Japanese Auto Clinic Inc.

May Dear Revdex.com:I am writing this letter concerning *** *** about the exhaust noise.*** came in and dropped off his car because the car would not start up some timesThe Starter was badBut while we pulled the car inside our bay to start replacing the starter,
there was this little bit of exhaust noise, I didnt think anything about it because *** didnt mention it.Well, in order to replace the Starter on this car, We had to remove the front exhaust pipe to replace itAfter the starter was replaced the exhaust sounded louder than before, so I replaced both the gaskets, But the noise was still louderWe reinspected the noise and there seem to be a crack in the manfold.If *** wants us to take care of the problem he needs to replace the manifoldBut refused to pay for it so I told him because problem was already there before we replaced the starter, so there for I could not replace his manifold for free.If *** wants us to look at it again to be sure exactly where that leaks is, have him bring the car back so I can take a better look at it and may decide what we can do for him,Thank You

Japanese Auto Clinic
Lee Highway
Arlington, VA
Re: CID# *** ; ***
***
To Whom it may Concern,
This Letter is to address the complaint submitted on 6/20/cid# ***
First of all we never did head gasket job on this carBut we did replace valve cover gasket on 12/13/2012, because oil was leaking out from it*** *** return in Novsaying that the car was sputtering and engine light was on: code# *** #cylinder misfiring, so we noticed that #cylinder spark plug was all wet with oil, so we cleaned it out and reset the engine light and told *** *** that #cylinder spark plug tube is leaking oil inward and we cannot fix that, He had to take it to the dealer for this repairHe came back on Decagain so we told him same thing again and cleaned out the tubes for him againOn 04/01/He came back again about the same issues, by this time, the ignition wires are getting brittle so I ask him to replace them and see if this helps out, otherwise he NEEDS to take to dealer to take care of that spark plug tube
The Spark Plug Tube has absolutely nothing to do with valve cover gasket leaking, So We, Japanese Auto Clinic, will not refund or help *** *** repair his vehicle or pay for towing
If you need anything else, Please let me know
Steve Y***
General Manager
Japanese Auto Clinic

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the responseIf no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]
Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because:Dear Revdex.com,
*** is incorrect in saying that "there's estimate fee of $posted right in front of the customers when they walk in." I did not see any such fee posted when I walked in, and *** did not tell me anything about this fee when I dropped off the car He had me write down my name and phone number on a blank receipt, but the receipt said nothing about an estimate fee The first time he mentioned any estimate fee to me was over the phone, when he called shortly after I dropped off the car When he called, I questioned his very high estimates (such as $for a simple brake job), and he got angry and told me that if I didn't have the work done, I would have to pay a $estimate fee I did not agree to pay the fee; I told him that I would pick up the car and talk to him then It's clear that the estimate fee never comes up, unless the customer balks at his very high estimates, and then *** uses this fee to try to force the customer to have the work done I objected to the estimate fee when I picked up the car, and *** pointed to a cryptic sign posted high overhead that said "46/92." This sign does not say that all customers have to pay an estimate fee This sign does not put anyone on notice of anything, but simply provides an excuse for *** to impose this fee whenever he wants to pressure a customer into paying for overpriced repairs In any event, he never explained why he was charging me $instead of $
*** did not do $worth of work on the car Indeed, he did not repair anything at all At most, he or another mechanic may have spent a few minutes doing a quick visual inspection His "estimate fee' is an unfair and fraudulent practice
Regards,
*** ***

Spoke with *** re: rebuttal response, he said the sign states estimate fee 46-dollarsHe will not send another response and is not giving a refund

Dear Revdex.com:I am writing to you concerning [redacted]'s refund for the estimate fee of $92.00,**. [redacted] dropped off his car and asked us to check his brakes and check for oil leaking. After inspection of those items there where more than those problems so I gave him the estimates....

He decided not to repair the car so there’s estimate fee of $92.00 posted right in front of the customers when they walk in. When I told him about the estimate fee over the phone if he decides not to fix the car, he had no issues with it until when he came in to pick up the car. I showed **. [redacted] the post that says there’s estimate fee, But he kept refusing to pay and said that he was just going to leave with the car without paying.I told **. [redacted] that if he takes the car without paying, I could report the car stolen from our property. So he paid and stormed out of here without taking his keys, which later on he came back to pickup.Under these circumstances, I can not refund him the money.Thank you,

Review: I went in to have a starter replaced on my SUV and left with a repair but an excessively loud exhaust as a result of damage done by a broken exhaust leading to the manifold. Service person alleged cracked but did not elaborate nor demonstrate. I advised service person that the noise level was not likely to be in compliance with VA code but said they could do nothing. The problem needs to be remedied by the Japanese Auto clinic.Desired Settlement: I would like the owner to fix the issue and incur the costs.

Business

Response:

May 30 2014Dear Revdex.com:I am writing this letter concerning **. [redacted] about the exhaust noise.**. [redacted] came in and dropped off his car because the car would not start up some times. The Starter was bad. But while we pulled the car inside our bay to start replacing the starter, there was this little bit of exhaust noise, I didnt think anything about it because **. [redacted] didnt mention it.Well, in order to replace the Starter on this car, We had to remove the front exhaust pipe to replace it. After the starter was replaced the exhaust sounded louder than before, so I replaced both the gaskets, But the noise was still louder. We reinspected the noise and there seem to be a crack in the manfold.If **. [redacted] wants us to take care of the problem he needs to replace the manifold. But refused to pay for it so I told him because problem was already there before we replaced the starter, so there for I could not replace his manifold for free.If **. [redacted] wants us to look at it again to be sure exactly where that leaks is, have him bring the car back so I can take a better look at it and may decide what we can do for him,Thank You

Review: Japanese Auto Clinic (JAC) changed the head gasket on my mother's 2000 [redacted] on December 12 2012 - I had noticed no problem, it was running fine but they said there was a leak. Since then, the car runs roughly - skips, check engine light on and now blinks at high rpm - except temporarily when they have cleaned out oil from the spark plug tubes (cleaned out twice - November 20 2013, March 31 2014 and ran fine for several days each time) and turn off the check engine light; when it starts skipping again, there is oil in the tubes; as a result, we hardly drove it in 2013 (about 200 miles and driven it less than 700 miles since the repair). First noticed 2 days after 2012 repair - major lurching when spark plug wire 1 came out of spark plug tube within day of repair, I reinserted, returned to JAC December 14 or 15 to get check engine light turned off and be assured all was okay, then started mild skipping on way home but I couldn't return. Noticed oil in spark plug tube 1, either from oil leak or from not cleaning up tube after replacing gasket. November 2013, I had them clean it out - they wanted to to more but that fixed it until December 30th, after highway driving. The second time they cleaned it out, they insisted the skipping was from bad ignition wires rather than the oil in the tubes from their botched repair as I had told them, even though their diagnosis would not explain why the car ran well after they cleaned out the oil the first time. They also told me that the oil in the tubes was because the tubes were old (?) rather than that they had botched the gasket job (the seals around the tubes), and only the dealer could deal with that, but that the oil was not a problem, that I could drive it that way. I let them change the wires, to the tune of $160, and clean out the tubes, while making the point that I was skeptical and that I was paying them to fix the problem, not to replace the wires. It ran fine for 10 days, and then after 5 minutes at highway speed and acceleration, the car lurched worse than before when I exited the highway (new wires are lighter gauge/insulation and maybe more sensitive to arcing) and the check engine light also started blinking, meaning I can't drive it except at very low rpm without potentially damaging the catalytic converter (or maybe have already); oil is present again in spark plug tubes 1 and 2 and I can't drive it, will have to have it towed.Desired Settlement: REPAIR & REFUND:

1) I want to be reimbursed for the last repair - $160 - as it was not the cause of the problem;

2) if they want to see the car before reimbursing, I want them to pay the towing to their shop;

3) I would like them to fix it - redo the gasket job which is where the problem started - but I'm not sure if I trust them to do it correctly, in which case, I would like them to pay for someone else to fix it and either clean the tubes so I can drive it there or pay to have it towed again. Keep in mind, the car drove fine before they replaced the gasket and is much worse after replacing the wires;

4) if the catalytic converter has been damaged, they should pay for that too.

Business

Response:

Japanese Auto Clinic

4831 Lee Highway

Arlington, VA 22207

Re: CID# [redacted] ; [redacted]

To Whom it may Concern,

This Letter is to address the complaint submitted on 6/20/2014 cid# [redacted].

First of all we never did head gasket job on this car. But we did replace valve cover gasket on 12/13/2012, because oil was leaking out from it. [redacted] return in Nov. 2013 saying that the car was sputtering and engine light was on: code# [redacted] #2 cylinder misfiring, so we noticed that #2 cylinder spark plug was all wet with oil, so we cleaned it out and reset the engine light and told [redacted] that #2 cylinder spark plug tube is leaking oil inward and we cannot fix that, He had to take it to the dealer for this repair. He came back on Dec. 2013 again so we told him same thing again and cleaned out the tubes for him again. On 04/01/2014 He came back again about the same issues, by this time, the ignition wires are getting brittle so I ask him to replace them and see if this helps out, otherwise he NEEDS to take to dealer to take care of that spark plug tube.

The Spark Plug Tube has absolutely nothing to do with valve cover gasket leaking, So We, Japanese Auto Clinic, will not refund or help [redacted] repair his vehicle or pay for towing.

If you need anything else, Please let me know

Steve Y[redacted]

General Manager

Japanese Auto Clinic

Review: On Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2014, I took my 2003 [redacted] to Japanese Auto Clinic, [redacted] VA. I asked the man at the front desk (who later said his name was [redacted]) to check the brakes, and to see if there was an oil leak. He did not tell me anything about charging me to look at the car. Later, he called me to say that I needed a simple brake job (pads and rotors), which would cost $900. He also said that there was a small oil leak from the top valve cover gasket. He said I should get a routine maintenance package too, as well as other work. The total price he quoted to me was $2400.

When I said that the price sounded high, he became upset and told me that if I didn't have all the work done right away, he would impose a $92 "estimate fee." This is the first mention he made of an estimate fee. There was nothing about an estimate fee in the paperwork that I filled out when dropping off the car. I don't know how much time he actually spent with the car, but he did not claim to have done any repairs or taken anything apart.

When I went to pick up the car, I told him that I felt that the "estimate fee" was unjustified and that he should have told me about that in advance. He became very upset again and threatened to call the police if I did not pay $92 on the spot. By this time, he was shouting. I paid the fee and left as soon as possible. When I got home, I realized that he had withheld my valet key, which I had given him when I dropped off the car. I called him back and asked him for the key. He grudgingly agreed to give me back my key, so I had to return to his shop. I took the key and left immediately.Desired Settlement: Refund $92 to my credit card.

Business

Response:

Dear Revdex.com:I am writing to you concerning [redacted]'s refund for the estimate fee of $92.00,**. [redacted] dropped off his car and asked us to check his brakes and check for oil leaking. After inspection of those items there where more than those problems so I gave him the estimates. He decided not to repair the car so there’s estimate fee of $92.00 posted right in front of the customers when they walk in. When I told him about the estimate fee over the phone if he decides not to fix the car, he had no issues with it until when he came in to pick up the car. I showed **. [redacted] the post that says there’s estimate fee, But he kept refusing to pay and said that he was just going to leave with the car without paying.I told **. [redacted] that if he takes the car without paying, I could report the car stolen from our property. So he paid and stormed out of here without taking his keys, which later on he came back to pickup.Under these circumstances, I can not refund him the money.Thank you,

Consumer

Response:

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]

Review: [redacted]

I am rejecting this response because:

Dear Revdex.com,