Bloody Motorserv employee!

[mlhs]

I bought a set of wheel nuts from them when i got my Enkei alloys, i was unsure of the type needed so took the alloy with me to get one of the employees to make sure i got the correct ones. When putting them on they were a bit tight but thought nothing of it, well 3 months later when taking the alloy off to do my gearbox oil change, they were so tight to take off, and after inspecting both wheel nut and stud the threads are totally stripped on the nut and damaged on the studs!

Finished the oil change and couldn't put my alloy back on, had to use one of the teardrops and with only 3 (original) nuts. So it looks as if the guy gave me the wrong nuts despite looking at the aftermarket alloy, knowing what car i had and my reg number! The remaining 3 alloys and 12 nuts are still on the car as i dont want to remove them and not be able to put even the teardrops back on.

I will be going in the morning to try and sort this out! Hopefully they will admit fault on behalf of the employee, and i will get correct sized nuts and they pay to have my studs retapped, or replaced if not able to be saved. Luckily i have still got the receipt so have proof of purchase.

[SuperRedMR2]

Thats bad news mate.

There are alot of people out there who don't know what they are doing or talking about.

Apart from the length, how can they have possibly got it wrong, as havent the studs got a 1.25 pitch?

Did you get the chap's name that helped you?

Did they feel tight when you were doing them up by hand or did you just put them in a socket and start winding them up?

The Company will surely put up a fight, just make sure they understand exactly what has happened and don't talk to silly b0ll0cks to advised you what nuts to buy in the first place.

I'd ask for the studs to be replaced all round.

[mlhs]

I will be asking for the studs to be replaced and any damage to be sorted courtesy of them, i only wound them a little by hand then just used a socket and torque wrench. Good thing is one of my old managers/ friends work there but not sure if he will be in tomorrow.

I have no idea what pitch these nuts are, but i can say that they must not be 1.25 as this wouldn't have happened. Didn't get his name but i know what he looks like and have a good description to give.

I am going to be polite and curteous and hopefully they will accept their employee was at fault, i.e i didn't ask for these specific nuts and got it wrong, these were what he said were the correct ones after looking at my car and wheels.

Fingers crossed they accept responsibilty and it doesn't end up costing me anymore to get it put right. I cant drive my car as it is and its my daily driver, what makes it worse is i just spent £60 on new plugs, engine oil/ filter and gearbox oil for a service.

[SuperRedMR2]

Well if they are funny about it, mention trading standards to them and im sure something will be swiftly sorted out

[mlhs]

My thoughts exactly, hopefully it won't come to that but ill happily use scare tactics with them. Just glad i found the receipt, hadn't put it with my service history folder was just in with some things i need to shred, good job i hadn't got round to it yet. I'll let you know how i get on lol

[PW@Woodsport]

They got it wrong because people make mistakes, much like the pitch mentioned in this thread which is wrong, they are 1.5 not 1.25..... so you see the mistake is as simple as that.

Being in the motor trade he SHOULD know what he's talking about though, anyone who is allowed to touch wheels in any way is tampering with peoples lives.

[mr2mk1chick]

Apart from the length, how can they have possibly got it wrong, as havent the studs got a 1.25 pitch? .

Well woodsy has already corrected the pitch (I have no idea), but they also need the correct taper on the nut to suit the alloy. if you look at mk1 nuts they have a flat face, but many aftermarket alloys have a taper - hence the need for new nuts to go with new wheels.
also a reminder that if you still keep a std mk1 alloy in the frunk as a spare, keep a spare set of mk1 nuts to use if you ever need to change for a flat tyre.

[Jiveman]

What if the shop is not at fault and they have bought a batch or a one off machined incorrectly. I see this often in Engineering. Threads are tricky to machine even on automated machines where temperature of the machine makes a difference. You should never tighnten a nut or bolt with a spanner until you can wind the first two or three threads in by hand to check for this.

[DAN_REV1_TURBO]

If thats the case the shop should still refund him and then they will have to dispute it with their supplier surely?

[Jiveman]

Thats correct

[PW@Woodsport]

Regardless of wether the part is correct or not it is the responsibility of the fitter to make sure the part he is installing is correct, anything else is just negligence.

[mlhs]

Well just an update, went in this morning and spoke to the parts manager, he was understanding of the situation. After inspecting the nuts he asked if they were done up by an air gun, which they weren't I did the nuts up by hand then tightened with a torque wrench and socket, the same as with the standard nuts.

He asked me what i need to get my car back on the road, i explained i would like the correct nuts and any damage fixed so the new nuts fit correctly. He was very accomodating, said he has a few garages they use but none that could fit me in today.

So i said that they are accepting fault on behalf of the employee providing the wrong bolts etc after looking at the alloys and the car? He said he will speak to the retail manager first thing tomorrow and call me by 2pm to let me know what they will do.

Just to clear up anything i didn't specify any pitch to the employee i simply provided the alloy i wanted to fit and my reg car make and model, all of which he looked at with his own eyes.

If i had asked for a specific nut or component and i damaged my car then i would fully accept resposibility and pay for the repair. As these nuts were provided by the employee after all the necessary info given then its clear to me they are at fault, and by the managers actions and attitude towards the situation he seems to agree.

Dread to think what would have happened if any of the nuts gave way on a spirited drive!

[Steve Horrocks]

Are you saying they were the wrong pitch, as I just find it hard to see how you didn't notice when installing. I mean, putting 1.25 onto a 1.5 stud would be stupid tight on it's way down??
Wht did they saywas the issue?

[mlhs]

He just looked at the damaged nuts after i explained the situation and asked if an air gun was used to put them on. They were not that much tighter than the normal nuts only a small amount of resistance going on. But taking them back off was taking some force. All im saying is that the nuts they gave me have damaged the thread on the studs and the threads on the nuts are stripped and completely useless, some far worse than others not uniform in any way.

[kevin..in]

Regardless of wether the part is correct or not it is the responsibility of the fitter to make sure the part he is installing is correct, anything else is just negligence.

erm ^^^^^ this,
looks like you got away with it
its easy to blame the supplier, but to ram a 1.5mm pitch thread onto a 1.25mm pitch stud takes a good bit of force, a socket set does not make anyone a mechanic