Shipping Wheels and Tires: 2022 Guide

It is critical, whether you are a home seller or a business, to ensure that you are correctly shipping wheels and tires. Damages might occur and money can be wasted if there is a lack of care and attention, particularly when it comes to packaging and shipping options.

Appropriately transporting wheels and tires can be a difficult task. However, this article can help! When it comes to shipping tires and wheels, it is more than possible to avoid causing any damage.

In this article we are going to look at:

In order to ensure that your wheels and tires arrive safely and in the same condition in which they were shipped, we recommend that you read our top advice for shipping wheels and tires through a shipping carrier.

As you might expect, there are some considerations to make when shipping wheels and tires through a shipping carrier.

So, what is the most efficient method? Let’s take a closer look below:

Best Way to Ship Wheels and Tires

Before shipping, there are a few things that you need to consider. These guidelines will help you to ensure a seamless delivery of wheels and tires when using a carrier service to ship.

Before You Ship

  • Determine your shipment’s dimensions and weight in order to get the most accurate and cheapest estimate to ship your wheels.
  • The tires must be deflated or the pressure valve must be opened before shipping by air freight service. The wheels will be better protected if they are shipped with the tires and with the air pressure set at 10 psi when transported by road.
  • Make sure someone is present at the drop-off and pick-up locations when packages are picked up and delivered.
  • Determine the estimated delivery time and ensure that the wheels or tires are appropriately packaged for shipping.

The next step is to make certain that your tires and wheels are properly packed. If you do not follow these instructions, they may arrive damaged and unusable.

As previously said, you should make sure that your tires are deflated, as this could be potentially dangerous if they are being shipped by air or damage the wheel if they are being transported by road.

How to Pack Your Wheels and Tires

Weighing and measuring the tires is the first step in preparing them for delivery.

For 13- and 14-inch tires, the weight of a tire without a rim is typically less than 16 lbs (~7kg), which means that you could theoretically put four of them into a single cardboard box without exceeding the typical weight limit of 70lbs (~30kg). However, you should keep in mind that they must fit into the recommended size of a box, or you will be charged an additional fee.

In addition, you must consider the dimensional weight, which is not the actual weight of the package, but rather a measurement of the capacity of the package, expressed in kilograms. To calculate the dimensional weight of a package, multiply its dimensions by the volume of the package, and then divide the result by a coefficient that varies from 5000 to 10000 depending on the firm.

If the actual and dimensional weights differ, the higher one is used to determine the price — in this situation, the dimensional weight would be four times the actual weight.

It might be cheaper to deliver two bulky parcels (each with two tires) rather than one large huge one.

You could save a lot of time and money if you carefully evaluate your options and compare the dimensions and pricing of various couriers.

The following steps can be used to pack any sort of wheels and tires:

  1. Before packing your wheels for shipping, make sure they are clean and free of debris.
  2. Placing a sheet of foam 2 cm larger than the tire on each face and taping it to the wheel to prevent scratches is a good idea because it will prevent scratches.
  3. You should wrap each wheel individually in robust bubble wrap and secure it with tape if you are shipping wheels separately from tires.
  4. Preserve the wheel by wrapping it in cardboard in the same manner as you did with the foam in step 2, and then cover everything with protective plastic film.
  5. Polystyrene foam should be used to cushion a box before placing the wheel or car part inside. Cushioning materials should be used to fill in the gaps.
  6. The box should be closed and sealed. Several layers of tape should be used to reinforce the seams and edges.
  7. If you are shipping a set of wheels and tires, lay the four packaged wheels on a pallet and attach them with straps or other means of fastening.

Check out this video for more guidance on how to pack Wheels and Tires for shipping:

Some of the most popular carriers for tire and wheel shipping include:

  • USPS
  • UPS
  • FedEx

Cost to Ship Wheels and Tires

Different shipping companies charge different rates for shipping wheels and tires.

The cost to ship a set of wheels and/or tires typically ranges from $50 to $150 per tire/wheel. It is decided by the weight and size of the item being shipped as well as the distance traveled.

Since there are many different sizes of wheels and tires, the characteristics of your cargo will decide how much it will ultimately cost you.

Here is a cost breakdown for shipping wheels and tires.

Average costs:

Cost to ship wheels: $50 – $80 average

Cost to ship tires: $50 average

Cost to ship mounted wheels and tires: $50 – $150 average

For the remainder of this section, we will look at:

Cheapest Way to Ship Wheels (No Tire)

wheels with no tire attached

Shipping charges might vary significantly from carrier to carrier, thus it is usually advisable to obtain many estimates.

Whenever it comes to shipping wheels without a tire, the most cost-effective method is to package the wheel yourself using supplies you already have at home or that you can obtain for a reasonable price from a local store.

Oftentimes, you will be able to locate everything you need to package the wheels in and around your home, especially if you have any boxes, cushioning, and plastic wrap leftover from prior internet purchases.

According to the typical cost, you should budget between $50 and $80 per tire; however, the amount you spend will vary depending on the weight of your shipment and any additional insurance expenses.

Cheapest Way to Ship Wheels and Tires (Tire Mounted)

wheels and tires

Similarly to the preceding point, it is usually advisable to search around when looking for the best price for shipping a wheel with a tire attached.

Because both the wheel and the tire are included, you should expect to pay between $50 to $150 on average per wheel, though the cost may be greater if you are shipping across vast distances.

For example, you might ship to a business address rather than a residential one, check for online discounts and special deals, or become a member of the UPS eBay Saving Program if you are wanting to save money on shipping.

Cheapest Way to Ship Tires (No Wheel)

stacks of tires

Of course, if the wheel does not have a tire on it, you may need to include some more padding in your shipping package. The cheapest way to do this will be by using packaging/padding materials that you can find around your house.

As mentioned before, it’s important to search around for estimates and keep an eye out for any special discounts that shipping companies may be running. If you send tires on a regular basis, you may be eligible for a discount based on your volume.

Shipping Wheels with Common Shipping Carriers

Shipping Wheels with USPS

Price: You can easily gain the cost of your package with their calculator.

Reliability: Consumer Affairs reports that the USPS has 3,099 complaints on file, which include: Lost Mail (1,126), Damaged Mail (193), Stolen Mail (23), Privacy Violations (13), and General Complaints (1,744). This excludes complaints about hostile employees (73), drivers (7), and mail services such as Priority Mail (74).

Convenience: With Express Mail and Priority Mail, you can order pick-up service. Delivery & Tracking Confirmation services are only offered for a fee with certain shipment kinds.

Shipping Wheels with UPS

Price: You can find UPS shipping costs here.

Reliability: UPS has 797 complaints on file, according to Consumer Affairs, which include: Damaged Shipments (232), Lost Shipments (215), Billing Problems (8), and General Complaints (342). This excludes Phantom Delivery (18) and UPS Store complaints (42).

Convenience: UPS provides commercial and residential pick-up for all services, as well as free tracking and delivery confirmation.

Shipping Wheels with FedEx

Price: Use the FedEx shipping calculator here.

Reliability: FedEx has 272 complaints on file, according to Consumer Affairs, resulting from a combination of late deliveries (161), damaged shipments (89), failed deliveries (240), billing (17), lost (12), and insurance (3). This does not include complaints against drivers (69) or specific FedEx Ground services (19).

Convenience: FedEx provides commercial and residential pick-up, as well as free tracking and delivery confirmation for all services.

Tips for Choosing the Best Shipping Carrier for Wheels and Tires

choosing a shipping carrier

When shipping with popular shipping companies, it is important to look around for the greatest pricing as well as the most environmentally friendly practices. Some important tools and services that you may want to take into consideration are as follows:

  • The weight and dimensions of your package can be entered into an online quote tool to obtain a precise price.
  • Insurance for your package, as well as information on any supplementary insurance you may require to protect yourself from any shipping problems.
  • This includes information on company shipping policies and processes, such as the necessity that tires be deflated if traveling by air freight.
  • General limits, such as a maximum size or the transportation of large tires, apply.
  • Costs for collection or drop off of items
  • Packaging guidelines are provided.

You should also consider:

1. Creating an Estimate for Your Shipping Costs

Shipping costs for wheels and/or tires can be estimated using carriers such as UPS, USPS, and FedEx if you know the approximate weight, size, and shipping distance of your wheels and/or tires.

2. The Average Weight

If you’re shipping wheels and tires together, the overall weight will most likely be between 55 and 125 kg, or even more in some situations. Various weights are employed depending on the properties of the wheel and tire in question.

For their weight, rims can range anywhere from 30 to 100 kg per piece, with heavy-duty and automobile rims being the heaviest on the planet. Aside from the fact that steel rims weigh more than aluminum rims, the type of material used also makes a difference in weight.

When unloaded, the average weight of a single passenger or light vehicle tire is roughly 25 kg, depending on the size.

3. Dimensions

For passenger autos and light trucks, the normal tire sizes range from 14 to 22 inches in diameter in diameter. The width of the tire and the diameter of the rim will be different depending on the kind of tire you choose to use.

Instead of taking your measurements, you can use a tire size calculator to figure out what size tire you need. With the help of the calculator, you can find out what size tire you need by inputting the numbers found on the sidewall of the tire or the make, model, and year of your automobile.

4. Distance Between The Two Points Of Delivery

Once you’ve calculated the weight and size of your tire shipment, you can estimate the total cost of your cargo by entering the addresses to where you’ll be delivering the tires and the addresses from which they’ll be shipping into the shipping calculator.

Please keep in mind that shipping costs will increase proportionally to the distance between the place of origin and the point of destination.

The size, weight, and distance of your shipment should be entered on the websites of the courier service you choose. The most cost-effective plan of action is to collect numerous quotations to choose the most cost-effective shipping option.

According to UPS, each shipment must not exceed 150kg in weight, so if you’re shipping more than one tire, you may need to ship them separately or in groups of two. For tires that need to be shipped in multiples of one, you may need to ship them separately or in groups of two.

5. Additional Fees and Charges

You should also consider how much you will spend on any shipping supplies you may require, such as a plastic wrap, heavy-duty boxes, or foam wrapping. Although some transport companies require that tires be delivered in boxes, other companies are satisfied with merely covering them in plastic wrap.

You may have to pay the carrier to come to pick up your tires as well, depending on your situation. This service is provided for free by some delivery services (such as the United States Postal Service) for parcels that weigh less than a specific weight limit. Others charge a pick-up fee ranging from $5 to $10 per item, depending on the situation.

There are three characteristics to consider while selecting a shipping company:

Reliability: The organization’s dependability in terms of insurance and making good on claims if the item is lost or damaged in transportation is important to consider. Is it expected that the item will arrive within the estimated delivery time frame?

Convenience: Will the shipping company come to your home or place of business to pick up the delivered package? Is there a service that tracks my package?

Price: The cost of shipping – Is it accurate to say that the cost of sending something is so high? There has to be a less-priced choice available somewhere!

Summary/Conclusion

Shipping wheels are less expensive than you may imagine; expect to spend $50 per wheel in shipping fees, plus an additional $5-10 per wheel in packaging expenses, for a total of $100 per wheel. The quickest and most straightforward method of shipping wheels is to leave the tires on and cut out cardboard circles, which are then deflated and wrapped in shipping wrap. However, if this is not an option for you, you’ll need to look for oversize boxes and then pad the tires to fit them.

When it comes to selecting a courier, the suggestions provided above should assist you in identifying the most appropriate solutions for your needs.

Do you have any other suggestions, tactics, or strategies for obtaining low-cost shipping on wheels?

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