All Star Auto Clinic of Plano Reviews (%countItem)
All Star Auto Clinic of Plano Rating
Address: 13672 Floyd Circle, Dallas, Texas, United States, 75243
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The overheating issue and AC weakness took 2 weeks to fix yet issue persists and I had to pay $1300.
On 07/25/2018 my car overheated and my AC cooling was weak for a few days. I took the car to this shop (after looking up Revdex.com and google reviews, which were stellar) and was promised accurate diagnosis and fixing the issue.
After changing a thermostat and informing me the car was fixed, I drove the car for 2 days then my car overheated again and the AC problem still persisted. *** (the owner) reported that he found out that the car has 2 thermostats not just one. Also, the AC compressor and its components have been replaced, yet the AC did not cool at all.
He replaced second thermostat as well and gave me the care again. After driving the car for 2 days it overheated again, and yet the AC was not cooling.
To this point *** claimed that he had flushed the radiator and cooling system and found nothing wrong with the cooling system.
This time after turning the car in back to him. He stated that he discovered that the 2 hoses that come out of the radiator were faulty. According to him there was 40 degrees difference in the temperature between both hoses. He further claimed they were causing a flow obstruction. He claims he changed them. He then claimed that the obstruction in the cooling system has not resolved and the radiator needs changing. (As stated earlier he denied blockage in the cooling system as evidenced by flushing it 3 times)
*** replaced the radiator and the car still overheated after we picked it up from him.
This time *** claimed that the head gasket is the source of the problem. He based this on the bubbling found while "burping the engine". However, he did demonstrate the bubbling issue before changing the radiator as well as after. He expressed being perplexed.
*** further stated that he may need replace the cylinders not just the gasket. At this point, I took the car to another mechanic that spotted the bubbling from the radiator fluid, noted that there is a leak, and determined on the spot that the issue comes from a faulty head gasket. The conclusion was based on absence of coolant fluid leaking on his collection pan, yet the coolant was low (bear in mind it was replenished at ***'s shop just 3 days earlier) and bubbles were coming out of the radiator indicating gases entering the cooling system.
How can an experienced, highly regarded mechanic such as *** need to replace so many major parts, charge us almost $1300, and 2 weeks of not delivering his promise, yet, unable determine the source of the over heating and poor AC performance?
Considering the issues mentioned above. I am requesting a full refund. I have receipts to prove my claim.
Contact Name and Title: *** A. Owner
Contact Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXX
Contact Email: ***@allstarautoclinic.com
Unfortunately when explaining mechanical problems to customers who do not know how engines and there components work, misunderstandings can happen. I tried to explain how the entire cooling system works to both brothers a few times because I like my customers to leave with not only a service but with some education regarding automobiles. I know that it is a new language to some customers and they still might not fully understand the science when it is explained to them. Unfortunately in this line of business every mechanic is a crook until proven innocent.
The procedure did take us two weeks to finally come to the conclusion that we had a minor blown head gasket; however some of the statements made are inaccurate. I feel very bad for the brothers who were all very kind to us, however I understand there frustration when you realize that you need a new engine or need to replace the head gasket, both can be very expensive.
To set the story straight this is how it went. When the brothers first came into the shop they had told us they had found us on the internet and that because we had good reviews that wanted us to work on the vehicle, which we were happy to hear and happy to help.
They informed us that the vehicle was getting hot but it never overheated and that the A/C was not blowing cold. I asked them if the engine ever smoked or if they drove it for an extended time when it was overheating and they said "No". Imran the driver of the vehicle's commute was short and that he would stop the vehicle immediately when it would begin to overheat. Now these answers are great to hear because when diagnosing a vehicle the drivers' information is very helpful to the technician. When a customer tells you this regarding a vehicle that's overheating, it's most likely a thermostat issue if there is not a leak in the cooling system. So we performed a cooling system pressure test ($32.50) and found no leak even though there was no coolant in the reservoir and recommended a new thermostat with coolant ($149.07). We tested the vehicle and everything seemed to be working properly. We called the customer and told him that his vehicle was ready.
After 2 days they called and said that the vehicle again started to overheat and that they made it to their residence. I informed them that I would pick up the vehicle from them and that I would be there in a couple of hours. I towed the vehicle back to the shop, (FREE OF CHARGE) and gave them my personal car so they would not be without a vehicle in the meantime (FREE OF CHARGE).
When the Technician checked the vehicle he once again noticed that the vehicle was without coolant and we discovered that the vehicle actually had another thermostat, which did catch us by surprise. I called the brothers to inform them of our discovery and that we needed this other thermostat which was ($15.61). The bad news was that the gasket for the housing of this thermostat was not sold separately and that the item was dealer only. The new housing with the gasket was $(314.05) and we had no option. I helped *** search the internet because he was hoping to buy it online for less but with no luck. The bulk of the cost came from this one item that we were forced to purchase from the dealer because the gaskets were not sold separately. We charged the customer ($97.50) for labor to replace the second thermostat and housing and we filled it with coolant (FREE OF CHARGE).
Once the service was performed I personally took the vehicle on a test drive and noticed that the temperature gauge still had abnormal fluctuation. So I brought the vehicle back into the shop and we started looking more into the problem. We discovered the radiator fan assembly had three speeds and that we could not get the radiator fan to initiate at all three speeds with the scanner. The radiator fan assembly relays were built into the fuse box next to the battery and were not individually replaceable. I called the dealer and the dealer price was very high so I found the item used at a salvage yard in Fort Worth and drove there the next morning and picked it up personally. The technician installed the part and tested with the computer and the fan worked at all three speeds now. We also did this (FREE OF CHARGE) and did not charge the customer for anything.
Once again I test drove the vehicle and the vehicle started to have abnormal temperature fluctuation. I brought the vehicle back into the shop and we performed a Head Gasket Test. The dye that we use to test for combustion gases in the coolant is supposed to turn yellow if there are gasses in the coolant. We were getting a slight green color which led us to believe the head gasket was still okay. We used a laser temperature meter and noticed that we had different readings from the hoses that are connected to the radiator leading us to believe that there may be an obstruction inside the radiator. I authorized a new radiator to be replaced on the vehicle to eliminate the radiator suspicion and we decided to warranty out both thermostats and the housing assembly from the dealer just in case we had a defective thermostat. We did all of this (FREE OF CHARGE).
Once we performed the entire job again, I test drove the vehicle and the vehicle continued to have abnormal temperature fluctuation leading us to the conclusion that the head gasket has slight warpage causing the overheating.
I asked the brothers to come by so I could explain and show them the procedure of our conclusion. I came in the next day which was on a Saturday even though the shop was closed. We went over this entire procedure and I explained how we came to our final conclusion that this vehicle has a slight blown head gasket. I did not know which route would be less expensive and that I would look it up for them on Monday if they would like. They understood and they said they would be waiting for my estimate on Monday. After a few hours they came back and decide to take their vehicle. I apologized for the bad news and understood there frustration. Not only did they lose money but I had spent money out of pocket and the technician had spent so much time on diagnosing and labor that we did not charge them for. It was a lose\lose for everyone involved.
To set the story straight, we never flushed the radiator 3 times we bleed the system to make sure there were no air pockets in the system 3 times. Also the hoses on the radiator were never replaced nor were they faulty it was the radiator that was replaced. There was a big temperature difference between the hoses of the radiator. Also we never stated that the cylinders needed to be replace as stated by the customer, we told him that it may be cheaper to replace the entire engine but wouldn't now until that Monday. All in all for the cooling system, the customer paid approximately $650.
As for the A/C system, we found the Condenser lines leaking Freon and pag oil causing the clutch on the compressor to cycle excessively causing the clutch to fail pre-maturely on the a/c compressor ($199 + $412). We have informed the customer that the A/C system will stop blowing cold air if the vehicle overheats. This is normal. A/C system is working properly and is under warranty.
We believe to have done everything in good faith, at a reasonable price and even provided a loaner car. We even replaced several parts and did not charge the customer. The fact of the matter is that the vehicle was driven while overheating causing the engine head gasket to fail. This outcome diagnosis would have been the same regardless. Instead of us immediately condemning this engine we tried our best to fix the problem. If there are any warranty issue's regarding anything that we have done, we will honor. Once the engine is fixed if there are any A/C issues, we will be more than happy to fix them at no charge.
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
I don't expect the response because many things he said are inaccurate; he says that he gaves us he offered to tow our since it was overheating, the first time we asked him to come and tow it after dropping it at his shop in the first place, he didn't offer first like he said. The second time, he told us to drop it off, and again didn't offer to tow the car. A "fair price" isn't what we got, after taking 6 opinions from 6 different mechanics, all of them told us that 1300$ wasn't a fair price for the things he said he did.
He used overwhelming us, my brothers and I, with information and distracting us from knowing the cost estimates. In addition, every time we wanted a price estimate he either avoids replying or tells us that he will let us know in a few days.
"Trial and error" method and costing customers 1300$ in "trials" is not a way to do business or anything.
More is included in the response document
In Response to the customer we do not tow customers vehicle to the shop, it's the customers responsibility to get there vehicle here unless they would like for us to make arrangements for them. I am also sorry that you feel I am a salesman and I am out to trick you, I will be including invoices to prove you wrong that I did not profit on your vehicle. You emphasis on what you have learned in your English class, I hope you have taken some Math classes to do the calculations at the end.
Since 6 mechanics said we overcharged let's use an online service that gives users a fair price estimate based on their zip code to respond to the supposed 6 mechanics.
www.repairpal.com
RepairPal Fair Price EstimateTM
RepairPal Certified Shops honor this fair price estimate.
Estimates in this range are validated in XXXXX
Parts & Labor Cost Overview
Estimates exclude diagnosis, taxes, and fees.
AC Compressor Replacement Cost for 2015 Nissan Sentra
$696 to $879
WE CHARGED THE CUSTOMER $412.50
AC Recharge Cost for 2015 Nissan Sentra
$137 to $175
AC Diagnosis Cost for 2015 Nissan Sentra
$98 to $125
WE CHARGED THE CUSTOMER $199.90 for both.
COOLING SYSTEM
Coolant Leak Diagnosis Cost for 2015 Nissan Sentra
$49 to $63
WE CHARGED THE CUSTOMER $32.50
Thermostat Replacement Cost for 2015 Nissan Sentra
$166 to $209
WE CHARGED THE CUSTOMER $149.07
The Secondary Thermostat and housing are unfortunately not listed on Repairpal.com. The prices we charged the customer are as followed. The receipts will also be included for the customer so there is no doubt that we did not even up-charge the parts that we purchased for their vehicle regarding the cooling system. The majority of the cost was to the dealer because the dealer does not sell the gaskets separately that are needed for the Water outlet thermostat replacement.
Secondary Thermostat $15.61
Coolant Temp Sensor $10.00
Water Control valve assembly $314.05 (dealer only) part number #XXXXX-Xrc1a List price is $418.73
Labor $97.50
I will also include an invoice to show how much we gave to the customer to help solve their problem. Free Radiator, Body Control Module, coolant and Labor. TOTAL $576.91
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
The issue is not that *** charges more than other mechanics. I want to make it absolutely clear that that is not what this is about. The real issue here is that I spent almost $1300 to replace all the parts that *** has listed in the last response but none of those were the actual issue. After 3 WEEKS of trial and error, *** finally determined that the head gasket is the real problem and that was going to cost an ADDITIONAL $1200. I took the car to another mechanic the next day but did not mention all the parts that *** replaced on the vehicle and within 2 hours, he called and said that the head gasket was the issue. So, *** was right about the head gasket being busted, but the other mechanics wouldn't have replaced all the parts that *** conned me into replacing. Pricing for the head gasket replacement with labor was also $1200 so, as I've mentioned, ***'s labor costs are right on par with other shops.
The problem is that I spent $2500 for a $1200 job. Also, 3 weeks of waiting and worrying, countless phone calls, several visits to the shop for every time *** said the car was "fixed" but wasn't. Either way I look at it, it seems to me that *** is either dishonest or incompetent. Very disappointed and frustrated after this entire ordeal.