrounds the Bridgestone Dueler tires.

When I bought the vehicle I was adamant about the fact that I needed an SUV that handled well in heavy snow. I was assured the MDX had superior road handling in winter.

The very first light snow that fell, I was going down my street and attempted to turn the corner. The car slid mercilessly out of control and $2,500 later, I began to understand I had a problem.

I went to the dealer who informed me the tires were summer tires and that I needed to buy winter tires. My point was that I should have been told this from the beginning.

The dealer did nothing for me.

So fast-forward to today. I am two years and 50, 000 km into my lease. I went for service the other day at a chain shop and the technician tells me my front tires are finished and the back one almost finished.

I went back to the dealer and the technician told me he was surprised the tires lasted 50,000 km. Bridgestone told me the same thing.

I approached the dealer and head office and all acknowledged the tires only last 45,000 to 50,000 km or about two years of driving. Nobody is willing to do anything about this.

So now I am expected to purchase a set of summer and set of winter tires. All of this could easily total $2,500 to $3,000 (they are 18-inch tires).

My point is this: why would Acura, which promotes itself as a luxury car, only put tires on a vehicle that last 45,000 km? I've taken on a three-year lease with tires that are designed only for two years. Obviously all of this should have been disclosed when I leased the SUV.

My guess is if Acura had to disclose this huge expense to every buyer, nobody would be leasing such a vehicle.

A: Your story is not unusual on new-car purchases/leases. Since I was not there during lease negotiations, it comes down to an argument over who said what in disclosure, and I cannot take sides on that part of the problem.

Contrary to your opinion, obviously you need winter tires even if you are driving an SUV. SUVs have no traction magic for stopping or turning, hence your experience with the curb. In Quebec, winter tires are required by law, even in urban centres. I expect this will be happening in Ontario as soon as Quebec crash stats have been analyzed.

The ideal situation would have been to include a set of winter tires at the time of the sales/lease agreement. During these negotiations, you can include anything in your lease that you might want or think you might want. This is the consumer's point of maximum power in the sales process. He or she can walk out the door if the deal does not come together.

Two sets of tires at the time of the purchase would have got you through the three-year lease.

You question "all this expense for a leased vehicle." Why should the maintenance on a leased vehicle be less than an owned vehicle? Tires are considered consumables on all vehicles owned or leased.

Mileage on tires varies greatly depending on where they are used, driving style and vehicle maintenance. You are correct that the Bridgestones on the vehicle are not high-mileage tires. But don't blame Bridgestone for that – they do make tires for the MDX that have a treadwear warranty of 105,000 km.

You can blame Acura for not choosing a better, longer-lasting tire. Acura chose a price point for MDX tires and Bridgestone supplied a tire at the quality level for that price point. By the way, Bridgestone has discontinued that particular Dueler tire that was OE on your MDX.

So in the end, a relationship between a customer and a dealer was ruined over something as simple as lack of dialogue at the time of a sale.

If I ran the Acura dealership, I would take this issue seriously enough to bring it up at a sales personnel meeting if there were similar complaints, and help out the customer by at least supplying the new tires needed at their cost.

If I were a consumer, I'd look well into the future for what the vehicle might need and include it in the negotiations of the lease: winter tires, extra wheels, trailer hitch, free tire changeovers spring and fall, free car detailing once a year, and free oil changes for the life of the car. That's not my list, it is one that a friend of mine negotiated into his sales contract, and he got it all.

Email tire questions to John Mahler at thetireguy_1@hotmail.com. Please include vehicle's make, model and year, tire brand and size, as well as your name, address and phone number. Volume of mail prevents us from answering all queries or providing personal replies.

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