Complaint Review: Les Schwab Tire Center - Spokane Washington

Although my experience at Les Schwab was poor, I don't think that I was ripped off as the name of this site would indicate. Instead, I feel that the mechanical work I had done at LS was simply incompetent and negligent. Further, on the front side of this notation, I would like to say that Les Schwab refunded my money and made things right. All I was out was my valuable time and some aggravation. Here's my story:

My old tires were on the lower side of worn when I decided to get some new ones in preparation for winter. I got four Formosa tires which I later found to be noisy and rough. At this time, LS informed me that all the struts were leaking and needed replacing. Some days later, I authorized them to change the struts which they did.

Following completion, I received a call from the technician that the brake sensor was accidentally broken during the strut work. This caused the ABS light on the dash to stay on. They offered to order the part and replace the sensor at no charge to me which they did. I returned the car for this procedure. After the strut work, however, the car was remarkably noisy and the ride was bumpy. There were clunking sounds from all four corners of the car. I returned the car and was disappointed.

After an LS inspection, I was told that new strut plates (tops) were needed to fix the problem. Reluctantly, I authorized LS to install the strut plates for an additional $390.00 or so. After completion, there was even more noise, now with creaking and groaning sounds, and the ride was still poor. I returned the car and was disappointed.

Next, I was told that sway arm bushings were needed and that they would cover the cost of this procedure (approximately $54). They did and the noise and bad ride persisted. I was disappointed.

Keep in mind that after each of these procedures, I am leaving work early or rescheduling to accommodate LS's time with my car. Some messages left for mechanic Tom were not promptly returned (some of that time he was on vacation), and manager Darrell Herron never seemed to be around when I called.

Finally, after incredible noise and jostling one morning, I took the car to Toyota. The upshot was that the rubber insulators on the front struts were folded over and out of place. The rear right strut spacer was installed on the wrong side of the strut top.

I instructed Toyota to remove all the LS components and install their stuff, including the tires, which they did. The ride is once again smooth and quiet and I am happy.

I returned the components to Les Schwab and they kindly refunded my credit card without further hassle. This is what I learned: 1) Les Schwab upper end tires are probably good and the lower end tires ($350) are inferior; 2) They are nice if you need a tire flat repaired or batteries; 3) They were unable to correctly install new struts on my Toyota and made blatant errors doing so. 5) In the future I will take my car to Toyota for proper work which is certainly more expensive but done correctly. 6) Les Schwab made it good in the end and I respect this aspect the most.