DO NOT GO TO CARX

WARNING: DO NOT GO TO CARX CAR X

I took my girlfriend's car to car x for brake service. They quoted me
$120 estimate over the phone.
I figured it might be a little more, maybe in the neighborhood of $200
or so. I know car x is expensive. After waiting for about 15 minutes
the mechanic came and took me out to the shop to show me that all four
sets of brakes and rotors had to be replaced, and the cost would be
$500.00!!! I told him there was no way I could afford that, and that
he should just put the wheels back on the car as there was no way I had
that kind of money!! He then tells me that my girlfriend called him a
few days before and to go ahead and fix the car!! LOL LOL LOL!!!! I
looked at him and thought, is he out of his mind? My gf is one of
those easy going laid back blonde girls that don't do that kind of
thing untill the wheels fall off the car!! I said to him, you have the
wrong person, it was me who called and who suggested this place. He
then continued to suggest that indeed he talked to my gf and that she
wanted him to fix her car. HA!! I said, no, I don't think it was her,
I said, it's one of those wouldn't call in a million years type of
deal. He put the wheels back on the car, I thanked him and I left.
She then took it to a small mechanic in another town who fixed it for
less than $120.00 and all he did was turn the rear rotors and replace
the rear pads.
I guess I should have expected this, but I like to give people the
benefit of the doubt. Anyway, be careful and do not go to car x or any
of those chains, nothing but con men running those places.

> wrote in message
ups.com...
> WARNING: DO NOT GO TO CARX CAR X
>
> I took my girlfriend's car to car x for brake service. They quoted me
> $120 estimate over the phone.
> I figured it might be a little more, maybe in the neighborhood of $200
> or so. I know car x is expensive. After waiting for about 15 minutes
> the mechanic came and took me out to the shop to show me that all four
> sets of brakes and rotors had to be replaced,

OK, so the mechanic showed you what needed to be replaced. Did it?

> and the cost would be
> $500.00!!! I told him there was no way I could afford that, and that
> he should just put the wheels back on the car as there was no way I had
> that kind of money!! He then tells me that my girlfriend called him a
> few days before and to go ahead and fix the car!! LOL LOL LOL!!!! I
> looked at him and thought, is he out of his mind? My gf is one of
> those easy going laid back blonde girls that don't do that kind of
> thing untill the wheels fall off the car!! I said to him, you have the
> wrong person, it was me who called and who suggested this place. He
> then continued to suggest that indeed he talked to my gf and that she
> wanted him to fix her car. HA!! I said, no, I don't think it was her,
> I said, it's one of those wouldn't call in a million years type of
> deal. He put the wheels back on the car, I thanked him and I left.
> She then took it to a small mechanic in another town who fixed it for
> less than $120.00 and all he did was turn the rear rotors and replace
> the rear pads.
> I guess I should have expected this, but I like to give people the
> benefit of the doubt. Anyway, be careful and do not go to car x or any
> of those chains, nothing but con men running those places.
>

Let's see. You apparently don't know **** from shinola about brakes since
you can't tell if the brakes needed to be replaced, even when someone
put the car up on a lift and took the wheels off, and pointed out the parts.

yet your going to tell us that the mechanic at car-X was trying to con
you.

Sure, sure.

I'll bet that the small mechanic in the other town put cheap pads on
the rears only, and your front brakes are almost worn out.

If the car-x guy was quoting all new rotors, and new high quality
pads, it might just come to $500. Depending on what kind of car,
which you haven't told us what it is. A lot of people, such as myself,
don't bother to turn rotors anymore, and I do my own brakes. The
cost to get them turned isn't that much of a savings compared to
buying cheap Chinese-made rotors new, and thinner rotors make
the caliper piston travel range move inwards, which could potentially
put part of the caliper piston travel over a rusted area when the brakes
wear down, and cause a fluid leak later on. And despite what some
would say, I've never had a cheap Chinese rotor that wasn't warped
when I bought it, warp later on.

It could very well be that your gf did call. Did you confirm it
later on? Or it could be that he was honestly confusing you with
someone else.

Ted

I agree, Car X has tried to rip me off on two occasions. Once my car
was leaking radiator fluid. I took it to them to look under car and get
an estimate. It was water pump. They wanted $450 to put on a new
water pump. Since the pump had already been replaced by another shop
about 9 months ago it was still under warranty. I told the car x man
that i would take it back to the other repair shop and get it repaired
under their warranty for free. He got furious and stomped around,
refused to speak to me. Set car on ground and told me i "had wasted his
****ing time".

I called their corporate office and told what happened. I got a letter
of apology from a VP stating they terminated that employee. Yea.

wrote:
>I know car x is expensive.

Really? Compared to what?

> After waiting for about 15 minutes
> the mechanic came and took me out to the shop to show me that all four
> sets of brakes and rotors had to be replaced, and the cost would be
> $500.00!!!

Yeah, they say that about virtually every vehicle that comes in with a
brake complaint. I'm just surprised it took 15 minutes.


LOL LOL LOL!!!!

LOL indeed. I enjoy a good out-loud laugh now and again.

> looked at him and thought, is he out of his mind? My gf is one of
> those easy going laid back blonde girls that don't do that kind of
> thing untill the wheels fall off the car!! I said to him, you have the
> wrong person, it was me who called and who suggested this place. He
> then continued to suggest that indeed he talked to my gf and that she
> wanted him to fix her car. HA!! I said, no, I don't think it was her,
> I said, it's one of those wouldn't call in a million years type of
> deal. He put the wheels back on the car, I thanked him and I left.
> She then took it to a small mechanic in another town who fixed it for
> less than $120.00 and all he did was turn the rear rotors and replace
> the rear pads.
> I guess I should have expected this, but I like to give people the
> benefit of the doubt. Anyway, be careful and do not go to car x or any
> of those chains, nothing but con men running those places.

>From your one experience you are sure of this? I like to give chain
tire and muffler franchises the benefit of the doubt, especially those
who pay low wages and have zero concern for their employees or
customers. I heartily recommend these 'shops' to everyone who asks for
a referral. No complex job is too easy and no upsell is too ludicrous
for these parts changers.

Toyota MDT in MO

J J > wrote:
>I agree, Car X has tried to rip me off on two occasions.


What the hell is Car X? What city and/or country is this place in?
--scott


--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

wrote:
>
> WARNING: DO NOT GO TO CARX CAR X

Oh, ok. I won't go there.

> I guess I should have expected this, but I like to give people the
> benefit of the doubt. Anyway, be careful and do not go to car x or any
> of those chains, nothing but con men running those places.

I stopped at one once in an emergency while travelling across country.
I had ruined a rim, and needed to get a tire mounted on the rim I had
just bought from the dealer. The dealer didn't have tires so couldn't
mount a tire on the rim they did luckily have in stock.

After pulling my junk rim and mounting the tire, they then told me they
couldn't legally mount it unless I fixed the rotor that was also
damaged. I looked at it (after a bunch of arguing that it wasn't
"legal" for me to go into the shop). I determined it was fine. It was
scraped and was definitely going to wear out my pads in a few thousand
miles, but nothing that could be considered a safety issue. They
continued to argue with me that they could not and would not mount my
tire unless I fixed the rotor.

Being as my vehicle was on a lift in their bay and was basically
immobilized and I was 500 miles from home I felt I had no choice.

Cost me $700 to get that tire mounted.

wrote:
> > I guess I should have expected this, but I like to give people the
> > benefit of the doubt. Anyway, be careful and do not go to car x or any
> > of those chains, nothing but con men running those places.
>
> I stopped at one once in an emergency while travelling across country.
> I had ruined a rim, and needed to get a tire mounted on the rim I had
> just bought from the dealer. The dealer didn't have tires so couldn't
> mount a tire on the rim they did luckily have in stock.
>
> After pulling my junk rim and mounting the tire, they then told me they
> couldn't legally mount it unless I fixed the rotor that was also
> damaged. I looked at it (after a bunch of arguing that it wasn't
> "legal" for me to go into the shop). I determined it was fine. It was
> scraped and was definitely going to wear out my pads in a few thousand
> miles, but nothing that could be considered a safety issue. They
> continued to argue with me that they could not and would not mount my
> tire unless I fixed the rotor.
>
> Being as my vehicle was on a lift in their bay and was basically
> immobilized and I was 500 miles from home I felt I had no choice.
>
> Cost me $700 to get that tire mounted.

They could not have refused if you had said to put it all back together
the way you came in. I would definitely have walked on that one. A
little "vocal excitement" in front of as many customers as possible
couldn't have hurt either. To head that off at the next shop I'd walk
in with both pieces in my hand rather than the whole car.

> They could not have refused if you had said to put it all back together
> the way you came in. I would definitely have walked on that one. A
> little "vocal excitement" in front of as many customers as possible
> couldn't have hurt either. To head that off at the next shop I'd walk
> in with both pieces in my hand rather than the whole car.

Putting it back together the way it came in wasnt' really an option. I
limped the vehicle to the service station as it was. Someone had
recently stolen my spare so I didn't have that to drive on.

As I said, I was 500 miles from home. Didn't have a lot of options.

It was an expensive lesson, but you are right walking in with only the
part(s) they need to fix would be a much better approach.

JW

wrote:
> Putting it back together the way it came in wasnt' really an option. I
> limped the vehicle to the service station as it was. Someone had
> recently stolen my spare so I didn't have that to drive on.
>

I see. Not having a spare to use as a stand would definitely put a
crimp on that plan. I don't think I could stomach leaving a car
sitting on a scissor jack unattended and away from home.

Matthew