Wheel and Tire Insurance
 

I'm deciding whether to buy this. They brag of many coverages, but most of them are redundant to my auto insurance policy, like "ding and dent repair." Gimme a break. Three do appear to be relevant:

• Tires. Normally, I buy this coverage with my tires, but this would cover the factory-mounted tires, and I could skip buying it for future sets if the coverage is comparable to what I normally buy.
• Wheels. I rejected this idea at first because I doubt it covers curb rash, and that's the only damage I've done to any wheel in sixty years of driving. On the other hand, I've never driven 20" wheels with such low-profile tires defending them against potholes. And the potholes, "they is increasing".
• Key. I chuckled. Then I remembered these computer/transmitter keys cost several hundred dollars, and they are fairly easy to damage.

Thoughts and experience with these policies? What premium have others paid?

The new baby should be only days away.

Gary, waiting with bated breath

Gary,
My wheel and tire insurance was 1000 for 3 years. From what I have heard, they vary from 800 to 1200 for 3 yrs.

Hmmm. Calculating insurance value isn't this simple, but notionally that's like assuming you will probably (say 75%) lose a key (~$200), and destroy one tire in three years ($600) or have one chance in four of destroying a wheel (25% of $3000=$750).

Reasonable bet at $800. Plausible at $1000. Starts to get iffy (for us that is) at $1200. Even with the cost of the new Carrera Classics, which I haven't priced as yet.

Still mulling. Must find out premium requested by my dealer. And see if negotiation is possible.

[Edit: Wait! It only covers three years, not the entire warranty period. Hmmm.]

Gary

They offer various plans from 3-5 yrs. they are flexible on pricing and it is up to you to negotiate. A set of carrera classics is about $5,500.

Oh thank Goodness. They look expensive. I figured ten at least.

G

Just got a set for my winter tyres and it was 5500, inclusive of tpms and valves.

IMO wheels and tire insurance is a must !

I bought it so that I could just forget about the tires and wheels and drive....mine comes with windshield chip insurance...am having the fix two chips.

frankly, imho, insurance companies are merely another form of legalized organized crime..you are not going to win ever and you pay a premium for "peace of mind" (hey, that's a nice car yuz got dere, wouldn't want sometin bad to appen to it)


Premiums are calculated to provide maximum benefit to the insurance companies...they are the ultimate bookies.

I thought this was a dumb idea. But then I paid $1k for my M3 (5 yrs, 19" rims, PS2s).

So, 1 x PS 2 at year 2 (nail).

Then recently, some object (flattish) kicked back at an angle by a truck - as merging no time to evade as looking over 3/4 shoulder.

Result:
* 2 flat tires
* one bent 19" rim (weird as front was OK and took first bump), replacement warranted as 2 flat spots
* also 1 slightly bent strut - front RHS - must have been the angle (not covered, $$$).

So W&T ins. has been worth it for me. Depends on driving distance and state of roads/trucks and what not. Where I live I think it makes sense.

YMMV - literally. But good idea to do some probability analyses. Seems where I am I get one low-profile flat every 18-24m.....

Would be a buyer for a P-car.

Insurance is an odds game. It's like gambling, except the house has lots of profit margin tacked onto it. A HUGE profit margin, designed to prey on fear. Run the numbers, it's way overpriced when compared to the risk.

If you can afford to self-insure, you're way better off self-insuring, as the odds say you'll end up paying WAY more than a set of tires/wheels in the long run if you try to insure it. I doubt anyone on this forum would have an issue buying a couple $300 tires, so my advice is: skip the insurance.

I bought this with my Jag XKR and had a bent rim and ruined tire at about 1 year in, so it paid for itself. You just never know. My thinking is, if I spend over 100k for a car the extra 800 is reasonable if I know I will be driving a lot, which I will. Will some who buy never need it? Of course. I got bit once and will definitely buy for my 991 because my drive has plenty of rough road and I am going to enjoy the hell out of driving every day.

I didn't buy this with my last BMW purchase. Car has 20" wheels. So far I've had two curb rashes (very easy to do with the 20") and one nail in a tire. Before this haven't had a curb rash in 10 years! Sure going to try and get it with the 991S with 20" Sport Techno wheels that I've got coming in February.

The two big questions about coverage are:

• Refinishing wheels that suffer curb rash
• Replacing off-side tire when tire on same axle must be replaced

For me, the first one is far more likely damage than actually bending a rim. Thinking back, in sixty years of driving I have lost hub caps cornering hard enough to flex a wheel, and I have damaged several hub caps on curbs and one alloy wheel. I've also 'bruised' tires in potholes, but I never have damaged the wheel itself in a pothole. My initial concern about these new 20's was the reduced sidewall height would increase the risk of damaging a wheel in a pothole. A friend pointed out the section height remains the same. The entire wheel/tire combination is taller for the 991, so the height of that protection for the wheel is still what it was with the 997. No increased risk there.

The second risk (replacing an offside tire not itself damaged) is covered by the road hazard insurance I buy with each new set of tires. For conservatism, assume the dealer package provides the same coverage. (But do check. Don't count on this assumption.) Also for conservatism, assume the dealer package covers curb rash incidents. If I assume the curb rash annoys me enough for replacement, the cost of that damage is $1375 using DYBT's number. Ditto the conceivable but unlikely bent rim.

The cost of tire damage. Well, I do see damaged tires regularly because we live where the roads we take to town are used by construction trucks as well. The odd drywall screw will finish a high-performance tire. The road-hazard insurance with new tires costs roughly $30 per tire. Figure once a year for rear tires, that's six over a three-year policy. Eighteen months for fronts means four over the same period. Ten tires at $30 each is a $300 cost for covering this risk.

The other coverages are neither here nor there. Just duplicates of my auto insurance, except for this one line that says: "key replacement". These new keys in the style of a television remote are easily damaged, it's true. Call it $250 bucks for a replacement.

Now we need probability numbers. At least rough ones, to assign a value to protecting against each of those risks.

• Tire damage: Value as stated. The road hazard stuff is pretty competitive so the premiums are not inflated. They represent an average person's risk plus a reasonable profit for the company. The only question is whether your own risk is above or below the 'average' person. Mine is slightly higher than average, so that $300 is a pretty good estimate of the value to me. It's what I pay elsewhere and I do choose to pay it. Q.E.D.
• Key replacement: In three years? Maybe fifty-fifty in the past. My hands are getting more clumsy every year with arthritis and those keys don't like being dropped on a cement surface. On the other hand, my new car was built with that enter-and-drive feature so the key stays in my pocket, reducing the risk of my dropping it in a parking lot. Maybe at home, taking it out of my pants, I might drop the key on a tile floor. Let's call it 25% chance over three years. For me. YMMV. That's 250*25% or $62.50.
• Wheels. Deliberately left to the last. Replacing one will cost me $1375, which overwhelms the cost of the other risks. The benefit from those other risks being covered adds up to $362.50. Hell, call it $400. Deduct from the upfront premium for this package and you have $600 plus or minus $200 at different dealers. The decision boils down to this: Is the value of covering the wheel damage risk greater than $600?

"Peace of mind" isn't a value to consider for these risks. Not for me. I can afford to self-insure if I choose. The risk of liability in a traffic accident is on an entirely different order of magnitude, but buying a wheel is just an annoyance. So it comes down to assessing the risk of my circumstances. If I can get this policy for $800, deduct $400 for the value of the other coverages and the price is $400 to cover wheel replacement. So I ask myself: 400/1375 is about 1/3. (30% if we're picky.) Is the chance of my ruining a wheel higher than one in three?

Hmmm. Much simpler question. Easy to answer if they want 1000-1200 for the policy. My odds of damaging a wheel are definitely lower than fifty-fifty. The policy making economic sense depends on how much lower I assess my risk. Is it only one chance in four I'll damage a wheel? Then the policy isn't worthwhile unless I can get it for $700.

Realistically, that's about where I put my risk. One in four at worst that I'll damage a wheel enough to replace it. Remember, if it's only curb rash, we have shops that specialize in repairing that. Even a fancy wheel like the Carrera Classics won't cost more than a few hundred to repair.

I can afford that. Peace of mind isn't a factor, but state of mind is. I would feel stupid paying them $800 to $1200 for insurance coverages I value at no more than $700. And that $700 is an estimate that puts all the assumptions in their favor. Those are assumptions I would have to check carefully to feel I was exercising "due diligence". My time is more valuable than that "due diligence" effort, even in retirement. I have stuff to go and places to do!

No wheel and tire coverage for me. YMMV of course.

Gary

When I bought my Cayman in '06, the tire/wheel policy was $550, I used it once for a damaged tire that saved me $325. This time around they wanted $1000. Stock wheels are generally pretty tough, I think something bad enough to ruin one would also likely cause suspension repairs, which could fall under comprehensive. I have a guy who fixes curb rash for under $100, I can afford the 19" tires on my car, not worth it to me.

I have rolled the dice and have not bought any of these. I have a friend who lives in a very nice nieghborhood, the largest and most expensive home is owned by a guy who sells these policies to the dealers. He is making a large margin.

I got my 991 the same time as I got a Cayenne S for my wife, total price was over $200K from the same dealer. The "finance guy" was really pushing the Key Insurance. He said that since I bought two cars from them he would sell me the Key Insurance for only $375 each car instead of the normal $395. Wow = what a deal! No thanks.