WARNING: Be careful around Discount Tire!

My Targa needed two new rear tires (12K plus miles) so I ordered two Conti Sport Contact 2's from Discount Tire to match the fronts which show nearly no wear. The price was acceptable so they were ordered and received by the tire shop. I jacked up my car and removed both rear wheels. I carefully removed the stick on wheel weights and residual adhesive residue and washed and waxed the wheels on the fronts and backs. The wheels are both "perfect" inasmuch as they are off a concours car. I delivered them to the tire dealer and instructed him to mount and balance the tires. I was told to return in two hours and I did. Upon my return, I was informed that the tires weren't mounted because there was a problem . The problem was that the technician scratched/dinged the paint on the rim when he tried to dismount the old tire. Thankfully, they stopped before they really F'd up the rim. They apologized and offered to pay for a repair but the bottom line is they sell high end tires and fancy rims but can't mount a tire on a rim without F'ing it up. I left with the tires and I am having another shop mount the tires. Just another bad experience!

varies by location - sorry you found a bad one I always insist that I stand and watch the tech doing the work And I usually make a point when I go in, to say 'so I want your best guy on this otherwise you'll be paying for new wheels...'

NTB, Discount Tire, Merchant's Tire, Just Tires... I've gone to all of them and none of them would even touch my wheels. At least they are forthcoming in saying that they don't have the necessary equipment to remove and mount the low profile 285-30/18 tires.

Funny....Just tires just did my 295/30/19's....no prob...they said they have had issues in the past...but this guy know how to do them, and he did it in like 5 minutes....

You can't really say that any one company is bad. It all depends on the skills of the individual who is installing your tires. I just had new P Zeros put on my C4S and I made it clear to the tire store that if they weren't completely confident that they could install the tires without scratches, not to bother. I would also agree with cdodkin that you should just watch the tech.

Yeah, like cdodkin says, it varies by location. The tire shops in my area don't have the good equipment (or maybe they do but they just don't want to risk damaging my wheels). Luckily the independent shop I take my car to for service has it. Believe it or not though the past 2 times I needed tires I went to a mobile service called TireVan ( http://www.tirevan.net ). They're great. They come to my office in a small cargo truck with all the equipment -- tire mounting equipment, road force balancer, etc. -- and do the work while I am inside my office. No more sitting in waiting rooms with 2 year old Car & Driver magazines.

I would say never use a discount tire shop. I use a local installer with Hunter 9700 equipment from a highly respected auto shop. They are a Tire Rack recommended installer in CT- Moroso, Guilford, CT. Be it oil changes or wheels I am done with the minimum wage shops. Thegman, you are not alone, many of us have learned the hard way. Some will pay attention to your post and others will ignore it or watch hoping to safeguard. Done that, been there. No more. Good luck on the repair.

Not to be a d*ck but you brought your $90,000 Porsche to a place called "Discount Tire". What did you expect?

Generalizing is stupid - but if you want to be a snob you've succeeded

Do you tell them in a very snobbish way?

I think we are all tired of paying the dealer rates ($96/hr at my 911 dealer, my Subi WRX dealer is advertising $49/hr- who is screwing me here?) and there are plenty of horror stories there too. They never got my wheel balance right for example and when I owned an Audi S4 they were notorious for screwing up oil changes. The temptation to go to a cheaper, closer place is real, be it a tire deal or oil change. I think the answer does lie in the smaller specialty shops, speed shops, Porsche tuners, whatever. It takes awhile to find one you trust that's what sucks. Lets not bash Rennlisters for trying to save a buc we paid enough for the priviledge of driving a 911. Doesn't mean we all now feel like pissing the rest of our money away. I wish Rennlist had an area by state where we all could log in with positive results for these type of services at a reasonable cost. We would all use those shops and then the horror stories would start to go away.

i agree... i think sometimes the smaller shops have more to loose if they mess up thus making them more careful.....sorry about your situation.....

Nooooo, I come across as unreasonable and very very threatening.... And yes, back in the day, I forced more than one tire shop to buy me new wheels when they trashed my rims. Experience leads me to a careful approach - and in the end it's the skill of the tech and the quality of the equipment that matter, not the name on the store.

Discount tire has usually been all right with my wheels in the past. The last time I went to have rear tires installed on my C4S, (first time there with the P) they did dent/chip the edge of the wheel (on the rim). I left without inspecting and found out a few days later, so I didn't feel I had a good case to complain. Now I'm undecided about going back with the P...but if I do, I'll have to tell them to be careful beforehand, then inspect before I leave the place.

I've had good experience with my local (Redondo Beach) Discount Tire for my old WRX and my present 996. I'd be comfortable going back to that branch. One way I afford running a $90k car is by making reasonable economies where I can. Maybe it's different for the non-d*cks in Napa.

I've had great service from our local Discount Tire, even on the P-car.

check other shops that have this relatively new machine that stretches the tire and never comes in contact with the wheel itself unlike traditional tire-put-on machines. touch-less tire removal and application

So this is a warning. The shop realized one of their guys f'd up so they halted before any more damage was done. Then they offer to make good for their f'up. What's the warning here? Hell, there's always a chance even the best guy can slip and make a mistake. Perhaps you've never had a shop carelessly mount all four tires, scratch the **** out of em and then claim they were not responsible or swear they were that way before. Damn, what I wouldn't give to find a shop that admits mistakes happen, let alone one that's willing to make good on their mistakes.

For future reference..... Since you live in Naperville, ILL., I would suggest that you purchase your tires from Tire Rack in South Bend, Ind. They have prices every bit as low as Discount Tire. They also have the "ne plus ultra" of tire mount machines for large or expensive wheels - The Artiglio Master. See this site: Check on Products - Tire Changers I have driven several times to South Bend for central Illinois just to use their service mounting new tires on expensive rims. Order your tires over the phone and book an appointment for a Saturday morning. The mounting and balancing cost is LESS than most shops near you. These guys mount a lot of tires, thousand os tires, and do an excellent job. I've marveled an this machine several times as NO metal item ever touches your wheels. You can stand right next to the technicain and watch him. They raise your car carefully with 4 floor jacks. When mounting your wheels, the use the correct torque and know how to PROPERLY tighten the nut with a torque wrench. Except for the Loss of a Saturday morning, and the cost of the gas, YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED. Cheers, PS I do not work for TIRE RACK. I am only a VERY satisfied customer.

Discount Tire has always been solid with me in the past as well. However, once you start driving on bigger wheels, you're probably better off buying the tires online and taking them to your dealer. You can always negotiate on what they chart to put the wheels on. Alternatively, a good indy can set you straight as well. The problem lies with the low profile tires and their very stiff sidewalls. Many discount shops just don't have the equipment (go Hunter!) to properly install and balance your tires. If you must use a discount shop, then inquire as to what products they use in the garage. Remember, these are your wheels and your shoes your talking about on a 3k pound car.

I fear every tire change, even at a shop with the best machines all it takes is a monkey working the equipment to damage your precious wheels. Ciao, J.

A high-end tire shop has never fouled up someone's rims? Kudos to Discount for acknowledging the mistake and being willing to take care of it. You don't see that much anymore.

As an alternate, some reputable tire shops also use the Hunter brand.

Company has nothing to do with it, I have damaged $65,000 (hate to admit) in parts in one slight movement of the hand, to error is human.

Oh--oh....mortar fire....Incoming!! You have to remember that a lot of the Big discount tire shops base their profit margins on volume....that volume means a lot of cars coming and going. They frequently hire a lot of young guys at minimum wage or low pay in order to maxiimize profits. The turnover in a lot of the high volume shops is pretty high...mostly becasue of the non-stop volume coming through, righteously hard work (have you ever worked busting tires?)...and.they burn out their staff. Consequently, they're in a hiring mode a lot of the time, and oftentimes it's the inexperienced help that is tasked with busting down and remounting a lot of the tires. They usually have one or two experienced guys around for the high end cars...but you've got to make sure you have the salesman get one of them to do the job. Salesmen are there to sell tires...usually on comission...they don't pay much attention to the mounting process unless you're vocal about it. All of the shops have had instances where they've messed up rims...and they're all pretty much in tune with having to buy one or two, so they understand your concerns....you just have to make them known....and if you're REALLY concerned about it....when the salesman writes up your order, take him outside with you and show him your rims. That imparts a very strong message....THIS guy is seriousl about his rims. It also helps you because if they are scratched or dinged by the staff... you have a witness to how they looked before the dismount/mount and balance process. I've had fairly decent luck with discount tire shops by going thru the inspection process first. So you really can't point to a bad incident at particular Discount Tire shop and make it a universal indictment of the entire chain.

^ | | Oh my! What a big avatar you have!

and you have a big sig!

And you've never made a mistake? At least they owned up to it and told you immediately. As well they offered to put things right... And you're upset why? They would have won my business right there had I been the customer.

Part of my reasoning is that from now on, because they screwed up, they will always make a point of being ESPECIALLY careful on your car. You better believe they won't make that mistake twice on the same customer's car.

There is no completely right answer, I guess, but over the years I've found that I have better luck with independent tire shops than dealers or independent performance shops. The reason (I think) is that the guys at the tire shop do tires all day, every day. The other shops do an occaisional tire. They're just not as practiced.

I'm with Brett and Dave on this one... kudos to the shop for admitting the mistake, stopping before they messed it up any more, and offering to make it right. Other than not mucking it up in the first place you really can't ask for more than that. Hey - is the OP the same guy that took his car to Jiffy Lube and bitched about them when they screwed up the oil change? Michael

One of my other vehicles is a wheel chair van, a lowered Town and Country. I always had to drill it into the techs head that many lifts cannot accomodate this vehicle and that because it's lowered you have to be very careful. The last time it saw a place like that was Midas Muffler, to replace the crappy brakes they put on 20k before. I told the guy TWICE not to use the drive on lift, my wife was there and saw the whole thing. What did he do? Drive it on, only he only made it 1/2 of the way before getting the underbody hopelessly stuck on the lift. Ugly. No matter how many times I have told them at places like Discount Tire, Midas Muffler or Jiffy Lube they continued to try and screw it up. The staff at these places are short lived, quick turnover type employees. The guy who listens today and does it right may not be there tomorrow. In my opinion you are increasing your chances of problems using these places.

I consistantly use Discount Tire for all of my mounting/dismounting. I made it a point to find one great employee working there...befriended him and now call and ask for him and only him. I bring him a couple of his favorite beverages from time to time as well as tipping him on occassion. The result? He takes FAR more care with my wheels/tires and often bumps my projects to the head of the line. He has also gone as far as to pick up wheels/tires to be mounted dismounted in the morning on his way to work and drop them back off in the evening after his shift. He does my 996, my 911's, my wifes MB E500 and my kids cars...never have I had an issue. Could he make a mistake? Sure...but I'd be willing to bet not only would he admit it, he would do the right thing and take care of it. Seeing as you are from Naperville, I would not hesitate to refer you to Moto-Delta ( www.moto-delta.com ) Chris is the owner. He is mainly specialty Porsche race shop, but would take the extra care you require.

I have no issue with Discount Tire. When I had my rear tires replaced they were extremely careful during the process. The downside being that it took them a couple of hours to finish while I saw a Camry fly out of there in 20 minutes for all four tires. But, no scratches and balanced correctly. Incidentally, the Discount Tire near my house has the latest Hunter 9700 wheel balancer.

I needed two new Continental tires and contacted Continental via email. Within 30 minutes I had a phone call from Continental informing me that my tires were available at a Discount Tire, just 10 minutes away. I purchased the tires, had them mounted, and was pleased with service. As an addendum, I have 15� 21 year old phone dials.

I just got a full set of 18" Pilot Sport N1's put on my car Wednesday at Discount Tire. I think some (if not all) of the techs are also salesmen/asst mgrs. Tech was a good guy, did a good job, and knew one of the 996 Turbo guys that goes driving in N. GA with us. This was my second purchase installation there. Hunter 9700 equipment as well. And the price? $1211 out the door. Hard to beat.

I've had good experiences with two different local Discount Tire shops. They've done both the GT3 and the E55, no problems and great prices. Kudos to that shop for owning up to the mistake and offereing to make it right. Most shops would put the wheel back on and hope you don't notice. Once you drive off the lot they can claim you did the damage.

Ok I change my thought on this. I remember a dip&#%$ who tryed to put my 235mm tire on the 10.5" rim and I stopped him at Discount. I was like maybe you should try putting the 295mm tire on the wheel, he was a little embarassed, should of been obvious. Then another instance two guys were fitting my spare back in (at the same Discount) and they were leaning all over the fenders, I was a little p'd off how they were so casual with my car.

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warnning? u need give credit to the guy admit their fault. man, it's so sad when coming to think about it. every time i had my p-car in-service, they always mess up something, and never told me, until i found out 2 month later. then they playing "we don't know. it's been so long". any shop who admits their fault is great shop.

It's a crap shot. I've always used one Discount tire shop with 0 problems with my 996 and other cars. Unti one day, I thought, ah, this Discount shop is a little closer to my home so let's give it a try. It's the same company after all. Then sure enough, they chipped my wheel. And yes Kudos to them to admit it upfront and offer a repair. However, I've made the mistake to let them repair the tire (subcontrcted out). The refinished wheel looked fine but the repair shop resprayed the whole wheel with a clear coat and that messed things up because the clear coat repair was not as smooth and shinny as the factory one. Now it's impossible to clean the brake dust off that wheel. Morale of the story is if they admit it, just settle with cash and bring it to pros like Wheel Enhancement. Whatever you do, don't let them repair it. - Ahsai

just thought i might get my voice in since i am a discount tire tech... don't know how he could have scratched your rim guy most of been an idiot... the machines we have are top notch and i have no problem using them to take wide as hell viper tires off let alone tiny porsche ones . i only work there part time since im in high school but yeah the guy who did yours most have been new or something don't understand how that could have happened. o and im not trying to promote discount tires or anything if it sounds like it at all. but yeah if any of you guys need any tires come buy mine on rand rd and ill hook u up with some chrome valve caps...

I have chrome Porsche valve stem caps on my car that have the color logo on the end. The tech at Discount Tire installed chrome stems whereas I had black before. I thought that was cool.

yeah where i work we save the chrome ones for the nice cars... if its some crap box will just intstall thoughs ugly black ones my boss always makes fun of me cause he drives a 95 dodge pickup or a 96 chevy cavailer and i drive a porsche.... i love the environment there, when theres no cars we just play football and end up triping and falling on our *** over all the lifts.

I can't find anything wrong with this... sorry

I have TechArt rims and I will never ever take it to any regular tire place, including discount tire. if you ever watch those guys work its just matter of time before your rims are scratched by their machine. its not the worker only, its also the equipment. find a place that has Corghi Artiglio Master machine aka "touchless" tire mounting. you pay a little bit more but its worth it.

I took my '03 Evo to a Discount Tire in Pearland to have all 4 tyres replaced and they scratched 3 of my wheels. They offered to repair the wheels and I refused as they were new wheels when I went in and I didn't want to leave with refinished wheels. So, they got on the phone to their wheel distributor and were informed it was a wheel specific to Mitsubishi and they would have to be bought through them. They phoned the local Mitsu dealer and were told $700 per wheel.... I understood their dilemma and we whipped out the catalogue and they replaced all 4 wheels with wheels I liked better than the stock wheels. They were very accommodating and I was extremely happy with their attitude. The local Discount Tire look after my cars and wheels as if they were their own.

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Tirevan placed a hairline scratch completely around my rim lip on one of my stock rims the first time I used them. If I had aftermarket rims I would have made them purchase me a new rim.

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totally dude. sorry **** happened to you, but my local discount tire in bellevue is the best mount/balance shop there is. and they accept walk-ins. you can't beat that.

THE DIscount Tire shop near me has done a very good job on all three of my cars. Two years ago they did put a small scratch on one of rear wheels on the P-car, but paid to have it touched up. I can't tell which wheel has the damage. Plus, I got a KILLER deal from them on four PS2's about a year ago.

It all depends on which Discount Tire store you go to. The one in Solana Beach(Cali) does all the high end cars out of Rancho Santa Fe. Most saturdays it looks like a combination Ferrari, Lambo, Porsche, MBZ, BMW dealership. They stock all the high performance tires in all the sizes you need. I've bought 5 sets of tires from them on 2 Porsches, 2 MBZ and 1 BMW, never a problem. They do flat fixes for free even if you didn't buy the tires from them. They did rip a tire they were putting on my 993, and threw in road hazard on all 4 tires because I had to wait an extra 1/2 hour. They are very cool about letting you talk to or even work with the tech on your car. They hand torque all the lugs, use soft sockets, lug alignment studs, and clean all the old wheel weight adhesive off. All you have to do is ask. My 993 was very low and they used floor jacks to lift it rather than risk putting it on a drive up lift. While they are a bunch of young guys (and once a young girl) they are gear heads and respect fine machines. Of course they don't have the technical expertise of Tire Rack. If you playing with plus one/two wheel and tire fitment, track or auto cross tires, you're better off with Tire Rack.

I have had most excellent service at the DT location I patronize. They are on on West Colonial in Orlando. From my track only 944 to 4 911's a couple trucks the e46 BMW....Always Very Good work, no damage ever. Often as a repeat customer they dont charge me for every single little thing. I sometimes tip a tire handler who seems to be doing a particularly good job on one of the cars. I always look, and talk to the guys..not to be **** but its fun to see them work.