CLICK & CLACK : Tire Blowup

Dear Tom and Ray:

I have been taking my cars for repairs and service to the same repair/tire shop for more than 10 years. The last time I went in for an oil change, the shop manager called me aside. He said, "You've been coming in here for years for oil changes and so on, but I notice you have a brand-new set of tires and you didn't buy them from me, and I'd like to know why." I was careful to say that it was just a matter of price and that I had bought tires from him in the past. He then got very upset and said, "Well, then you can let that other guy do your oil changes from now on, too!" And he stormed off. Can't I shop around for tires? -- Peter

TOM: Geez, Peter. Your mechanic does not have what we refer to in the shop as "good heapside manner."

RAY: He was doing fine until he got visibly upset and fired you as a customer.

TOM: I think it was perfectly okay for him to inquire as to why you didn't buy the tires from him. Maybe that would have produced some useful information for him.

RAY: And if you said it was due to price, he could have considered lowering his prices, or responded by saying, "Well, since you're a longtime customer, I'd be happy to give you a discount and match anyone else's price, so I hope you'll think of me next time you need tires."

TOM: Or he might have said, "That's true, I can't compete with those big tire places on price, but since I see your car regularly, I can keep an eye on your tires for you, rotate them regularly and replace one if anything goes wrong."

RAY: I can sympathize with the guy, to some extent. He probably feels like he's been good to you through the years, and he wishes you had at least called him.

TOM: He just handled the situation poorly. So now you have two choices, Peter. You can call him up and say: "Frank, listen, I'm sorry about buying my tires elsewhere. And I assume you were just having a bad day. I've been a customer of yours for a long time, and I'd like to keep being your customer if we can get past this." And if he truly was just having a bad day -- if he was unscrewing a spark plug, stripped the threads and dropped his wedding ring into the cylinder he'll have a chance to apologize and get a good customer back.

RAY: Or, if you don't want to do that or don't think you should have to, you can go to our Web site, CarTalk.com, and look at the Mechanics Files. Enter your Zip code, and you'll get a list of nearby shops that other readers and listeners of ours have recommended.

Dear Tom and Ray:

We're getting a new Smart Car dealership in town, and I was wondering if you could tell me what you think about it. On the surface, if you can live with a two-seater, it sounds good: great mileage, safe and cheap. -- Aaron