My Favorite Mechanic Inc

11/02/09

$30 for a look-see, with NO heads up?

by McGrub at Citysearch

Simply took the car in for a flat to be checked for viability, and another minor mechanical curiosity. I wanted an estimate prior to going ahead.

When I came back to collect the car so we could decide whether to use MFMIAW or another shop (yes, we comparison shop) I was told I owed $30 for the "assessment". What?

I paid, because I didn't want the headache of an argument with a clearly unprofessional place, but warn anyone considering the place to ask about "assessment charges".

Lousy. What a stupid policy. If they hadn't pulled that cruddy maneuver, we'd have had the work done there, as well as brought our other car in for service.

• Cons: No up-front disclosure

10/07/09

Always Great Service

by krisreview at Citysearch

My husband & I have taken our car here for years now. We really trust them & both agree that we never feel they are doing any unnecessary work. I've had appalling service by car mechanics in the past & am happy knowing I can trust them here. I agree that their prices may be a little more expensive than other places, but I firmly agree that you get what you pay for. They are never the cheapest, yet also never the most expensive. I am willing to pay a little extra for the piece of mind. They are always upfront with us & have never promised anything they can not deliver. Our car has always been ready when they say it will be. I don't know if they take longer than other places do (as other reviewers commented)...If they do, I can say that they are a small, local business so I'm not looking for work to be done in minutes anyways. If I were, I'd take my car into a national brand where I've already had horrible experiences. I honestly don't have a complaint about them. I'm thankful I've found a trustworthy car mechanic.

09/17/08

Appauling BAD. Grossly Overpriced, Inept Service.

by blumutchi at Citysearch

This is not the first time I have used this shop, but it is definitely the last. The 1st time I had a good experience, the 2nd they were painfully slow, the 3rd..well, they will never see my money again. I took my car for some diagnostics. The engine was running rough and "skipping", and there was a knocking noise from the front end. My car was there at 8.00am. By 4.45, and after calling them twice, I had no info on my car. I called again and was given a list of possible causes and told I would be called first thing in the morning with a quote. By 10 I still hadnt received a call so I called again. I was quoted $2000 to fix both problems. I was told the knocking was due to a broken catalytic converter ($1200) and the skipping was coming from incorrect spark plugs and broken engine mounts ($600). I was instantly suspicious because the engine mounts were new a year ago and cost me $300 at a Ford dealer. I gave the OK to change the spark plugs/leads and later that afternoon Kerry told me the new plugs had fixed the problem. I finally picked my car up (2 days after I dropped it off)..and the engine was still skipping. Not trusting anything that MFM now said, I decided to take my car to Ford. It took them 2 hours to tell me the knocking was due to worn strut bearings not a $1200 catalytic converter...the engine mounts did not need changing, a rubber end cap had fallen off of one of them but otherwise they were in 100% working order, and the one job that MFM had done was not completed...they had forgotten to hook one of the plugs to the lead. All in all MFM were USELESS. If you want to be left hanging with no timely information, presented with a grossly inflated quote that includes items that do not need to be replaced, and have your car off the road for 10 times the length of time that any competent garage would require then take your car to MFM. If you want decent service, a fair price and honesty then you need to find a different garage!!!!

• Cons: Dishonest, Expensive, Slow.