[sumeethaldankar]

Originally Posted by sumeethaldankar

Here's my story. ..."

After my experience with road side puncture fraudsters i now no longer go to any filling station to check air pressure. I use my own air pump to check pressure every 10 days or so and in case of a puncture i make sure that i fill only air and go to trusted shops to get the same remove eg my Alignment shop etc. I would recommend people to get your own air pump which works on the 12 volt output of your car which will give some peace of mind while travelling.

[sgiitk]

Originally Posted by sumeethaldankar

I use my own air pump to check pressure every 10 days or so and in case of a puncture i make sure that i fill only air and go to trusted shops to get the same remove eg my Alignment shop etc. I would recommend people to get your own air pump which works on the 12 volt output of your car which will give some peace of mind while travelling.

I have been using my own pump (first foot and now electric) since 1974. The reasons, checking and filling air into cold tyres (the best), often service centre compressors have a very high moisture content. High moisture means that the pressure in the tyre varies much more as it warms up, and when you have a flat the spare is almost invariably under inflated (who check it!). One other thing with tubeless tyres you can pump up and travel even 50+ km if the leak is small (often partly sealed by the offending nail/screw).

[sunny13]

Harrowing experiences since yesterday till today:

First one:
My son's Honda Aviator tyre had tube since the RIM got bent at one point of time. Last morning he noticed a puncture and a sudden loss of on his way to college early morning on Hinjewadi- Wakad road (Pune). So he took the vehicle to puncture shop bang opposite the Croma showroom. As per the person, the tyre had cuts on the inner wall and needed to "patched" , 3 patches in all and and a few punctures on the tube. Work had already started and two patches fixed already so there was no way I could stop. Negotiated cost turned out to 900/- after I turned up with my Duster at his shop too. Seemed a bit too expensive and unsure whether it will really last. Fingers crossed

2nd one and worse:
With the first experience, I too thought of checking the tyre pressure of my Duster so I took a U-turn at Wakad road chowk and turn towards Pimple saudagar towards and stopped at a small Puncture repair shop just before the Chroma showroom crossing since there was no petrol pump on that way. He told me that one of front wheel tyres shows zero pressure or it is not reading any pressure on the gauge. I reasoned that the tyre does not seem flat enough. He suggested that he will need to remove the wheel and check. The trauma starts now. He said that valve was faulty and needs replacement. He put a valve of 280/- and filled in air and fixed the wheel back. Family and I plan to go out for the evening. We land next to the car and the same tyre is all flat with no air at all! God bless. Lucky for me, I had equipped myself with an electric pump which came in handy. Air filled up well to about 30 psi in 10 min and we drive off to the the same shop. This time he takes the wheel out and checks the tyre. Behold! 5 punctures, 2 on the thread surface and 3 on the side walls costing me 450/-. No nails or sharp objects were seen which gets me bit puzzled. He does not see any leakage from valve inlet. Fixes the tyre back and we drove off with family. After about 5 hours later when we return to parking all seems good to drive back. Today early morning, I findthat the same wheel has less than 50% pressure and shows a flat evidently. I am angry and frustrated of having been fleeced royally by Rs 780 (280+450). I finally land up to a tyre shop on Jagtap Dairy crossing turning towards Rahatni. This person efficiently fixed it with a genuine valve and one more puncture which was apparently done by the previous guy. One of the nut thread was also damaged by the earlier guy. On his suggestion, the front wheel which had these punctures was rotate to a rear one. He categorically mentioned that this is a common occurence and most the road side people create these punctures. side wall punctures are rare. even valves rarely go bad and do not need repairs.

I had a similar experience with over 9 punctures with a road side but still did not learn!

But the learning now for sure:
For tubeless tyre repairs, always to go bigger tyre shop or one which you visit regularly. Keep a Pressure pump and a gauge handy, Fill air only in Refilling stations and stand out of the car while filling.

Keep a Puncture repair kit for use during emergencies.

[RallyMaster]

Well, I faced this incident when I was travelling from Mumbai to Pune...I crossed Hinjewadi Flyover and headed towards Katraj and in between a biker pointer out that I have a puncture...I spotted a puncture removal place just ahead and pull my car over. On normal observing my type it did not look like it was puncture but the guy checked the tyre pressure and mentioned it indeed had puncture. As explained in the post here, he distracted me to put the gear so that the car does not slip which I did and then to my utter horror the puncture came one after another. In all 15 punctures and puncture valve total cost 2000 bucks. I filled the air just other day since I had to travel 160Kms next day there was no indication of puncture so not sure how he managed to pull this.

[shabahmad]

Looks like these guys started operating again, same situation was there 3-4 years back and after lot of FIR's police has taken action.

Please be careful.
If some one say that there is a puncture....Dont Stop & Drive Away from him.
& Never check air at any pucture wala shop in hinjewadi or nearby Highway.

They try to deviate your focus & prick tyre with some sharp pointed object which creates puncture.

[reachbennym]

I got cheated today at the puncture shop between Magars bungalow and Kalyan jewelers at Pune.

Usually I am alert when filling tyres on the highways but did not realize I will be cheated in the city.

Took me a while to realize I have been cheated of Rs. 900

See the picture - 9 punctures all on the outer rim - no nails - need I say more?

[shipnil]

Originally Posted by reachbennym

I got cheated today at the puncture shop between Magars bungalow and Kalyan jewelers at Pune.

Usually I am alert when filling tyres on the highways but did not realize I will be cheated in the city.

Took me a while to realize I have been cheated of Rs. 900

See the picture - 9 punctures all on the outer rim - no nails - need I say more?

Your tyre looks beautiful! Hope you have learnt your lesson. One thing surprises me, this fraud has been going on for quite many years now but all the bhpians visit this thread only after getting fleeced.

Always keep a 12V pump in your car and check air pressure yourself.

[saket77]

How these repair guys manage to drill holes in a split second? What am I missing?
Though it is wrong to generalise but somehow I find the tire repair guys to be highly unethical. During my last puncture repair (was a genuine puncture), I caught the puncture Wala trying to weaken the tire valve by twisting it. Old rubber would certainly give up and you would end up paying anything between 200-300 bucks for fitting a new valve.

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by saket77

How these repair guys manage to drill holes in a split second? What am I missing?

They use the very tool (looks like a spike) used to repair tubeless tyre punctures to stab the tyre. Very convenient as the size of the puncture just about matches the size of the plug.

[saket77]

Originally Posted by R2D2

They use the very tool (looks like a spike) used to repair tubeless tyre punctures to stab the tyre. Very convenient as the size of the puncture just about matches the size of the plug.

But is it so easy to drill a hole in a split second? I would like to understand it better.

Thanks!

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by saket77

But is it so easy to drill a hole in a split second? I would like to understand it better.

They don't "drill", but stab. Very easily done on the soft sidewall of the tyre or between the tread grooves.

[centaur]

Looks like this is a common fleecing scenario in Pune because most owners who reported this seem to be from Pune or am I missing something?

Originally Posted by reachbennym

I got cheated today at the puncture shop between Magars bungalow and Kalyan jewelers at Pune.

Usually I am alert when filling tyres on the highways but did not realize I will be cheated in the city.

Took me a while to realize I have been cheated of Rs. 900

See the picture - 9 punctures all on the outer rim - no nails - need I say more?

Since there were 9 punctures, did you not think of calling the cops or atleast telling the guy that you will call the cops and let them fix the puncture repair guy first? I feel it would have helped

[reachbennym]

Originally Posted by centaur

Since there were 9 punctures, did you not think of calling the cops or atleast telling the guy that you will call the cops and let them fix the puncture repair guy first? I feel it would have helped

First the guy shows 2 punctures and fixes them. Then he pours some water mixed with detergent and shows 2 more and fixes them - So by the time I realized this is a con, it was too late.

Now to think of it, there were a lot of ways I could have handled it better
- ask him to show all punctures before fixing them
- start taking pictures
- calling the police.

[centaur]

Originally Posted by reachbennym

- ask him to show all punctures before fixing them

A genuine tyre repair guy generally checks for all punctures before he starts fixing them but nevertheless this is a good learning for me. Now on will always ask them to check the entire tire before they start fixing it

[drmohitg]

Originally Posted by danlalan

I have just been a victim of the Puncture scam.

The buger charged me 3000/- bucks to fix 20 small punctures at 120/- a puncture and a valve.

Originally Posted by Angst

In total, I coughed up 900 bucks. 150 for each puncture and 350 for the valve, minus a discount of 50 after some haggling!

Sorry for quoting a relatively old post but is Rs. 150 for a puncture the usual rate in your cities? In whole of NCR I think its a flat Rs. 50 regardless of the car ( even for the BMW they didn't ask for more than that).

Second whats the point of getting so mnay punctures fixed, 20 in the first case? Its better to change the tyre itself rather than run it with 20 repaired punctures. Isn't it?