Today, I had an appointment to bring my car to Mavis for a simple tire rotation and oil change. Unfortunately, my visit cost a bit more than expected, and will still need me to visit them again tomorrow....
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Around 2 pm, I drove over to Mavis, expecting that I would only need to have my oil changed and tires rotated. Unfortunately, I know that when the service manager brings you into the service area to show you a couple of problems, that I will always end up spending much more than planned on the visit. Today, I was shown a nail that punctured the tire without allowing air to leak. (Thankfully, I had road hazard coverage to reduce what I paid for a tire replacement.) Then, he showed me a valve stem that needed to be replaced. The problem was that it has a tire pressure monitor attached, so the whole thing would need replacement. About $320 later, my car left Mavis, only to need a scheduled return visit.
Once I left Mavis, I decided to go to Trader Joe's to pick up some food. While on the way, the TPMS idiot light went on - when it should usually be turning itself off. So I completed my shopping trip and drove home to take care of some business. I was no longer in any mood to go out again, so I called Mavis and explained the situation - and was told to come back tomorrow.
Later on, before I went out for the evening, I found out that one valve stem had a hard to remove stem cover (it was made of metal instead of plastic). So I removed it with the help of a pair of pliers (hoping it's OK), and tested my tires' air pressure. I think that they over inflated ALL of my tires. So this is something I'll mention when I go back to Mavis.
If I'm right, the mechanic working on my car got a little bit sloppy and lost track of what he was doing. If so, we'll find out tomorrow morning. Now to change into Marian mode and spend the evening with some friends....
PS: The next day, I had to bring the car back twice. Mavis said the left rear tire was a little low on air, and this stopped the TPMS light from turning on again for 20 minutes. As soon as it came back on, I immediately returned to Mavis, where they did a complete reset of the TPMS system, and took the car out for a test drive. Hopefully, the problem has been resolved for the last time.
