Local "Mom & Pop" tire shop changed hands.....

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Aug 19, 2010
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Location
Champlain/Hudson Valley
I'd been using a local tire shop with extreme satisfaction.
I got a discount for bringing in tires for RF balancing.

9,000 miles ago I went in for a set of 4 Cooper CS-5 and saw new faces.
It's a good thing there is no swearing on this board as my description would be foul.
The jerks missed one lifting point with their jack. Nothing like that "jack shift crunching noise".
I know how unreasonable I can be....really, how can I expect thoughtful work from creeps holding a cell phone in one hand and a can of Red Bull in the other?

After today's tire rotation, I see they use the MAX power setting on their impact tools.
So glad I didn't wait for a flat.

I want to go by today and look at him (the new owner -who grumbled aloud that he regretted buying the business) and tell him what I think

Stoned, dogs' dirt meth heads the whole lot.
 
The newest Mavis location? :sneaky:

This is why we need DT!
The precious few Walmarts that do tires have long waits 4 hours or more.
 
unfortunately many small shops close or get new not so good operators unless someone in the family takes over that has experience!!
 
Todays choice in 2022 is go to a Mom & Pop/small shop, which does a good community service hiring ex cons and those that cant pass a drug test, provides a dirty worn out couch to sit on in the waiting room, if there is one.

Or go to a corporate owned chain. Nice waiting room, screened employees, but management is all about the numbers and corporate lives in a world thinking the installers are going to be fast, efficient and proud to excel at the job like they do in Japan.

Discount Tire is overrated and I've had to go back after there poor balance job and a missing center cap when I got home.

Being a tire guy is a sucky job.

The best tire installation experience was when my wife had new tires put on her Audi from ASAP Tire, in our own driveway. It's a Tire Rack company.
 
my local mom and pop tire shop has been great to me also thru the years but a few months ago the owner said he's considering selling the place. reason being, can't get good help and he's ready to retire. i guess at 66 years old he's allowed
 
My local tire shop (Bills Tire). has been in town as long as I can remember, and I am almost 80 years old. The sons inherited the place when Bill sr. retired, and they had worked there, and not behind the desk, since they were old enough to lift a tire. They are competent, fast, and very fairly priced. Now the other 3 tire shops in town I am not so sure of. Of course the Goodyear store is owned by a childhood friend, but I have never had them do any tire work.
 
I'm a discount tire customer. I generally don't have a problem with them. I do not blindly accept their work but they have the best price on the tires I need and I buy tires that last so I dont need to deal with them that often. I dont rotate every 5000 miles. I just keep an eye on the tires and when the wear pattern start to look uneven between the front and back I'll schedule a rotation. about 1 ever 15K miles or so or once a 1-1.5 years for me and my driving habits.
 
Discount is the best I ever saw, and I used to sell tires. Yeah, a guy put the Michelin PSS wrong side out, but I caught it at home.

I tried to use them for my lower profile Michelin Ps4s 235'35r18's, and discount wouldn't do it.

So, that bounced me off to the local Wheel World Rental place where idiots buy wheels worth more than car on credit.

I watched these guys spin the lugs on tight, and the second guy come around with his torque wrench, and proved that the lugs would jump off at the BMW 88# mark or whatever he set it on.

I'm just a shade tree mechanic, but instinct tells me that I have to FEEL the lug move slightly, and jump off proving tightened.
 
The newest Mavis location? :sneaky:

This is why we need DT!
The precious few Walmarts that do tires have long waits 4 hours or more.
I've actually been happy with Costco, usually the best price but they don't sell super cheap tires. You can actually make an appointment at the store I go to and you see other high end cars there like BMW, Audi, Mercedes etc. Pretty much when you make the appointment, they're on time and you're done in about an hour or less.
 
Always a bummer when you lose a trusted local shop. I buy tires and alignment from a local Wheel Works (Firestone company). Margaret is the store manager; she treats me right, matches Costco, etc.
 
Todays choice in 2022 is go to a Mom & Pop/small shop, which does a good community service hiring ex cons and those that cant pass a drug test, provides a dirty worn out couch to sit on in the waiting room, if there is one.

Or go to a corporate owned chain. Nice waiting room, screened employees, but management is all about the numbers and corporate lives in a world thinking the installers are going to be fast, efficient and proud to excel at the job like they do in Japan.

Discount Tire is overrated and I've had to go back after there poor balance job and a missing center cap when I got home.

Being a tire guy is a sucky job.

The best tire installation experience was when my wife had new tires put on her Audi from ASAP Tire, in our own driveway. It's a Tire Rack company.


That's exactly right. The tire shop in my town keeps the A/C off to save money on electricity, in 95° Texas summers. They also check the "ex-con" and "dopehead" boxes as well.

Lately all the big name tire shops in the town 30 miles away have been completely booked. I decided to run in the local shop for a tire rotation and balance. I found it very weird paying $10 a piece to balance the tires and another $9 each to rotate them. It goes against my logical thinking. The tires are already off when you balance them, it requires no extra effort to put them on a different corner of the car. I guess that's the convenience fee for the free sauna in the waiting room.
 
It's not just tire shops.
Becoming involved in the community helps them get ther values in line (then a jerk customer comes in & blows it. Some can compartmentalize it & get back on track). Some never get it. B2B is the same. One's makin fun of me while I'm ordering nuff to set up my shop for the month. I excused myself, went out'n had lunch, came back when he was gone & did my order. Nxt time I was in & him there I saw the manager jerka thumb my way in his face. He gave me some free stuff while I picked up sompin else (not a slo, M&P, etc buta national chain). Keep w/the good ones, treat them well too (comes round, goes round). Makes fora beddah day'nda beddah product/service~
 
Sad truths are spoken in this thread ....

Even when I do have to go to the tire shop I always try for DT first AND I take the wheel off and take them in as a carry in job ......this eliminates the chance of some well meaning DT teen from hurrying to the point of missing the jack points
Second I get a manager to visually agree the rims are not scratched anywhere ....if they are I take my own chalk and note where

Pretty sad you have to be a annoying customer just to cover all the bases
 
Have good luck with our local Les Schwab that opened up 2yrs ago. ;)
Glad you have good experiences with Les Schwab.

I had heard great stories about Les Schwab for many, may years. Les Schwab sold the stores, and I am now being told the tide has turned not so good as when Les was running the show. Most of the tires Les Schwab sells now are reported to be Chinese made "house brands". I post this from hersay, not facts or actual experience.
 
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I once took my car to the local Ford dealer to get tires I bought from Tire Rack mounted and balanced.

The guy assigned to do the work on my car got very, very angry about something wrong with his impact wrench.

I seriously thought that someone was going to get hurt.
 
Most of the tires Les Schwab sells now are reported to be Chinese made "house brands".
Just looked at their website and they don't list the tire's brand name, just the model. I see various "XXX Contact" tires that are Continental, a Cinturato P7 that's a Pirelli, a Discoverer from Cooper, but the other models I don't recognize. Doesn't mean they're no-name/off-brands though. Their closest location is Colorado so I ain't gotta worry about them anyway.... 😂
 
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