Dear Pep Boys, I hate you

Yesterday I got a flat tire. No big deal called Triple A, waited the fourty five minutes the person told me it was going to be, no big deal, my battery wasn't dead right? And even better I was in front of a 7-11. So that meant I could get me one of those new vanilla diet pepsi's that have been taunting me from the new roll out advertising campaign (it was tasty, but only as a treat not as an afternoon snack, too sweet, even if it was diet).

So a year ago I bought a set of tires from Pep Boys. Bought the "road side assistance" package, bought the extended repair warranty....just in case of things like this. Just in case.

So I take my car in. Its going to take at lease a couple hours for them to get to my tire, if I would like to leave it with them they will get to it. Ok, I have the lovely donut on my rear driver side, its ok. So I ask if when I come back if they can remount the fixed tire, mount the spare in the trunk and while the car is here I need to get my tires rotated. Is that going to be a problem? No. The guy behind the counter tells me that without the paper copy of my warranty he will have to charge me 10 to remount my spare, 10 dollars per tire to rotate and 24.99 for the flat repair.... uh...I have the warranty and you should be able to look it up on your computer.

Oh.

Yeah.

So its ok, we are all on the same page now and I leave the flat tire (I picked up a threaded phillips head screw somewhere, just in case you were wondering). I get a call a couple hours later telling me that the tire is ready to be picked up. Uh... I am bring the car back to have the tires rotated and stuff... oh that can't happen today, and we don't have time to remount the tire. Excuse me?

So I go back into the store and explain that I have a work order. OH you have a work order, well that will be an hour. OK I am prepared, I have my book, I have my trusty mp-3 player I am down. So I sit in the "lobby" which smells strongly of new tires and oil, and even after an hour and a half, one doesn't get used to it.

I hear some murmering at about 5:30. She is sitting in the waiting area....someone will have to talk.... she is in the waiting area....customer is waiting blah blah blah. Well at 6:15, a guy comes and tells me that a wheel stud broke and it won't be safe to drive the car because the entire wheel can come off so I am going to have to leave my car overnight until Napa opens in the morning. Uh wha? I have five stud wheels I can realistically go down to three and the wheel should stay on, but at this point the Service Manager CARLTON comes in and says, you have to leave you car here, if you drive and you kill someone you will be in trouble, gives me da hand and says leave your car here....

I pull out my cell phone and he gives me this disgruntled look and walks away. I am calling my Mother to give me a ride. She has to "call her Mommy" I heard him say, which to that I say... I sure as hell am not spending the night in the plastic chairs honey...

I am furious. I don't need to be ridiculed by some service monkey (no disrespect to those people that do work hard on automobiles and respect their customers in their faces) because I am able to call my Mom to get me out of really simple jams and she lives 6 blocks away.

so this morning, I wait until 9:30 to hear what is the eta on my repair. I am trying to be friendly and nice and understanding...stuff breaks... lets just get it fixed.....I am talking to Scott, today's service guy, and he tells me I should have taken the car because at least I could have had some transportation. Hello. So he says it will be around 11 when I can come in.

So I call. At 11 just to make sure its all done. Nope. The wheel stud that they ordered was the wrong one and Scott went to pick up the right one. Can you tell me how long it is going to be as I have people who are putting their things on hold for the day to get me a ride. So I am put on hold. 12 minutes on hold after being told they sent the wrong wheel stud, uh yeah I know that. They want me to call back in an hour. No. I want the car done in an hour. At 12:45 today this tire repair and rotation will have taken 24 hours.

I have a feeling it isn't going to happen.