When it comes to automobile safety, while newer technology like back-up cameras and lane assist are helpful, tires are probably the most important feature and one drivers may not give a lot of thought. But, having the right tires for your car and for the season can make a huge difference. Tires may seem pretty simple and straightforward, however, there are many components to take into account.
This is where professionals can steer you in the right direction. “There is no one on our sales staff that has under five years of experience,” says Chris Mortensen, co-owner of Samaritan Tire Pros along with his son Mike. “I've been in this industry 40 years and Mike's been doing this for 15, so you're never going to be talking to someone about tires that doesn’t have experience.”
They also have ASC (Automotive Service Excellence) certified technicians performing all of the automobile work. “We don't have a lot of turnover - several guys that have been with us for well over 10 years, so it's an experienced crew of people,” he says.
Samaritan also uses the best equipment in the industry. “We use road force balancers, which provide a higher quality way to balance tires,” says Chris. “And, all of the alignment equipment is on the newer side. We continually update all of our equipment.”
When Chris purchased the business in 2003, he had already been with Goodyear for 25 years, working his way up from installing tires to serving as regional manager. Mike came on board with Samaritan when he was only 16. “It was my first job,” he says. “Then, after going to school in Mankato for business management, I came back here and went into sales.”
He enjoys working alongside his father and helping customers. “That’s the most fulfilling part about it. There’s no pressure to hit a sales quota for a particular brand, so we can recommend whatever tires we think are right for people.”
Originally a Goodyear dealer, Samaritan became a multi-branded dealer of all major brands of tires about 15 years ago. “It comes down to what meets customers’ needs and this way they have a lot of choices,” says Chris. “Inventory's really not an issue because we have three large distributors that are local.”
He adds, “I was fortunate when I bought the company that it had a big customer base and we’ve held on to customers. We have a lot of repeat business. Because Samaritan's been around for so long in Edina and Minnetonka, there are generations of people who’ve come in. Their mom came here, their dad came here, and now they're older and their kids come here. It’s a nice situation because people are personally familiar with us and it's become more like a personal service than a business. We’re a true family business and we get to know our customers really well.”
A new service implemented this year is its Mobile Tire Service. “We can come to your home or office and install new tires that were either purchased from us or tires that you already have,” says Chris. “The whole idea is to make it more convenient for our customers. So, if you're at work all day and can't get away to get tires for your car, we can just go to your home or office and install them.”
Customers can schedule a day and time on its website or by phone, and the service is available in a 20 miles radius from both locations. “We can do pretty much everything with the mobile truck as far as tires are concerned on passenger vehicles and light trucks. We also service fleets as well, like Amazon trucks.”
At Samaritan, they do everything tire and wheel related, including custom wheels, wheel alignments, brakes, axle repair, and steering and front end suspension work. They can also store tires so when people switch out their winter tires for warm weather tires, they have a place to keep them.
Most people don’t even realize that different tires should be used for different seasons. “Winter tires have a softer rubber compound and more grooves that give you a better biting edge,” says Mike. “It's kind of night and day when it comes to winter tires versus all-season or strictly summer tires. Not a lot of places, if any, will store tires for you seasonally.”
Samaritan also provides loaner cars for customers who have to be somewhere and cannot wait for their new tires to be installed or other automobile work to be performed. There’s no additional charge for this service.
“We also don’t charge extra to fill tires with nitrogen,” says Chris. “The advantage of using nitrogen is it's dry, so the pressure of the tire and wheel assembly stay more stable over time. There’s still some fluctuation in the colder weather, but it's not as drastic. The tires will maintain pressure better and therefore last longer.”
While they recommend making appointments ahead of time for tire installations and other services, they gladly welcome customers who just drive in that day.
For more information, go to SamaritanTire.com.