Y33 Load Rating

[NY94J30]

Is there any reason to be comfortable with a 91 load rating on a Y33? OE rating was 93.

The salesperson I spoke with at Tirerack assured me that Infiniti does not require an XL rating and that a 91 is fine so long as I don't hit any major potholes. It seemed to me that he was trying to talk me into spending more money at the expense of my safety.

I'm not asking if I could get away with a 91, I'm wondering if its safe.

[maxnix]

Sure, just have that guy sign a notarized statement saying it is safe.

93 and 94 are OEM minimum load ratings. No reson to go lower, but plenty to go higher once one understands slip angles and increased mileage.

[NY94J30]

And I did go higher.

A second salesperson told me that 91 would be as low as I could go.

[szh]

91 is too low to be safe. It is probably dangerous in your J30 and may also become illegal to do soon (Federal laws have been proposed to prevent tire places from putting on lower then OEM load index values) ... remember the Firestone-Ford SUV fiasco?

BTW, look at the http://www.costco.com web site in their tires section to see their policy about this! Well done, Costco!

EDIT: Here are the extracted words from their web site:

All tires, both new and those remaining on the vehicle, must meet all manufacturers’ safety standards and specifications. The final decision to install a tire on a vehicle will be made by the Costco Tire center manager or supervisor.

Speed RatingTires will only be installed if the speed rating is the same or higher than the speed rating that the vehicle manufacturer equipped the vehicle with from the factory.

Load Carrying CapacityTires will only be installed if the load carrying capacity is the same or higher than the load carrying capacity that the vehicle manufacturer equipped the vehicle with from the factory.

They are clearly thinking right!

Z

[szh]

so long as I don't hit any major potholes.

Unfortunately, there is no way to guarantee that. Does the "ny" in your name mean that you live in "New York City"? If so, then this is even more true than usual.

Z

[BadQ45t]

But Costco at this point sucks for tires, they only carry Michelin and BF Goodrich and will only put on stock sizes...plus their prices are not that great anymore and their service STINKS. I made the mistake of putting my wife's Sentra's tires on there, good luck getting a rotation in an hour. I agree it is good for them to have that overall rule, but they are not exactly the tire authority.

I'm surprised you got bad advise from the rack, they know what they are doing. I compromised with 94 rating for my Y33 (that was the stock load rating) since the tires I got were on blow-out special but the rep told me that was the lowest I should go and to try to get 98+ next set.

[NY94J30]

Not one, but two Tirerack sales people tried to sell me a 91 indexed tire as opposed to the 95 I was looking at. I just wanted confirmation that this was absurd.

The 91 indexed tire was $30 more per tire. I'd hate to think that was why.

[szh]

But Costco at this point sucks for tires, they only carry Michelin and BF Goodrich and will only put on stock sizes...plus their prices are not that great anymore and their service STINKS. I made the mistake of putting my wife's Sentra's tires on there, good luck getting a rotation in an hour. I agree it is good for them to have that overall rule, but they are not exactly the tire authority.

Oh, I totally agree that the selection at Costco is limiting. My point was not that they are the best in the tire business, but that they are "thinking right" when it comes to speed rating and load index issues.

Yes, I am also very surprised that Tire Rack reps were not on the ball with this issue. Grant (our ex-Tire Rack representative who moderated the Wheels and Tires forum) would take these guys and give them a rap on the head for such stupidity.

By the way, I think the service also depends on the manager at any given Costco. I just bought four tires from them - the total cost was just about $20 to $30 what I would have paid at Tirerack (plus shipping and mounting) and the multiple days wait. Total time was about 45 to 50 minutes, from my buying the tires to when I drove off!

The Costco installation manager did all the things I asked of him without any issues. For example, I said "pick the most recent set", so I got two tires with date codes of 0308 and two with 4807 - the newest ones he had! Perfect!! . "Give me a static balance" - no problem. "Glue-on weights only" - no problem. And, the one that takes the extra time from them: "No air tools" - no problem! He put two guys on the job (I watched them) and they got it done pretty darn quickly and did it well - they even lined up the tire dots with the stem when asked (took them extra time on two of the tires, since the dots are not visible on one side - directional tires!)

Just gotta ask nicely!

Z