Is it worth $30+ to have the dealership check my tires?

[almightychey]

All you tough guys are gonna laugh at this....

My tire pressure warning light came on about a week ago, went off, and is now back on again.

I checked all of the tires but the spare and they checked out fine. I've never taken off the spare, so I really don't know how to do it. Is there anything I should know before I attempt to do it? It doesn't look too bad in the pictures in the manual, but I guess I am worried about not being able to put it back on. And if the spare checks out okay, well I guess I might have a bigger problem.

One of the dealerships here in the Bay Area said it would cost me at least an initial $30 for them to check out my tires. Sure bites not having any male friends to help out!

 

[boston_kevin]

It's very easy to do, and if you have to change a flat, you will need to know how to do this anyway... Follow the owner's manual and do it yourself.

 

[toybox]

For the $30 and the time to take it to the dealer it is well worth it to do it yourself. It is easy and will be good practice if you ever need to change it out for a flat.

 

[Trik444]

You're getting screwed.

I had mine in 3 seperate times to have them check the TPMS on all tires due to the dash light turning on....they never charged me a single time. However, I did my fair share of bitching.

It ended up being my spare tire every time, however my spare tire was never low..........

I've just gotten used to the fact that the TPMS system blows.

PS ~ Taking out the spare is cake. Go for it.

 

[RevoRunner]

This happened to me this past week... on vacation no less. I've never lowered my tire and when my other tires checked out okay I knew I was going to have to check the spare. Being a guy I only glanced at the directions thinking it was no problem. It actually was pretty simple. Just grab your poles from the "jack" area and attach them together. Don't worry about using the bolts to fasten the poles together. Those bolts will strip very easily and you really don't need them. Slide the pole into the indicated hole and make sure you feel the pole make the connection. Then give it a good turn (pretty sure it was left, check the manual). It will lower the tire on a wire to the ground. From there you can check/fill the tire. Before pulling it back up, make sure the bracket on the wire has a good even grip on the tire and then slowly raise the tire. When removing the pole, it will probably stick so just jiggle it around until it works its way loose. That should be it. Hope that helps...

It might be helpful to note how the bracket is holding the tire so that when you raise it back up you can remember exactly where the bracket is supposed to fit.

 

[dingo]

Lower the spare and check the pressure yourself. It's so easy to do that you shouldn't have an excuse not to do it yourself. Just follow the directions in the manual. Just remember to insert the crank slightly at an angle to the right (or left? a bit between the 1 o'clock & 2 o'clock position - I don't remember). The spare's winch is not immediately forward of the opening. Might want to give your spare rim a good wash while you have it down too.

Also take mental note of the spare's position or take a digital picture of it. It usually sits up higher towards the rear, so don't be alarmed when you winch it back up and it is not completely level to the ground.

 

[Mark86]

It is not hard to check the pressure in the spare. You don't even have to lower it all the way. Just lower it enough so that you can squeeze the gauge in there. The hardest part is putting those tools back in the compartment! Whatever you do, it is not worth $30 + gas to have the dealer do it.

 

[Koz]

Fill the spare up to the Max pressure and you will not have to deal with it. You can always let air out when needed.

Koz

 

[ovrrdrive]

"Worth" is a relative question...

Would it be worth $30 for Donald Trump to have it checked?

You bet it would. Just so he wouldn't risk breaking a nail or something.

Would it be worth $30 to me? A large male in good health that works out?

Hell no.

If I was a chick with no male friends around, with an extra $30, that didn't want to fool with getting dirty and a heavy tire, it would probably be worth the cash to me as well.

Sucks one of the CA members hasn't stepped up to offer to help out.

Maybe posting a few naked or scantily clad pics would help... :beer:

 

[AlphaQup]

If you dont mind getting a little dirty, you dont even have to drop the spare at all. All you have to do is slide underneith the rearend at the gas station (air/water station) and reach for the valve, open it, attach air hose, and pump away until you reach 40psi. Easy as that!

It would be nice if you brought a piece of cardboard to lay on so you dont get your blouse all dirty. :

 

[almightychey]

Thank you for all of the encouragement. I am a little timid about doing it myself, but agree that I need to learn how to do it. If I don't get to tackle it this afternoon, I will most definitely do it tomorrow morning. I will let you know how it goes. Thanks again for the tips, I appreciate all of your responses.

 

[kelcz]

A handy tip on checking the spare. My brother-in-law who works on mine and I both got tried of lowering the spare to check it. He is even a manager for a national tire/repair chain. He ordered a valve stem extension kit made for dual wheels from Napa. I'm not sure of the lengh he got, but said it took him a couple of tries to get the correct lenght. There is enough of it to extended through the tire and clips to the rim. So now all I have to do is reach right behind the hitch with the gauge or air hose. No crawling or lowering of the spare is needed now.

 

[jwyshrek]

almightychey ;

When you say Bay Area (CA), you do mean MTN VIEW, SAN JOSE area?

If so, I'm in the Silicon Valley area.

I'll PM you with my contact info...we can meet up maybe sometime this weekend if you like...

Will I won't check your spare for you...I'll help you along to make sure thing go along smoothly...supervise, if you will.

Just let me know...

 

[ovrrdrive]

almightychey ;

When you say Bay Area (CA), you do mean MTN VIEW, SAN JOSE area?

If so, I'm in the Silicon Valley area.

I'll PM you with my contact info...we can meet up maybe sometime this weekend if you like...

Will I won't check your spare for you...I'll help you along to make sure thing go along smoothly...supervise, if you will.

Just let me know...

There you go.

That's really cool of you jwyshrek. But you do realize that by volunteering so quickly that the rest of us won't get the naked or scantily clad pics now don't you?

:chair:

If she was in Florida I would have volunteered too. Communities like this one are so cool to be a part of.

 

[jwyshrek]

DOH!

:upset:

 

[jwyshrek]

so....what became of this?

 

[almightychey]

update!

Sorry it has taken me so long to respond - a series of unfortunate events have kept me away.

So it was the spare tire that was causing the problem. I lowered it just enough to reach in with my gauge and it was only at 25psi! I filled it up (can you believe air was 75 cents! what happened to the good old 25 cent days?) and raised it back up. After a minute or two of driving the light went off and has stayed off. I will continue to keep an eye on the tire to make sure it doesn't have a leak.

I want to thank everyone for their advice and encouragement. I am totally proud of myself. It really wasn't that hard at all, however when it I was lowering the tire, the initial turn was really hard, it was tight, I almost thought I was going to break it. I'm glad I learned how to do it and bought myself a tire pressure gauge, never know when this stuff will come in handy.

Thanks again and thanks to jwyshrek for the offer.

 

[jharris2]

Re: update!

(can you believe air was 75 cents! what happened to the good old 25 cent days?)

It used to be free!!

Congratulations on doing it yourself -- it's a great feeling and should give you the confidence to tackle other stuff, too.

:bigok:

 

[dingo]

Re: Re: update!

It used to be free!!

:bigok:

Aw hell. It was reason eough for me just buy my own air compressor and not have to pay for using an airhose at the gas station. Good to have in your own garage - no waiting in line or fiddling with worn hoses. Fun with nail guns too.

 

[jharris2]

Re: Re: Re: update!

Aw hell. It was reason eough for me just buy my own air compressor and not have to pay for using an airhose at the gas station. Good to have in your own garage - no waiting in line or fiddling with worn hoses. Fun with nail guns too.

No kidding!! The air compressor (25-gallon tank) is a requirement for the house. Fun with nail guns, staplers, drills, tires, and anything else you put on it. Especially fun are tools like this.