ATS Transmissions & Auto Service

Mr. [redacted] came to ATS with a transmission problem. ATS was only hired to repair Mr. [redacted] ' transmission, which... it did. Mr. [redacted] has never once complained that the transmission repair was unsatisfactory in any way. Mr. [redacted] has complained about a head gasket issue although it's undisputed that ATS never worked on the head gasket or motor nor was ATS ever asked to do so. ATS was only hired to do a transmission repair. Mr. [redacted] ' car was running when the owner of ATS took it for a short test drive and it was running when Mr. [redacted] drove his car away from ATS' shop. ATS has never been presented with any evidence that there is actually any problem with the head gasket. Mr. [redacted] never provided any evidence of a repair being done to the head gasket or any evidence that a mechanic has diagnosed a head gasket problem, let alone any evidence that a head gasket problem arose as a result of anything done by ATS. ATS was never asked to even look at the engine and all parties agree that the car was running when Mr. [redacted] drove it away from the shop. If there was indeed a latent head gasket problem then that problem had likely been building over a span of years. It most certainly could not have been caused by a short test drive. That is simply not how head gaskets work. ATS was not hired to even look at, let alone repair, the head gasket or motor. ATS has never been hired to do any maintenance on the car, including oil changes or coolant. ATS could not possibly have caused any damage to the car's head gasket, if any such damage exists. Mr. [redacted] ' 1986 BMW had more than 200,000 miles on it, was in extremely poor condition, and had obviously not been well maintained when it was towed into ATS' shop. There was also unrepaired body damage. Nevertheless, ATS quoted an extremely fair price for the transmission repair and performed the repair competently.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***,
I need for ATS Transmission to address the fact that they are responsible for the damage done to my vehicleI originally attempted to negotiate w/ Mr*** to repair the damage and he refusedTherefore I am continuing to file a complaint w/ the Revdex.com.I am also having the Burreau of Automotive Repair (BAR) Investigate ATS Transmission to pinpoint the exact amount of damage doneThe total amount at this point is undetermined, and could easily go higher than the amount of the initial repair costMr*** continues to repeat himself over and over againMr*** requested to start the engine of the vehicle prior to rebuilding the TransmissionAt that time, the engine ran normally or he would not have began repairsAt this point I've reported this incident to the bureau of Automotive Repair for further investigation and action against Mr***.
Regards,
*** ***

My name is [redacted], the owner of ATS and Iam answering this complaint, because my office manager was not involved with this situation. Unfortunately this complaint cannot be resolved at the shop level, due to the insistence of Mr. [redacted] that his vehicle had only one repair issue. After trying...

to explain on several occasions That there were other issues, with this vehicle and that we repaired one of the main problems. This really comes down communication issues with this person. When the vehicle came in it had several different engine codes, we because of the symptoms and two engine codes relating to the valve body, it was determined to remove and inspect the valve body, it was bad and I had Mr. [redacted] come down to shop to explain in person what we had to do in order to clear the two engine codes and bring the shifting patterns to normal. After 25 years of doing this work  I find it best to proceed this way, especially when a customer states that he has no mechanical knowledge on how his vehicle works..At that time I also explained to him that he had other codes to resolve as well. I also told him because the valve body had to be rebuilt in LA. and It would take at least two weeks to complete the repair. Now this is were  I think the mis-communication started, after only three days he started calling wanting to know if the vehicle was ready, I explained again about the time frame,  He insisted that I said three days. Here we go so, I went all over it again., after that he would call every two days. He explained that the vehicle is used as a taxi / limousine service, and he was losing income, I felt bad but my hands were tied. Fortunately we finished and delivered the vehicle, He then called back two days later and said it was acting up again, I had him bring it back in and we checked all our work, we kept the car for three days and it functioned shift wise like it was suppose to. He took it and called back saying it wasn't right, this is when It took a turn for the worse, he came to shop very agitated and loud, saying we fixed nothing and wanted his money back, He came to me through a trusted friend who has his own shop for several years and Asked if I could please help this man, because he doesn't perform transmission work, So I was making all the effort to calm this person down and explain all again and  I even showed him the old parts that were bad. He made the comment that the old parts may not be from his vehicle, I explained that each vale body has a serial number on it that matches his vehicle, it did not matter,  He explained that the dealer Fixed a Brake light switch, which was one of the other engine codes , for only 285.00 and now everything is good. he told me that the dealer said he didn't have a transmission issue. I responded by saying thats because we already fixed it. He is confused between the two repairs and I am unable to explain it any further. Because he becomes so agitated and loud I can't have him come to the shop anymore. he has my cell phone buts it just the same conversation over again.. I can understand that if having a choice between 285.00 repair and 2700. I would prefer the lower one also, but this wasn't the case, both repairs were needed and there are still other repairs that need to be done to this vehicle..The last time we spoke he mentioned going to court to resolve this, Its sad because I am so proud of may staff and the work they do, and our sterling reputation in the community..Thank You Revdex.com for your time.  [redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.The response from ATS  Transmission is unsatisfactory.
The dealerships cost to repair this is $1500. Two reputable companies both had technicians that have identified the fault being caused by ATS during the axle removal. The evidence is there and is undeniable. The axle boots being torn lead to the axles going bad from loss of grease. I think the cheapest and most satisfactory option is ATS Transmission replacing the axles and sending me on my way. I haven't reviewed them on any websites yet and can assure all involved that if ATS repairs the axles there will be a good review. I just want my car working.
Regards,
[redacted]

Mr. [redacted] came to ATS with a transmission problem. ATS was only hired to repair Mr. [redacted]' transmission, which...

it did. Mr. [redacted] has never once complained that the transmission repair was unsatisfactory in any way. Mr. [redacted] has complained about a head gasket issue although it's undisputed that ATS never worked on the head gasket or motor nor was ATS ever asked to do so. ATS was only hired to do a transmission repair. Mr. [redacted]' car was running when the owner of ATS took it for a short test drive and it was running when Mr. [redacted] drove his car away from ATS' shop.
ATS has never been presented with any evidence that there is actually any problem with the head gasket. Mr. [redacted] never provided any evidence of a repair being done to the head gasket or any evidence that a mechanic has diagnosed a head gasket problem, let alone any evidence that a head gasket problem arose as a result of anything done by ATS.
ATS was never asked to even look at the engine and all parties agree that the car was running when Mr. [redacted] drove it away from the shop. If there was indeed a latent head gasket problem then that problem had likely been building over a span of years. It most certainly could not have been caused by a short test drive. That is simply not how head gaskets work.  
ATS was not hired to even look at, let alone repair, the head gasket or motor. ATS has never been hired to do any maintenance on the car, including oil changes or coolant. 
ATS could not possibly have caused any damage to the car's head gasket, if any such damage exists.
Mr. [redacted]' 1986 BMW had more than 200,000 miles on it, was in extremely poor condition, and had obviously not been well maintained when it was towed into ATS' shop. There was also unrepaired body damage. Nevertheless, ATS quoted an extremely fair price for the transmission repair and performed the repair competently.

In response to [redacted]'s complaint, ATS is very sorry for [redacted]'s inconveniences throughout this whole ordeal. When [redacted] first came...

to us for help, he was very frustrated with his vehicle, to begin with, it was an expensive purchase and after a short while he had to rebuild the engine, after that he had the vehicle painted and had some problems there. So when his transmission failed we at ATS understanding his current frustrations, tried to make his transmission rebuild go as smooth as possible and price it out within his budget. Everything went well on the rebuild and we finished in the time framed as promised. About a week later [redacted] called and said the transmission was not acting right and he was unable to drive it. He had the vehicle towed to us and after inspection we found that a part known as the transmission valve body had failed, now this part was not replaced in the rebuild, because at that time, it passed the few tests available to test it, normally it's suggested to replace it at the time of the rebuild, but that wasn't a consideration due to the cost and [redacted]'s budget. Due to the inconvenience to [redacted], we replaced the valve body without charge, even though it was well within our rights to charge for the part, because it was not part of the original rebuild. This repair by itself cost's 950.00. Now when we replaced the valve body, both drive axle's were fine and not damaged at all, except for the fact that they are the original factory axle's and with 135,000 miles, they were showing some wear, boot dry rot and some small grease seepage from the passenger side axle boot clamp. If they had any rips or tears in the boots [redacted] would have been told, for replacement in the near future, when his budget would be on better terms and to note when replacing the valve body, you do not have to remove the drive axle's. Now this is when ATS feels that miscommunication with the customer happened. When [redacted] picked up his vehicle, he was concerned about the drive axles, he told the manager on duty [ the regular manager was on vacation I that he had an alignment done and that shop told him the axle boots were torn and grease was coming out. The manager on duty told him what our tech saw when he replaced the valve body, as already stated above. Now if the regular manage had been there, he would have had the vehicle put on the list and shown [redacted] in detail, what had just been explained to him. After being here for 26 years and a stellar reputation this policy has never failed us, the normal manager knows this and it would have been handled in that manner. Then ATS believes [redacted] would more then likely never filed his complaint. About a week later again [redacted] called very upset and told us that his engine light came on and he decided to go back to the original shop that rebuilt his engine, it turned out to he an oil leak and the repaired it under warranty, but while it was there they showed [redacted] that his drive axle's were all ripped up and needed to be replaced. So the normal manager was back and told [redacted] to bring the vehicle back to us as soon as possible for inspection. Ats inspected the vehicle and both axle boots were all ruined. Now here's the problem, since we failed to show [redacted] the axle's before he left the shop, he can only take our word for it, and he has two non transmission shops telling him in their opinion on what happened to his axles, he is convinced ATS damaged his axle's and since we know we did not. ATS cannot pay for something it did not do. Now due to fact ATS failed to show him the axle's, ATS has offered to put in customer supplied drive axle's at no charge. We are currently waiting for [redacted]'s reply. ATS feels very badly about this situation and hope's it can be resolved.