Alewife Mobil

Review: I pulled in here a few months ago with a lit engine light and sputtering engine. They told me that I needed new engine coils, which sounded right as my car was overdue for service. The coils, spark plugs, labor, and an oil change came to around $660. The following week I had some unrelated brake work done at another local garage (one that had been recommended to me by several co-workers). There I was told that it was strange to see a sticker for a recent oil change, as my oil was jet black and in need of a change (which this place did at no charge). Kind of shady, I thought, but not a huge deal in the grand scheme of things. Alewife Mobil did a bunch of work, maybe there was a mix up or oversight with the oil change. Live and learn, etc. Cut to this week (barely two months later). Engine light back on, engine sputtering. I return to the aforementioned other (second) place, where I am informed of several developments: 1. The coils used by Alewife Mobil were after-market cheapies, the brand of which the second mechanic didn't even recognize (he showed me the part). One of them was defective (again, he showed me the part). 2. There had also been a broken bolt in one of the coil casings - a new bolt had been put in the top, but the broken bottom half had just been left in there. 3. The spark plugs were NOT new, though my Alewife Mobil invoice includes charges for 4 new spark plugs. I had to get the whole job re-done. By the way, the second place did it for $200 less, and with Toyota parts with a lifetime warranty (which came at no extra charge).

So, to review, Alewife Mobil charged me for four off-brand coils, at least one of which was defective, an oil change they did not actually do, and four new spark plugs that they did not actually give me. I wasn't expecting much, but I went back to talk to them anyway, mostly to soothe my own conscience and not feel so trod-upon. Not surprisingly, I was met with wide-eyed denials, "how do I know the other place didn't ruin everything," "show me the defective parts," and so on. When I asked if it seemed strange that I would have the exact same coil issue barely two months after they replaced them, I was met with silence. When I mentioned the non-oil change oil change, silence. The spark plug issue, outright denial. They said I should return with the defective parts to show them (though they expressed doubt that anything I would return with would be likely to be the actual parts they had used), and if they were defective they would re-do the work. This is entirely unsatisfactory; having been once burned, the last thing I will do is return to the exact same place for another helping of deception.Desired Settlement: I expect at least a partial refund. I acknowledge they did provide some parts (though at least one was defective), and provided some labor (though toward defective service, and also charging for oil change labor that was not performed).

Business

Response:

[redacted] came to our shop (Alewife Mobile) with a check engine light on. We diagnosed the issue and repaired it. Granted time went by and the check engine light came back on. A week later, he went to another repair shop and was happy with that facility that was misleading him in regards to the oil change. they gave him a free oil change to cover up their recommended service for an oil change that was done a week or two prior to his visit to Alewife Automotive. [redacted] acknowledges in his complaint on [redacted] and in its message to your site that he was late on his maintenance service at the time we performed service on his vehicle. Being overdue on any oil change can cause sludge and make it appear black and not like when we had replaced it. I saw with my own eyes that my mechanic replaced the oil and filter for [redacted]’s 2009 Toyota Corolla. Now he thinks we are bad and dishonest people while he thinks this other mechanic at Alewife Automotive is nice and caring service individual. Three months later, [redacted]’s check engine light came back on. He went back to Alewife Automotive on [redacted] to get it checked out. This time the mechanic there gave [redacted] a story about how we did not replace his spark plugs and that the coil is defective. [redacted] was also told that we used a cheap, generic coil that should not have been used for this vehicle. The coil we used back on March 26, 2014 were ordered from [redacted] who are well know to have many OE parts. The coils we used wire OE part #[redacted] Delphi Ignition Coils. Delphi is well known across the industry as having great quality parts. The spark plugs we used for [redacted]’s vehicle were Denso spark plugs part #[redacted]. These spark plugs are also EO replacements for this vehicle. Attached to this letter is a copy of our invoice from Worldpac to prove that we are running an honest and fair business and pride ourselves on quality repairs and parts, as well as great and honest customer service. We would like this car to get checked out at Toyota of [redacted] and have [redacted] speak to a service advisor and have his car diagnosed at our cost to see which coil Alewife Automotive used. We also want to check on the spark plugs he used that we already have changed on March 26, 2014. The mechanic at Alewife Automotive can talk your ear off with wrong wording or BS in order to see you anything. We replaced four coils, four spark plugs and performed the oil change. We are not taking advantage of [redacted] or any customer for that matter. As stated above, attached to this letter is an invoice from WorldPac for the parts that have been replaced on his vehicle. In addition, Alewife Automotive is not telling the customer the right way of handling the matter. Being that the coils and plugs are new, Alewife Automotive should have sent the customer back to our facility to replace the parts under warranty. We literally are not even a mile away from the other shop and we are competitors but what they did to make a quick buck is not the right way to handle business. Instead of sending him back to us, they wanted to bad talk us and make us look bad in front of [redacted]. We told [redacted] like every other customer, upon completion of repairs there is a 12 month, 12,000 mile warranty on our work. With everything being said, we do want to resolve this matter. We want our name cleared from lies and that’s why we want Toyota of [redacted] to look at this car. We want a third party to see what Alewife Automotive put and really replaced to stop the check engine light from being on. We already called Toyota of [redacted] and spoke to a service advisor named Kamel and would like him to take care of the situation. He’s aware of the discrepancies and this matter Please advise me on when we can make an appointment to check out the repairs that were done by Alewife Automotive. As stated above, we will pay for the diagnosis and we stand behind our work for 12 months and 12,000 miles. When [redacted] came, he did not show or give us any of our parts back. We need the old parts to refund customer for the cost of parts provided that they are the parts we sold him and that the part numbers match. Thanks for your time.

Consumer

Response:

I appreciate Alewife Mobil's follow-up information in this matter. To clarify a few points: First, I acknowledge and understand that engine parts can be defective, and that this may be the case here with the coils, but I feel under no obligation to return a car to the same shop for additional service after being dissatisfied the first time. In addition, I do not recall any notification by Alewife Mobil of any guarantees or warranties on their work (this may have been noted verbally, but there is no written record of this on any paperwork I received from them). The second mechanic did in fact offer me the parts to return to Alewife Mobil, and in fact did initially encourage me to return there to have the work done over; the decision not to do so was mine. The second mechanic was in fact very reluctant to speak at all of Alewife Mobil's work or to appear to be pointing any fingers, and did not cast aspersions on them or their reputation. He merely noted on my first visit that my oil had not been changed (though it purportedly had been at Alewife Mobil one week prior), and on my second visit that the coil was defective, that the coils were not of a brand he recognized, that the spark plugs were not new (at this time he was not even aware I had been charged for new ones by Alewife Mobil), and that another coil had a new bolt put in on top, but had a broken bottom half of a bolt that had been left there.

Second, while I would like to avoid falling into a "he said/she said" situation between two competitors (because, let's face it, I'm not a mechanic, so can't argue details regarding parts), I would like to point out that it makes no sense for a second mechanic to 1) observe the discrepancy with the oil change, then do another one at no charge, 2) find a defect in the coil, encourage me to return to Alewife Mobil and offer me the parts to bring if I chose to do so, then on my request do the work over while not charging me for new spark plugs, nor a lifetime warranty on dealer parts (nor, incidentally, for labor), were his intent solely to impugn Alewife Mobil. I have had a lengthy history as a satisfied customer with the other mechanic pre-dating my interaction with Alewife Mobil; there is no incentive for the second mechanic to "mislead" me with a "story" about a competitor I went to because I could only make it that far with a sputtering engine. If this were his intent, he would clearly have charged me for services that he in fact performed at no charge.

I have no interest in scheduling a further appointment with a Toyota dealer to inspect work I have had done subsequent to my visit to Alewife Mobil. Doing so is of no value to me, and comes at a significant opportunity cost of my time, as well as time without my car available to me. I am free to bring my business to whomever I wish, and am not obliged to provide second chances to businesses to correct work that was unsatisfactory the first time around.

I believe my request for a 50% refund in this case is fully reasonable. As I have previously stated, I acknowledge that Alewife Mobil provided time/labor, as well as parts (4 coils), irrespective of the performance of those parts. The undisputed fact is that I did experience the same engine failure that initially brought me to Alewife Mobil slightly more than two months after they worked to repair it, and was forced to pay to have the job re-done (I have documentation of the work done to re-do the job, and have shown it to Alewife Mobil). I do not believe I should be responsible for this expense (an amount that exceeded what a 50% refund from Alewife Mobil would amount to), nor should I have been required to return to Alewife Mobil. My request for a 50% refund will save Alewife Mobil the time and labor required to re-do a job that no longer needs re-doing, as well as the need to order further parts that I no longer need. It will also save them the expense of "paying for" a Toyota dealer to inspect subsequent work with which I have no complaint (though whether this represents an expense to Alewife Mobil is unclear).

I therefore re-submit my request for a 50% refund, and will be satisfied to put this matter to rest with such a resolution. Thank you.

Regards,

Business

Response:

As stated in my last response, I would like to come to a resolution just like [redacted] does. However, he still claims that the spark plugs were not changed even though four Delphi OEM coils and four Densco OEM spark plugs were purchased and used from WorldPac to repair his vehicle. He stated our work was unsatisfactory and that we neglected to mention a warranty to our work. We always tell our customers after the work is complete that there is a 12 month/12,000 mile warranty on our repairs and in [redacted]’s case, this was no different. It’s a matter of negligence to not even call or talk to us in person to remind him that there is a warranty on our parts and services. We did not mistreat or mislead [redacted] in any way and assure all parties involved that all the work was performed. That being said, the car left our lot running perfectly and in two months time, the same issue occured. The other shop stated that a defective coil is the issue. The coil was not a cheap or generic part, but is an OEM part. OEM stands for original equipment manufacturer which means the part is made by the same manufacturer that supplies Toyota with its parts. We cannot control whether a part is going to be defective or not; even dealer parts can be defective. We made sure the vehicle was running perfectly before [redacted] picked up the car and the problem reoccured after a period of two months. The idea to bring in Toyota of [redacted] was to bring in a 3rd party for an unbiased opinion on the matter. The consumer can choose to do as he wishes, but going to another repair facility for their input and doing the work there before even consulting us upon the issue reoccuring unfair for our business. He brought the increased cost upon himself without even discussing the matter with us.

With everything being said, we will work with [redacted] to resolve this issue. As stated in the previous letter, we ask that [redacted] bring the four coils and four plugs to our shop and we will be more than happy to refund [redacted] the $330.00 he is requesting. This is provided that they do match the corresponding part numbers for those parts that we purchased from WorldPac at this point in time. However, we will refund $150.00 to [redacted] even if he does not have the parts, just to bring closure to this issue. Keep in mind that this is in no way admitting any wrongdoing because the evidence is on the invoice in the previous response. We would like our name to be cleared from any wrongdoing because we did not mislead [redacted] in any way or form and all the work stated has been completed. We feel our proposed resolution is equally fair for both parties. We also ask that [redacted] update his review on [redacted] based that he jumped the gun on us (saying we are deceitful, etc.) and that we are working with him in resolving this matter. Thank you for your time. [redacted]

Consumer

Response:

This is a fair enough proposal, and I appreciate Alewife Mobil's good faith gesture. For my part, I will commit to appropriately modifying (or deleting entirely) my [redacted] review when I confirm receipt of a refund of $150 from Alewife Mobil.

I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does satisfy my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint #[redacted]. I understand that by choosing to accept the business response that my complaint will be closed as resolved.

Regards,