Do you guys / gals trust anyone other than Ferrari Dealers to change your tyres ?

Wouldn't really go to kwik fit but ask ferrari to price match for you or just take it to formula one, etc

 

No

 

No.

 

Most Ferrari dealers will bring your car to local tire stores to change the tires. There is no extra technology in Ferrari's wheels or tires, they are the same with others. Just the pressure to tighten the wheel nuts which you can call them to get the numbers. As long as the tire store is well known and the price is cheaper than the dealer, I'll do it.

 

I have had several sets done by the local NTB. I order the tires from Tire Rack, and watch the tech perform the work while talking to him.

If I don't have time to watch the whole show, I just let my race tech mechanic perform the work.

 

AS noted above lots of other makes have TPMS & fancy wheels - one other option is to get your tyre from someone like Blackcircles or Merityre/Best Buy whose customers tend to have better cars and therefore they tend to need more skilled fitters

You spell tyres with a y so I'm guessing you are in the UK but your profile does not say where which makes a more specific recommendation difficult

 

I use one particular shop in my area, for all my tyre needs. Fact is, that if they know what they are doing and know the machines, those are the guys to use. The shop I go to, do a lot of work for guys who run track day cars, sportscars ect. I wouldn't trust my wheels and tyres to anyone else. A Ferrari badge on the entrance dosen't mean that they are the best at fitting tyres. There are some shops around who does nothing but this stuff and are really good at it. I know of Porsche dealers, Ferrari dealers, BMW dealers, you name it, who have done bad work with wheels and tyres, so in that regard, talk to the tech and make sure he knows what he is doing. Some of these guys have made it a bit of an art to balance wheels and tyres.

Just my o2

 

No. I live in the sticks. Had a tire repaired on the Pcar and later found out from the dealer that there were some dents on the underside. If they cannot do a Pcar properly there is no way they can do a 458 Spider. Why risk it? Roadside Assistance will take it to the dealer free.

Best

 

Yes absolutely someone other than the dealer is fine if they are the right someone. Usually a good independent is just as good or even better. The thing to look for is someone who has a lot of experience and has a top notch road force wheel and tire balance machine like the later generation Hunter machines- at least in the USA.

There is no magic with the dealer and the experience can vary widely. Some dealers can be excellent and others can be not so good. Also the dealer will most likely need to test drive the car to make sure everything is fit just right.

Have a look in the supercar section for the last time a dealer took a car for a test drive.....

Roadside can be great or also bad depending on the operator they use. They can damage your wheels if they are not careful.

I prefer to have my own independent shops do it- but I have a few I frequent.

 

I own a tyre shop and a 458, to avoid any marks on the rims from the tyre machine we place a towel on the machine, then the jaws grip the wheel, but the towel is between the jaws. With regard to tpms, its important to start demounting the tyre with the valve in the 1 o'clock position for the top bead, then the valve needs to be in the 5 o'clock position to remove the lower bead, this avoids contact with the black box on the bottom of the valve. We use lots of paste/lube that can be cleaned off after, its more important that you have an experienced fitter not where you have it done.

 

Is it really a big problem to have some marks on the rim that nobody can see??? Even if you curb the whole wheel while parking, it costs only $150 to repair to as shiny as just delivered.

 

Yes, of course. Many wheel/tire specialists in my area can do a better job than Ferrari dealers do. A Ferrari wheel is just an ordinary wheel with a Ferrari logo, there is really no fancy technology in it.

 

My uk local Ferrari dealer subs out tyre fitting to a man with a van. I personally would use a more permanent fitter with experience and latest contactless fitting kit.

 

Wheels in Motion have a touchless tyre fitting machine. Two of them, I think.