Tires: Tow Hooks/Jacking Up Car, mazda tribute, discount tires

Question
Thanks so much for your quick response.  It's actually a discount tire place and a claim was filed.  I had it towed to Mazda the following Monday morning and they (the techs at Mazda) all believe it was caused from a jack slipping or being jacked up in the wrong spot.  They said there is a piece of plastic (the heat shield) that is broken right on the edge and above the crack.  Discount Tire's adjuster took pictures yesterday and took pictures at the DT where it happened.  The problem is DT is sticking to their second story that they jacked it up by the tow hooks - thus never being near the transmission case.  I called 10 other Discount Tires and recorded the call and asked them specifically where they would jack up a Mazda Tribute and they all said about 6 inches inward from the tire and explained the correct place per the Mazda manual and then I asked them if they would ever jack it up by the tow hooks and they all said NO WAY.  One guy even said that would bend the hooks.  All ten said they don't do that.  So, I truly believe the Discount Tire I took my car to is lying about jacking it up by the tow hooks in the first place to be able to say they weren't by the transmission case.  The manager at the store and the claims guy have been complete jerks...very condescending are sarcastic.  They refuse to get me a rental and have not even apologized for the situation.  The odometer shows the car went less than 10 miles from when they documented at their shop when doing the work.  I went straight to my house - which is pretty much a straight shot and never over 40 MPH and ABSOLUTELY did not hit anything.  I am so frustrated that they have been so horrible to deal with.  My biggest frustration is that I had my 2 year old daughter with me when I took the car up their initially, and I feel like whatever employee(s) did it, had to have known they did and chose to say nothing and let me drive off.  Thankfully, I wasn't going far because it was a very fast leak.  If I don't get a satisfactory response from them, I will go ahead with a lawsuit because the estimate from Mazda is 3000.00.  I just wanted to do some more research to see if anyone else had ever heard of someone lifting a car up by the tow hooks.  Thank you so much for your time and response and for reading my venting!  I really appreciate it.  


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Followup To
Question -
I recently took my 2003 Mazda Tribute to a tire place to have two new front tires put on the vehicle.  They put the new tires on the back and the tires from the back on the front.  I drove straight home (~10 miles) and the car sat in the driveway for the remainder of the afternoon.  When my husband got home, he saw fluid leaking from the car and upon inspection, saw that the transmission case was dented and cracked.  When I called the tire place, they immediately said they didn't do it because they jacked it up by the shocks and the manager said that the shocks are no where near the transmission case.  When I told him that actually, it is right next to it, he agreed to come look at the vehicle.  When he first looked at it, he said the seal was broken on the transmission case.  I then said that's not true because you can see the dent and the crack where the fluid was leaking from.  He looked some more and then told me that they could not have done this because they always jack up Mazda Tributes and Ford Escapes by the TOW HOOKS!  He said they tie it down and jack it up from there.  I called Mazda and they said that is not a jack point and would not be appropriate to jack my car up from there.  QUESTION:  Has anyone ever heard of a car being jacked up by the tow hooks to change tires?  

Thanks!

Sammi
Answer -
Hey Sammi!

Sorry to hear about your trouble! This is what I would do in this case....have the vehicle towed to your Mazda dealer and have them inspect the case and have them determine what was the cause. If it was lifted from there, which it shouldn't have been, there may be some evidence seen supporting that and ask them to show you and take pictures. Your vehicle or anyone elses should never be raised by the tow hooks ever! After you get the inspection back from the dealer then call the shop and get the number for the owner or district manager and get them involved with their claims department about your case. In the event that this is a locally owned shop or whomever it is and they will not help you resolve this if you believe you have a case, then I would contact the Better Business Bureau or perhaps a type of legal avenue if the repair cost is high and its worth the trouble to you. Please keep me posted as to what comes of this, because I really am curious how this turns out please. If you need any other help, please let me know!

Good Luck!
Andrew ;)  

Answer
Sammi,
It sounds to me like you have done the right thing so far and I hope their claims adjuster does the right thing. In the event you have to take legal action(hopefully it won't come to that) it sounds like you have a good grounds to stand on and I wish the best for you! Keep me posted!

Andrew ;)