I went to Tommy's Auto on 10-11-2017 because I was low on funds and needed to purchase 2 new tires on my 2014 Nissan Sentra SR. A friend told me that Freddy would have the lowest prices and wouldn't charge ridiculous labor costs. And I honestly believe he did try to keep the pricing affordable for me and not gouge me on his side for labor. He was doing a favor and I appreciate that.
After waiting several hours for the work to be completed, I purchased the two tires, 205/50R17 LEXANI LXUHP 93W, and totaled $161.48 out the door with no warranty on the new tires (see attached photo).
Then drove my car for about 2 weeks.
On 10-26-2017 I went to America's Tire Co. in Santa Clarita to purchase 2 more tires for the rear set. I had a little more money and decided to go with more expensive tires this time.
Boy was I shocked to discover that for only $140.62 out the door (see attached photo), I could get actually get better tires that have a 40k warranty. Turns out, I could've saved $20 bucks and got a better product if I went to America's Tire Co. instead of Tommy's Auto.
But that's just the beginning. The tech at America's Tire came up to me and said, "Hey, I gotta show you something on the tire you bought 2 weeks ago [at Tommy's Auto.]" I go out to the service bay and he shows me a huge bulge on the side my tire and explains that this means the inside of the tire is unraveling and it's not safe to drive my car with this bulge, because the tire could go at any moment.
Fairly quickly, 30-45 minutes, the 2 new tires were on and I was ready to go. They were busy, yet still fast.
My next mission was to speak with Freddy at Tommy's Auto and try to figure out what's going on with the bulging/unsafe tire that was only 2 weeks old. I texted Freddy a picture of the bulge and explained that I had only driven my car under regular driving conditions, hadn't hit any pothole or anything, so the bulge didn't make sense considering the circumstances. Now, remember, I sent him the picture of the bulge too...and he said, "Go ahead and bring it in so we can take a look at it, we will go from there, ok?"
Since Freddy already had the picture of the bulge, I'm thinking that's friendly language saying he's probably going to replace the inexpensive tire that's either defective or weak, unless there's major damage or obvious liability on my part. Because that's what I asked him to do - replace it.
When I arrived we went to look at the tire together. He had me turn the wheel so the bulge would be where it's most visible. Then he gets down and squints his eyes and looks at the tire up close. Then he asks me, "you see that?" I get down and look too. I didn't see anything. He said, "right there. I know it's hard to see, but right there..." I look again, very close to the tire, and there's what appears to be superficial scuffing right in the middle of the bulge. And I mean extremely superficial - almost totally unnoticeable. And the marks are being stretched out by the bulge making them appear bigger (see attached photo). Without the bulge, those marks would probably be impossible to see.
Now - whether the marks were pre-existing and part of a defect on the tire or whether the marks were the result of some superficial, minor wear and tear - either way, I only had the tire 2 weeks and it's now useless. No brand new tire becomes useless that fast during the course of normal driving. I'm down approx $80 for that tire (half the out the door total). I asked, "What can we do?" Still hoping he'll replace the tire and acknowledge the product is cheap and I didn't do anything out of the ordinary to cause the tire to fail. I was hoping work *something* out with me. But...
Freddy says, "Your friend said you were low on funds and wanted the cheapest tire." (blame-shifting). Freddy also said, "You hit something." (blame-shifting again, because the marks on the tire were so superficial it's ridiculous to think that would cause a bulge on anything but a defective, failing product). Then says he can put on another tire for same price. I asked him, "Why would I pay again for another 2-week tire that can't succeed under regular driving conditions?" I answered my own question, because remember now I know they have better prices at America's Tire Co., and I said "no thanks, I don't want to purchase those tires again after this."
So here's what bothers me the most: He's a nice guy, but everything he did and said was meant to make the next sell without any consideration at all. Almost instantly, like a machine, he sets up the next sell. read more