Arlington Auto Care

Reviews 3

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Anonymous User

Let me start with a disclaimer that reviews are supposed to be objective and so take it or leave it... but this is an account of our experience with AAC. Having just moved to Clarendon, we were looking for a good mechanic so thought to try them out. First experience worked out just fine, we paid $800. Noticed they were pretty pricey but figured it was part of the price you pay for moving to an area like this. However, a few months later, after consultation with our dealership, we were told that the parts they put in were defective. Since the parts were still under warranty, we took the car back to AAC and even before they could take a look at it, the front desk folks (D and J) started insisting that there was nothing wrong and were very argumentative and defensive. After some persistence and a request for them to at least look at it, D invited us to the back where he tried to demonstrate (he’s quite the actor!!!) that we were clueless. Interestingly, during the “demonstration” one of their mechanics walked over and also confirmed the dealership’s diagnosis but was muffled by D. After some more back and forth, they came back and CONFIRMED the initial diagnosis was correct and offered to reluctantly change one of the defective parts. Asked why not replace all defective parts, their response was that the other parts were not “as defective” as the one they chose to replace and; I quote J: “someone is going to have to pay for it and it sure not going to be us.” Note that ALL parts were still under warranty. Fast forward to 2 days later when we drove off their shop with assurance from the store manager that everything was fixed… and immediately noticed the car acting up even WORSE than when we took it in. The store manager had mentioned that we should return it back to them if we notice anything wrong but at this point we were totally fed-up with their service and non-existent customer service skills. Forget that our parts are still under warranty, we would rather find a trustworthy mechanic and pay whatever necessary to ensure that the problem is solved and the car is safe to drive. Let me also add that we noticed some more noises coming from the general area they “fixed” and while I do not have factual evidence that AAC had anything to do with this, its just too much of a coincidence to have this happen right after our experience with them especially after how curt and condescending they were when we insisted that they fix the car… and honestly at this point, we wouldn’t put it past them to be malicious. Needless to say, we haven’t been back and do not intend to. Beware of their service and prices… and if you are new to the area, just avoid them like the plague. Its not worth the hassle.

A

Anonymous User

In May, I had a tire blow out and I went to Arlington Auto Care to get it replaced. I had two new tires put on, since it is best to replace two at the same time instead of just one. Unfortunately, my experience with Arlington Auto Care involved much more time and hassle than was necessary. They did not listen to me. I asked them to save one of the tires that was being replaced. I wanted to keep it as it was still in fairly good condition. I did not end up getting what I wanted – the tire was not saved for me. Customer service was poor, and the staff was not detailed in their explanations. They did not explain to me all of my options with regards to how I could receive a credit from my tire manufacturer after filing a claim since my tires were under warranty. And then there was the scary surprise after I drove away from the building following the completion of my service. I was no more than a tenth of a mile away, when I heard a high-pitch grinding noise coming from my cars wheels. (No doubt the folks walking on the sidewalk heard it, too and turned their heads.) I had to drive back immediately to get it looked at. They did fix it after more time passed. But this shows their lack of complete, efficient service done right the first time. Plus, their error could cause long-term damage to my vehicle’s parts. The fact that the sound occurred immediately upon driving the car, I am shocked that the staff missed this when they drove my car from the garage to their lot up the street earlier in the day, then back to the garage where I picked it up in the evening. Lastly, I had to go directly to the tire manufacturer to deal with the warranty and associated refund because Arlington Auto Care could not follow through and process it even though they said they would. As a customer, I felt ignored and mistreated. I kept calling Arlington Auto Care to follow up on the status of the credit, and they told be a representative from my tire manufacturer had not come by yet. Eventually, time passed, and Arlington Auto Care never contacted me again. My tire manufacturer was surprised, too, that weeks after the service was performed, Arlington Auto Care still did not issue me the credit I was entitled to. It took me over a month to tie up all the loose ends. My tire manufacturer (bravo to them!) reviewed the Arlington Auto Care invoice and mailed me a refund check in a timely manner. This was supposed to be part of Arlington Auto Care’s responsibilities. For my first experience using Arlington Auto Care for service on my vehicle, I will not be back. I would suggest that you take your business elsewhere. Your time is much more valuable. They do not deserve your business.

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Anonymous User

After recently moving to Clarendon, I went to Arlington Autocare because I liked the location, it seemed clean and the people that I talked to seemed largely trustworthy. The nature of my repair visit seemed to be tied to the exhaust. I had experienced an immediate and significant drop in the power of the engine of the car, and at certain rpm ranges, was hearing strange noises coming from the rear of the car. Upon check-in, I was told that these problems often are far more serious and engine related, but that they would do an exhaust diagnostic first and look into that. During the test-drive, the muffler exploded in a backfire-situation (glad I wasnt there to soil the leather upholstery!) and they quoted me a seemingly fair price for my exhaust repairs without running a $100 engine diagnostic and clearly without convincing me that I needed unnecessary work on my car. I went through a stack of receipts (from the past owner) and found that the muffler was replaced a few years back by a garage that is no longer in business. Attached to the reciept was a warranty card for the old muffler. I called Arlington Autocare back and explained to them the situation. They told me that this was a brand that they normally did not carry, but even though this muffler was coming to the end of its life expectancy, and the garage that installed it was no longer in business, they got on the phone to various vendors in the area and secured a discount on my behalf. Now, I dont typically write reviews, and have always found car repair to be just a frustrating time all around (...the damn thing oughta work!), but this particular repair experience deserves mentioning, I feel. These guys went to bat for me for a repair that wasnt done in their shop and which was performed before I even owned the car and they probably lost a little money in the process. It would have been very easy for them to say when asked about the warranty, "sorry, but there is nothing we can do given the circumstances." Instead, they did legwork on my behalf and saved me money as a result. Ill happily go back to Arlington Autocare if this is the level of customer service that I can expect. In fact, Id even be willing to pay a little more if I could expect this kind of treatment.

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