I've been a customer of NTB and TireKingdom since the mid-90's. I trusted NTB in Dallas for my '90 Caprice Interceptor for all suspension work and tires and some light mechanical work. When I joined the military in '99, my Integra could only go to TireKingdom, if I didn't do the work myself, because I only had 1.55" clearance from the downpipe because they were the only guys in Shreveport, LA, at the time, who had a lift that wouldn't bottom out the car. I moved to Cleveland in 2007 and used them for my GTP, Protege 5 and my Neon. When I got out of the military in '09, I moved here to Charlotte to be with my fiance. I started using TireKingdom here in Huntersville for the Civic, and we used the Mercedes dealership for the C300 Sport. From then until early to mid-2011 they were great. Then came my first problem when I took the Civic there in March 2011.
I had a noise coming from the driver's side front axle. I asked them to look at it. I'm on a first name basis with a manager there (Ben) and he knows my cars well. Their mechanic couldn't figure it out, after me bringing it back 3 times that month and paying for new parts/service I was told should fix the issue. I sent my car to a regular mechanic and found it was a bushing that had worn all the way through.
"No problem", I thought. It's my fault for having a service center like that try to determine a little more of a mechanical issue than they're suited to perform. Then, I convinced my fiance to take the C300 Sport to TK for her new tires, and they did good. Or, so I thought. I also had new fronts put on the Civic at the same time. I was driving when my front passenger's side wheel lost it's balancing weights. I called them while standing outside inspecting the wheel to verify the weight was gone. I looked behind me at the Merc and saw the wheel weight coming loose from her's as well.
They re-balanced the wheels without charging, which should be expected. Then, a few months later, I convinced her that TK could do her inspection and oil change. We were both in the shop talking to Ben and I was very specific about how she was unwary about having TK do the job. "Make sure they do this right. She doesn't want any oiled spilled on the engine," I told him. Later in the afternoon, Sandy and I went back up to get her car and paid for the service. I jumped back in the Civic and started off for home while Sandy went to her car got and re-adjusted everything. I had a good head start on her. Then she called me sounding frantic.
"The car is smoking! (crying) I don't know what to do!,"she screamed. I said pull it over immediately and call TK. I turned around and met her in the parking lot and saw it. If it wasn't our car, I would have seen it as a glorious sight. We were creating a cumulonimbus cloud 3 ft off the ground. When I pulled into the parking lot, she was already on the phone with TK, who was trying to tell her to drive it 5 miles back to their shop. "Are you f*cking kidding me?! The car is smoking," I heard her screech. Engine off, check. Open hood, check. Look under wheel wells and engine, whoa! "She's either leaking or they've poured a quart directly on the engine." I said.
Two of the techs came out to the parking lot and confirmed that they over spilled a LOT of oil on the engine. One of the guys went to talk with Sandy and explain that the tech who worked on it was asked if he spilled anything before they left to meet us. Lying, the guy said "no". The other tech and I were pulling the intakes and cowl cover off to begin cleaning the engine. Each time he tried to say something, I cut him off with a very crass "don't".
With the engine cleaned up, we left for home, only hoping that this was a 1 in 500 odd of human err. Also hoping the idiot would get fired for such an oversight considering how much we explained that Sandy was worried about having them do the job.
Not learning our lesson, I continued to take the Civic back for regular work and having odd issues that either I would fix or take back to have corrected. Then, on the 1st of Jan, we dropped off the C300 to have rear rotors and pads put in, and yes, another oil change. Job gets done and we take it home. It sits all day on Tues. Wednesday morning, I get a text from my fiance. "There was a loud screeching sound from the engine in the drive thru this morning. I turned off the car and turned it back on. It's still there."
I didn't get to respond or call to that text before the next came through, "It went away, I'm at work now." I call anyway to make certain she's okay and get details. "I have no idea what that could be. Let's get it to a mechanic." Thursday morning we get a rental and drop off the car at a MB/BMW mechanic. Sandy txted me "they found a tool in the engine. that caused the noise." I didn't call the mechanic, nor my fiance. I called TK and asked for Ben. He wasn't there, so the guy on the phone got the talking-to he probably would never want from anyone.
I'm not going to go into much details about the conversation outside of me asking why a tool was in my engine, this is one of several incidents happening to 2 separate vehicles over the last 2 years, and that we will not be bringing back the vehicles to their location ever in the future. I had even special ordered tires for a set of 18" Mandrus wheels I bought Sandy for Christmas to have installed this weekend ($1,200+). The guy said the name of the tech and said he would talk to him to do a tool count. "What's that do for me after having one of them get chewed up by my engine?" I yelled. *click*
That is the very light and censored version of my conversation. I've known my current boss for a couple years, and he's only seen me lose my cool a couple times. He asked if I was alright and if I needed to go take care of this. This is my fiance. This is my fiance's transportation. The idea of her being stranded makes my angry. The fact it could have happened twice because of incompetence of the same place makes my even more angry.
I called the MB/BMW mechanic and asked him what tool it was, and where it was located. "It was an oil wrench, down in the pan," he said. "DOWN IN THE OIL PAN?!" He clarified it was in the splash pan. I said I would like them to give Sandy the wrench when she picks up the car. They agreed.
I call TK back, and as the guy on the phone answered (I know it's the same guy by voice), "Tire Kingdom, how can I help you?"
"
It's your f*cking oil wrench! You've been missing an oil wrench since Monday.
Your oil wrench was IN MY ENGINE, GETTING CHEWED UP! Do you realize that as angry as I sound now, this is nothing compared to how I would sound had my fiance become stranded due to this?" I scream. "You will be paying for any costs do to mechanical issues up to and including a rebuild of the engine that I accrue in the next year on this car. This is not a discussion."
Later today, Discount Tire will be installing the tires on the C300 Sport and I will be visiting TK with this in hand:
How much torque do you believe it would take to bend 4 plates of steel sandwiched together (1/2" total width) like that?