gota911

Background info: Some of you may recall that I had a bad drive shaft coupler replaced a couple of weeks ago after I noticed grease in the right rear wheel. Apparently the coupler was loose even before the grease was expelled. The reason I say that is because the inside of the right rear tire has considerably more wear than the outside of the tire. The right rear tire is cupped and is "talking to me" between 30 MPH and 45 MPH. We all know THAT tire sound, don’t we?

OK, this is where the "LOYALTY part" begins: I went to my favorite Discount Tire store today and talked to the manager whom I have gotten to know all too well in the 6 years I have been in NC. I started out by telling him I have purchased 20 tires from him in the last 5 years (for 4 different cars). He pulled up my account and said, yes that is correct. I said I wanted to change out all 4 tires to Michelin PS2. I then told him I needed a KILLER deal!

They took the rear wheels off the car and inspected the tires closely. They determined that the right rear tire was cupped and worn excessively on the inside. We figured the cause was the drive shaft coupler situation I mentioned earlier.

Then he went back to the computer and figured up the pricing for the PS2 tires (235/40/18 and 295/30/18) two of each. The normal Discount Tire price for just the tires is $1,310 (+/- a couple of $$). Road hazard and tax are extra. He is giving me the tires for $981.36 (EDIT: actually $934.96) OUT THE DOOR. This includes mounting, balancing, hazard replacement, and tax! That is one KILLER deal! The tires will arrive next week.

Sometimes it really pays to frequent a particular establishment, cuz you never know when you will need a little extra help now and then. Kudos to Discount Tire!

BTW - I am not associated with Discount Tire in any way, just a very loyal and satisfied customer.

WPOZZZ

WOW, that is a killer deal! TR sells that set for $1360.

Wellardmac

Cool! I need some tires in the next month, you can get another set for me.

Tippy

My contis are almost gone, that is an impressive deal Tim considering I paid $1200 just for the tires alone from Tirerack.

99firehawk

im nor sure what you mean by a drive shaft coupler? but if your tires are wearing poorly you need to have the aligmnet checked

gota911

Brad

That is what the service advisor told me. Here is the caption written on the invoice.

"Right rear drive shaft leaking at the seams. (they actually wrote seems)
Removed and replaced right rear drive shaft and cleaned around suspension."

parts they replaced

999-084-641-02 Locking Nut
996-332-024-03 Driveshaft
999-084-641-02 Locking Nut

They also replaced the RMS, (I started another thread on this topic about a week ago) but the service advisor never did say anything about this to me. I read it on the invoice when I got home.

Left rear tire is worn evenly across the tire, and is not worn as much as the right rear tire. My previous set of rears had pretty even wear across both tires. I think the fact that the drive shaft was "mucked up" (technical term for all you non-tech guys) which resulted in the suspension being askew on the right side, but I don't now for how long. I noticed the grease one day and took the car to the dealer 3 days later (earliest they gould get me in). I never did "feel" any difference in the way the car drove prior to or after niticing the grease.

Should they have done a rear end alignment after they replaced the right drive shaft? There is no mention of an alignment on the invoice. If they should have done an alignment, please let me know so I can have them align it (under warranty due to replacement of drive shaft) prior to getting the new tires mounted.

Brad, thanks for any help/advice you can give me on this.

99firehawk

cv boopt leaking, replacement does not require an alignmet, but also will not casue tire wear, soudns like you need an alignment

gota911

Brad - they replaced more than just the CV boot. They replaced the entire right drive shaft. Wouldn't this necessitate disconnecting some of other suspension parts and then reinstalling them after the new drive shaft was installed?

Steven C.

Not usually....I agree with Brad. If it did then they would have aligned the car?

Dutchie in NC

Tim,

Which Discount Tire do you use... I'm on South Side of town and use the one on South Boulevard.. aren't you in Concord?

gota911

Yes, I am in Concord. I use the one at Concord Mills Mall.

Marv

The half shaft is easily replaced without disturbing anything else in the car.

However, I can not for the life of me see how a bad CV joint would impact tire wear. Alignment and wheel bearings are the usual suspects. I think you still have an issue that needs to be addressed.

Has the dealer checked these items? I would watch that new tire like a hawk watching baby chickens!

ArneeA

WOW... That's a hefty discount! And you didn't have to assume any kind of awkward positions or anything for the guy!

gota911

No, there was no "reach around" required here!

He is giving me some credit for my front tires, which are not worn very much (10K miles). For the rear tires, he is only charging me the difference between new Bridgestone (what is on the car now) and the PS2 rear tires.

gota911

Steven & Marv - thanks for the info. I don't think the dealer did an alignment, al least it was not listed on the repair invoice. The car has felt a little "squirly" since the repair was completed.

I am going to have the dealer check the suspension and do an alignment BEFORE I put the new tires on the car. I also want to talk to the tech who replaced the RMS, because I want to find out the condition of the clutch.