Auto Transmission Systems, Inc.

this is in response to mr [redacted] complaint to the Revdex.com. there's a few false witness in his accusations here. let me give you the following as to what happened in his same format.
mid feb 2014: he came in with check engine light on with two codes. one regarding a EGR valve and the...

other regarding a lean running condition. in order to easier determine what the problem is, we reset the light and told him to bring it right back once the light is back on so we can determine what the most recent trouble code would be.
end of feb 2014: he came back in with the check engine light back on. I retrieved the codes and found that the upstream oxygen sensor code malfunction. I opted to perform further diagnostics for free for the customer and checked the voltage values of the o2 sensor and I did find that the voltage values for said sensor were intermittently dropping down to 0 volts and staying there at idle and under steady throttle. I advised to replace o2 sensor because this could possibly be the cause of a rough driveability as this will affect the fuel trim and that this is the first thing to look into. we should replace this part and see what happens next.
july 8th 2014: he comes back in with engine still running rough and this time it's surging. the technician did further evaluations pulling trouble codes and found oil at the tip of the spark plugs and recommended replacement oil at the tip of the spark plugs is a sign of the spark plug tube seals in the valve cover leaking oil into the spark plugs causing them to foul and the engine to run rough. during this time, we had not retrieved any trouble codes that would lead us to believe the EGR system was showing any signs of failure. we recommended to replace the valve cover gasket and the spark plugs. he picked up july 11th and then brought it back stating it was doing the same thing. I checked it out again. this time around, there was a code that came up regarding the EGR valve. we had thought there was a tube on the EGR that was leaking vacuum and I told him to wait while I tried to look for the part but it was to no avail. it wasn't until I was able to talk to a [redacted] technician was I corrected on that part and was told that part was not available by itself and is part of a much bigger and more expensive assembly, but that is not the case of it. EGR valve required replacement. in the mean time, while I was trying to get all this information, he had come in on two separate occasions. when he finally came back in on Aug 13th, I explained to him what happened. offered him to replace the EGR Valve free of charge as a means of customer satisfaction. we could not agree on what would be fair and finally asked for a refund on the valve cover gasket and spark plugs which I did agree on.
during none of those visits was I ever trying to make snide comments such as "you should be happy you got free work done" and I did maintain a level of professionalism by apologizing to him that we did not take care of all the issues at once for him. he made a valid point. the technician had made a diagnosis saying that the plugs and valve cover gasket would resolve his issues and it did not. however, he's not at fault for any misdiagnosis because there were no trouble codes that would lead any technician into thinking that there could be a problem with the EGR system. it didn't show up until after we had replaced the plugs and valve cover gasket and though he still has new parts, we still refunded him the amount that he paid for the repair. I feel we've been more than fair and understanding to his situation and I don't believe he deserves any further money back as he had stated before that he just simply wanted his money back for the previous repair work (spark plugs and valve cover gasket) which I had credited back to him on his credit card.

(The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.)
This has been a very frustrating experience with [redacted]. Even more frustrating is the fact that a customer can only deal with one individual ([redacted] - the receptionist? customer service agent?) at their shop in Kona. It's obvious that he wrote this reply and makes me really wonder where management is? Why haven't they talked to me or responded to this? Why was I not put into contact with them over this customer service issue even when I asked to be? Any and all communication they have received on this matter was from [redacted] and [redacted] alone behind closed doors where I was not involved. Never once did they talk to me. This is the first time I have ever had to make a written complaint about a company which just shows how frustrating this has been.
One of the issues I really found unusual at this shop was their inability to document things. It's a matter I brought up with [redacted] on my last visit. I brought in a paper I typed up showing all my visits, codes pulled, the diagnosis they gave, the repairs done, and any other info I was given. I asked for [redacted] to put this info in the computer which he did not. It was apparent that all communications about our vehicle was not being disseminated amongst the individuals working on it. It wasn't always the same person checking engine codes and I think had that information all been in the computer, technicians may have made different decisions. There was also no documentation as to which parts were being ordered and status on those, nor any correspondence with me, hence my two visits in late July and early August. Should I have to wait 2 weeks to get a simple call? Even after I stopped in, I was told I would get a call tomorrow...Two weeks again with no call. I also wanted every visit documented so that in the odd chance [redacted] were gone for any reason, someone at [redacted]-Kona would know what was going on and the status on it.
He also mentions engine roughness vs engine surging. From day 1 when I got the codes pulled for the engine, I explained the engine was not acting right. Call it roughness or surging, its been doing the same thing since day 1. The only difference was, by July it was becoming more frequent and more pronounced.
I am not at all surprised about the response given here to the Revdex.com. Like I said, it is coming from one person. To be clear, on July 11th I asked for a refund on ALL the work completed to solve my engine roughness/surging. Again, none of that was documented and I was told by [redacted] that this was a decision that was above his head. He did offer me a free replacement on the EGR Valve/Tube, also offered free shop credit, oil changes etc instead of a refund. When I returned in August, I settled with the most recent repair being refunded after a 30 min back and forth session with [redacted] on what to do from here. I had my 1 year old with me and did not have the time to continue arguing any more with him about a plan. I was not comfortable allowing them to do more work on my vehicle at this point because it was becoming a guessing game with them.
I will accept this response for the mere reason that getting all my money back and warranty reinstated on parts they installed would probably take the decision of a manager or higher up, whom have not shown any interest in this matter or customer service in general. Instead they will let the same person attempt to handle it and sweep it under the rug. I am fine with this decision because it shows how this [redacted]-Kona handles business and problems will continue to occur at this branch I am sure. More complaints will come in time. Meanwhile, we have an appointment with [redacted] to get the repair done which is what we should have done initially since [redacted] calls them anyways to get guidance on their repairs.
They got me into their shop with their Free Check Engine Light diagnosis sign they have out front. It was downhill from there. Bravo [redacted]-Kona!