Perth is lucky to have a driving landscape that’s anything but dull, coastal roads blasted by salt spray, the tougher terrain of the Darling Scarp and Hills for those with a 4WD, long stretches of freeway whizzing by at higher speeds, and a motorsport culture at Barbagallo Raceway that’s fostered a tight-knit community of performance enthusiasts.
The tyres that are suitable for a Mazda CX 5 chugging along Subiaco’s streets aren’t the same ones that’ll keep a Land Cruiser safe on its weekend adventures in Mundaring. The first step for any Perth buyer is to get a clear picture of their actual driving conditions and not just assume that whatever the car came with is good enough. The question of what the previous owner needed, and what the current driver really needs, can be vastly different. Buy tyres Perth shoppers should start by matching their tyres to how and where they actually drive, rather than focusing on price alone.
The Main Buying Channels Available in WA
Perth buyers have access to all the tyre retailers you’d expect to find in Australia, with a few added options. RAC Tyres is a godsend for those who don’t want to waste half a day sitting in a workshop waiting room. Their mobile fitting service will come to your home or workplace in the metro area on weekdays and Saturdays, with no call-out fee if you’re shelling out over $250, and a 10% discount for RAC members to boot.
Buying from Bridgestone is a no-brainer, given the sheer number of stores they have scattered across the Perth metro. Mycar has locations all along the north-south line of the city, from Bull Creek to Joondalup, while online retailers like Tyroola and OzzyTyres can deliver to Perth fitment centres. OzzyTyres also offers 0% finance for 24 months if you use ZipMoney to buy premium tyres, making it way more accessible.
Budget Brands vs Premium Brands, What Does the Difference Mean
The budget brands, Goodride and Kumho being the most well-known, can really deliver for the right set of circumstances. Tyre retailers like Tyroola reckon Goodride has the widest range of budget tyres available in the country, while Kumho sits in the next tier up with the quality of its ECSTA SPT KU31 earning it an Australian design award. And let’s not forget it held its own in dry weather testing as well.
What to Ask Before Buying?
People usually overlook load rating, speed rating and whether a new set of tyres ticks all the boxes for their vehicle when all they can think about is saving a buck. RAC reckons that regardless of how well your tyres look, they probably need to be replaced every five years, especially if you’re driving in Perth’s harsh UV environment where sidewall degradation can be a real issue even when the tread still looks good.
When you need to replace your tyres, make sure you also get your wheels aligned while you’re at it. Throwing new rubber on a misaligned wheel is basically just wasting your money. RAC does this for free if you get their 4 tyre mobile fitting service, which is worth around $85. Most places will try to sell you on a wheel alignment after you buy new tyres. Don’t say no to this one, it’s worth the extra cash.
Second-Hand Tyres and When They Make Sense
There’s a pretty active second-hand tyre market here in Perth. If you’re lucky enough to score a good set from Perth New and Secondhand Tyres in Bayswater, you can get second-hand tyres fitted for as little as $55. And if you’re running a low-mileage runabout or a car that’s just sitting around waiting to be sold, a second-hand tyre with some tread left on it might be a sensible choice.
However, the decision gets a whole lot murkier if you’re using the car for long highway drives or driving in the wet. You’ve got to think about the actual age of the tyre, whether there’s any hidden damage on the sidewall, and the fact that the manufacturer probably doesn’t stand behind it with a warranty. So the saving just isn’t as clear-cut as it seems at first glance.
