Does the 4matic system have a maximum tire wear tolerance between different tires? Costco yesterday refused to sell me one tire on tires that have 20000 miles saying it will ruin the 4wd system from one tire being larger with full thread. I think Costco is crooked and tried conning me . All I went in for was to get a leak fixed and they refused , saying they won’t fix the tire or sell me one tire but ONLY 4 ! Michelin!
I am going to a different tire shop in one hour, Costco refused to repair it , they said the tire was already repaired at the leak and the old repair went into the belt. I think they lied, and how would they know it went into the belt without removing the old patch , and if so they would have to put on a new patch, fixing my leak! Well , in a few hours I will know how much of a scam this was. Yea go to Costco for a free tire repair , come home 1200$ poorer with 4 new tires! Scam!

 

Unlike some dealerships, I've never heard of or experienced Costco trying to scam anyone and it sounds as if they were covering themselves and being over-cautious. It's fairly well accepted that mounting a different diameter tire on an AWD vehicle can result in long-term damage to the differential and couplings by overheating them. After 20K mi there's probably enough wear on your tires to appreciably change their diameter compared to a new one.

To quote Cars.com (definitely not scam artists) "Some manufacturers of all-wheel-drive vehicles recommend that all four tires be replaced, not just one or two, because a new tire will have a larger overall diameter than the other tires. The ones that have lost just a few 32nds of tread depth will spin faster than the new one, and the difference could cause an AWD system to engage on dry pavement and possibly damage the system."

As for refusing to repair your tire, that's a bit more subjective. The leak is at a previous repair which means that the original repair was done badly and possibly caused more damage to the tire. I don't think that many responsible/reputable repair shops would be willing to attempt another fix and risk a high-speed blowout.

If you can find a shop willing to "repair" your tire, good for you. Drive safely.

 

A 30 inch tire has a circumference of about 94 inches. Wear 1/4 of an inch of tread off of it and the circumference drops to about 92.6 inches, a reduction of about 1.5%. I doubt the AWD will care.

We're running new tires on the back and tires 80% worn on the front of the GLS with no issues.

 

Well guys , Costco fans as is myself, I love the cheap gas, cheap car insurance, money back, and roasted chicken etc etc etc .

I went to an independent tire guy after Costco said I needed 4 tires from a bad previous repair and had him remove and fix the tire . As I did a video and photos !

COSTCO LIED, this was a new hole with NO previous damage !!

I have video and photos as the job progressed today !

It proves it was a new hole , small , fixed today with only a plug!

Costcos only motive here is ILLEGAL PROFITS, a scam !!!

A Scam to make a free tire repair a 1200$ profit !!!

Costco was supposed to fix the tire for free since I bought the 2 tires from them . ( I did buy two, I’m not sure if these were the two) all Michelin top line are on the GLK .

Instead they do what they do , to scam millions, tried to make me buy 4 tires, 4 of the best Michelin’s makes for about nearly 1200.00$ .

They refused to sell me one tire , stating MB 4 matic ,


I dispute the 4 matic need for 4 tires without exact tread measurements !!

Does anybody have 1200.00.$ to burn today ?
no. Never .

 

I've done minimum research on this today.
Check the long running thread at the end of my post (2011 thru 2019 or so).

To summarize ...
If you have to replace the one tire, probably wise to replace the one on the other side of the same axle for an AWD - IOW, if the left rear is bad, replace it and the RR with the same tires.

What does the 4matic owner's manual state?

Also, if your vehicle already has different size tires on the front compared to the rear, the argument that all four need to be replaced just went out the window.
.
I'm not advocating this, but I keep a plug kit in every vehicle we own (including motorcycles). I've ALWAYS fixed my own tires, on the side of the road, and have had zero issues. HOWEVER, if the puncture is larger than what one plug can fix, I would have it patched, or if really bad (like a sidewall puncture or at the edge), replace tire. I have used two plugs on a rare occasion or two, but only to get us home. Been doing this over 40 years and 30+ vehicles owned.

https://mbworld.org/forums/r-class-w...e-all-4-a.html

 

I appreciate peoples input .

The HOLE was NEW and small . I have photos and videos.

I can’t justify their excuse for refusing my repair. And wanting 1300.00 $$

 

I took it to a TIRE REPAIR Shop on 26th in Berwyn Illinois .It was the only plug , COSTCO LIEd !
costco bad
Costco tire scammers , I’m going for 4 new tires and damages !

 

Talk to the store manager.

 

​​​​​​
It's obvious COSTOs stance ... liability, "legal issue".

It's kinda funny ... in that 7-8 year long running thread I posted in my previous reply, someone else's reply stated they visited (years ago) COSTCO and they told the person the same thing - all four had to be replaced

I've always had great experiences with Discount Tire over many years and different locations.

 

I think the real issue here is that the tire was repairable and they refused and tried to sell you four new tires. That was likely for liability reasons as stated.
If the one tire really was not repairable, I would say they were correct in saying you needed four new tires because of the AWD system. 20,000 miles is a lot of wear and different diameter tires will most definitely damage the AWD system on most if not all makes of cars. Subaru says 1/4 inch difference in diameter. A tread wear difference of 2/32 left to right and 3/32 front to back is another reference I have seen.

 

The bad tire was repaired , i Am I using if ! And all 4

 

That makes no sense other than the tire repair part.

 

What makes no sense ? The tire only had a small hole , it was not previously fixed , it’s a good Michelin!

Costco scammed me and I caught the scam before it went through! !!! I have the proof , unlike the thousands of people that won’t “save the proof “

COSTCO lying *******s ,
COSTCO lying *******s screw people on repairs !

 

This:
"i Am I using if ! And all 4"

 

I have seen numbers similar to these but I guess it depends on how each manufacturer calibrates their AWD systems.

To the OP, you clearly said that the new leak was located at an old repair. If the puncture is completely new then we have a different story. Not sure why you simply didn't ask to see the old patch/new leak scenario for yourself to confirm.

As an aside, a year ago I took my GLC to Costco to have the horrible RFs replaced with non-RFs (high-spec Michelins). I was pretty ticked when Costco refused to install non-RFs because I didn't have a spare tire (not surprising when running RFs). I had to email Head Office and point out that my wife's GLK didn't come with a spare but had a factory-supplied repair kit and compressor instead. They relented but also added a note to my bill of sale stating that I agreed to carry a repair kit and compressor in lieu of a spare. This seems to indicate that Costco is less of a scammer pushing unnecessary product and more of a corporation that's a bit paranoid and terrified of liability issues.

 

Right , I am using the tire , it’s now fixed ! With a simple plug and there was no previous repair. Costco lied

 

No , Costco excuse- lie, was that the leak was an old repair.

It was actually a new hole proved as I saw it . On video and photo . I am a pro photographer

 

Could this be the point of this little tantrum? Just saying.

 

Lets analyze this , so you work for Costco?

Costco gives free tire repairs to tires purchased at Costco, as a way to get more business.

To sell more tires.

Costco has its employee lie a tire is not repairable , to get a customer to buy a new tire .

what did I leave out ? Read my post

 

I seem to be Affecting Costco defenders , deniers , , wake up peoples .

 

I don’t and have never purchased anything at Costco though I have been driving awd for more than 20 years. Many tire shops will not repair certain types of damage. Many shops will not sell just one tire unless it’s shaved to match. Your over reaction just tells the forum that you don’t know what you are talking about. That the low paid Costco employee may not have wanted to deal with your personality, does not mean they wanted to scam you. The tire tech made a bad call about your previous repair. Many tire shops will not allow more than one plug in a tire and especially not two if the plugs are close.

so perhaps instead of thinking you are being scammed and going crazy over twenty dollars, ask Costco to pay for the cost of the patch.

the thing to remember OP is that that tire tech was being conservative and may have been trying to save not just your differentials but your life.

I have used the same tire guys for more than 20 years and all they do is tires and they are local and not a franchise. I trust them and they would have acted the same way.

Just because you found a shop to do the work does not mean it was a safe repair. Some shops still use cloth plugs which are completely illegal for them to use even though YOU could buy them at Walmart.

you’re photographer not a tire guy. If that tire blows out and you kill someone or are disabled, make sure you inspect those pictures really good.

you are very clearly trying to ask for something you do not deserve, four tires. Unless you have record of a policy that addresses this insurance, you are the scammer asking for more than they are owed, is deserved or is reasonable. I’ve already spent more money than your repair just sitting here typing this.

go back to fwd or rwd, if you want easy tire changes where you can drive around with four different tires in four different states….cause that’s likely ok in your world as well.

 

Have you considered the possibility the employee was just incompetent? Talk to the store manager, but wait until you can discuss rather than rant.

 

I think I may have asked this (yea, it's an age thing) ... what does the MB GLK 4Matic Owner's Manual state ? Any guidance there?

Maybe I'll do a search for a downloadable version and check (if I get that bored).

 

For what it's worth, MBUSA also does not repair tires for any reason, I understand they lost a big lawsuit after someone had a tire plugged at a dealership and later crashed. Now if any tire bought at a MB dealer gets a flat, they will replace it for free during the road hazard warranty period (mileage varies by tire).

 

EDIT : WHOA !!!!!! I just discovered all the various documentation in the glovebox brief bag are dated 2010 !!!



Well I grabbed my 2014 2010 GLK manual (I think OP has 2013) out of glovebox, which includes coverage of 4Matic (we don't have a 4Matic).

There's no mention about having to replace all four tires, because one is bad, and no mention about flats, except how to install the spare.

However, there is this bullet point in the Important Guidelines sub-section under Tires and Wheels section:

• When replacing tires, you should mount new tires on the front wheels first (on vehicles with same-sized wheels all around).