Tires: tire damage during install, 2004 honda s2000, honda s2000


Question
Tires: tire damage during install, 2004 honda s2000, honda s2000
tire  
QUESTION: Hello! I would just appreciate an opinion about this. Recently I purchased 2 new rear tires for my 2004 Honda S2000 (one of them was damaged/flat beyond repair driving over a screw of some sort) and set an appointment with a local service station to install them. I have had this station service my car since I acquired it,in 2004, but it recently changed ownership. When I brought the car in, I advised I wanted the new tires to both be installed in the back, but would like to keep the undamaged tire as a spare, so to plan on returning it to me.I am not certain if this information was conveyed to the person who actually installed the tires (he now "doesn't remember") This tire was about 1 year old, less than 10,000 mi on it, and in good condition. When I went to pick up the car, I asked for the removed tire, and the shop owner looked surprised and said "oh, well that tire was no good, you can't use it as a spare". When I looked for the tire in the throw away heap, I found it had a 6-8 inch gash in the side, approximately 1/2 way between the inside to outside section, parallel to the outside rim. (see photo). It is a clean gash. I asked the owner how this happened and he said "the tire was junk." Needless to say, when I asked him for an adjustment on his services or a new (used) tire, he said no and accused me of "trying to take money out of his pocket". While I certainly don't expect you to take a side on this, I really just want your opinion on how this happened. I suspect, since the person who accepted the car was different, that the person who WORKED on the tire didn't get the message that I wanted the tire back for a spare. Therefore I wonder if he just haphazardly ripped the tire off of the wheel thinking he was going to throw it away, and when he realized I wanted to keep it, he just claimed it was junk and he had no liability for it. Can you enlighten me about removing a tire from a wheel so I can determine if I have missed something here, or if I am out of line asking him for a new (used) tire??? I would appreciate your opinion. Thank you

ANSWER: Trish,

It's a little confusing, but the photo is of the tire the was undamaged and supposed to be returned to you?  Are you sure?  Because this looks like a tire that was damaged due to being run flat.

Plus don't S2000's have different sized tires front to rear - the fronts on narrower rims?  Perhaps the spare is the narrower tires on the narrower rim?



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: This is a photo of the tire that was undamaged when I brought the car in. This tire was not flat, and in fact the inside of this tire shows NO damage, which it would have, if it was run flat on the rim. Correct, S2000 have different sizes on front and back. All of this relates only to the rear tires. Front tires were not touched. Thanks again

Answer
Trish,

I think you could negotiate something, but I think you would be further ahead if you dealt with a refund rather than a used tire (unless you are willing to sell it instead.)

But the most important thing is the amount of tread left.  If you have a photo or a measurement, that helps establish your case. Be sure to point out how much business you can send his way.  Also remind him how little the cost would be to him compared to the business he would lose when you tell your story around.

If you are not successful, I would be inclined just to walk away and never use him again!