Midas: Lifetime Brake Guarantee, Tire Plan and Who Owns It

If you searched for Midas, you most likely mean the auto repair chain: about 1,000 shops in the United States that do brakes, exhaust, suspension, tires, oil changes and general repairs, most of them owned by local franchisees. The 2025 releases on its sale say Midas “is known for its industry-leading guarantee,” a lifetime promise on brake pads, mufflers, shocks and struts; the useful questions are what it leaves you paying and who stands behind it. On 9 October 2026 we read Midas’s guarantee, service, credit-card and terms pages; Midas, Inc.’s 2011 annual report and 2012 merger filing at the SEC; the franchise disclosure document Midas filed in Minnesota, issued 16 April 2026, with its franchise agreement and tire road hazard plan; the 2025 ownership releases; and a 2010 California Attorney General settlement. This site has no commercial relationship with Midas, Mavis or any repair chain.

Who owns Midas: from Whitman to TBC to Mavis

Midas has had four sets of owners since 1972, and its lifetime guarantee appears both in its 2011 annual report and on its pages today. Its history comes from its own filings: the annual report Midas, Inc. filed with the SEC for 2011, the merger report it filed in May 2012, and Item 1 of the franchise disclosure document (FDD) it filed in 2026.

TBC owned Midas for 13 years by our arithmetic. On 16 June 2025 TBC said it had “completed the divestment of its Midas franchise portfolio” to Mavis, and Mavis said it “completed the purchase of Midas from TBC Corporation,” that “Financial terms of the transaction are not being disclosed,” and that “Midas will continue to operate as a standalone brand under the Mavis platform and maintain its headquarters in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.”

The franchisor is Midas International, LLC, a Delaware corporation from 1959 converted to a limited liability company in 2019. The FDD says “Our ultimate parent company is Metis HoldCo, Inc.,” above a chain of Mavis companies. Readers of our Big O Tires page will find TBC there; TBC kept Big O and sold Midas. Our Mavis tires page reads the new parent’s own terms.

Franchisees, company shops and who stands behind the work

The shop you walk into is usually a separate business. Midas’s contact page refers to “Our independently owned and operated franchises” and sends complaints the store cannot settle to a “Consumer Solutions Team.” The FDD gives the count. Its Table No. 1 shows 975 franchised Midas Shops at the start of 2025 and 889 at the end, with 111 company-owned outlets appearing during the year, for a total of 1,000.

The 111 match Max Auto. Midas’s release of 18 December 2025 says Max Auto “operates 111 Midas franchise locations” in Ohio, New York, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Kentucky and Georgia and will “continue to operate as a standalone business.” In the FDD’s state table, 111 outlets were “Reacquired By Franchisor” in 2025, all in those six states. By our arithmetic, 88.9% of U.S. Midas Shops were franchised at the end of 2025 and 11.1% company-owned. Add the 54 franchised Midas/SpeeDee Co-Branding Shops and 137 franchised shops in Canada and the count is 1,191, close to the “1200 locations across the United States and Canada” on Midas’s About page.

Four clauses of the franchise agreement in the FDD (Exhibit D-1, Article Five) set out the guarantee’s backing:

• Only Midas’s promises. Section 5.1 says there are no warranties or guarantees from Midas to customers “except as expressly set forth in Sections 5.2 and 5.3,” the defect warranty and the Midas Guarantees.
• Any shop must honor it. Under section 5.3(c), a franchisee “will honor each Midas Guarantee presented to Franchisee by the holder thereof … irrespective of whether such Guarantee was furnished by Franchisee or by any other Midas franchisee.”
• It survives the shop. Section 5.7: “Midas agrees that every warranty or Guarantee properly issued to Franchisee’s customers during the Term pursuant to Section 5.2 or 5.3 will be honored by Midas or by an authorized Midas franchisee.”
• No sales talk beyond the paper. Section 5.5 bars “untrue or misleading representations to customers” about them.

Franchisees fund the program. Since 2008, the 2011 Form 10-K says, they are “charged a fee for each warranted product sold to customers” when the guarantee is registered; the 2026 FDD puts the fee the shop pays Midas at $2.43 per axle for brake pads or shoes, $4.80 for a muffler and $1.04 for a shock or strut. A shop that honors a guarantee is reimbursed “for replacement parts provided to customers under properly registered warranties,” that is, for the part.

The Limited Lifetime Parts Guarantee: what is covered and what you still pay

Midas’s guarantee page puts the promise simply: “Our parts are guaranteed for as long as you own your vehicle.” It goes on: “if the part ever breaks before the end of its useful life, we’ll cover the cost of a new one, and only charge for installation.” The footnote under the page sets the limits:

“Limited Lifetime Parts Guarantee valid for as long as you own your car. Valid on brake pads, shoes, mufflers, shocks and struts. Shop fees additional, see store for details and applicability. No cash value. Charge for additional parts and services if needed. Valid at participating locations.”

So the part is free and the rest of the job is not. Midas, Inc.’s annual report for 2011 said the same: “most warranty replacement work is profitable at the shop level as, in accordance with the terms of the warranty, customers are charged for labor plus other non-warranted parts necessary for the warranty replacement.”

The franchise agreement puts one limit on what the shop can charge. Section 5.3(d) says a franchisee “will make no charge to the customer for honoring any such Guarantee, except to the extent permitted by the express terms of the Guarantee,” and where an installation charge is allowed, it “shall not exceed an amount which is reasonable for the labor involved in installing the part.” Midas prints no labor rate; ask the shop for it.

The guarantee also ends with your ownership. The web footnote says “as long as you own your car.” The 2011 Form 10-K was blunter: the warranty “is valid for the lifetime of the vehicle, but is voided if the vehicle is sold.” A used car with Midas pads on it brings no guarantee to its next owner. Midas may also change the program “on a prospective basis,” the FDD says, while section 5.3(g) of the franchise agreement keeps shops honoring guarantees “delivered to customers prior to the date of such discontinuance or modification.”

Midas brakes: the inspection, the estimate and what the guarantee covers

Midas’s brake page describes its process: “our Midas Auto Service Experts® conduct a 55-point inspection of your brakes,” explain “which problems are urgent (and which can wait),” and “provide a written estimate before making any repairs.” A brake service can include pads or shoes, rotor resurfacing or replacement, a fluid exchange and line repairs, and “some brake services need to be duplicated on both wheels of the same axle.”

Only the pads or shoes carry the lifetime guarantee. Rotors are where the bill grows. Midas’s rotor page says “you don’t necessarily need new rotors with each brake pad replacement. Most rotors can be resurfaced one or more times to extend their life,” but “each resurfacing makes the rotors thinner,” and “Mechanics are required to replace any rotor that’s worn to a level below its manufacturer-required minimum thickness.” A guarantee claim on pads may therefore come with a rotor charge you pay in full. Our guide to brake jobs and rotors explains when rotors are replaced rather than resurfaced, and the brake rotor symptoms page covers the vibration and grinding that point to them.

How long pads last decides how often you use the guarantee. Midas’s own range is wide: “your brake pads or shoes may last anywhere from 20,000 to 80,000 miles. Brake fluid can last 2-5 years,” and “every 10,000-12,000 miles or every year are common recommendations” for an inspection. See how long brake pads last and the signs of worn brake pads.

Midas prints no brake prices, and its Terms and Conditions of Use let it “change specifications and prices” without notice, so compare written estimates, and check that the estimate names Midas pads or shoes. Under the franchise agreement a Midas Guarantee goes only with “the Approved Product to which such Guarantee is made applicable,” and a guaranteed part is replaced “only with another approved Midas part.”

Mufflers, the rest of the exhaust, shocks and struts

Mufflers are where Midas began: its 2011 Form 10-K says the shops did only exhaust work from 1956 through 1959, and exhaust was still 35% of shop revenue in 1997. Then, once carmakers moved to “non-corrosive stainless steel exhaust systems in the mid 1980’s, the average life of an original equipment exhaust system began to increase from three years to over 10 years.” Midas’s exhaust page today says a muffler’s life “is traditionally estimated at 40,000-80,000 miles,” shorter with road salt, cold and potholes.

Of the exhaust parts Midas lists (manifold, catalytic converter, exhaust pipe, muffler, tailpipe), only the muffler is guaranteed, and the page warns that a muffler job can grow: “The simplest muffler replacement takes 30-60 minutes depending on your vehicle. Allow another hour or two if the mid-pipe or downpipe also needs service.” Pipes replaced alongside a guaranteed muffler are charged parts. A failed catalytic converter is a separate and usually larger repair; see our guide to catalytic converter replacement.

Shocks and struts are on the list, and Midas’s suspension page gives the home test for them: “Lean your body weight on the front of your parked vehicle and then move away quickly. If the vehicle bounces more than twice, suspect a problem with your shocks and struts.” Our shock absorber replacement guide explains what that test can and cannot tell you, and why dampers are usually replaced in axle pairs.

The retail guarantee’s exclusions are not online. For national fleet accounts, the FDD’s Fleet Amendment lets a shop refuse the lifetime guarantee on a vehicle “used primarily off-road,” “abused or neglected” or not in “normal use”; read your own guarantee document for the retail terms.

What a “lifetime” guarantee has to tell you

The FTC’s guides on advertising guarantees, at 16 CFR 239.4, deal directly with the word. If an ad uses “lifetime” for a guarantee, it “should disclose, with such clarity and prominence as will be noticed and understood by prospective purchasers, the life to which the representation refers.” The guide’s first example is a muffler guarantee measured by the life of the car, good “even if you sell it, trade it, or give it away”; its second is a battery guarantee “Good for as long as you own the car!” Midas’s “for as long as you own your car” is the second kind: the life is your ownership.

Three other federal texts help you read the paperwork:

• “Limited.” Under 15 U.S.C. 2303, a written warranty that does not meet the federal minimum standards “shall be conspicuously designated a ‘limited warranty’.” Both Midas guarantees carry the word Limited in their names.
• See it first. The FTC guide at 16 CFR 239.2 says an ad that mentions a guarantee should tell buyers that “prior to sale, at the place where the product is sold, prospective purchasers can see the written warranty or guarantee for complete details.” Midas’s footnotes say “see store for details,” and its policy manual, per the FDD’s contents list, has a section on “Issuing a Limited Lifetime Guarantee Document.” Ask for it before you pay.
• Keep the promise. Under 16 CFR 239.5, a seller “should advertise that a product is warranted or guaranteed only if the seller … promptly and fully performs its obligations under the warranty or guarantee.”

Whether a claim was handled fairly is a question for the FTC, your state attorney general or a lawyer. The practical point: the web page summarizes a document you only see at the counter, and that document decides the claim.

The Limited Lifetime Tire Guarantee is a road hazard plan

Midas’s web page sells the tire promise in one line: “if the tire is ever unrepairable due to road hazards, we’ll fix it or replace it for free,” plus rotation and rebalancing every 5,000 miles. The footnote narrows it: tires must be “purchased with paid installation from a participating Midas location,” cover lasts “as long as you own your car or down to 3/32nd remaining tread,” and “Taxes, mounting, balancing, and any other miscellaneous fees are an extra charge.”

The FDD shows what sits behind it. Every Midas shop “must offer the Midas ‘Limited Lifetime Tire Guarantee’ on all qualifying tires” and “may not sell a separate road hazard warranty for tires.” The program “is administered by a third party supplier,” and the consumer terms are attached to the FDD as the “MIDAS LIMITED ROAD HAZARD PLAN,” under which the plan is “provided by ABS Risk, LLC” as obligor and administered by Automotive Business Solutions. Its key terms, beside the web page:

The plan excludes “manufacturer’s defects,” along with damage from off-road use, collision, vandalism, improper inflation, misalignment and “cosmetic damage, sidewall abrasions or other appearance items.” A defect is a matter for the tire maker’s own warranty; our page on tire manufacturer warranties sets out what the makers promise. If the obligor “FAILS TO PAY AN AUTHORIZED CLAIM WITHIN SIXTY (60) DAYS” or becomes insolvent, the plan lets you claim directly from the insurer.

The franchise paperwork calls this a “Road Hazard Service Contract Program,” yet the plan comes “at no additional cost with the purchase of Your eligible tire(s),” and 16 CFR 700.11 treats an agreement as a service contract when it “calls for some consideration in addition to the purchase price.” The label is for lawyers; the plan text and your invoice set the cover, and the FDD says tire program terms “may vary by location, including due to variations in state warranty laws.”

Oil changes and other repairs: what Midas promises and what it leaves to the shop

Midas’s oil-change page describes the service, not a price: “A Midas oil change takes about 60 minutes and includes oil and filter change as well as our complimentary Midas Closer Look Vehicle Check™. Oil Change Plus customers should allow another 15 minutes for tire rotation.” It promises the right oil: “we’ll never put any oil in your vehicle that fails to meet its manual specifications.” We found no standing oil-change price or offer on Midas’s pages; coupons are by store. Our guide to oil-change intervals and records covers what to keep.

Using Midas instead of a dealer does not by itself void a factory warranty. Federal law, 15 U.S.C. 2302(c), says no warrantor “may condition his written or implied warranty of such product on the consumer’s using, in connection with such product, any article or service (other than article or service provided without charge under the terms of the warranty) which is identified by brand, trade, or corporate name.”

The free Closer Look Vehicle Check gives customers “a digital report straight to their phone, which includes pictures and videos,” Midas says. Treat what it finds as a quote to check, not a verdict.

For other repairs, such as air conditioning, cooling or batteries, Midas’s pages print no warranty. The FDD gives only an outline:

• A defect warranty. Section 5.2 of the franchise agreement says certain approved parts are “warranted by Midas to the ultimate consumer from the date of such consumer’s purchase against defects in materials and workmanship,” and within the period Midas sets the shop “shall make no charge whatever to the customer either for the product or for installation.” The policy manual’s contents list a “Limited 90-Day Defect Warranty”; its text is not public.
• Store warranties. The contents also list “In-Shop Warranties” and “Warranty Statements on All Invoices and Estimates”: the warranty on other work is what your invoice says.
• Fleets get more in writing. The Fleet Amendment gives national fleet customers “a 12 month/12,000 mile limited warranty covering replacement of the warranted part and the labor involved in installing the part” for most other parts. That term is for fleet accounts, not retail customers.

Midas coupons, rebates and the Midas Credit Card

Midas coupons are local. The coupon page says “Tell us your location to find coupons and offers at a Midas store near you.” We did not enter a location, so we saw no offers and record none. The rebates page lists tire makers’ mail-in rebates, each with its own offer dates and postmark deadline, and Midas offers “exclusive email offers from your preferred Midas location” to people who sign up. Check each offer’s end date and whether your store takes it.

The Midas Credit Card is the standing financing option. Midas’s credit page says “Midas® Credit Card Accounts are issued by Comenity Capital Bank” and the card “is valid at participating Midas locations.” Prequalifying uses “A soft inquiry,” Midas says. Cardholder perks include “free tire repair and free tire rotation at participating Midas locations” and a one-time offer that arrives “with your Welcome Kit.”

Its headline financing is deferred interest, and the footnote explains what that means:

“Interest will be charged to your Account from the purchase date if the promotional plan balance is not paid in full within the promotional period. … Minimum payments are NOT guaranteed to pay the promotional plan balance within the promotional period.”

The standing account terms are printed with a date: “As of 04/2025, terms for new Accounts: Purchase APR of 35.99%. Variable Penalty APR up to 39.99%,” a minimum interest charge of $3, a promotional plan transaction fee of 2% and $2.99 a month for paper statements. That date predates the sale to Mavis, so check the terms when you apply, and on a deferred-interest plan pay the balance off before the promotion ends.

What regulators and courts have recorded

Item 3 of Midas’s 2026 FDD, the litigation item, says “Pending: None.” It lists three concluded matters. Two are disputes brought by former franchisees, one in Hawaii and one in Ontario. The third involved customers:

Napa County, California, 2018. The FDD describes The People of the State of California v. CRC Luxury Motors, LLC, Soscol Auto Repair d/b/a Midas/SpeeDee, Curtis Correll, and Midas International Corporation, Case No. 18CV001526 in Napa County Superior Court, as “a Final Judgment Pursuant to Stipulation” filed on 13 November 2018. The county, also acting for Sonoma and Solano, “alleged that a Midas franchisee” was “overcharging its customers for repairs, misleading its customers as to repair work needed” and more. The FDD says “Midas disagreed with the Deputy District Attorney factually and legally” but settled: it agreed to oversee the franchisee’s complaints and audit its shops, and to pay $150,000 into a fund for customers, a $50,000 civil penalty and $10,000 in investigative costs, $210,000 in all by our arithmetic. A full satisfaction of judgment was filed on 11 June 2024. Napa County’s website blocked our reader, so this account is Midas’s own.

California Attorney General, 2010. On 25 January 2010 the Attorney General announced “a $1.8 million settlement preventing Maurice Irving Glad, owner of 22 Midas auto shops throughout California, from owning or operating an auto repair shop in the state.” The lawsuit “contended” false advertising, unfair business practices and breach of a 1989 injunction. The stipulated judgment, Case No. RG09460505 in Alameda County Superior Court, binds the franchisee’s companies and Mr. Glad; Midas was not a party. The release adds that Midas International Corporation acquired the 22 shops and “has agreed to honor any and all guarantees or warranties previously made or given to customers.”

Both cases concerned franchisees. We found no Federal Trade Commission action naming Midas in what we could read, though ftc.gov did not answer our requests, and the Better Business Bureau’s site blocked our reader, so no rating is reported here.

Where Midas’s own documents disagree, and what to ask before you pay

We recorded 10 places where Midas’s web pages, its FDD and its older filings say different things. The ones that matter at the counter:

• Every location, or participating ones. The home page says Midas stands behind its guarantees “at every location nationwide”; both guarantee footnotes end “Valid at participating locations.” The franchise agreement’s duty on every franchisee is the stronger promise.
• “For free” tires. “we’ll fix it or replace it for free” on the page; on paper, fees are extra, a repair is covered “up to $30.00” and a replacement “up to 100% of the original retail price paid.”
• “Only charge for installation.” The guarantee page says so; its footnote adds shop fees and “additional parts and services if needed.”
• How long the tire promise lasts. “as long as you own your vehicle, or for the useful life of your tires” on the page; to 3/32 inch of tread on the vehicle on the original receipt, “non-transferable,” in the plan.
• Names and numbers. The About page calls the tire promise the “Tire Care Promise” and gives Midas’s age as “70 years” and “over 65 years.”
• Company shops. Item 1 of the FDD says “Midas does not currently operate any Midas Shops of the type being franchised”; Item 20 counts 111 company-owned outlets at the end of 2025, the Max Auto shops.

None of this changes what your own paperwork says, which is why the paperwork is what to collect.

Common questions

Does Midas have a lifetime warranty on brakes?

Yes, on brake pads and brake shoes, “for as long as you own your car,” under the Limited Lifetime Parts Guarantee. Midas covers the replacement pads or shoes; installation, shop fees and other parts such as rotors are charged, and the guarantee is valid at participating locations.

What does the Midas lifetime guarantee cover?

Brake pads, brake shoes, mufflers, shocks and struts, per the footnote on Midas’s guarantee page; rotors, calipers, exhaust pipes and catalytic converters are not on the list. Tires bought with paid installation carry a separate road hazard guarantee until the tread reaches 3/32 inch.

Is the Midas lifetime guarantee transferable?

No. The parts guarantee lasts “as long as you own your car,” and Midas’s 2011 annual report said it “is voided if the vehicle is sold.” The tire road hazard plan says “This Plan is non-transferable.”

Who owns Midas now?

Mavis Tire Express Services Corp., which completed its purchase from TBC Corporation on 16 June 2025. Midas International, LLC remains the franchisor, based in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida; most shops are run by independent franchisees.

Are there Midas coupons?

Yes, set by each store: the coupon page asks for your location before showing offers. Rebates are dated tire-maker offers, and email sign-up brings offers from your chosen store. No standing coupon is printed.

Who issues the Midas credit card?

Comenity Capital Bank. The terms printed as of April 2025 show a purchase APR of 35.99% and a penalty APR up to 39.99% for new accounts. Its special financing is deferred interest: if the promotional balance is not paid in full in time, interest is charged from the purchase date.