Tyre Shops...

[jimmygt07]

Hi all,

On Friday I was the unfortunate recipient of 3 chunks of steel ripping into my drivers side rear tire

Not that bad I say so off to the tire shop Goodyear at Rocklea, I go and get it repaired $27 dollars later I waltz out of the shop and jump into the liberty. Go back to work like 2kms down the road get out and inspect their handy work.

I find they have scratched and chipped the rim in 5 different places

So I take it back to them and they try and deny it saying that it was already there and that they wouldn't do anything about it..... After a heated discussion in the packed shop front the manager offers me to have it repaired on Monday morning at their expense.

So the question is

1. Has anyone else had a run in like this?
2. What should I be expecting of them?
3. Should I even bother taking it back or take it to my regular tire place for them to repair at my expense?

I am a bit miffed off at the situation as all other 3 rims are in mint condition without so much as a scratch on them and don't really want to fit the spare as it has never been driven on.

[Arith]

Yikes! Sorry to hear that man. Hopefully this plays out smoothly for you. Hmm, just a thought. Didn't you say chunks of steel ripped into your tire? Did you inspect the wheel closely after it happened to confirm that none of the chunks hit your rim as well?

But unless you catch them in the act, it's going to be hard to prove the damage was entirely them (ie - what if you had gotten the chips driving from there to your work place 2km away?). 1 or 2 chips is already unacceptable, but 5? The only thing I can think of that might cause that sort of damage is for the wheel to fall on its face (most likely due to negligence and carelessness).

Because I had that happen to me once before. The moron handling the wheel didn't lean it enough, so the wheel tilted back and landed on it's face on bare concrete, causing chips, scratches, etc to multiple spots. Luckily I was right there and saw it happen, otherwise they were just going to flip the wheel on it's back again and pretend it didn't happen (or say I brought it in like that). I called the manager over, told him what I saw, and the worker admitted his fault. So they repaired the wheel free of charge.

I think you should hand it over to them and let them repair it (leave it under their care and responsibility). If you take it to your normal wheel place to repair and them claim compensation from the shop at Rocklea, it's going to be a lot more difficult. And you definitely should not be paying for the repair out of your own pocket. But unless you can borrow someone's wheel, you may have to drive on your spare until this one is repaired. Good luck!

[jimmygt07]

Yeah mate thanks for the reply. Once I pulled into the shop I got out and had a close look at the tire and rim to ensure the exact thing didn't occur. From the size of metal in the tire I thought I was up for a whole new one. Currently there are Yokohama Advan Sports on there.

I did think that maybe it could have been me at first, but I know I haven't hit anything else on the drive back to the office, I mean if it were just one chip or scratch I would just put it down to the fact that it must have happened as a direct result of the tire being punctured. But you can clearly see the tool marks where they used the rattle gun to remove the rims from the car they have dropped it on the outer circle where the wheel nut is, there are also direct marks associated where the machine that removes the tire from the rim has scuffed against the tire wall and then corresponding at the same point on the rim so I am pretty confident that it must be them and they also agreed to fix it which to me admits fault.

I don't know the missus thinks I am over reacting to the whole thing but at the end of the day its the principal they damaged it they fix it.

[Arith]

Dang, that's some pretty sloppy work. Good luck with the repair. Mine took about 2 weeks so hopefully yours is quicker.

[Wasbxt]

Stick to your guns James.....I hate sloppy workmanship and those that deal in it deserve to pay.....it only really needed that extra 10% of care to be used and the whole situation probably could've been avoiding I'm guessing.

[Q]

Feel for you mate but I guess the big lesson for everyone is not to leave the premises of any business that works on your car until you have had a look at the area they have worked on. Buyer beware etc.......it's bad that you need to treat everyone like a dickhead and need to inspect their work but finding people that do good work these days is getting harder and harder.

Out of curiosity how do you find the Yokohama Advan Sports?

[teK--]

When you go back just leave your wheel with them (don't leave the whole car). Fit your spare so your car is driveable.

I had a similar issue at a shop whereby they fit 2 new tyres, and they gouged both wheels quite badly because of poor use of the machine that's used to mount the tyre. I called the shop when I got home and saw it, then went right back and they confirmed would accept responsibility. Even though they had the wheels repaired I would not say that the wheels looked as good as they were prior (the repairer didn't even reapply the clear coat and it was quite obvious where the repair is, by feeling the roughness of that area).

[Wasbxt]

Didn't have after market wheels on the XT but did on my S15 and WRX and I remember clearly the feelings of stress and apprehension leading up to fitting new tyres. In my experience not one tyre shop has ever done it without there being some sort of scratch/chip of damage done.

Be good for those that have had good or bad experiences to post up business names & locations as a sticky for future reference. (That is if it doesn't already exist)

[teK--]

Good tyre shops who I have found take exceptional care in fitment of tyres (Melbourne):

- Advance Tyres in Richmond (also very cheap prices). A lot of import cars go here they have a good niche market going. Ricky the manager/owner also does a lot of work himself so you know the care is there. He also washed my wheels once they were refitted to the car which is a rarity nowadays.

- Trutrack suspension, North Melb. Although tyres are not their primary trade they can get them in for a reasonable price. My primary reason for mentioning them is that they are a premium grade suspension workshop. To fit tyres they washed my wheels thoroughly inside and out while they were off the car. Also they have a policy of not using airguns on wheel nuts (even with torque limiting bars); all are hand torqued.

[jimmygt07]

Thanks for the insight guys muchly appreciated!! I usually take my cars to fourbys at marooka but couldnt get over there on this occasion.

The Advan Sports I find are really good both in the wet and dry I don't really have anything else to compare to as these tires were previously fitted to my 4x4 which had steel rims

[adhar]

+1 for Trutrack - very professional.

[3rspecb]

+1 for Trutrack - very professional.

+2.

[Fangin_RX]

Bloody hell thats dodgey, So you had an internal repair done mate? Cause if it didnt need the internet they should of even touched the machines. Our store my boss makes us use the machine which is slower but has a protective cover on the metal to stop this occuring.

Gotta love the people who are shit at life and their jobs