derfA8L

So this will be my first foray into the world of 20" rims/tires. The largest diameter wheels I've had have been 19" and I've been fortunate to this point---even with 255x40x19s on my prior D3s. Now with the new car's 265x40x20s the sidewall height will be about 4/10ths of an inch lower than my current D4's 255x45x19s. My driving is mainly in the NYC and Long Island area.

Here's what's being offered by my dealer:

Company is CNA National - Preferred Tire Care+Plus Benefits
Covers both tires & wheels (cosmetic damage as well as major rim damage)
No deductibles
No coverage limits
No mileage limits
Unlimited claim benefits (excluding vandalism)
Covers roadside assistance, towing, car rental if vehicle is laid up for a covered repair.

My dealer's service department has had no negative issues with CNA.

Policy list price is $1990 (3-year term); I've been offered the policy at $1690.

What do you guys think? Anyone have any experience with CNA?

TIA

derf

KnappAttack

You can buy a lot of tires for $1700. Like two complete set. I know I wouldn't be buying insurance. Perhaps if you like to grind your rims on curbs and such but I don't like doing that myself.

jakematic

I'm not a fan of insurance of any kind unless it's absolutely necessary - like business or umbrella.

However... knowing the roads up there it might not be a bad idea.
The tires I wouldn't be as worried about as the wheels since they are mighty 'spensive.

Does is cover just the rims, or the whole wheel, and will they replace with OEM if out of round, etc ?
Yes I'm being particular about the verbiage as wheels are so often improperly called 'rims' these days that it may be a way out for the insurer...


Of 20" ?
I've never seen a single set of 4 much below that unless they were an off brand or not correct OE spec.

KnappAttack

All kinds way, way below $1700


http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....omCompare1=yes

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....omCompare1=yes

I don't why the Pirelli's don't come up right above, they are showing a 17" tire, but if you go down to the 265/40/20's they are $860 a set. Hankook summer rubber is $584 in the next size wider at 275's

derfA8L

The insurance covers tires AND wheels. Tires are of less concern, it's the wheels. Wheels are covered under this policy for major damage as well as for cosmetic, including "curb scuffs." I do believe it covers OEM replacement (I will confirm that). Jake is correct about the replacement cost of one of these OEM Audi wheels---each one can run a grand and beyond at retail.

jakematic

Interesting, good info thanks.

My SA chooses what tires goes on after giving him an idea of what I want.
That sounds ridiculous probably, but I have no interest in playing around with anything other than what he and Audi recommend.

Also NEVER go anywhere else for anything except Top Tier gasoline, not even washer fluid - spare Audi fluids are in my trunk/garage.
After spending $100k on the vehicle I'm surely not gonna cheap out on the rest.


Have read far too many posts over the years about potholes and NY roads eating wheels.
I would never have a wheel straightened, unless maybe it was on my old 1972 Chevy truck...

Let us know what you find as I may do that next time due to my occasional ventures up that way.

BigBoy11

Get the insurance. CNA is a good company that has been around a long time. We had a blowout on I-78 in NJ in July and long story short, to replace the 20" Pirelli All-Season tire and wheel plus alignment, it totaled about $1200. Small pothole, big damage. Roads in that area are awful as you well know and it just isn't worth the risk not to have the coverage.

DRCHA6

You might want to ask if your dealership offers the "A8 Refresh Program". Mine does and offers free rim refinishing (sadly too often used) and free paintless dent removal. These services were unlimited on my '11 and continue on the '15. Unless you totally obliterate a rim I cannot see where this insurance would be advisable.

rexwilson

the thing that concerns me here is that your dealer was offering this. I recently had an experience where I was very close to buying a car, and I thought I had agreed upon a final number with the dealer. Then they came at me at the very last minute with a list of optional addons, including silly things like a $1,000 sealant (translate: coat of wax), lost key insurance, etc. My understanding of these packages is that they all carry a very high margin for the dealers, and they are a stunt that dealers resort to when they are limited in how much they can charge for the car itself, where the invoice costs are well known and where Audi sets the prices. The way dealers can really add up their revenues is to try to throw all kinds of silly optional add-ons at customers. I found this (and the way the dealer went about their tacky "order before midnight tonight" style of presentation) to be sufficiently off-putting that I cancelled my purchase from this dealer. I wonder if somebody at Audi might want to know about this: a dealer selling Audi's flagship $90,000 car is telling customers that Audi doesn't know enough about applying paint to the vehicle, and the only way I can be protected against a dull finish is to pay the dealer $1,000 for an extra clear coat. Is that the message Audi wants dealers telling Audi customers?

HouTexAudi

I never buy this type of insurance--sometimes I'm sorry but most times I'm not. You're just paying someone else to worry for you and they're making money on this. When I got my S8 the dealer threw in a deal that gives me 2 free wheel repairs per year and so far I've gotten one wheel fixed from curb rash and I now have another that I will get fixed the next time I'm in for service (why do they make those darn drive-in bank lanes so narrow?). However, even when I've had to pay for this in the past it's usually just $150, so no big deal. Hitting a pothole hard enough to bend or crack a wheel will set you back a lot more, but if you're careful you can usually avoid those big ones and we have lot's of them here in Houston (so far so good). I've had several incidents over the years where I've hit a pothole and it caused a tear on the sidewall on the inside and a bubble comes up on the outside and I've had to replace the tire, but even the OEM 21" Continentals on my S8 are only about $400 and the same sized Pirelli's are only about $250 so I could buy quite a few of these for the cost of the insurance.

I guess it comes down to your driving habits and how much exposure you feel you have.