Chinese Goodyear
That’s not “Chinese New Year,” it is Chinese Goodyear, as in tires.
On our trip to Florida I loaded the bikes (the BMW and the Kawasaki) in the trailer for the trip. The trailer shook my back teeth loose all the way down. I had the tires balanced about 6 months before and they should have been good for the trip. Before we left I checked the air pressure in all 4 of the trailer tires and set them to 45 PSI.
When we arrived and got unloaded I checked out the tires on the trailer. The air pressure was still good, so I jacked the trailer up and spun the tires. One of them, the left front, had a large separation and a pretty good sized lump on the tread. I needed a new tire.
So, off to the Goodyear store I go. I put the Kawasaki back in the trailer and grabbed my helmet, so I could drop the trailer and truck and still be able to get around while they worked on the trailer tire.
At the Goodyear store I explained that I needed a 205/75-15 trailer tire. They had them in stock, and for only $102! “One hundred and two dollars?” That made me inquire on the total cost out the door. That came to about 130 bucks with mounting, balancing, valve stems, taxes, disposal fees, new tire fees, and on and on….CRAP!
So, as not to kill the whole day shopping for a tire, I go with this fee. The guy writes me up and I told him that the left front tire had a separation in it. I told him that several times, I suggested that he write it on the work order so the tech could change the correct tire. He just ignored me….said that “we’ll check it out.” So, I pull the ZRX out of the trailer and head for the Condo to get some lunch.
About 45 minutes later, after having a sandwich and a Coke for lunch, Goodyear calls me on my cell phone and advises me that the trailer is ready that there was nothing wrong with the tires. I explained again that the right front had a separation and that tire needed to be replaced.
Another hour goes by and they call back and say that the trailer is ready. They had replaced the right front tire. I ride back over there and sure enough, the right front tire has been replaced. I go in to pay, and the girl that was in the office writing up service orders makes the comment, “We changed that tire but there was nothing wrong with it.” I told her to go get the tire they took off the trailer. She replied that she couldn’t bring it into the office, so I said let’s go back to the shop and look at it. They dug it out of the bin where they had the old tires piled, and I rolled it across the floor. Every rotation, when it hit the separation, the tire would make about a 45 degree right turn. It would almost make a complete circle, every time it hit the separation it would bump up and turn right. She said, “that doesn’t prove anything.”
So we went back to the office. Now there are about six people standing there waiting, because I had two of the service writers in the shop rolling tires around. I paid the bill, got my receipt, and as I started to walk away from the counter, I told them, “I’m not ever coming back here, because not only are you people expensive, you’re stupid!” At that point I had everyone’s attention that was standing in line waiting!
I loaded up the ZRX and headed for the Condo. The trailer is nice and smooth. When I get back to the Condo, I looked at the new tire and the freaking thing is made in CHINA! 102 bucks for a Chinese Goodyear! WTF! Man, am I pissed of about that. Don’t you know I’ve kept my receipt, and if anything at all goes wrong with that tire, I’ll be visiting Goodyear for an adjustment!