OCOMEON

Finally replaced OEM GY with Mich. PSS. Couldn’t be happier with tires, but the install was a disaster.

In preparation, I removed all wheels, washed, dried, and photographed to show pristine condition.

Took wheels only to Discount Tire to have PSS mounted. (No way I was handing my car over to them.)

Sales manager observed condition of wheels, agreed no damage. He asked if I had any “special instructions.” My instructions were only to “not screw them up” and 30psi on all four. Simple enough -- or so I thought.

When I was ready to check out, I saw a handwritten note on the work order: “existing scratch on rear wheel.” I made them show me what that was all about. That’s when I saw THIS ---




Naturally, I was incensed that they damaged my wheels and then tried to cover it up by lying. (Like I wouldn’t have proof of no damage beforehand?!)

They also managed to nick the two fronts, and it looks like they pried off the old weights (all four wheels) with a screwdriver.






So much for professional installation and care of expensive, pristine, 11K mile- painted wheels.

Sales manager wants to send the damaged wheels off to Dallas for refinishing.

My concern is that they won’t match the original paint quality and sheen. I think they will have to do all four anyway so the re-finish will at least be the same.

Has anyone had painted wheels refinished? Does it ever look as good as factory paint?

Should I insist DT buy me a new factory painted rear wheel – the one with the gouge, and I just touch up the nicks on the both fronts? Looking for everyone’s suggestions and insight.


BTW, they didn’t even ensure the new weights were stuck down; I had to finish that for them. And the pressures were 35, 36, 36, 38.5.

DT said they wouldn’t be able to do anything until Monday. I had to take the tires/wheels home because the car was on stands and I needed to move it. But the damage and proposed resolution (refinish or replace) is documented on my invoice.


***UPDATE***
Making progress. Spoke with DT regional manager. He was very cooperative and agreed to refinish all four wheels so they would match. He said I have my choice of either paint or powder coat.

I'm thinking of going with gloss black powder coat for the durability and to ensure even finish. Has anyone had experience having their stock wheels stripped and powder coated? Does anyone have opinions on one over the other. Powder seems to win for durability.

Also, not completely clear on the process of stripping, but I'm going to call the company to find out. They use Wheel Technologies in Dallas. Has anyone heard of or used Wheel Technologies? If so, how was the quality of workmanship? Thanks!!

Sky High

You went thru all the trouble to take the wheels off and give them to Discount so nothing would happen. Why didn't you just take the weights off yourself and give them the wheels that way.

Rich Mickol

That sucks. I would see what they intend to do. If it can be fixed to your satisfaction, then all is good. If not, then they should replace the wheel.

Good luck.

bigb714

I think if they were refinished correctly they will be ok
the main problem is you will be without a wheel for a week or two until they get it back
I don't think having them buy a replacement is out of the question either but if they do get refinished you should be ok at least they are not right against each other so a tiny shade off shouldn't be noticeable

B

DOOKEY

Because that would have stopped the dings on the front side of the wheels. How in the hell can you point your finger at the OP for Discount Tires mess up?

He wanted to pay DT to mount and balance new wheels and tires. Not to scar up his wheels. It doesn't matter how he took anything to them. They are in the wheel and tire business and they employ a flunky who doesn't understand there are simple ways to remove wheel weights without damaging the wheel.


OP- I wouldn't accept a new finish on 2 wheels. They would have to match all 4 for me to be "happy". Next they are going to have to remove the tires from the wheels to get the refinish completed. I certainly wouldn't allow them to put those tires back on my wheels given how easy it is to mess them up during removal.

In fact... I wouldn't allow that DT to do anything for you other than pay for their mess up. You should have the right to do exactly what you want.

I hate tire stores.

Landru

On a Saturday I took my wife's Cobalt to Midas, wanted 'em to mount/balance snow tires.
10 minutes into the change manager comes to me & flat out says his installer scratched a chrome mag.
Before I could respond he apologizes, assuring me a brand new mag will be there Monday. It was.

While there on Monday for installation manager told me his store carries insurance for just such 'accidents'. Makes sense.
Bet an outfit like DT has this coverage also, might ask.

wayback

Had 2 of my wifes wheels repaired by DT. They came out perfect and it only took 2 days. I was very impressed with what they did. YRMV

Sky High

Yea I'm crazy? He took his wheels off the car because he didn't trust them with his car. What makes you think they would be any better with just his rims. If he had took off the weights on his own while he had the wheels off in his possession he would not have all the scratches on the inside of his wheels now would he. Obviously the op has issues with trust on the part of DT hence why he did not give them the whole car and he could have minimized his potential for damage if he had taken his own weights off if he has these trust issues to begin with.

Ron'sGS

I would have Discount re-finished the wheel, if it comes back not matching the rest of the wheels tell them to replace it. I hope everything works out for you!

DOOKEY

By your logic he should invest in a road force balance machine and do everything himself. I hope nothing bad ever happens to you when you have to put your faith in others. I minimize the amount of damage someone can do to me because I've learned others don't care about my stuff the same way I do. I applaud the OP for doing more work to minimize his risk. I do the same.

Tire stores are notorious for putting the cheapest per hour tire monkey on the assembly line. They don't care. They just want to get the job done so they can go back to their facespace. Balancing tires is one of the most important steps taken for tire longevity. It should be an art form but I bet less than 1% would actually break a tire off the wheel and rotate it around to see if they could get less weight. They just want it out the door.

If the OP specifically took the time to ask the sales manager to go over his wheels to prove they were legit before install the sales manager should have stuck his best guy on it. Then they wouldn't have had to try and cover it up. Mistakes happen. You have liability insurance for those types of mistakes. This is obvious DGAF treatment of the OP's wheels and he shouldn't have to go through it.

AORoads

It is NOT easy to find a good tire store that knows how to mount/dismount tires on wheels. Altho, it is frequently said on CF that Disc. Tire does great work, but each store can be different.

I don't think you fully understand OP's logic. He took off his wheels/tires because there's always the WORSE chance that by lifting the car, a store might damage the rockers, AS WELL AS the wheels. And one is less expensive to fix than the other. I know quite a few people who take off their wheels and go to a tire store, so I can't knock the OP's logic or actions.

OP, if I were you, I'd give the store the chance to have the wheels done. Yes, it might take another effort beyond this one in the event the color is off, or the repair is not right. But what you have now is a manager who agrees that the wheels were fine before they worked on it, and is at least willing to fix what they messed up. If that doesn't work, then maybe a new wheel, or a re-do of all 4 so they match.

BarryBum

I had the same experience with Discount Tire. I bought a set of tires for my old C5. I expressed my concerns about the care of my cat during the installation. The manager told me that they work on Corvettes, Porsches and other high end cars all the time. I intently watched them as they used low profile jacks to lift the car and remove the wheels. I was satisfied with that so I went to a place in the waiting room that I could watch them install the wheels back on the car. After completion I paid for the tires and came home. The wheels I had on my car were Comp Grey C6 wheels that were flawless. I was going to wash the car and notice scratches on the barrel. Looking deeper, the Grey paint was scratched all the way down to the metal. Some nimrod had used a screwdriver or scraper to scrape the old weights off, thus horribly scratching the paint. I called the manager and told him to stay put in was on my way back. I drove 35 miles back to the store and politely blew my top. The manager agreed with me and promised to fix them. He set up an appointment with a mobile wheel restorer to have them air brushed and fixed. After two no shows and one canceled appointment I went off on the manager again. He wanted me to continue to wait on the restore guy, but instead I sent to the discount tire website and sent my story to the customer care department. Two days later the manager called me and asked what it would take to make me happy. I had a Jeep Wrangler that needed tires, so I thought.... Why not take a chance. I told him that I needed a set of tires for my Jeep. He asked if that would make me happy on the Corvette wheel issue and I told him yes. So I took my Jeep Wrangler to the store and he told me to pick out whatever I wanted that they had in Stock. So I picked out a set of 32 inch Goodyear Wranglers, an $1100 set of tires. They out them on and he gave me a receipt with a zero balance. I ended up fixing the Corvette wheels myself.

Sky High

All I am saying is if he took the time to take his wheels off WHY did he not take his own weights off to begin with. That would have been one less thing for him to worry about.

LowRyter

there should be no problem with refinishing it.

And luckily wheels are shaded and never at eye level.

DOOKEY

Maybe it is due to me building wheels for a living and I'm a little more emotionally wrapped up with a quality product but a good tire tech should want the weight on the wheel when it comes in for a change.

I would want to see what was going on with the wheel and tire combo as it existed so I could use that knowledge to help me get the best balance possible.

I would rotate the wheel and tire combo on the machine before taking a tire off in hopes of seeing how bad the combo is out of balance. I would take note of the weight placement and amount before removing the weight. Then remove the old tire.

I would spin the wheel again and see if the wheel is round. I would notate the heavy side of the wheel and see if that correlates with where the wheel weight was. If the weight is on the heavy side of the wheel I'd understand the old tire was installed incorrectly. If the weight was offset from the heavy side I'd know that I could use the marking dots for assembly of the new tire for a good starting point.

Each new tire has marking dots on them so you understand where the heavy side and light side of the tire is. All of that comes into play when you are trying to get the best possible outcome. All of that only matters if you G.A.S. and want the best for your customers.

We know one of the Discount Tire locations in OKC isn't up to snuff.

Not So Fast

My last experience was just opposite, The rep was on the scene at install time and told me that the tech usually does all the higher end cars, I watched and although they did struggle with the rears coming off the rim they did do them with no damage. I do not like the way they handle the weights thou, either taking off the old or installing the new, that is an area that needs improvement I admit.
Any problems we ever had in the past were handled very fast, not many after 30 years of buying from them thou, so I'm pleased
Hope yours gets solved post haste
NSF

OCOMEON

Thanks to everyone for the feedback and good advice. I have also contacted the regional office. I'll see how they respond and take it from there. I'll report back with status. Just wish people could be trusted to their jobs correctly the first time.

jrose7004

There is an excellent wheel repair company in OKC. Wheel Works down by Cattlemen's Steak House. Which Discount location by the way? I always stay with my wheels when I take them to Discount!

OCOMEON

Thanks, I'll look into that for sure.

The DT guy said they send everything to Dallas because "they've used everyone locally and never had good results" blah, blah. I'd much prefer local. I went to the Discount store at 13140 N. Penn. Ave., OKC.

I did wait on them to do the work, but in the parking lot directly in front of the bay so I could watch. Apparently, that wasn't quite close enough.

bill gsport

Just last week I had DT install new Michelin PSS on my GS. Took the old wheels/tires off car, removed weights myself, and drove my van with tires to DT. Manager and assistant manager installed new tires themselves while I watched. Great job, no damage, perfect balance (at least it was fine up to 100 mph), and didn't need road force balancing. I've used Discount Tire for many years and I think they do a great job the majority of the time. Yours situation, unfortunately, is an exception but I bet they'll take care of your problem, especially if you take it up the mgmt. ladder. Guess there's exceptions to every rule, as they say. Good luck and keep us posted.