Bonneville America Forums Forums Off Topic Discussion Forums Lounge Service story

My buddy took his car in to the Walmart tire repair shop to have two new tires fitted. After he rolled it in, he watched their efforts through the large glass window in the lobby. A mechanic lifted his lil car up on the lift, removed the lug nuts from the passenger side wheel and tried to remove the wheel. Stuck. He called another mech over and they both tugged at the wheel. Still stuck. So they jacked it back down (didn't try the other side) and told my buddy, "sorry, we couldn't get the wheel off. And that will be $20". My buddy replied, "For what? You didn't install any tires!" He replied, "For the service". My buddy said, "let me see the key", which they put on the counter, and which he promptly got in his car and drove off. He was really steamed about this "service" and has sworn off Wally world in the future. (I expect Ian to chime in here)

Seems they didn't do what they were supposed to do to try and get the wheel loose but it would be standard for them to give it a shot then st6op before any damage and decline service. I need to correct you on one point, chances are there were no mechanics in that shop, werenj't any in the one I ran except me. My shop had a big sledge hammer to hit the tire on the back side with the flat side of the hammer to get them loose. Not the best way but that is what they wanted us to do. I hated that job, no one above me or under me had a clue how to work on cars and almost all above me had no idea how to run a service area.

The only service work I get at wally world is battery replacement. I pick out the battery on the shelf, so the + and - are on the right sides. If they put it in the wrong way around, the cables won't reach to the back of the battery box. If they try to cross the cables, they won't reach. Hard to mess that one up. I won't let them near my '51 Plymouth because that is positive ground and I'm afraid they might try to put a charger on it backward.

51? Is that 6v ?

Hey Dog , was thinking the same thing when I read the story lol if hammer don't work ? Get a bigger hammer lol

I had tire problems with them too. I needed a tire patched from a nail and needed the tires rotated. I marked where the nail was with white chalk to make it easy for them to find it. I went back 4 hours later and they said the rotation was done but couldn't find the nail. I was already having a bad day so I paid them and went out to the car. Guess what, the nail was right there where I marked and the marked tire was still in the same place on the car. Customer service in the US is gone, but Walmart isn't the worst, AT&T has that distinction. Oh, and thank goodness we don't have to press 1 for English and 2 for Spanish on this site.

I had that problem with a brand new TR-7 on the side of the road in NW Indiana, it was GD January too , turned out the factory, British Leyland slapped on the wheels before the paint was dry. I had to literally kick the car off the jack 3 times, before I could change the tire. FUBAR

For the record (I do this every day for a living and have most of my life) the best way to pop a stuck wheel off is a long pry bar between the caliper and rim or any other solid point close to the wheel edge. They always pop right off that way. Wal Mart wouldn't listen to me when I suggested that.

4 years, $13 an hr as manager but the benefits were great. I was looking for job security and retirement so I took the low pay. I had 3 weeks paid vacation, 2 days personal time, paid sick time that once it reached a certain level rolled over into personal time, and a 401k. It was so bad it wasn't worth staying and the health insurance sucked.

My nephew was a shift manager there for a few years. Good mechanical aptitude but zero actual training outside of the shade tree background. Most of the guys working for him had zero training and less aptitude. Luckily my nephew could read and follow instructions, unlike the stories you guys have.

WalMart won't do any service on my Trooper because the parking brake doesn't work. I could somewhat understand if they had to put it on a lift (they wont use chocks), but no battery, no oil change, nothing.

Wow, I would not let Walmart touch anything on any vehicle I own or anything else mechanical. Seriously! how cheap can you get that you take a vehicle to them and expect service up to your expectations? Support your local mechanic.

Never had a problem with getting tires done there but I wouldn't trust them with anything else I miss doing it myself but these days you have to be computer literate and that ain't me

I wouldn't have tires done there either, not after the screw ups I have seen. I had an assistant manager over me tell my tech to take all the lugs off a car and put it down and shake it to dislodge stuck wheels.