Is the free replacement plan from places like Discount Tires worth it? It's only valid for 3 years. I'm going to get the BFG All-Terrains probably, so I assume it would take a lot to puncture them.

depends on the price and the policy surrounding the replacment

Well it's $17/tire at DiscountTire, but only valid for 3 years. I just don't think I'll wear them out before then. So the only thing I would need to worry about is a puncture, but these looks like pretty strong-thick tires.

A/Ts are actually soft. However, ANY tire can get a puncture. With a force of a vehicle against a tip of a nail...its like butter

-Drew

Say, you had to use that on one tire...

According to a guy I work with, they will insist on replacing more than just that one "bad" tire. He has a 2WD car, and they argued and argued that he must buy a second tire at full price, so that the tires are new as a pair. If he had a 4WD, I wonder if they would argue that he needed to replace the other three so that they are all new as a set.

He eventually got just the one free replacement, with not buying another new tire, because the manager finally figured out that he was not going to buy that second one. BTW, that "good" tire that they wanted him to replace had less than 5000 miles on it.

Maybe your local Discount Tire would be different...

Tire replacement plans are worth it for someone who doesn't want to bother with their tires, and for say, a commuter or work vehicle that is essential to keeping the money rolling in.

For recreational use (as in, off-road) I doubt the replacemet plan covers damage other than road hazards, meaning, its just a road hazard plan you're paying for. Read the fine print. If it covers ANY damage, and they will REPLACE the tire for even the slightest puncture or damage, heck, maybe it's worth it. Chances are, though, that they'll only replace a tire if they determine it cannot be patched and/or is beyond repair.

Lots of places offer a free road hazard warranty for the life of the tires. Be sure to compare prices of the tires + cost of replacement plan to the tires + free road hazard warranty deals and see which is really the better deal. At $17 a tire, thats almost $100, the price of one tire! If anything, I'd get the replacement plan, but only on ONE tire. :D Usually they take down the serial # of which tire it is though, so you can't use the warranty that way by buying it for one and using it for whichever one goes...