Went to a normal tire shop to get 2 tyres swapped, or so I thought...

[genphreak]

Hey y'all,

Here's a story about a tire (tyre) shop some of you might enjoy (?)

I was taking my mum down to her local shops (a sleepy but nice country town in Eastern Australia)- the sort of country where you get rocks, parrots, roos, horses, cows, mountains (rare in Australia) and people flattening it...

We were going 'downtown' as she has just had two bionic knees installed to replace her (now) worn out ones. Last one was done 2 weeks before, so now she's up and about and wants to go to the bank. Population is about 2500, but Saturday is not as busy as weekedays here, excepting the steady flow of tourists (like me) who come for the drive, the cool and the fresh air. It is one of the only towns in the Country you can get a really decent cup of coffee.

There is only one person inside the Bank that I can see, and she is staff. As we go in I notice the guys at the tyre shop over the road- they are not doing a great deal either. Hmm me thinks, I need those rear tyres spun round...

So I head over and ask how much it'd be to swap my rear tyres around. For those that don't know, e34s wear tyres on the inside when they are lowered. One really needs M5 trailing arms and bushes.

Weary of the way things can go at the tyre shop, I can't argue that they confirm that they will;

• pull the rear wheels
• spin the tyres
• balance the wheels and use stick on weights on the inside
• and put em back on
• (with the direction of the tyres round the right way)

All for $20. Wow! Not bad. Too good to be true maybe (thnking of all the awful tyre shop stories I've read on the boards)

So then comes the time to leave the key and come back in '10 mins' (Concerned look; I don't leave my car anywhere unsupervised). But in the country you have to trust people. It's just the way its done.

Off I go. I come back 10 minutes later (I don't want my Style 9s hit with hammers).

Well they aren't through but they are doing the right thing. One of the guys is working on a tractor wheel, the other balancing my rims.

Heidi is where I left her, but they lifted her up on the lift to take the rims off. They even chcked her properly. Impressed, I am.

I get to have a quick look at her underside, a view I have all the more trouble seeing as she is so low now the 540 M-Tek springs are in. So now for the surprise-

The tyre guy doesn't just do what he was told. He comes over and confirms with me how they are to go back on. But get this, has noticed that they are directional rims, and he is asking if he can pull the spare as three of the rims I was running were clockwise rims. He wanted to pull the other out and get them all round the right way. WoW!

So now I am thinking this can't be happening, it can't be true. For sure somehting will go wrong and a hammer will be taken to my baby...

So they put the rims on, button her up- and out comes the air ratchet.
(O well I sigh...) but not so fast...

After the nuts are all on, he then takes out a nice looking torque wrench and checks each one!!!!

I pay my $20, have a chat with the owner and compliment him on the best damn tyre shop I've ever seen... Any of you NSW people want to get a good tyre service just ask and I'll tell you where to go for a nice weekend drive! It's a bit far to come for those members state-side though... Nick

[Paul in NZ]

its really reallynice isnt it when you find a giy who knows.The guy where i go always makes a point of coming over to see me,if the car is really clean he always says"cars lookin Nice Paul",always puts weights on the inside and tourques the wheels himself after the young fellas have done the donkey work
he always has stock BMW wheels for sale,and even has leant me a set of said stockers when my wheels had to go get straightened.

[TheEndIsNear]

Wow, wish I could find that here...

[GoldenOne]

Wow, wish I could find that here...

same here, i will never look at tire shops the same again...

[mamilapon]

So where is that place mate?

[GJPinAU]

OK Nick, on the count of 3 we're gunna wake up.
Ready?
1, 2 . . .

[rob101]

After the nuts are all on, he then takes out a nice looking torque wrench and checks each one!!!!

not to burst your bubble but did he do the final tightening with the wrench or just "check" them

[Thayne]

Wow, wish I could find that here...

Same here. I hate going to tire shops.

[RobE34]

Nice to hear.
I had a similar experience in a Queensland town named Gatton last Xmas. Had a set of OEM BBS fiitted. The head Honcho hand tightened the wheel nuts then use the tension wrench. Guess who got a carton of beer for Xmas?
It must be a backwater town Gen... a bank open on Saturday???

[Thayne]

Nice to hear.
I had a similar experience in a Queensland town named Gatton last Xmas. Had a set of OEM BBS fiitted. The head Honcho hand tightened the wheel nuts then use the tension wrench. Guess who got a carton of beer for Xmas?
It must be a backwater town Gen... a bank open on Saturday???

I wish I could find a place here. I am in the city so its hard to find places like the ones you described.