My wife was driving from the store and drove over a piece of glass. She heard a hissing noise, so she went to the local tire shop for a quick fix. The person their told her it would cost 18 dollars to patch the tire up. Is it just me, or isn't that supposed to be a 5 dollar fix, where they would just plug the hole up?! They also told her it was a 30 minute wait and so she had to walk 2 miles home with my infant and 3 year old daughter before my young son got home from school. The tire shop said that "Insurance regulations" prevent them from using plugs to fix the tire so now they charge 13 dollars more for a patch. It sounds like a bunch of crap that they gave her because she is a woman. Can anyone verify this "regulation" because I don't want to be upset and go down there and embarass myself if this is an actual fact.
2007-05-25 09:47:32 · 7 answers · asked by ----0---- 4 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
As someone who has litterally repaired or witnessed the repair of several thousand tires I think I am qualified to answer this one.
To properly repair a tire requires finding the leak(s), dismounting the tire from the rim, inspecting the tire for internal damage, removing the object(s) that caused the leak if still present, preparing the inner-liner and puncture for the repair and installing a proper "patch-plug" repair kit. The tire is then re-mounted and re-balanced the tire and the valve stem is replaced. That's about a half-hour to 45 minutes worth of work.
And you want someone to do that for $5??????
The external "rope plug" type repair you are talking about is an obsolete method of repair intended for bias-ply tires, which have not been used on passenger cars in decades. It's is also not a safe repair on any type of tire. According to the Rubber Manufacturers Association (RMA) "Repairs of all tires (radial and non-radial) must be of a plug and patch type. Using plugs alone on any type of tire is not a safe repair." It will also void the factory warranty on your tire. Use of rope plugs not only does not allow for a proper inspection of the tire for damage, the act of inserting it can often cause additional damage that can prove very dangerous later on. I've certainly seen that enough times.
I'll give an example. Right now at my feet I have a tire that came in with a garden variety nail right in the center of the tread. No other signs of external damage. If we had just put a plug in this tire and sent the customer on his way we would not have known about the handfulls of shredded, powdered rubber in the inside of the tire that used to be part of the inner-liner. Nor would we have known about the 8-inch long tear in said inner line that goes right down to the plies. If we had sent this tire down the road with a plug in it, this tire would have failed, probably soon and probably dramatically.
A few old-school "Goober" mechanics still use plugs but you should run, not walk, from those that do. They are living in the stone age. Imagine what else they do that they shouldn't.
Tires are the most important safety feature of the vehicle. Using an unapproved and unsafe repair method on a tire just because you don't want to spend the money/are in a hurry opens the shop up to considerable liability as well as exposing you, your wife and child to potential bodily harm. The shop did the right thing both for you and for themselves by repairing the tire in the proper, industry approved manner and the price they charged for the service is quite reasonable. In my neck of the woods the average price for a proper tire repair is $30 or more, or $50-60 if the vehicle is equipped with TPMS sensors.
Sorry to get long and preachy but I take this stuff very seriously.
ASE and TPMS Certified Automotive Service Advisor working in the tire industry.
2007-05-25 12:04:29 · answer #1 · answered by Naughtums 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Plug's can blow out. Or leave a slow leak. It is a judgment call. Depends on what caused the leak. A straight nail puncture, depending on size can usually be plugged. Super big holes or slashes nearly always need a patch. $13.00 buck's might be a little steep for a service station or independent. About half to $10.00 might be fair today. But again it would depend on the location and traffic. I never heard of an insurance reg. like that. It has been 23 year's since I fixed car's for a living. Just airplane's now. But back in the day I would have been happy to drive your wife and daughter in my car/truck to home or meet your son. Sound's like you got lousy service. But keep in mind station owners have family's and bad day's before you start yelling. If you really feel you got ripped off and $3.00 is worth it. Go down and discuss it in a reasonable tone. But I would just put it down to experience and try to avoid the place in the future if I were you. If it was a tire store and you bought the tire's there, they should have a road hazard warranty and have done it free.
2007-05-25 17:06:37 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
A tire patch does require more labor to repair. You need to remove the tire from the rim and patch the tire from the inside , then remount and balance as necessary. This is the 1st ive heard about such a regulation, unless he has an insurance issue with the insurance company. Also glass would rupture a larger part of your tire compared to just a nail making a small hole. You were probably better off replacing the tire out of safety for both you and your family.
good luck........
2007-05-25 17:24:01 · answer #3 · answered by mailbox1024 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If she went to a national chain, $15-$20 is the norm, and they are trained to only do patches. Plugs are obsolete. A cheap local garage might charge $10. A 30 minute wait isn't bad for a national chain, unless there were no other customers there.
2007-05-26 01:30:21 · answer #4 · answered by Spee 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I recently had a tire go down.
I called around to 3 different places.
All three charges $19.99-$24.99.
If this truly is an insurance regulation, then you should be able to get it in writing......if not, then you added to that store's profitability in a generous manner.
2007-05-25 16:57:53 · answer #5 · answered by Caesar Jeff 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
yeah that does not sound good they just wanted some extra money and they will tell everyone the same line to get you to say so then they have you but it should be about 5 dollars for that repair next time go to amaricas tires its free
2007-05-25 16:57:18 · answer #6 · answered by al 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
it may be thier insurance won't let them because of liability issues, it may be blowing smoke up your butt. I can see in this day and age with all the lawsuits for silly stuff that they may have been telling you the truth.
2007-05-25 16:51:51 · answer #7 · answered by Bob_Barker 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋