Being out on the gravel roads we seem to get more nails in our tires than we ever have before. I think in the past year we have had about 8 flat tires as a result of 8 separate nails. Unfortunately, we do not have a Les Schwab nearby (oh, how I miss those guys!) and each "fix" costs roughly $12. Small, yes, but aggravating nonetheless.
This Monday, Phil noticed we had yet another flat tire in front. A result of a slow leak, he explained. One he could drive on when pumped up, but that would flatten over the course of a workday. As a side note, we have also been planning to buy new tires soon, as our tires are getting a little bald (which is a nice way of saying that we slide, rather than drive places- just kidding, dads). We thought, hey, instead of fixing the tire this time, lets buy TWO new tires, and then next month we can purchase the other two tires.
Great. Way to think ahead before they just blow up or become dangerous. Good job, us!
So I take Phil to work on Tuesday and head into a little tire store in a town about 40 minutes away (the closest "major" town). The mechanic walks out to the car with me and I explain that I would like to replace the front two tires, and that also, I need an oil change.
No problem, he ensures me, and sets straight to work. Fifteen minutes later he comes in and asks if I needed a light replaced, because I had extra bulbs sitting on the dashboard. By golly, I did, actually- TWO of them. "No problem," he says, we will just go ahead and do that for you.
At this point, this guy has been very friendly and helpful. I sit and wait, and at one point the lady at the front desk asks me if I am just getting two new tires. "That, and an oil change...". She gives me a concerned look and heads through the door to "check on their progress."
Upon her return, she explains that he is rotating the tires, and taking extra time to clean the rims and all of the places where dirt can build up.
*Sigh* I love small town mechanics.
I leave there, after having been charged only for my new tires and the oil change, a happy customer. Also, I am quite pleased with the fact that we have four well-working tires, a new oil change, and working lights all around.
When I get home, I excitedly tell Phil about the wonderful mechanic and all he did for our vehicle.
The next morning, as he is about to leave, he notices that the back tire is flat.
And through deduction I realize that I did not tell this friendly mechanic that I had a leak in one of the tires, only that I needed two new front ones. So, he just rotated the two old front ones to the back and put new ones on the front.
Ha. Kind of funny. Except not that funny. Because we still have to find a way to fix the flat tire.
5 comments:
Oh, snap! Lesson #476 learned.
Trust me...I understand. Sometimes my brain just slips right out my ear...
Hilarious! That's a hilarious story (I mean, not funny at all, ahem). :)
Oh! That is so funny and sad at the same time. See, if you were here in good ol' unfriendly WA, then the shop would have nickled and dimed you to death and certainly would not have rotated your tires for you - then you wouldn't have had that problem. Darn it - those nice Iowans and their down home customer service and generosity. Next time you take your car all the way to Des Moines so you can at least hope to get some (non)decent service. ;)
I definitely understand flat tires. We got our tire fixed at Thiesens on Saturday afternoon, only to get it back to the car to realize that the guy had put the tire on the rim backwards. Now the tire is unbalanced and the car pulls and rattles. Those nice Iowans......:-) and terrible nails!
Just think, it could have been worse, you could've driven out of there in a horse and buggy.
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