Had a slow leak in driver rear tire. Went by dealership to have them look at the seat from another issue (threading is coming out and fraying in drivers seat) also had them check the tire. Shop foreman check these out for me and said tire appeared to have a nail in it. He said for insurance reasons Chrysler won't let them repair tires so he suggested PepBoys down the street.

Went in and told them what I needed and told them which tire and took my place in line waiting. When they got to my car my wife and I walked over outside the garage area and watched as they pulled the car in and began to work. I was quite nervous because it was a younger guy working on the car. So they put the car on the lift and he starts looking at the right front tire. He studies it for a few minutes and finally the guy that took my work order walks by him and he begins to look it over as well. They finally spotted us watching and motioned for me to come over there. When I get there I tell them they're at the wrong tire. The guy tells me he forgot to write down which one I told him. (LR)

So now that we're on the correct wheel the younger guy removes the wheel and heads over to the wheel machine to remove the tire. Now they're out of my eyesite and my nerves begin to climb. After several more minutes they come to site and motion for me to come over again. They tell me they can't seem to find any problem areas in the tire. They explain the tire may just need to be re-mounted. They did and charged about $11 and we headed home. This was Dec. 27, 2007

We didn't drive the Xfire for a few days and I noticed that the tire looked low again when I went out one morning. I checked it and sure enough it was about 10 psi low again. So I start airing it up and notice right in the front of me a small chunk in the outside tread line. I put a little spit on the spot and it began to bubble up. Problem area found. But wait, upon inspecting the tire I find several areas along the edge of the rim "chewed up". Ohhhhhh $#%*

I march in the house and call them up and explain my situation and tell them I've also found the bad area in the tire they missed and they say bring it by, of course. Here's where I'll mention that I live an hour away from this PepBoys. So the Service Mgr isn't there but a pleasant gentleman did assist me and plugged the hole (I really wanted it patched but didn't want them removing the tire again). He didn't charge me for the plug and took a look at the wheel and came to the conclusion the scratches came from the wheel being clamped down to mount the tire back on. He said I'd have to speak with the Service Mgr and he would explain what he saw to him as well. This is 1/1/2008.

1/2/2008 I call and speak with the Serv. Mgr. and tell him the story and all he says is bring it by. So this Saturday 1/5/2008 I have it scheduled to take the car by yet again to let him see it and find out what they intend to do.

I'll let you all know what happens.

I do apologize for the lengthy post I just want you guys to be careful out there. Just because they say their mechanics are certified with 20 different certification letters after their name doesn't prove they have a clue.

 

Sorry to hear about your tire/rim issues. After you resolve the issue with Pep boys, give Discount Tires a chance (if there’s one in your area). I always watch my cars and the people working on them if they’re with in sight as well. I just had a set of Mandrus rims put on by DT and they damaged the LF tire when removing it from the rim. They informed me about the damage, showed me the damage (a bruise on the side wall) and ordered me TWO NEW FRONT TIRES while standing there . Customer service is not dead just hard to find.

 

I am still fighting about a chewed up rim, I know the dealership did it as the said they couldnt remove the tires and sent it to a tire shop to installl the new rubber!!. tire store says not us dealer says it looks like you curbed it I say good job I dont own a gun , any one selling a gun??????

 

PepBpys sucks. I would go anywhere else before there, even if I had to drive to do it. They are so rude.

 

Tirerack.com maintains a list of recommended installers. I went to a Midas shop they recommended and the service and quality of work was fantastic! Since then I have had two sets of tires put on our van as well and every time the work was first class. I can't speak about other shops they recommend but I would trust their recommendation; Here's the link:

http://www.tirerack.com/installer/index.jsp


I've heard good things about Discount tire as well.

 

I can understand the liability about not wanting to plug a tire, but I wouldn't really want a patched tire on my 150 mph sportscar either. Most of the "quality" tire shops or dealers should have the newer higher quality tire machines meant to work on large wheels w/ low profile tires. As for "Pep Boys" we don't have one in our area. But looking at the company, I would compare it to buying a Big Screen or High dollar Nikon camera at Best Buy or Wal-Mart instead of a localy owned high end Home Theater store or Camera shop.
Sometimes it will cost you WAY MORE in the long run to save some money. Customer service isn't that hard to find, unfortunately you do have to pay for it. I like being able to walk in and have someone who knows my name, if I have a problem, they take care of me. I will pay a little extra to know I'm going to be taken care of. Other than a dealership, I'll be taking my Corvette or dad's SRT-6 to a local tire store thats been in business for over 30 years.
But we do have a Sam's Club....Maybe they'll be running a sale.

 

Are you serious, customer service isn’t hard to find . Check the threads, when dealing with our crossfire’s good service is extremely hard to find . I’m willing to bet most owners would love to service there own crossfire but the lack of equipment, know how and time hinders potential do it yourselfers. Those first name bases shops are far and few in north Texas but like you, I am willing to pay that extra money to get things done properly. Unless there is a sale

 

Pep Boys is the worst. They're techs usually aren't SAE certified and they let anyone who's pumped his own gas at one time or another do tire and oil changes. Once had one of my cars there years ago and they did more damage on a tune up than they rectified. Had to bring it to another place to have it straightened out.

 

I never have and never will use PepBoys mechanics.

 

You can remove the tire from the rim yourself, but I recomemd you call a friend who is over 200lbs. it's a little laborous but easy to do, no need for special machines.

just deflate the tire, and you and a friend stand on the side wall to demount the bead, either the outside or inside will dismount easier. after breaking the bead, just slide the remaining tire over the lip of the rim (use soap and water to loosen things up if neccessary)

to install just reverse the whole procedure, again the tire will slip on easier from either the front or the back, be sure to pay attention to the tires rotational direction. I would only attempt one rim, if you need to do all 4 it's worthe the $40 they charge to use the manchine
http://www.xs11.com/faq/tirefaq.shtml

 

Chrysler makes a specific touch up paint for the Crossfire wheels. The Part Number : 05179660AA, is a perfect match. I had some small scratches on a wheel from the curb at an ATM. I used wet sanding to smooth it out and then the touch up paint. I let it dry for several days, and put on a second light coat.

 

OK, so I went in on Saturday (1/5/08) to meet with the Srv. Mgr. and let him see the wheel.

Let me take this moment to say to my local Xfire bretheren this is the Pepboys located off Kingston Pike in Knoxville,TN. This location is close to an hour away from where I live.

So with that said this trip marks the 2nd unnecessary trip to Knoxville wasting precious 93 octane and putting unnecessary wear on my car.

So he looks at the wheel and makes the conclusion that the damage does not appear to be down into the metal but merely damage to the clear coat and paint. He asks if I know a shop that refinishes wheels where I live and I explain I do not. (We don't even have a body shop I would trust with my lawn mower). He says he recommends a shop just down the street from them that they have had do work for them before with good results. Naturally, though, they weren't open Saturday. Therefore, I have to call him tomorrow (Mon.) so he can get in tough with them and setup an appointment. Thus requiring yet another trip to Knoxville.

I'm sure that my lost time and money will fall under their "fine print" on their work orders which state "not responsible for time or monetary loss due to work required on vehicle. (don't quote me on my wording but I seem to remember something like that on there)

 

I had a similar experience at NTB with my 2004 coupe. Took it in for 14,000 mile rotation, saw a nail head in a tire and asked them to check it. Turned out nail wasn't all the way through tire but they took tire off to check it. Took him FOREVER, especially attempting remounting. Then they called me - inside tire sidewall was split wide open. They blamed it on dry rot but I blame it on inexperience. Since there is no spare cost me $150 for cheapest tire they had and I got out fast, never to return! Highly recommend professionals.

 

Service Mgr called this morning and gave me a number to a mobile wheel finisher. He's coming Saturday morning to my house and fix the wheel. Hope he's good.

 

Be sure to take notice of the the TPMS sensors when dismounting the tires, removing if necessary to get enough tilt to get the second bead off.

 

The guy came by and fixed the wheel. He just sanded down the areas and repainted them. I have to say it turned out really well. I can't really tell where the bad spots were.

Glad that's over and done with.

Right now the car is in the hands of the dealership due to the threading on the drivers seat coming un-done and frayed. They're taking it to a local shop to have it redone.