Sorry for venting, but I have to vent.

So I have 15k on my G35s 6mt and already needed new tires. I do not drive that aggressive, but regardless they were bald. So off to my new adventure of finding tires that were not the OEM, but would still fit fronts and back to match and have longer life. I only needed the rear, but I am sure the fronts will be gone in 10k more miles.

Anyway, I wanted to stay with stock sizes, although I could have gone wider to get more options. My reasoning was that I did not want to go wider unless I was purchasing all four...right, wrong, or indifferent that is what I did. I decided to get the Dunlop SP Sport Signature. I went to a tire shop close to work that is a big name place. I do not want to say the name, but it was one of those blue building places that promise a "good year" on the outside. It is not a corporate owned location but one of the independent owned and operated. I got my 2 rear tires installed and a 4 wheel alignment. I left the store and drove away....well at least tried. My steering wheel was crooked and the car felt very floaty. I know floaty is not a technical term, but thats what it felt like. Also when I was ~40mph and gave it gas, the front floated to the left. So I brought it back ~5 minutes later and was told the tech was not there and I needed to bring it back next day. I asked what time do you open and was told 7am. So I get there at 7:30am and to my surprise was told that the tech does not get in until 8am. WTF!!! so they fixed and alignment is OK. They said they did not fix anyhting, just adjusted the steering wheel...but that took an hour. I call BS...something was done.

However, when I got to work and looked at the wheels there were scratches on them. All around the wheel on the lip inside and outside. I can only assume form the tire tool. So I went back and spoke with the manager and said that this is normal and it could have happened from a tire tool or the alignment machine. I called BS and said that is not normal. Only thing he offered was to reimburse for touchup paint. I stated I was not a touchup paint expert and I expected my wheels to be back to the same condition.

So long story short....I opened a BBB against them in hopes on getting wheels refinished.

Lesson learned - walk the car with the manager and confirm current state of wheels before work is done and agree that they will refinish if any damage is done. If not....drive to another place.

I feel better now, although I am still angry. I can also say I am a little wiser now.

 

thats why i only have my tires mounted and alignments done by specialty shops.

 

i like to go to big places so if anything does happen usually they take care of it, independantly owned places will give you the cold shoulder if anything happens. I took my car to modica Bros for a brake bleed, they told me i couldnt go out back and look at them work on my car from the parking lot, I told the manager if i couldnt watch them then give my car back because thats a sign that they dont take pride in thier work, he lets me go out and look, and i see brake fluid all over the barrel of my rear wheels i walk inside and demand they clean the wheels with soapy water immediatly, they did and said that brake fluid doesnt damage paint. I called BS, but if i hadnt watched them they wouldve let i happen on the fronts and when i left the fluid would have flung all over the car andruind my blemish free finish. Another thng they did was sit in my seat wrong they sat on my bolster sideways with their feet outside the car i was pissed never agian will i take my car there

 

DiscountTire/America's Tire.

I've gone nowhere else for about 10 years now.

I won't say they are perfect. They is always a risk somebody ****s up. Human nature.

I will say they have treated me well and always made it right if I had any "concerns".

 

Same dam thing with my wheels. Les schwab scratched/gouged 2 of them. They couldn't balance the tires as the kuhmo ecstas that I bought were defective, so everytime the machine gets to the gouge it makes it worse.
I've had tires mounted and balanced on the 2 rear wheels 4 times in 24000 miles.

1 time to mount initial gouge
1 time by another shop to roadforce, as the first shop couldn't balance
1 time to replace the 2 tires that wouldn't balance
1 time to replace a tpms that had a low battery.

Wheels get worse everytime somebody touches them.

The reason they were gouged was because the potenzas have a curb lip that sticks out past the wheel lip. When the machine prys between the tire/wheel, the curb lip pushes the tool into the wheel causing it to gouge.

 

Hold them to getting them either refinished or professionally touched up to your satisfaction!

 

I went to Tire Kingdom to get my wheels aligned. I saw the guys working on it. The bastard who did the alignment scratched my steering wheel on the outer circle and in the center where the Mt. Fuji logo is. He was using this long metal rod with some things attached that turns the steering wheel or something. It's not very noticeable but I will not go there again and I will most likely cancel my 3yr policy I bought from them. This is why I hate going to the shop. It's better if I do it myself at home, but I don't have the tools to do the alignment and balancing.

So far I haven't found any shop that does good work.