MTL_4runner

I had a new set of Michelin X-ice tires put on by the guys over at Crappy Tire (you canucks know which store I'm taking about......it's a sad day when they can't even handle what their name entails) and my tires had leaks air ever since. I recently had then dismounted to find out those bums didn't even bother to clean off the bead on my rims before the mounted the new tires. I mean if you feel the rim and it looks fine then usually you just wipe it with a rag to make sure no dirt got on there and mount the new tire. My rims had been through a few winters already and they decided to just slap the new tires on there without cleaning any of the corrosion buildup (since the rims are aluminum, the salt does wonders to them). I mean guys, WTF?! They could have at least called me and said "hey, I think they need to be cleaned". I also noticed that there looked to be a few more wheel weights than I thought should be needed to balance the Michelins and upon closer look, they even had different brands of wheel weights on there (so that may mean they left the old weel weights on when they mounted and balanced the tires.....BIG NO NO!!!). So I took them over to the Toyota dealer yesterday (because I wasn't going to go through another winter of adding air every 3-4 days) to have them broken down. I was shocked how bad the beads were and quite frankly surprised they held any air at all, but luckily I have air tools (angle grinder with a scotch pad makes short work of any foreign material) and got 2 out of 4 cleaned, wheel weights cut off, sanded and painted (gloss clear) again already. I'll do the other 2 tonight and hopefully let them both dry for another day before mounting. I wish it was cheap to just get the rims teflon coated because I swear that would be the only thing that would stand up to the nasty winter conditions we have up here. If I remember I'll try and post before and after shots.

Godzilla

i hear ya...crappy tire is the worst place for anything automotive to be done to your vehicle. Most of the people there are just highschool kids, so in ways its like a jiffy lube.., I gave up with them when i had to do my own oil change in their garage because they couldnt do it..(filter, etc...)

lee

damn canucks

gregbreakseverything

Just wait untill you hear da_big_wigg's crappy tire story. It's amazing people still go there to get work done.

MTL_4runner

So are you going to tell it or is he?

Finally got them remounted and balanced and SURPRISE, no more leaky tires.

gregbreakseverything

Im not going to tell his story, I PM'ed him instead.

da_bigg_wigg

Heh, guess this is my queue...
I went on a road trip from Calgary to Edmonton for the weekend. The morning of the sunday we goto breakfast, and I park the truck. I step out and I hear some liquid splashing. I look under the truck only to find that water was leaking out of my water pump. Well, that pretty much ruined my day. Because it was sunday and nothing was open but crappy tire and I had to get back to Calgary that day, I had to go there. As it turned out there was a crappy tire literally 2 blocks away, so after I let the truck cool off and topped off the water, I drove it to the crappy tire. It took them all day, but they got it done, much to my suprise.
Well, a month later the pump went again. This time I had to tow it to crap tire. They fixed it again because it was still under their 30 day warranty.
Was this the end? Of course not! They managed to not torque the crankshaft pulley bolt enough or something, because a week later after another road trip the bolt managed to work its way to the point where it was on by 2 turns, literally. This time I was back in my hometown so I had a garage at my disposal. Because the bolt was loose, the timing belt wasn't secure, so it destroyed itself. This time I fixed it with my dad, and I haven't had a problem since. All I gotta say is thank god the 3vze is non-interference, and also STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM CRAP TIRE!

arjan

I never even considered them for mechanical work. It always surprises me how many people do go there.

I got a gift card for xmas last year, and ended up buying something what didn't work for me. When I returned it they recharged my card -$.10. I asked why, it was because I didn't return the crappy tire money
I always decline that anyway, but that didn't matter.
Not that I care much about 10 cents, but it's just the idea that pissed me off.

bosco659

I would never have any work done on my vehicles at CTC. Wouldn't trust them even for an oil change. There are just too many horror stories about poor quality work! Costco actually does a decent job on tires around here and will do what you ask them to de eg. no weights on the outside of the wheel.

da_bigg_wigg

Trust me, I've learned my lesson. I do agree with the comment about tires from Costco. I've got my michelins from there. They are balanced something sweet and I got a pretty good price overall.

kmcc78240

Sorry for the high jack just had to comment on da bigg wigg's avatar TROGDOR

I know

da_bigg_wigg

And The Trodgor Comes In The Niiiiight!!!

d0ubledown

luckily ive never gotten screwed by crappy tire since ive never had any work done there. although i've worked there but not as a tech. yes, they suck but thats a given. sorry to hear about your experience MTL..
i would have brought it back the moment i find anything wrong with em..esp if they dont hold air...nothing like bringing back junk work to a shop and calling em on it. they LOVE it when customers tell them how things should be done..and especially when said customer is standing over their shoulder watching them.

NPE701

I used to work in CT - in the shop. I am not trying to save their reputation or anything, but as with any other big shop - there are ĊĊĊĊty techs and there are good techs. The problem is - you know know who you're gonna get.

If you do have to go to CT - ask to go and watch the tech work, it will be worth it as the quality tends to go up in that case.

04 Rocko Taco

I would say damn cannuks, but we have crappy tires here to. lol.

StretchASU

Love this post. I had fun at the North Bay store when I went to have my oil changed when we came into town from my friends cottage for a day. Took around an hour+ to change my oil!. Im sorry, I did it in 20 min in my apartment parking lot the oil change before this one. Also didnt want them to touch the airpressure (36psi) in my tires only to get back to Arnstein to get gas and they were at 30 all the way around. BTW...anyone in the states bitching about gas prices...spend a week and a half in northern ontario doing nothing but burning gas in ATV's, Boats and SUV's and then rethink how bad we have it. LOL