Tire change tribulations

[Mean_Jeanne]

Aloha all:

Wow, thanks for the interest/responses…this is clearly an issue affecting not just me. I’ll speak with the shop again about having it done on the floor…seems like the most viable option?! �� Regardless, thanks for all the feedback; I always so impressed with the level of engagement on this forum. Mahalo ����

 

[Captain Longbeard]

We had a similar situation with a rented Coachmen Galleria which is based on the 24' long Sprinter. The tires were causing serious drive-ability issues, so we stopped into a CostCo (just the closest place for an evaluation), and they were very weary about even looking at it. They finally had me drive it into one of their stalls and they floor-jacked up the front end due to the vehicle height (would hit the top of the 2-post lifts) as well as the side fairings making it impossible to see the lift points for the rack arms. The front tires ended up having serious cupping wear, and they were willing to replace them using the floor jacks but they did not have the right tires in stock. The owner that we rented from suggested we drive to a tire shop in town where he worked, and they dealt with it without batting an eye.

I think the point of this is that you might need to seek out the specialists who know what they are dealing with rather than the "retail" locations that specialize in the quick-and-easy turnaround work.

BTW - I once went to CostCo years ago to have tires replaced on my car, and when they were done, they handed me the keys and said that one of my wheel studs stripped and I needed to get it replaced. Huh???? They said they don't take responsibility for stripped studs or nuts, and they don't replace them, have a nice day!! I had to drive on only four studs to a shop to get the stud replaced, and have NEVER gone to a retail shop like that again.

 

[avanti]

I have used Discount Auto with very favorable results. They took one look and just went with floor jacks outside the bay. Worked fine. Of course, as always, you are the mercy of the luck of the draw WRT an individual shop's skill set.