Lighthouse Automotive

2499 E Platte Ave, Colorado Springs, CO 80909, USA

Address:	2499 E Platte Ave, Colorado Springs, CO 80909, USA
Phone:	+1 719-634-0005
Site:	lighthouseautomotivellc.com
Rating:	4.4
Working:	8AM–6PM 8AM–6PM 8AM–6PM 8AM–6PM 8AM–6PM Closed Closed

Location

Photos 100

Reviews 4

Andrew C

I give Lighthouse (Ryland) five stars mostly because Lighthouse survived me. It was my vehicles first visit to Lighthouse. During my vehicles two week visit I scrutinized Lighthouses practices enough that the CIA would have been proud. I was not an easy customer. Ryland put up with me and I did not find any “shady mechanics” going on. There were a few issues but things were worked out. Ultimately I believe Ryland is willing to make things right. I think he very much likes his business, loves what he is doing and possibly because his work and business are important to him he is willing to protect it and also to work with people. I am a Do it yourself (DIY) type. I was not aware of one commonly accepted practice in the auto-mechanic world: The up-charge on parts. Lighthouse does charge an up-charge on parts they buy. In my case it was 30% to 80% depending on the part. Not bad comparatively. One thing is for sure though; almost all mechanics up-charge. The Good ----------------- Ryland and one of his crew at Lighthouse claim over 60 years experience! He has a few other crew members which would put that at almost 100 years combined. The way he talks and explains what he has done shows expert level skills to say the least. Ryland refunded labor charges on some work that I had not authorized. All of the crew members and office workers I met were friendly and tried to help. The shop was busy. The Bad ----------------- Ryland was not the best at calling me with big decisions. When I called Ryland I felt he was not speaking my language. This resulted in something being done that I did not approve. Even though Ryland agreed to refund labor charges for work I did not approve he was reluctant and tried to negotiate the refund to a lesser amount. While I understand he is preserving his business I also understand he would not have needed to refund anything if he had communicated differently to begin with. Some of the up-charges are pretty steep for example: A rim that would otherwise cost $70 for it’s condition was up-charged to $260 plus a core charge (on a rim?). I don’t know if that includes labor because there is only one line item on the after-work provided estimate. Summary --------------- I spent a total of $3,800 at Lighthouse. The website does list a warranty for labor and parts. For me, the DIY person, $3,800 makes me kick myself. BUT, for those of you who are not DIY this price would be in the average range for the work I had done. The work I had done: - Inspection of drive line parts and assessment of noise in rear differential - Upper and lower ball joints - New cv axle and hub bearing - New rear outer axle bearings and seals - Service front differential - Rebuild on the rear differential - Installation of an after-market auto locking differential (I purchased it and brought it) - Acquire, mount, balance a matching aluminum rim and replace steel spare rim so spare tire could be rotated also. If you go to Lighthouse make Ryland do his paper work BEFORE he touches the vehicle. Get everything spelled out on an estimate for every thing in writing. Negotiate the estimate and look over the parts he’s ordered if you can before he installs them to make sure they are up to your standards. Pay him a bit up front then sit back and relax while Lighthouse works their magic. I would take my vehicle to Lighthouse again.

Anonymous User

I read all the reviews below, thought this would be a good place. WRONG. Long story short (details below): He cannot do engine service, misdiagnosis is VERY PROBABLE, and you might walk out with scratches and scrapes you didnt have before. We asked him to diagnose our engine problem since we couldnt figure it our ourselves, and to do a few other things. After much nickle-and-diming us (trying to throw in services not necessary at the time, etc.), he cannot figure out the engine problem. He tries a few things and ultimately ends up making the engine problem worse by messing with sensors in a bad way. Once we got it back, our engine ran a bit better because of new injectors, but sensors had to remain unplugged for it even to start. Then, this meant any remaining power the engine had was gone, leaving our engine running overall worse. Also, he scratched and dented several places around the hood and broke our air cleaner attachment. The clutch job has held up thus far, and he did try to work on prices with us where he could, but he makes up for all of that nickel-and-diming you. A few weeks later, we found out that 1) he had unplugged our MAP sensor with the engine running, which is NOT OKAY. Had to figure out how to reset that. 2) the biggest problem with the engine was actually our fuel pump, and that ran us another $400 total. If you want to haggle and worry about the unknown aspects of your car, go here. If you know exactly what you need done and can be firm with him, telling him EXACTLY what to do, go here. Yet, if you dont know what is wrong with your car, expect to him to play salesman. Youll walk out spending much more than he originally tells you.

LadySoothe UrSoul

Let me tell you a thing or two about excellent service… My son took his 20 plus year old vehicle to Lighthouse Automotive when it wouldn’t start. Manager Rylan had one of his service tech’s take a look under the hood and discovered a fused mass of solidified starter wires melted into one colossal burnt ball of metal as well as a few other minor problems. Ouch! As any completely independent son on his own for the very first time would do, he yelled “mommy”! Rylan explained the problem(s) to us in simple terms we thoroughly understood, offered a solution, the amount of time and money it would take to get it back on the road. What I didn’t realize was just how fast and efficient Lighthouse Automotive is, OMG…. Don’t you just love it when you’re given a delivery date and your service is early! Well that’s exactly what happened. Rylan told us the car would be ready sometime tomorrow afternoon, but today low and behold Rylan calls just before closing to say the job was complete and he even threw in a few little extra’s! If you’ve read this far you know where I’m going with this review; I couldn’t have been more confident in Rylan’s analysis and presentation of the problem. He took extra time to answer my questions and addressed my issues by combining expert knowledge, professional courtesy and exemplary customer service skills! Rylan it was a pleasure working with you and your entire team of experts; thanks for turning a bad situation into an experience that far exceeded our expectations!

Sabryna Stephenson

Light House Automotive so glad you found them. This is the one stop shopping for all your automotive needs. I took my van to breaks plus, who said I needed new rotors and break pads. They took the time to SHOW me that my breaks werent as bad as they said they were. They also explained to me about the difference between good quality parts and a few dollars cheaper. I may have a cheaper quote but could be dealing with the same break problems again in the next few mos. More money spent and more time dealing with the same things. They also guarantee there work. They also explained to me about cheap oil changes, they come from the drum barrels. They only use the best quality stuff, explaining how it will keep your vehicle running better and longer. I dont know about you, but the way times are tough now and all the madness and precious cargo we are caring on the roads,I wouldnt just trust my vehicle to just anyone. If your reading this and just moving here for one reason or another. Im so glad you are intelligent enough to read the reviews on where to take all of your automotive needs. LIGHT HOUSE AUTOMOTIVE TRAVELING MERCIES AND GOD BLESS YOU. They are also a wonderful Christiansa family business. Ryland and Tiathey are truly wonderful. I like to personally thank you for keeping my van, safe and sound. Mary S.