Going East on I-40 recently, at Williams, AZ, just West of Flag, stopped for gas in my Class C and then parked in front of the Mobil station for a break. A guy runs up to me saying he had tried to catch me and I had a problem with the front passenger tire on my toad (Honda CRV). I asked him to show me and he pointed out how the thread was way pass what was safe to drive (and he shoed me with the tread measurer he had), then pointed out the ''bubble'' on the sidewall -- where ''the rubber will break away from the steel belt on the side wall.''
I didn't see the bubble he was talking about, rubbed the side of the tire trying to figure it out,, and then he pointed out the 2 other bubbles on the tire and said they were ''hazardous,'' but he was AAA certified and would come get me if I got in trouble. Now I"m scratching my head cause I'm not seeing any bubbles.
Kept looking at the tire and honestly thought this guy was hallucinating, or scamming me. I couldn't see the bubbles and didn't think the thread was unsafe. Told him I'd take care of the tires when I got home and he walked away.
1/2 hour later, still parked in front of the gas station, I saw this guy pointing at the tires of a car that had stopped for gas, and the driver and this guy were on their knees inspecting the tires and having a conversation.
Couple years ago, this same scenario happened to me in Beaver, UT on I-15. While getting gas, a guy approaches me and says one of my tires is bad, wearing funny, and I should not be driving on it as it was dangerous. Ended up buying 2 new Cooper tires and when I got home to buy 4 more, found I'd overpaid by $100 per tire.
Then started questioning what had really happened in Beaver.
My lesson is not to buy unless there's an emergency and since I have wi-fi, maybe price tires online before buying from a stranger -- and then negotiate.
I'm wondering if anything like has happened to anyone else? Other scams out there I should be aware of? The Beaver, UT incident (in my mind) was questionable. The Williams, AZ was not. I think I was being scammed.
Scipio UT is another. Preying on old rich white people.
In all fairness, in my particular case my front tire wear was unusual, but, their 'fix' of new shocks would have done nothing to correct it. A few months later I got a complete front end rebuild.
* This post was
edited 05/20/12 02:29pm by 2oldman *
There have been several news stories / stings over the years of such rip-offs, usually involving out-of-staters. I recall one show from maybe a decade or more ago where they rigged an RV's underside with hidden cameras after a thorough mechanical inspection. IIRC, a similar situation, flagged down where this had been reported a lot. Told that a wheel was running funny or something, taken to local garage, diagnosed as a bad rear axle, told they could get a used one in a day. Charged a large sum for work that the video proved was not needed or done. The guy had just gone under it on a creeper and squirted oil and smeared it around with a rag. It may have been 20/20.
Jim, "The villagers are coming with torches and pitchforks. Please hide me!"
'06 Tiger CX 'C Minus' on a Silverado 2500HD 4x4, 8.1 & Allison (aka 'Loafer's Glory') www.tigervehicles.com
I'm wondering. Do you travel by yourself? If so, do you lock the RV when you get out? Do you wonder if the "good samaritan" travels by himself, or has a partner that checks for valuables while you're busy?
Retired and visiting as much of this beautiful country as I can.
I can't remember if it was in Beaver or Scipio, but the same scam situation happened to me in 2010 while on our way to SLC. Guy came out in a golf cart, thought he was a service station employee and didn't pay any attention to him. While pumping fuel, he walked around the front of the mh and said Hi...did you know you have a bad right front tire? Of course I asked him to show me and he pointed to a dark spot on the tread and told me that the tread was separating from the steel belts and that he owned a tire shop across the street and would be happy to install a new tire for me. Looked closer and noticed that the dark spot was just a smudge where he had rubbed his thumb across.
I got up close to him and asked him if he thought his mother was proud of him and that he ought to be ashamed of himself trying to take advantage of senior folk. He got back on his cart and left. I immediately went inside the station and reported the incident.
I'm still driving on that same tire 15,000 miles later.
Obviously, these nogoodfornothings do make a living from this... Just ask LTalbot.
Ron
Ron & Sandie
'08 Safari Simba SBD35 CAT C7
Toad: 2011 GMC Terrain SLT2
Tow Bar: Sterling AT
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