LastLetters:
T e Tire Ripoff : About three years ago, we were in a Utah
gas station just off I-15 about 300 miles (one tank full) north of St George with our trailer, when a fellow started looking at the tires. He said that he could see tread de-lamination which could cause serious trailer damage when the tire failed and he would help put our new spare on the worse tire. His tire shop was right beside the gas station. As he continued to talk, he said the tires were in such bad shape that new ones were needed. However, it didn’t sound right because the tires were less than two years old and only had about 15,000 kms on them. So I carried on to Salt Lake City, with my friend driving behind me checking that I didn’t have a blowout. Needless to say, it was a nerve-racking trip worrying about the tires, especially through city traffi c to our campsite. At Salt Lake I talked with someone at a reputable tire shop and he said he couldn’t see any problems
with the tires. Indeed, I went about another 15,000 miles with these tires before I sold the trailer without problems. T en last year on our way to Arizona
with our 5th wheel, we stopped for gas in Fillmore, Utah at a gas station right beside I- 15. Sure enough, a fellow started inspecting our tires and saying he could see problems with them. At fi rst he said I didn’t have the correct air pressure in them – aſt er reading the tire sidewall, he admitted I did – then he noted unusual wear and off ered to put on the spare at his tire shop right beside the gas station. I told him that I fi gured the tires were okay. Aſt er that, a second fellow came out of the tire shop and told me that I was “playing with a live hand grenade” driving on tires like that, especially on the side of the trailer with the slide. I carried on to St. George, Utah, but still had concerns about the tires. I went into a large tire shop in St. George and the shop fl oor tire fellow said he couldn’t see any problems. Be very careful, especially at tire shops out in the boonies. Robert Pugh, Sherwood Park, AB
T e Exploding Tire: December rolled around and we took our
5th wheel in for its annual check-up. Aſt er replacing the brakes and repacking the wheel bearings Cathy and I set off with our RVing companions Geoff and Linda on our annual winter vacation to Golden Village Palms in Hemet California. We stayed at our usual casino camping sports on the way south. T is year we decided to leave the I-5 and
head down Hwy 99. Cathy and I take turns driving and it was her turn to drive. Just north of Merced while dodging potholes we heard a very loud explosion. Cathy said, “What was that?” and immediately pulled over to the shoulder. Meanwhile our traveling companions Geoff and Linda were behind us dodging pieces of rubber and plastic fender skirting. We have been RVing for more than 30 years and this was the very fi rst time we have had a fl at tire while driving! T e shoulder was very narrow and the tire was on the driver’s side. Traffi c was not slowing and the big rigs would streak by at 60 mph rocking the trailer and truck. Cathy took out her cellphone and called
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Good Sam who immediately dispatched a person to remove and replace our fl at tire. We had to wait a little over an hour but it was worth it. T e gentleman who changed the tire was very accommodating and also provided directions to the nearest Goodyear dealer in Merced. When we arrived at the dealership they did not have a tire but the manager gave us a brochure with information to contact Goodyear. We called the 1-800 number for Goodyear customer service and they located a tire for us in Fresno. We called the dealer and he agreed to wait as we would be arriving close to closing time. T ey quickly changed the tire, replaced the spare and within 20 minutes we were back on the road a bit out of pocket, a little nerve wracked, but looking forward to joining our friends at the Orange Grove RV Park in Bakersfi eld. Now here is the interesting part. When we
arrived at GVP in Hemet I called Goodyear claims regarding the tire failure and damage to my RV. Goodyear gave me a claim number immediately and said to submit the repairs along with pictures to them and they would look into it. Fortunately I was able to locate a fender skirt and purchase some additional material from the Home Depot store to repair the trailer myself. Meanwhile Cathy prepared a spreadsheet with all the expenses associated with the blowout even including the roaming charges for the phone calls, and emailed the details to Goodyear. Within two days we had an e-mail response and a waiver to sign. Goodyear agreed to pay the full amount for all the expenses and sent us a cheque within 14 days. I’d like to add that Goodyear representatives were very cordial and extremely helpful. T anks to Good Sam and Goodyear! Walt & Cathy Charlton
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