I just had to had to take my car in to get fixed, because my wheel was about to fall off. Literally. One of the wheel lug bolts (the bolt that holds your wheel onto the hub) had broken off, and another was on its way out, so off I went to the Tableview Tyres, a tyre fitment centre nearby.
Well, fortunately for me, the guy there told me is a pretty routine affair to replace the lug bolt, but he did not keep stock of it, so I would have to get it from the dealer. I thought I would try a spares dealer first, since they would be sure to be cheaper than the authorised Hyundai dealer, but after questioning a shopkeeper or two, I discovered that the only place to get those lug nuts was at Hyundai.
Well, at the Hyundai service centre, I got the shock of my life when I saw the price of a new lug bolt (with nut, since half of my old bolt was stuck in the nut still with no way to get it out). A single lug bolt and nut costs R50 – and I needed 2. How on earth are Hyundai able to charge such an exorbitant amount for a bolt! I expected to pay somewhere in the region of R20-30 but this was just plain ridiculous.
The sad part is that I was pretty much held to ransom. I had no choice but to pay up, since I could not get them anywhere else.
After getting the bolts and having them fitted at my tyre place, my car is running fine again, but I am just absolutely gobsmacked at how car manufacturers can take consumers for a ride with spare parts.
