Big O Tires

As a disclaimer, I shouldn't have gone to a store like this anyway and my experience was to be expected. Though to be clear I feel I was victimized.

I came in for a flat tire repair, to which they stated I needed new tires. To be fair, I knew I needed new tires for months since there was maybe a few millimeters of thread left.

I was presented with two options, either get their suggested Michelin tires or their in house Big O tires. However the caveat was that I could get the Michelin tires today, but that I'd have to wait a day for a complete set of in house tires. I chose the Michelin tires knowing that was the decision the worker wanted because I didn't want to wait, which set up a vulnerability for him to exploit. After three tires were put on my car, I was told that they didn't have the fourth tire. When I asked if somebody messed up the inventory, he coyly said oh maybe that's what happened. This leads me to believe he constructed a lie to push a sale. All he had to do was apologize and say that he or one of his coworkers made a mistake and even offer a discount for this error. At that point I scheduled an appointment the next day to replace the last tire.

The last tire replacement surprisingly took the same amount of time that it took for the three tires the day before. However big O was busier the second day, so I'll give them that.

After the fourth tire replacement, he said he'd give me a free alignment check of the axles, which is absurd since any decent mechanic that cares more about the person than the sale would check in this scenario anyway to solidify their reputation and retain me as a customer.

He comes back with an electronic readout, showing my alignment really isn't that bad, but assumably played it so that I thought I needed it. He said he'd do the front axle alignment at half the price from $100 to $60. This makes sense since he was only doing the front axle, but I didn't trust him due to the earlier incident and declined the axle alignment.

I'll be back for the included free flat tire patch ups, but apart from that I suggest going to a different shop.

Thank you Brenden for taking care of my wife's Yukon, so initially we got the Tires done at another location near her home in Livermore where she went to get tire repaired as we did today but ended up with 4new tires,
so knowing a allignment was Necessary we came to your location in Berkeley and got extraordinary VIP service the customer service was 5stars and I feel so much better knowing the Service she should have gotten Was Provided by a location Near My home Never again will we go Back to the Livermore Big O tires thank you for Upholding The BIG O Name and Quality Service I expect When i hear My car Was serviced by BigOTires

These guys do a great job. Me and my sig other have brought our vehicles there multiple times in recent years, mostly mine, mostly routine maintenance on older (Japanese) cars (one sedan one SUV).

They are clear, fair, responsive, and efficient. I have friends and family in the business in other states, so generally know what to look for and expect, and this shop is pretty spot on - including value of services.

Worth noting it's a chain but independently owned.

Generally speaking, I don't write negative reviews on Yelp. I don't want to interfere with people's livelihoods, and I believe that for the most part, folks do the best they can. However, I just looked back over my new tire purchasing history at Big-O in Berkeley (since 2017), since I need new tires *again* . I am writing this review because I've had to replace my tires more often than I should have . . .

One source says tires should last for 60K to 70K miles, or four to five years. Depends on type of tire, driving conditions, and maintenance.

I certainly didn't get the most expensive tires available, but I drive fewer miles than the average person, not in rough terrain, and I maintain my car pretty darn well. Here is how long new tires I got at Big-O have lasted me:

One set of new front tires lasted only 16K miles/3 years.

One new rear tire lasted only 15K miles/1 1/2 years; the other new rear tire lasted only 20K miles/2 years and 3 months.

The next new set of rear tires lasted only 12K miles/1 1/2 years.

The most recent set of new front tires actually lasted 32K miles, a little under 4 years (why did these last so much longer than my new front tires that only lasted 16K miles?)

Brandon and Jarrell went out of their way to make sure we were good to get home. We were dropping off our daughter at Cal and got a flat. We are from So Cal and had to drive back. We showed up with 5 minutes left before closing and they all stayed late and found an option within our budget to get us home safely. It was nice to get taken care of being so far from home. Great job!!!

Today, i had a wonderful experience with Big o Barkley in san Pablo. i was lucky to have Brandon to help me with my tires issue he helped me a lot, he was very helpful, patient, and smiling, and he did make sure that my problem is fixed he gave me a great deal with new tires.i am satisfied and happy with the result.
Thank you Big O and thank you Brandon for your help.

These guys have been very sweet and helpful. But it depends on who you will catch at the desk.

I came in an hour before they were set to close due to a flat tire. Brenden and Jarrell were so friendly, helpful and professional. They did everything they could to find tires that were the best price that could safely fit my car. They gave me all the information I needed to make an educated decision and were so kind, especially when I was feeling overwhelmed. I'd definitely come back for future tire needs!

i replaced four tires here, pricing was competitive. however they called to tell me that my battery was nearly dead and needed replacing. funny thing is i just had it replaced the week before when i had an oil change. i drove straight from Big O to the garage that replaced my battery to compare test results. you can see in the photos that they are very different. but makes me wonder if my battery was even dead the first time i replaced it or if this is just a common scam.
UPDATE: After reading the business owner's reply, I will only say... isn't that what yelp is for??? I told two people working at the shop that day that the battery was brand new. They shrugged.

Earle, Alejandro, Brandon, and the *new guy* are all soild with me. I came with an oddball request and they made it happen. They were able to get the thing to work and got me back on the road. Easy peasy. I've gone to this Big-O multiple times and will keep going as needed. Thanks guys!!! keep the laughs coming.

Me: Hi, I dropped off my car for its appointment for a tire change at noon, it is now 4:30 p.m. I was told it would be ready around 2 p.m. Can you please update me?
Him: Uhhh, I don't know. Uhhh.
Me: Can you please check? My name is Day and it's a Toyota hybrid.
Him: Your name is what?
Me: Day, D-A-Y like day and night.
Him: Bay?
Me: No, Day with a D.
Him: Uhhh, I'll go and check. . . . (5 minutes later) Oh, it's about 4 cars down the list. If it's not an appointment it gets pushed down the list.
Me: It was an appointment.
Him: Oh. We'll try to get to it a bit earlier then.

I hope they manage to find the right tire to fix. It's the wheel with the donut on it and no hubcap. I hope somebody tightens the bolts.