Repair/Service: went in for oil change, left with $1200 repair bill

Hourly Rate: $as much as they can get away with

Total Cost: $as much as they can get away with

I went in for an oil change and to have my truck tuned up. They told me I needed a COMPLETELY new brake system, urgently needed new back tires, plus $300 or so of engine work done.

My truck is not new so I wasn't willing to put that kind of money into it. A friend offered to take a look at the truck and the written estimate I got from Express Tune & Lube and see what he could do. He gave me a list of about $100 worth of parts to pick up at an auto parts store and fixed the truck that weekend. It didn't need new brakes (the front brake pads were slightly worn) or new tires (for several months at least).

I have since heard from several people in town that they have experienced this same type of treatment at this business. Men who know lots about cars may have better luck, but if you're female/young, don't bother, or at least have them give you a written estimate that you can give to someone else to check for you.

Also, the claims about them making things worse is also true. My truck was nearly undriveable when I left their store. They had pulled a spark plug wire loose in the course of their diagnostics.

They are still getting business because of past performance. They may have been trustworthy once, but that is not the case now.

by del1977 on April 21, 2010

Repair/Service: Chip replacement

Hourly Rate: $0

Total Cost: $1700

My husband and I used this service for over 7 years. One month ago we took our car in for service and were told that an item needed to be replaced that cost nearly $800 for parts and labor. A few days after getting the car back we had the same exact problem. When we took it back, we were told that after running diagnostics again other parts needed to be replaced which would total $900. They kept the car for 2 weeks with no update. When my husband inquired of when the car would be ready and an explanation of what was wrong, he couldn't get a clear answer. When the car was supposedly ready, an employee picked my husband up in our vehicle to bring him back to the shop. On the way there, the car starts shaking and doing the exact same thing it did when we first took it in. Upon getting to the shop, he still didn't get an explanation of what was wrong with the car but was told that they would take a look at it again. We received a call 2 days later saying the car was ready. This time when he got to the shop and asked for an explanation, he was treated as a nuisance and told that if it wasn't working it may be such and such but they'd ran over 11 hours of diagnostics and couldn't find a problem. To my husband's surprise, when he gets into the car to crank it up, it doesn't work! .When he goes back in to talk to one of the owners he is treated like some commoner of the street instead of a loyal paying customer. The owner then takes his time in talking to him and denies a request to speak to him in private so that his other customers would not hear. When we requested a refund for the $1700 we spent to fix a car that they never fixed, we were told that we would only be refunded $225 for the last service's labor. This business knowingly took money from my husband fully aware that they did not fix the car and then refused to give us a full refund on parts they put in the car that weren't needed and they showed no remorse in doing it. I only give this business 1 star because it's the lowest it will go. If I could give them a 0 I would.

by Nik on April 24, 2012