Dale's alignment experience. read!

[acurael]

***Coles notes: I WAS WRONG. Dale's alignment was right. Miscommunication** see page 6 of thread Dale's alignment still rules!

So I am not one to complain and degrade a business but I had to share my experience as it was ridiculous. I am a previous customer at Dale's and have gone there for brakes/alignments etc in the past (been a few years, but I am still in their computer system)

Scheduled an appointment at Dale's alignment and went in for a simple alignment. My tires are slightly worn and I already know this and planning on upgrading rims and tires shortly.

I had servicing at the BMW dealership in late September and they did an inspection at that time as well. I also know how to check tread depth etc and have a tread gauge so I check my tires here and there. The inspection at BMW showed the following and I was not surprised:

1. front left 5.5/32 and noted inner and outer wear (minor issue as they ticked off the green box
2. front right 6/32
3. rear left 7/32
4. rear right 7/32 noted middle wear (minor issue as they checked off the green box)
- The tires are bridgestone blizzaks and about 5-6 years old but still have lasted long as the car is not driven much in the winter and we used to swap out to summers. I have driven on the winters for the past two years thru summer etc as they have essentially changed to all season tires.

So I drop my car off to Dales in between work. Jamieson at the front seemed friendly enough. I mentioned that I've noticed a wheel vibration with the car. Jameison mentioned it was likely not an alignment issue but something else. The car does pull slightly and that is likely related to alignment. He told me that if there were other issues or parts that need replacing they would call me which seemed good to me.

I get a call a few hours later and called them back and Jamieson told me over the phone that they cannot do an alignment as the my tires could "blow up" at anytime on the road and the front tires were worn to the metal bands and metal was sticking out of them. He also told me that the thrush arm bushings needed replacement. He suggested purchasing new winter tires and replace the bushings and align also.

I have dealt with Dale's in the past and they always seemed trustworthy and knowledgeable - I used to deal with Darryl and he was always truthful and nice. I used to go there knowing I was paying a bit more for good service. Talking to them today, I knew something didn't sound right so I decided to pay for the inspection and think about it. I thought maybe they were right, and the tires were completely worn on the inners?

Anyways I pick up the car and Jameison continues to tell me that the car is not safe to be driven and if I get in an accident ICBC would not cover it etc as the car should not be driven at all.

At this point it seemed like complete scare tactics. I didn't say anything or care to as I just wanted to pay the 36 bucks for the inspection and get out of there asap as I had to go back to work. Really odd way to approach things as he seemed to be talking down to me like I was an idiot for driving around in the car in this "poor condition". Maybe he thought I was clueless on cars? I even mentioned on the phone that BMW did an inspection but he said they probably didn't do a front end inspection.

So I pulled my car up into the driveway before I wrote this post and even pulled out the inspection from BMW because I didn't want to bad mouth a business without the proper facts. I checked the tires myself and there is absolutely no "metal bands" hanging off the inner part of the tires. There is slightly uneven wear but its still above the tread wear markers inner and outer. Plenty of tread left! I have put on about 1,000 kms since the BMW inspection.

Maybe the thrust arm bushings are worn? who knows - I'll take it elsewhere now. I was actually thinking about paying the 600 something dollars to have that issue fixed and the alignment but the whole discussion about the tires made me question everything.

I definitely won't ever be setting foot at Dale's again because they blatantly lied to me that the car is "not safe to be on the road" and the tires are "worn to the metal bands" and used scare tactics to pressure me into getting extra work done at their shop. Jamieson even went as far as to tell Mike (who seemed nice enough) to write out all the notes and for me to initial it that they are not liable for anything if something goes wrong. The notes say: thrust arm bushings worn/tires extremely unsafe and require immediate replacement/tires have separate and may come apart at any time. customer accepts all liability etc.

All I wanted was an alignment. Unreal. I can post pics of the "metal band" tires if anyone is interested. lol.

[inv4zn]

Why didn't you just post the pictures?

That being said, scare tactics are usually done on things that are hard to verify - motor mounts, that kind of thing.
To blatantly lie that you have metal bands showing on your tires seems asinine as anyone could very quickly take a look to make sure...

I've been to Dale's once, and they did a good extensive job - mind you this was about 5 years ago, and maybe they've "changed" their business model.

There's another long thread with jpark's negative experience with Dale's.

[jpark]

Ive had some terrible experience at Dales before as well with my s2000. Long story short, they misquoted me on labor hours, went 2 hrs over the quoted hours without my consent and basically treated me like I was an idiot.

I did make a thread about it on the suspension section here on rs but the mods deleted it for some reason after Jason chimed in (Still wondering why that thread got deleted?)

On the forums he posted saying that he does not tolerate such misquotation and rude attitudes towards customers and apologized asking me to contact him through email and we can resolve a problem. I did contact him the next day and all i got was a pointless reply from him bragging about his shops reputation by saying how hes been in the business for years and how people with lambos come to his shop from out of town etc. Nothing was ever resolved, i just stopped bothering.

[knight604]

Never saw the reason to go all the way to dales just to get an alignment.

rep that TSS BRAH

[acurael]

Originally Posted by knight604

Never saw the reason to go all the way to dales just to get an alignment.

rep that TSS BRAH

I go to TSS alot for service etc. do they do alignments - I thought they didnt?

I'm in Surrey so it was closer to drop by langley in between work. I'm gonna give Alex a call anyways for new wheels tires and now arm bushings possibly? Hopefully my tires don't blow up on my way to Burnaby. lol

Here are the pics of the front tires: left side is inners. BANDZ MAKE HER DANCE?

[knight604]

They just got an alignment machine not that long ago.

[acurael]

Originally Posted by inv4zn

Why didn't you just post the pictures?

That being said, scare tactics are usually done on things that are hard to verify - motor mounts, that kind of thing.
To blatantly lie that you have metal bands showing on your tires seems asinine as anyone could very quickly take a look to make sure...

I've been to Dale's once, and they did a good extensive job - mind you this was about 5 years ago, and maybe they've "changed" their business model.

There's another long thread with jpark's negative experience with Dale's.

Yup they were great about 2+ years ago. I used to go there often for brakes etc. I noticed a change ever since they took over the shop next to them and new front staff. Mike seemed ok to me and friendly (he even mentioned at the end that the bushings I could wait for but the tires should be replaced soon). This was all after Jameson left the front.

[acurael]

Originally Posted by knight604

They just got an alignment machine not that long ago.

Damn I wish I knew that. TSS is the best shop and always honest. I referred alot of friends there and they are always happy. Back to TSS then. No reason to go anywhere else!

[acurael]

Let me know what you guys think of the pic of the tires.

Should i tow the car to the next destination as recommended on Dale's quote?

[meme405]

Originally Posted by acurael

Let me know what you guys think of the pic of the tires.

Should i tow the car to the next destination as recommended on Dale's quote?

IMO you should definitely get a flat bed...

Spoiler!

[belaud]

I stopped going to Dale's when they started trying to upsell me on shit I really did not need, that and TSS is much closer, and can do everything on the car (which they already have )

[Lomac]

Originally Posted by acurael

Let me know what you guys think of the pic of the tires.

Should i tow the car to the next destination as recommended on Dale's quote?

Definitely looks worse than my old set.





Weird. Used to go to Dale's all the time, though admittedly I haven't for a couple years now at least. Had nothing but good service but it's quite possible things have changed in the last while.

[1990TSI]

I'd still call that 0/32s. you need tires.

He may have went overboard with the "may blow up at any time" but it doesn't change the fact that you need tires..
..and an alignment inspection. Hard to tell if you wore them out from driving hard, excessive camber or (probably not) toe wear.

My tires look the exact same (changing them tomorrow) and mine wore from excessive negative camber in the rear and how I drive.

[Roach]

I also had a terrible experience at Dale's in 2012. Was on the Kool-Aid like a bunch of people here about Dale's superiority. Cole's note version is that I was parting out my STI and needed to take a couple of things off. I was offered a cash deal by Jason. Showed up to get the job done. It took way longer than expected without my consent. Turned into a taxable job all of a sudden. When confronted I was treated like a liar. Paid almost double what I was originally quoted just to get the fuck out of there.

I really liked the place and trusted them with my both my MS3 and STI to service the cars there. They upsold me on a lot of shit and I certainly wasn't a cheap customer. In fact, Jason was the one who threw out the cash offer when I called in to book the job. The whole thing leaves a horrible taste in my mouth. Never been treated like that before.

Happened right around the same time as jpark's incident and the thread was deleted from RS after. A real disservice to users of this forum to have valid negative reviews deleted.

And for the record, I think Darryl is a good guy. He always treated me respectfully and never blew smoke up my ass. His brother Jason is the one who ruined the experience for me. And the front desk guy Mike.

Kev

[acurael]

Originally Posted by 1990TSI

I'd still call that 0/32s. you need tires.

He may have went overboard with the "may blow up at any time" but it doesn't change the fact that you need tires..
..and an alignment inspection. Hard to tell if you wore them out from driving hard, excessive camber or (probably not) toe wear.

My tires look the exact same (changing them tomorrow) and mine wore from excessive negative camber in the rear and how I drive.

Are u looking at the correct pic?

How is that 0/32? I can measure them with tread gauge. They are like 6-7/32. Same as what BMW said.

I'm going to switch to new 19s on conti DWS in the next few months likely, but the tires are still useable for the time being. I doubt I am a hazard on the road, and I still don't see metal hanging out of the tires.

[jtrinh]

I went to Dale's two years ago as well to see what all the good praise was about. I dealt with Jason at the time and my first impressions were pretty good. Had a bit of a chat about the STi's he had in the shop and a few other RS members IS300's that have also been worked on there. My car was in for an alignment and I asked them to look into some irritating brake noise I had at the time as well. Everything was completed in a timely manner I think.. Kinda forgot. Jason was able to drop me off to where I wanted to kill some time and picked me up afterwards. Didn't try to up sell me and what I was charged was fair.
I would probably not go back there, reason being is location.

Sorry to hear you had a bad experience OP. What is up with that Jamieson guy. Should have asked him to point out exactly where the belts were showing through the tire.

[Gucci Mane]

lol damn. i recently just got new tires and a leveling kit installed at dales on my f150. jamieson did try to up sell me on a bigger lift because he said the tires will rub etc etc, but so far i've experienced no rubbing even at full lock.

it was kind of funny though because it happened the same exact way it did to you. i drop the truck off, about an hour later get the call saying it wont work with the setup i chose and that i should go with new bilstein 5100 shocks (they're ride height adjustable) because my current ones have 60k on them and these shocks on f150s are only good till 80k. i then tell him that i've spent the past year searching forums for the perfect setup for my truck and that this was the only way i wanted to go. he responds back by saying that "well, i do this everyday and i know that you will need more of a lift because it will rub. those guys dont really know what they're talking about on forums and that just because one guy does something it wont work for everybody". lol.

i just sat there with a huge grin on my face because i knew he was just trying to pull that service advisor bullshit up sell card. like fuck, if you really "do this everyday" then wouldnt you have known when i made my very first call to you and told you that i wanted to go with X tire size and X level, that it would rub?

my overall experience was great though, they weren't able to get me the truck back before i went to work so they set me up with a rental for the day. rental was a brand spankin new 2014 subaru outback that was just fresh off the lot from the day before and had 17km on it when i picked it up.

[dared3vil0]

Originally Posted by acurael

Originally Posted by 1990TSI

I'd still call that 0/32s. you need tires.

He may have went overboard with the "may blow up at any time" but it doesn't change the fact that you need tires..
..and an alignment inspection. Hard to tell if you wore them out from driving hard, excessive camber or (probably not) toe wear.

My tires look the exact same (changing them tomorrow) and mine wore from excessive negative camber in the rear and how I drive.

I'm sorry for quoting a picture, but how in the hell is this 0/32nd of an inch? The sipes are still plainly visible...

Anyways, OP, was "metal bands showing" the exact words they used? If so, what a bunch of incompetent idiots...

[acurael]

Originally Posted by dared3vil0

I'm sorry for quoting a picture, but how in the hell is this 0/32nd of an inch? The sipes are still plainly visible...

Anyways, OP, was "metal bands showing" the exact words they used? If so, what a bunch of incompetent idiots...

I can't remember the exact wordings but metal was showing and metal sticking out of the tires was the gist of it over the phone. Essentially he was saying they had worn out completely on the inners to the metal parts of the tire. Which I knew was not true cause I always do a quick inspection of our cars, check tire pressure etc.

I understand upselling and recommendations as that what helps run a business, but to straight out lie to a customer (previous one at that) is just wrong. Especially to try and freak me out that the car should not be on the road. When there is nothing wrong with the car. I been to both BMW and TSS for major services recently and nothing has been found on inspections. I'm glad I didn't fall for it and walked away with only paying the inspection charge. Who knows what else they would have "found". If your gonna bend the truth at least be good about it or not so rude.

I think I'm more insulted that they thought I was stupid enough to believe them. Their scare tactic technique obviously works for them because they seemed busy as hell. Its so hard to find honest people/businesses nowadays....

[westopher]

0/32nds

Not 0/32nds

[dared3vil0]

Originally Posted by acurael

I can't remember the exact wordings but metal was showing and metal sticking out of the tires was the gist of it over the phone. Essentially he was saying they had worn out completely on the inners to the metal parts of the tire. Which I knew was not true cause I always do a quick inspection of our cars, check tire pressure etc.

It's just puzzling to me why they would pick something so obvious like tires, and claim they have metal showing through they are so bald, than saying (as someone mentioned earlier in the thread) motor mounts or something the consumer can't verify in about... Oh 3 seconds?

[1990TSI]

Originally Posted by acurael

I like how you all picked the better tire of the 2. I picked the worst tire of the 2. because that's how it's done. You always pick the lowest point to measure from, and in this case you'd pick the worst tire.

see the inside edge of the tire? see how it's fucked? how much traction do you think he's getting when that part of the tire is contacting the road around a wet or snowy corner?

I don't see how you can argue that those tires aren't worn out....

[acurael]

Originally Posted by dared3vil0

It's just puzzling to me why they would pick something so obvious like tires, and claim they have metal showing through they are so bald, than saying (as someone mentioned earlier in the thread) motor mounts or something the consumer can't verify in about... Oh 3 seconds?

LOL exactly. If your gonna make something up at least be good at it! They insulted my intelligence and I used to recommend them and even praise them on this forum! (before the shop suddenly seemed to change for the worst).

[1990TSI]

And lets see pictures of the rear tires please

[acurael]

Originally Posted by 1990TSI

I like how you all picked the better tire of the 2. I picked the worst tire of the 2. because that's how it's done. You always pick the lowest point to measure from, and in this case you'd pick the worst tire.

see the inside edge of the tire? see how it's fucked? how much traction do you think he's getting when that part of the tire is contacting the road around a wet or snowy corner?

I don't see how you can argue that those tires aren't worn out....

The picture is a bit deceiving. In real life there is more depth to the tread. Also the pic is weird cause that side is dry. But either way I don't think the tire is completely worn. I doubt the BMW dealership would miss an opportunity to sell me tires....