Kal Tire

Quick, effective, professional service.
Turnaround was super quick. Parts were available immediately (whether in stock or brought in from another location) This is often an issue because my Volvo is 20 years old.
Brennan (the service advisor I dealt with) and the guys (gals?) at this location are great.
There was a small issue/​hiccup with my vehicle while the shop had it in their possession and they took care of it for me without a hassle, fight or negotiation.
I’m very pleased with their service and selection.
My tires are great, my car drives better. (better gas mileage, runs smoother, and rides more comfortably). Nokian tires — very pleased.
I’ve been back and will continue to go back for tire rotations, oil changes and other small issues. (likely going to buy some new rims in spring).
Thanks everyone! Keep up the great work!

Went in to get some new tires. They had the brand I was looking at and they recommended them. Service was quick and the folks were friendly and helpful. Plus I think I get free tire rotations there now.
The downsides was they «found» a number of mechanical issues that they said they should fix that totalled about $ 2,000. My response was why didn’t you tell me this BEFORE you put on $ 900 of new tires? Took my vehicle to another mechanic who confirmed that only HALF the things they said needed to be done actually needed to be done.
And to boot, the tires are bunk (Nokian). Although I think this is not really Kal-Tire’s fault as all the research said they were good.

I have amended my review from 1 star to 2 in light of my conversations with the head office, who contacted me by phone following my complaint made directly to them. They did so promptly. I would like to thank Adam at the head office customer service and Mike, who contacted me after I spoke to Adam who is in charge of the store I had my poor experience at. Mike was not present during the incident as I understand he was actually at the head office in meetings, however he called me right away and made sure he reached me.
I have received an apology for the poor service and for the mistakes made. Mike was surprised by my story and has assured me that he will be speaking with the person in question about this experience. I am happy to say that I feel for my part that this has been resolved and I am content with the resolution that was offered to me however I remain guarded about returning with my business.
Below is my original review:
They have accused me of not knowing what I’m talking about and have accused my mechanic of trying to swindle me when in reality they don’t actually know what they’re doing.
I had previous small complaints about the place. Leaving my car in the lot unlocked, leaving my back hatch open so my battery died. But I considered these minor inconveniences and due to the busy location and overworked employees (and there is a little trick sometimes to closing my hatch)
However there is no excuse for what happened this time. A few weeks ago I discovered bad and uneven wear on my tires on my 2004 Volvo XC70. The person at Kal Tire suggested it was an alignment issue and I agreed so we booked it in for an alignment. They gave it back to me two days later, charged me for the alignment and I was on my way. Both of these people were polite and effecient and representative of what my previous experiences had been. So generally positive.
But the car was not aligned, or rather it didn’t feel aligned. In fact it jerked violently to the right every time I accelerated beyond 2500rpm. So I called up my mechanic, someone who has been fixing my family’s cars since my dad raced rally cars. A good, licensed, certified, trusted mechanic who just happens to be a family friend as well.
I brought my car in for him to test drive and he suspected that is was my control arm bushing. Sure enough when he jacked up my volvo by the body there was obvious play in the wheels. My control arm bushings on both sides were torn and the ball joints were shot. All normal for my car’s mileage. The problem? Kal Tire should have never done an alignment on a vehicle in that condition. Both front wheels are completely unstable. So my mechanic put the parts on order and I took my car, with his work order and diagnosis back over to Kal Tire at North Hill Mall and asked to speak to a manager. I showed him the paperwork from my mechanic and he took the car into the shop to see if they could find play in the tires. When they took me to the back to look they had my car up on the lifts and asked me to show them the play in the wheels. There was no play. The reason there was no play was because their lift supports the car by the lower control arms, which is the part that is broken. By supporting the broken parts they stabilized the wheel. I told them their lift was stopping the play. They said there is no other way to lift a car. There is, by the body, as it should be done on a volvo, not by the control arms. The Kal Tire employee, as I tried to explain the problem, kept challenging me to «prove it» and «show him» in a very hostile tone. He would not accept that it was the lift that was stabilizing the wheel and would not accept that the parts my mechanic pinpointed the problem with were the issue. I told them to take my car down and I called my mechanic. I put my mechanic on the phone with the kal tire employee so my mechanic could explain to him how to find the problem and that lifting a volvo by the control arms is not the correct way to work on that vehicle. I watched as he rolled his eyes and smiled and nodded and said «ok man» to my mechanic. He then handed the phone back to me and walked away without saying anything further to me.
Overall the acting manager was hostile and condescending. Could not explain why an alignment wouldn’t hold on my vehicle if everything was fine, and suggested that my mechanic was trying to pull a fast one on me. I was refused a credit for the alignment that should have never been done and I was treated like a stupid girl who doesn’t know what she’s talking about.
I don’t think I’ll go back and I will be filing a formal complaint with Kal Tire head office. Minor annoyances and carelessness is one thing, but this was blatant disrespect and a show of a complete lack of knowledge of vehicles they claim to be able to service. I am disgusted by the way I was treated and the way the acting manager spoke to me and to my mechanic.

Awful. Go somewhere else, you will be disappointed at this store. I bought 4 all season tires at there recommendation from this store for over $ 1000.00 and the tread on the front wheels wore out by the end of the year, I also got my wheel alignment done at the same time.
When I went and spoke to the assistant manager he at first said he wouldn’t look at it since I didn’t have my tires rotated in the last 20k, until I told him I just purchased the tires from that store within the last 12 months. He then said it was most likely my wheel alignment, so I left my car there overnight and received a call again from the assistant manager saying that it wasn’t likely the alignment but that I would have to buy new tires from them and that I should have winter tires instead of summer tires. I responded to him and said they are all season tires that the store recommended and his response «oh ya they are. but we can’t do anything for you because your tire air pressure is to low». This store is a joke, I have never had such poor service and will not get new tires here again.

Well, after what seemed like a month, we finally have winter tires on the car. It’s done and so they get some points for that, but we had to put up with a lot of nonsense in the meantime.
First we picked the tires and wheels we wanted, then waited until we found out if they could get the wheels. After paying a $ 250 deposit on them and booking a time to get them changed a week and a half later we thought things would be fine. But the day I took it in and dropped it off for our appointment, they called an hour later to say the wheels weren’t there. A lot of time could have been saved had they told me that in the beginning.
So I had to wait for them to locate the wheels which took another three days. Then when I dropped the car off, they told me ha, ha, the wheels were there all along and nobody could see them except one guy.
«It would be funny, ya know,» the guy said.
«Yeah,» I said, «it’ll be funny after you get the wheels on.»
So they actually did finally get everything together and on the vehicle. But that screw-​around cost me a lot of time. They did compensate us for it and in the end, they did a decent job. But something has to be done so these guys communicate better…
I also noticed yesterday they had put signs up asking people to be patient with them at this time of year. I’m sure they’re dealing with a lot of irate people now, but it’s their fault. On one visit in, during the screw-​around, the manager said he knew me and had the wheels.
«Are you sure,» I said.
He checked the computer and it turned out another guy named Chris had the exact same problem with missing wheels. So it wasn’t a one time thing, it’s actually a pattern of behavior and these guys need to get things organized down there.