Chevrolet Malibu Forums banner

Spare tire RAGE!!!

38560 Views 38 Replies 20 Participants Last post by  glide
My 84 year old grandmother just bought herself a brand new 2011 Chevy Malibu. Last week, she was hit by some guy who came blasting through a red light and totaled out her mint condition Buick. So, she bought the new Malibu. It's a nice car and she's happy with it, but come to find out, it doesn't come with a spare tire or the jack to change it with! The dealer tells me that this is now an option on the Malibu. WTF? Since when is a spare tire an option on a car? I checked the GM website and sure enough, it's a $100 option. They never mentioned this to her when she bought the car and she didn't check to see if it had a spare tire. Honestly, I wouldn't have either. I've never heard of a car that didn't come with a spare tire. I bought a brand new Pontiac G6 in 2008. It came with a spare tire. So did the other 15 or so GM vehicles that I've owned over the years. All of them came from the factory with a spare tire. You didn't have to ask for it. It was just there. Not any more. So, she was going to pay the $100 for the stupid donut tire and the jack, but no. The dealer says that it is $500 to get the spare tire after you've bought the vehicle. You have got to be kidding me. It could not possibly cost this dealer $400 to have a donut tire shipped to Oklahoma and installed in her car. It's not like it's a complicated install. You put it in the freaking trunk! I had four tires and rims shipped to my house in Alaska last year. Alaska. It didn't even cost me $100 for the shipping. But they want $400 to ship a donut to Oklahoma and install it. And people wonder why GM sales suck. My mom and uncle who live in Oklahoma and near my grandma, are talking about going to a junk yard to find a spare tire for a brand new car. A junk yard. That's ridiculous. Any ideas on what we could do to get a better deal or how to deal with this situation? Are we out of luck? I just feel like my grandmother is being taken for a ride. Thanks for any advice!
See less See more
Status
Not open for further replies.
1 - 1 of 39 Posts
If it's dragging I'd take it back to the dealership and have them correct that. No wheel provided by the manufacturer or dealership should touch any part that isn't rotating.
That seems like a serious safety defect.

I think NHTSA would be very interested in hearing about any instances of that.

http://www.nhtsa.gov/Contact
1 - 1 of 39 Posts
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top