Before leaving on vacation in August, I took the shop where you can get any service but you have to leave with a tire quote. I had done this shop as an oil change at a different location previously and was very happy. So I took another shop to rotate my tires before we took our long trip. The new location did not perform very well, but my tires got rotated and I went on my trip and I was happy.

Today I was doing another shop for a brake inspection and they could not remove one of the wheels to look at the brakes. It seems that one of the lug nuts was put on so tight that it will not come off without breaking the bolt and perhaps the post as well. Also they (the tire rotation shop) rotated the tires incorrectly so that the tread is pointing in the wrong direction which will cause a lot of unnecessary wear on the tread.

I have contacted my scheduler but I haven't heard back on how to proceed to get this fixed. Has anyone ever had this happen after doing a car service shop and how did it turn out for you?

I received damage during a car wash shop. I went through the normal channels to handle the damage and subsequent repair, but I was asked by the scheduler to keep records of everything as though it was all part of the shop. It was up to me whether or not I wanted to go through with extending the shop. I did it mostly because I wanted an additional level of accountability.

I was also not allowed to complete those shops again... for obvious reasons.

Those are the reasons I will not do a shop like this. I drive a roadster, a two seater and it's low to the ground like a Corvette and very expensive to fix. I wouldn't take a chance myself.

Sorry this happened to you.

I did a couple of those oil change shops and had things stolen from the car I brought. Then they did extra work to the car and I got stuck there for 5 very long hours. The MS company basically said "tough noogies"

I will not take the shops which require a brake inspection. Once they take the brakes apart and say you need work done, you are stuck. In some states telling you that you need brakes is a driveability issue and they are not permitted to let you get back on the road. Plus, even if you don't need brakes and they tell you that, there is always risk when it comes to assembling them again. For the small shop fee, my brakes are going to remain untouched by mystery shops.

We're Independent Contractors and our ICA's pretty much let us know we are on our own. No one forces us to apply for and accept a shop. Like Canuck, I would never subject my auto to a shop run by a bunch of idiots.

I had no problem with the brake inspection shop. They just couldn't inspect one wheel because it was stuck on there from the tire rotation shop.
They did not remove the brake assembly. They removed the wheels so they could inspect the rotors and measure the pads. I watched them. And this place told me everything that I know to be true since I had my brakes done recently by my personal mechanic.
I understand not all shoppers will take these kinds of shops. I have had things go wrong when I have had my car worked on at the dealer. I know what to do in that situation.
I am looking for information from shoppers who have done a car service shop that had problems and how it turned out for them.

I have had my car vandalized on a shop. The MSC was helpful in that they pushed my report through and put me into contact with corporate quickly, but that's it.

My husband's truck had an oil change about a year ago, where his truck was leaking oil profusely after leaving the dealership. Huge puddle in our driveway overnight. He contacted the MSC, but was told "Too bad, sorry." basically. He then contacted the dealership as a normal customer and they fixed the problem free of charge, and sent someone out to chemically treat our driveway to remove the oil slick.

Thank you Hoju and BBird0701!

I understand it may be up to me to go back to the service center and ask them to fix it. I don't think I will have a problem if I did that.
Because it was a shop I wanted to see if the MSC wanted me to go through different channels, etc.

I posted here for the moral support of other shoppers, but all the "I told you so" responses are fun to read too. Seems like it happens everytime someone posts with a problem.

Will the brake inspection shop give you something in writing about the tire rotation and the wheel being "frozen" from a too tight lug nut? This might help your case with the tire rotation shop. Otherwise, you may just be SOL.

They weren't really "I-told-you-so's" because no one told you so, LOL. But yeah, Johnny-Come-Lately's are fun to read, aren't they?

Neither of these was on a mystery shop, but they illustrate what can happen. Yes, I would take an oil change mystery shop in a heartbeat.

A few years ago, I had a transmission changed. I did not know that the place is notorious. I went back two or three times and was told there was nothing wrong, but I still felt that hesitation. So I went to another mechanic and paid $60 to be told that there was something indeed still wrong. When I went back to the transmission place, the owner started the same old song and dance until I told him I had backup. I thought it was hard to work on transmissions. My current mechanic, who does it on the side from his regular job, told me that there is nothing mysterious about transmissions. The mechanic just has to have the proper equipment for putting one in. He got me a great deal on an 18,000-mile used transmission for my current car.

A dealer broke something that made my husband's car get worse and worse. All I know is that the broken parts were plastic and hold something. That's a lot of help, I know. He tried working on the catalytic converter himself, but realized he would need a new engine. The person putting it in place accidentally broke his windshield but paid for a new one. My husband was delighted because his old windshield was cracked. (He is this week recovering from a rear-end collision. He is taking muscle relaxant.) When his odometer got to 500,000 miles right after the engine replacement, he had his camera handy. I told him to make sure that he was in a parking lot, of course, when going to that mark.

These aren't the extent of our automotive woes but this reply follows the kinds of things that can go wrong with the wrong mechanic(s).

A few cars ago I hit black ice on a hill and spun out into a boulder. The insurance company sent me to a collision place that fixed it all but left a hose unsecured on the transmission. As soon as I started driving the transmission drained. Took it back and they said it was a new hire and connected the hose. The car was never the same after that. This was before shopping. I did get a $100 off them as an apology.

If I ever allow someone to take my lug nuts off and back on for any reason, I insist that they use a tourque wrench to tighten them or show me that they have a pnumatic tourque wrench and then I ask them how many foot pounds they are going to tighten them to. The cheaper shops like to use a Tourque stick or socket adapter on a normal air gun.

Here is an example of that: [www.torquestick.com]


This is not very accurate and the mechanic will often break the green one (65 FT LBS) and just keep moving up to higher foot pound rated sticks instead of replacing it.

If you *EVER* see a mechanic with an impact wrench start to speed tighten your lug nuts, this is when you need to yell "STOP!!!!" and even cross that yellow chain and physically stop him if need be.

If they tighten them by an impact wrench it will spin the nut on with such speed that when the nut comes in contact with the rim it will stretch out and damage the threads of the post. The best case scenario is that you could be stuck on the side of the road with a stripped lug/stud that you will need to use a sledgehammer and cold chisel to literally split the lugnut to remove the tire and then replace the stud and lug nut. I have had to go do this for a friend before.

Doing multiple tire rotations may sound like easy money, but while your evaluating the restrooms and the waiting area, god only knows what they are really doing to your car.

I'd be very up front about the torque wrench concern and watch them. The service manager will tell the mechanic that is working on your car to do it properly and he may not be happy if they don't have the right torque stick and he has to tighten them all by hand with a 1/2 drive tourque wrench.

EDIT:Typo's

Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 10/07/2014 03:59AM by scanman1.

Years ago I had a flat tire repaired. The garage overtightened the lug nuts. I did not find out until aboiut 2 weeks later when I got another flat and wanted to remove the lug nuts. 3 of 5 studs on the wheel were stripped and I had to go to the Ford dealer to have them replaced. The original garage said that there was no way for them to know who had touched the lug nuts after them, and denied any responsibility.

scanman1,
i genuinely needed the service, so I wasn't just doing it for the money. I don't run around doing shops to my car just for the money.
I know what a torque wrench is and I actually own one myself. If the service center refuses to fix my problem, I actually know how to fix it myself - I would just much rather spend my free time doing other things. This is not the end of the world for me. Its just a huge pain in the butt.
And I did go out and watch them work on my car. I did not stand there and watch them the whole time nor should I have to.
One would think that a service center that is named after a famous brand of tire would know how to do a tire rotation properly, but sh*t happens.

I really appreciate the posters who have shared their stories. Having owned cars for a long time now, this is not the first time that I have had to return to a dealership or service center to remedy a problem. This is just the first time it has happened with an MSC in the mix.

To all the above, were the brake inspection shops done at Midas???

And the bad oil changes performed at Jiffy Lube???

Which oil change place visit resulted in items stolen from autos?? Jiffy Lube???

There were posting months many back about engines damaged during Jiffy Lube oil changes...

Many Thanks

I have done Jiffy Lube shops and not had a problem. I enjoy how quickly they can do the service.
The brake inspection shop was not at Midas, I have only seen oil change shops at Midas. I think they are the ones that will reimburse for full synthetic so I am thinking about trying one next time I am due.
I actually really enjoyed the service I received during my brake inspection, they are the ones who discovered my locked lug nut issue and made note of several other oddities I didn't notice. The brake inspection was at Car-X.
I did one shop at a Firestone Auto Center. I got an oil change and they were awesome. This location was spot on corporate. Their uniforms were all pressed and the shop was so clean, it was like I had walked into a service center from the fifties.
So needing an additional service, I picked up another shop at a different Firestone location. This is where they locked my lug nut and rotated the tires diagonally which reversed my tread patterns. They also rummaged through my whole car leaving stuff on the floor looking for my lug nut key. I would return to the first 50's Firestone location in a heartbeat.

Everyone has different reasons for mystery shopping. I do the auto service shops because I need the service and it is nice to get a significant discount on the service or get it totally reimbursed. I also shop because I enjoy helping out other consumers. Other ladies that take their car to this shop may have a better experience after my report. Perhaps my problem will get reported to corporate. Perhaps my crappy experience will help some other unknown woman have a hassle free experience when she takes her car for service.
Car service locations and technology stores are places that women have been traditionally taken advantage of. Many times (not all) they use a woman's lack of knowledge to take advantage of them and sell them things they don't need.

I was lucky to have my Dad teach me how to work on cars. I am lucky to be an engineer in my full time job and be tech savvy so I can take care of myself in that department as well. But I do have a full time career besides mystery shopping. I also have a family and enjoy my free time immensely. I didn't take my car to a muffler shop to have the tires rotated. I am not a clueless bimbo who has never gotten grease under her nails or changed her own tire in the snow. A problem like this shouldn't have happened, but anyone with any wisdom of the world knows that this sh*t happens, even at a ritzy car dealer where one could get their roadster serviced.

And the MS company did get back with me this morning. They told me to proceed as I would if there was not a shop involved.

I had a brake inspection done at Midas. I did it not long after I had had my brakes changed (pads, rotors, etc. to pass inspection in Pennsylvania), so I knew that they could not find anything to fix. That was before I appreciated the real risk of having a brake inspection. For $12 dollars? No way.

I just did a Jiffy Lube oil change. They forgot to put the filler cap back on. Burned oil and unburned oil everywhere. Luckily, no damage, and I made them change the oil again. I have inquired at work, and there is a low incidence of problems with oil changes even at dealerships. My advice NOW is to take a picture of your engine before you go in the next time. All of the "user serviceable" point on my engine are colored yellow and easy to see. After the oil change (or any under the hood work), pop the hood and compare to the photo. Since all fluids are checked and filled (generally), you need to make sure everything is back where it is supposed to be, fully pushed in (dipsticks), and fully tightened (caps). Even if you go to a new car dealer for work (and there are many of those offered), an ounce of prevention this way is well worth it.

Luckily the Honda dealer in my area offers very competitive pricing on service work that I don't have a real reason to take it elsewhere. My Honda Odyssey has a little over 100k on it so no warranty is involved. I just had the oil and filter changed, all fluids topped off and a multi-point inspection done plus a complimentary carwash and vacuum for $15 after using a $20 e-mailed coupon from the dealer. They also give me complimentary windshield wipers every 6-months. They have a very nice waiting area with free snacks, drinks and wifi.
Since it's my only vehicle I'm very careful who I'll let service it. Honestly after going to a couple of those tire and oil change places and seeing employees, some of which looked like they were recent parolees It's wasn't worth it to save a couple of bucks.

It was a Honda dealer that ruined my husband's car engine. Glad to hear that you have a good one.

Yep you never know but all things considered I would rather count on Honda to do the right thing to correct something as opposed to Jiffy or Tires +


Sandra Sue Wrote:
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> It was a Honda dealer that ruined my husband's car
> engine. Glad to hear that you have a good one.