tires in Mendoza Argentina or Santiago Chile or near
 

Hello

In September I will start a road trip across S.America. My girlfriend will be riding with me on my F800gs.

We will start from Buenos Aires, head north to Iguazu then cross Paraguay, enter again Argentina heading to the Chilean border. From there we will ride Bolivia, then Peru through the cordileras all the way to Ecuador.
After reaching the "center of the world" we will turn south and cross again Peru, this time on the pacific side. Continuing south we will ride Chile and Argentina until reaching the end of the route at Ushuaia.
Finally, we reach again Buenos Aires and return back to EUrope.

According to that plan, when we will be near Mendoza our tires (heidenau k60 Scout) will probably need a change.

Now, from my research I see that tires are too expensive in S. America (almost double or triple the price of that in Europe) and also it's hard to find the suitable type (for example TKC80 or Heidenaus K60 etc)...

Am I searching wrong? Could I find similar tires near that region at a reasonable price?

Otherwise, ideally I would like to bring with me one extra pair of tires but since we will be 2-up on the F800gs and with all the necessary luggage for 2 persons and 3 months it will be really hard to carry the tires all the time.
It would be nice if I could find someone in Buenos Aires to keep the extra tires for me, then when the time comes I would contact him and have him send the tires for me to an adress that I will specify (probably in Mendoza). Of course all expenses will be paid by me in advance.

I know that this is probably too much to ask from someone with whom we've never met before, but I think I should give it a try.

Saludos
John

Yes, tyres are more expensive in that part of the world. That is just the way it is and is part of the cost of the trip.

When you get to Santiago, go to "Avienda 10 de Julio". It is wall to wall bike and car shops.

If I dig out my receipts I will get you the name of the shop I used for bike tyres, but it is on the north side of the street and on a corner. Grab y6our tyres, then bimble down the road and you will find someone to fit them.

The street is crazy, but wonderful as well :-)

Or, go to the BMW dealer in Lima.

We will be in Santiago our selves in November as we so SAmP2

The Street is Lira, between 10 de Julio and Argomedo, near to the downtown, if you want a specify size of tires, you must visit a BMW dealer
Avenida Las Condes (Las Condes Ave. near to Estadio Israelita)

Tyres in Argentina / Chile
 

Hi, nowadays is very difficult find tyres in Argentina, there are many troubles with the foreing products for political reasons. Santiago de Chile is better and shure.
In Argentina , in Buenos aires, Mendoza, Rosario, Tucuman, Neuquen you have official BMW motohaus, and you will find tyres. You can contact them by mail and web pages, is shure.
They are most expensive, but I think the shipping costs are expensive too (and very difficult the post, the douane, etc ) .
Finally, I live in Argentina ( the road between Buenos Aires and Iguazu, Misiones ) and if you need something write to me, no problem.

Yes, tires will be the most expensive in Argentina. You'll be able to find tires in Chile and they will be just a little more expensive. You'll be able to find tires in Bolivia and Paraguay the cheapest. The best advice that I can provide is not to worry about it. Even if you end up paying 50% more for tires in the the big picture it is not much. It is not worth the weight to carry extra tires. Just buy some in Paraguay, Bolivia or Peru. Enjoy!

We found reasonable priced tires from Motouring in Santiago. The tires were Conti Escapes, and lasted us around 12,000 miles before we changed them. Excellent dual purpose tires. After going to the local BMW dealership and having no luck finding tires for our 05-07 F650's, they recommended a local shop in a suburban neighbourhood catering to all long distance travellers. Look up www.motouring.cl. Both Carlos and Maria speak English well, and are super hospitable. Good luck.