[ibisbrew]

Before I start, I would like to inform that I tend to be thorough with my posts. If in a hurry, just glance over the underlined points and pictures to get an idea.

I also apologize for any bad angles and lighting in pictures. I did not want to interfere with their work for long and clicked them fast.

Place: Jae's Wheel Masters

Location: Kinnimulky, Udupi. (right beside NH66, see Google Maps screenshot below)





Do note the variety of vehicles here.

Jae's has been in business for over 20 years now and have plenty of happy customers. I was surprised at the lack of their entry in the Team-BHP directory.

Services offered:

• They are a Michelin premium dealer: Tyre sizes R15 and above are available
  
  
• Other brands available: Yokohama, Bridgestone, Goodyear, Ceat, JK Tyre
  
  
• Wheel Services (All machines used are Hunter®): Wheel alignment, Road Force balancing, regular wheel balancing, nitrogen & tyre repair
  
  
• Other Services: Car Insurance, car accessories (Michelin branded wipers, tyre shine, tyre pressure gauge etc. - see pictures below)

Services I have availed:

• Wheel alignment, Road Force balancing, regular wheel balancing, got a friend to purchase a set of Yokohama Earth 1's from here

What I Like:

• Range of tyre brands and sizes - they keep stock for all the above mentioned brands (the more common sizes at least), however if you have some oddball size or variant in mind, they will arrange it for you
  
  
• No non-sense problem solving attitude and personal involvement of the owner Mr. Praveen (see picture of business card below). He will have an answer for almost all of your queries (or will find the answer). He is always open to feedback and suggestions
  
  
• Professional and well-trained staff. They do the job well and do it quickly. While placing the spare tyre back after balancing, without any prior instructions, an employee informed me and even cleaned out some water that had gotten into the spare wheel well (there's a leak near the taillight)
  
  
• Location is right beside NH66. You can take a road test at highway speeds immediately before and after the job and correct any issues
  
  
• Road Force balancing - the only tyre place to offer this in the area. No other bussiness has a Road Force balancer yet, not even in Mangalore. Apparently the next closest location would be in Bangalore (do correct me if I'm wrong). Furthermore the cost difference over regular balancing is minimal
  
  
• Two dedicated wheel alignment bays
  
  
• Clean customer lounge (has direct view of the working area)
  
  
• Indoor storage for all the tyres in stock
  
  
• Decent amount of parking space for waiting customer cars

What I don't like:

• The entry to the shop lot is a relatively steep non-paved slope. I did not face any issues in my Honda City 2012 and neither did a Mk. VI Jetta that was there. But, somebody with a significantly low clearance might scrape their bumper or mud guard a bit. I was told that they tried building an entry but due to some municipal work, they dug it out again.
  
  
• I'm being very nitpicky and probably unfair here. Since the volume of customers is on the higher side, if you're very short on time, you will have to check with them at the very least a couple hours in advance to get the job done at your preferred time.

Contact information: See picture of the business card immediately below.

http://youtu.be/rqYZw0Ji2rs

The Road Force balancer in action. It simulates the road conditions and suggests possible corrections for the alloy and the tyre. As seen here, a single weight placed at the right spot would help.

The two alignment machines. The one on the right is a newer model.


You can see the owner, Mr. Praveen (left) overseeing a staff member (right) running the Road Force balancer. Also notice the regular balancer (left corner) and other machines.

Side note: To my surprise the owner was initially a little apprehensive when I asked for pictures, he was concerned that the working space was not as clean as usual given the incessant rains.


My own Honda City in the alignment bay


Sensors placed on all the tyres.


For sale accessories on display near the billing desk, behind this is the customer lounge.


The customer lounge


The indoor storage for their stock.


Some Michelin LTX Force and Goodyear Wrangler tyres. As per the owner, these Goodyear's are a good alternative if you have a budget constraint (as they cost almost 4k lesser per tyre)



Some useful posters in the shop.

Disclaimer: I took all the pictures with the owner's permission after informing him of my intentions to post them in the Team-BHP directory. I am also in no way associated with Jae's Wheel Masters. This thread is solely based on my experience there during my visits, as well as feedback from others.

[vigsom]

^^ A very colorful recommendation indeed. I like the way all tyres are stored in the upright position, unlike most places where they're stored one over the other in sets of 4 or 5.

A neat tyre store is all the more reassuring, because it speaks a lot about the store's focus to 5S. I've been fortunate to be able to locate such stores wherever I've needed them. The latest in my khoj is Sarina Wheels Vadodara.

One of my tyres was losing about 7psi a month, which didn't seem obvious when the running was high and when checking would be done every two weeks. With usage in 2020 plummeting, the need to top up air had reduced. Once, I was shocked to see 15psi in that one tyre after a month, while the other 3 had dropped by just 2psi. This was when the weather had cooled down due to heavy rains. There was the typical nail in the tread, but instead of just pulling the nail out and stuffing some compound in, they took the tyre off, put a patch from inside, re-mounted the wheel, did the balancing and then reinstalled the wheel. I was charged just Rs.500 for the job. Small money, but liked the approach.

Here's some yellow and blue from Sarina Wheels.

[ibisbrew]

Originally Posted by vigsom

^^ A very colorful recommendation indeed. I like the way all tyres are stored in the upright position, unlike most places where they're stored one over the other in sets of 4 or 5.

A neat tyre store is all the more reassuring, because it speaks a lot about the store's focus to 5S. I've been fortunate to be able to locate such stores wherever I've needed them. The latest in my khoj is Sarina Wheels Vadodara.

One of my tyres was losing about 7psi a month, which didn't seem obvious when the running was high and when checking would be done every two weeks. With usage in 2020 plummeting, the need to top up air had reduced. Once, I was shocked to see 15psi in that one tyre after a month, while the other 3 had dropped by just 2psi. This was when the weather had cooled down due to heavy rains. There was the typical nail in the tread, but instead of just pulling the nail out and stuffing some compound in, they took the tyre off, put a patch from inside, re-mounted the wheel, did the balancing and then reinstalled the wheel. I was charged just Rs.500 for the job. Small money, but liked the approach.

Thank you for your comments and it indeed is a nice place that you've found.

About the tyre repair, even I came across this method recently, of plugging the puncture from inside. I mean it's the only logical next step yet it never occurred to me that it was an ongoing practice. Quite the facepalm moment for me.

Here is a link about this procedure that I recently came across, for your and others' interest.

Link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BqWQT23DP4

Stay Safe & Happy Motoring!!

[fast_elegance]

Originally Posted by ibisbrew

Place: Jae's Wheel Masters

Location: Kinnimulky, Udupi. (right beside NH66, see Google Maps screenshot below)
[*]Road Force balancing - the only tyre place to offer this in the area. No other bussiness has a Road Force balancer yet, not even in Mangalore. Apparently the next closest location would be in Bangalore (do correct me if I'm wrong). Furthermore the cost difference over regular balancing is minimal

Thank you ibisbrew for sharing. I was really missing the roadforce balancing by Madhu's in Bangalore after shifting to Mangalore. I have checked around Mangalore and was surprised no one has it here. Even the best in business here are using the regular hunter balancing machines. I will visit them when my alignment/balancing is due next.

[ibisbrew]

Originally Posted by fast_elegance

Thank you ibisbrew for sharing. I was really missing the roadforce balancing by Madhu's in Bangalore after shifting to Mangalore. I have checked around Mangalore and was surprised no one has it here. Even the best in business here are using the regular hunter balancing machines. I will visit them when my alignment/balancing is due next.

I'm glad that this directory entry is already of help to others.

Do visit and add your experience to this thread. I'm sure you already plan on this, regardless, a small suggestion, since you will be visiting from out of town, I recommend calling and confirming an appointment with them in advance to avoid any queues/disappointment.

[Deep Blue]

Originally Posted by ibisbrew

Place: Jae's Wheel Masters

I have been to Jae's many times before. I got tyres for my earlier cars, Alto and Figo from them and used to go to him for puncture repairs, wheel alignment and balancing too. It was convenient as my house was close by too. I got to know Mr Praveen well over the time. He is very amiable and eager to help.
I have been pretty satisfied with their services except for once when I went to get alignment and balancing for my Octavia. The software/measurements that he had was of the old Octavia( If I remember correctly, it was of the Laura). After that, I have not gone there. Maybe I should go once and get the roadforce balancing done.

[Ashtoncastelino]

Had gone to Jaes yesterday, They're the best in this region and procure all the equipments from Madhus Bangalore. I've been a regular customer and purchased 4 Yokohoma Earth 1's from Jaes. Their pricing is damn worth it.



The thing I like the most Is the Team, they all communicate well and the owner , Mr Praveen is a true gentleman . Had done wheel alignment and Balancing 10,000kms after I changed the tyres at the same place.





Attached above are the values before alignment.

As expected the wheel alignment was out as per the machine. Recently I installed TPMS sensors so the wheels had to be balanced.



Values after alignment.



Saw this bitter sight when the rear wheels were removed for balancing. Will need to replace them soon.

Total Costed me ₹700 (₹300 for wheel alignment and ₹400 for balancing with additional weights )

Regards
Ashton Castelino

[Samurai]

I have been there many times over decades. Not recently though. Their staff used to have one irritating habit. After the alignment or tyre change, they would take the car for a test drive, without taking consent of the car owner. I have never seen any tyre shop that had the test drive procedure. After that experience couple times, I literally used to stand in the way to stop the unsolicited test drive from happening.

[Ashtoncastelino]

Originally Posted by Samurai

Their staff used to have one irritating habit. After the alignment or tyre change, they would take the car for a test drive, without taking consent of the car owner.

I too did not like this habit. They should let the customer complain if any issues with regards with their work. Not just take our vehicle and drive off. My dad too was surprised as to why they took the car for a drive without asking us. I told him that's what they always do.

Anyways next time I will either tell the team beforehand or I'll use your trick

[ibisbrew]

I am surprised to hear this. It has not even once happened that they took off in the vehicle without my permission, in fact on all the occasions I have visited them, I was explicitly asked to accompany them for a test drive.

Regardless, if it indeed is their practice, then it must be rectified.

[Samurai]

Originally Posted by Ashtoncastelino

I too did not like this habit. They should let the customer complain if any issues with regards with their work. Not just take our vehicle and drive off.

It happened again today. I thought he is just going to park the car, instead he just took off like he just bought the car.

Well, it is already 15 years old. If someone took off with a new car, it could give the owner a real heart burn. When he came back, I gave him a questioning look [What did he infer from test driving an unfamiliar car...?] He said the suspension was hard. I almost asked if he can fix it... Instead, I just told him it has imported OME suspension.

I had taken the car for alignment right after getting back from service. If there was there any suspension issues, it would have been flagged.