Be Reasonable, Polite, and Fair, but Be Firm.

Joined
Jul 8, 2012
Messages
5,176
Location
Dickson, TN.
Some of you saw my post about our recent interesting experience with Toyota roadside experience, and subsequent debacle with NTB (National Tire & Battery), where I bought a replacement spare and had them transfer the OEM Bridgestone from the steel spare wheel to the alloy wheel, and the scratches they put into the alloy wheel with a screwdriver or metal scraper.

Well, I wanted to post an update on the situation with NTB.

I called NTB and spoke with the GM, and asked if I could stop by and speak with him about the damage.

When I walked into NTB, the GM was behind the counter. I introduced myself, and, by his body language, I could tell that he was nervous, a bit defensive, and thought he was about to get chewed out. Reluctantly, he accepted my extended hand.

We walked out to the wife’s 4Runner and I showed him the scratches.

Quote from GM: “Oh that’s going to happen - those wheel weights are really hard to get off. And if you were to come back and have another tire replaced, it would probably happen again”.

Me (Incredulous): Umm, these scratches were caused by a flat blade screwdriver or a metal scraper.

GM: Yeah, that’s what we use. They’re really hard to get off.

Me: So, you’re telling me y’all use a metal scraper to remove wheel weights from painted alloy wheels?

GM: Yes, that’s what we’re provided.

Me: You’re not supposed to use metal scrapers on wheels - especially painted alloys. This is the result of that. I expect NTB to repair this damage.

GM: Umm, well, we’d want to have it done by our wheel repair place.

Me: I’m fine with a repair. I’m not expecting a new wheel out of this. I understand that things happen. In fact, I have a quote from Wheel Repair of Tennessee for a repair of this wheel.

I show him the quote (just under $200). He agrees, and relaxes a little bit. Tells me he was kinda expecting me to be a jerk, and that he’s had guys demand new wheels over stuff like this. I reassure him that I’m reasonable, and that I have no intention of contacting corporate or anything like that, as long as we can come to an agreement on fixing the wheel.

Turns out they use the same wheel repair place I’d gotten the quote from.

He gave me his card, and told me to ask them to put the charges on their account.

I ended the meeting by suggesting that he request plastic, non-marring scrapers from corporate to prevent this kind of thing happening again.

So, initially the GM of NTB tried to dodge this, but, confronted with logical evidence that they were in the wrong, he had no choice but to come around to my way of thinking.

So, hopefully this helps someone who may not knkw how to deal with a situation in which they end up with the raw end of a deal. You don’t need to be rude, or get loud, or use profanity. You just need to have a little knowledge, and go in prepared with information.

Pics of wheel, before and after:

E047B0BD-3257-489B-974C-9D19F625D5E2.jpeg
EA97E3F0-B12B-4FC3-9079-D7267303A329.jpeg
85D57CFC-92E4-43F4-B2D4-1F8D4A190AC9.jpeg
 
Some of you saw my post about our recent interesting experience with Toyota roadside experience, and subsequent debacle with NTB (National Tire & Battery), where I bought a replacement spare and had them transfer the OEM Bridgestone from the steel spare wheel to the alloy wheel, and the scratches they put into the alloy wheel with a screwdriver or metal scraper.

Well, I wanted to post an update on the situation with NTB.

I called NTB and spoke with the GM, and asked if I could stop by and speak with him about the damage.

When I walked into NTB, the GM was behind the counter. I introduced myself, and, by his body language, I could tell that he was nervous, a bit defensive, and thought he was about to get chewed out. Reluctantly, he accepted my extended hand.

We walked out to the wife’s 4Runner and I showed him the scratches.

Quote from GM: “Oh that’s going to happen - those wheel weights are really hard to get off. And if you were to come back and have another tire replaced, it would probably happen again”.

Me (Incredulous): Umm, these scratches were caused by a flat blade screwdriver or a metal scraper.

GM: Yeah, that’s what we use. They’re really hard to get off.

Me: So, you’re telling me y’all use a metal scraper to remove wheel weights from painted alloy wheels?

GM: Yes, that’s what we’re provided.

Me: You’re not supposed to use metal scrapers on wheels - especially painted alloys. This is the result of that. I expect NTB to repair this damage.

GM: Umm, well, we’d want to have it done by our wheel repair place.

Me: I’m fine with a repair. I’m not expecting a new wheel out of this. I understand that things happen. In fact, I have a quote from Wheel Repair of Tennessee for a repair of this wheel.

I show him the quote (just under $200). He agrees, and relaxes a little bit. Tells me he was kinda expecting me to be a jerk, and that he’s had guys demand new wheels over stuff like this. I reassure him that I’m reasonable, and that I have no intention of contacting corporate or anything like that, as long as we can come to an agreement on fixing the wheel.

Turns out they use the same wheel repair place I’d gotten the quote from.

He gave me his card, and told me to ask them to put the charges on their account.

I ended the meeting by suggesting that he request plastic, non-marring scrapers from corporate to prevent this kind of thing happening again.

So, initially the GM of NTB tried to dodge this, but, confronted with logical evidence that they were in the wrong, he had no choice but to come around to my way of thinking.

So, hopefully this helps someone who may not knkw how to deal with a situation in which they end up with the raw end of a deal. You don’t need to be rude, or get loud, or use profanity. You just need to have a little knowledge, and go in prepared with information.

Pics of wheel, before and after:

View attachment 77228View attachment 77229View attachment 77230
wow - they did a great job on it. Its a shame I read so many upsetting things from NTB reviews all across the country. We have one near me that keeps closing down. Then re-opens with new manager and then shuts down again about every 2-3 years. Poor Ownership / Management I guess. I avoid them if I can.
 
wow - they did a great job on it. Its a shame I read so many upsetting things from NTB reviews all across the country. We have one near me that keeps closing down. Then re-opens with new manager and then shuts down again about every 2-3 years. Poor Ownership / Management I guess. I avoid them if I can.
NTB used to be owned by Sears. I never went there as their prices were always higher than anywhere else. Best deal for tires seems to be either Costco or BJs. The Costco guys seem to know what they're doing and the ones near me are pretty good once you make an appointment.
 
Some people actually clean the inside of their wheels.
You can see the scratches through the holes.
Thank you.

This is my wife’s daily driver. I keep it as clean as I can - including the barrels of the wheels.

Plus, it’s a 2021.

You take care of problems as they come. That’s how you keep a vehicle nice for years. And that’s why we bought a 4Runner - we plan to keep this essentially forever.
 
I would not go that far in this case; within a year you'll get a scratch or a ding by a gravel somewhere on the car body; what i'm saying, a wear and tear entails and affects every daily driver out there
 
Thank you.

This is my wife’s daily driver. I keep it as clean as I can - including the barrels of the wheels.

Plus, it’s a 2021.

You take care of problems as they come. That’s how you keep a vehicle nice for years. And that’s why we bought a 4Runner - we plan to keep this essentially forever.
I keep both cars in garage as much as possible. Keep them clean all the time. Fix anything that needs attention ASAP. That is what helped us keep one for over 18 years. Wife and I both OCD. Before one of us can clean up or attend to something the other has done it. Its a silly pattern we fell into over 40 years ago. Treat the house just as good as the cars. A thing called pride though some I am sure call it "crazy neat freaks."
 
Good on you for handling it so well. I’m glad you got an outcome that is satisfactory. It’s a shame this sort of thing happens anymore, when it is completely preventable. Vehicles cost more than ever yet you have hacks that can make it look like a heap in no time.

I expect our vehicles to be damaged any time someone else handles them. I always do a walk around before leaving the dealer. I’ve caught damage more times than I can count.
 
I don't think I would have went that far with an inside scratch. But that's just me.

A few years back I took my aunt's Avalon into Discount Tire for a nail patch, it was only a few months old. They scratched the outside lip of the rim, and after I complained they offered to have it repaired. Was leaving 2 days later for a 5k mile road trip in it and didn't want to deal later with having to drop the wheel off etc. so I just left.

But now the car has probably 3/4 wheels curbed so 🤷‍♂️
 
Glad they made it right.

FWIW, I really, really miss Tire Discounters, which doesn't have a presence where I am now. They never missed a beat on anything. I never had to remind them to turn the air compressor off in my mom's Towncars when I would take them. The technicians used torque wrenches and a manager checked off on the wheel torque. There were always just a lot of small details that they'd get right and I'd never worry about double checking their work.

In my area, Dobbs seems to be the big chain, and I've found them less than satisfactory(even though my wife always used them before she knew me and I started doing most of her routine maintenance). They blew it with me when I had them put tires on the MG, argued with me that I didn't have the correct lugnuts on my wheels, and then I got home and found that I was able to get 2+ turns on every nut with my beam type wrench reading 50 ft-lbs...
 
If you think that’s crazy, wait until you hear the local dealership parts dept. quote for a new wheel.

$405.

Yep.

Not sure if you remember my '16 SRT black chrome wheels getting damaged. Cost to replace would have been ~8K. Dealer asked if I'd be OK with getting them refinished by the place that does the Porsche wheels, and if I wasn't satisfied, they'd go for full replacement. The refinishing place did a great job and so everybody won.

When we had my wife's tire repaired recently the tech used a plastic scraper to remove the weights and adhesive and while it took a bit of work, he didn't seem to mind, commenting that this stuff (the adhesive) is a real bugger to get off. They have a top of the line mostly automated Hunter tire machine as well, which does a fantastic job of dismounting/mounting.
 
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