Brown's Alignment & Brake and Auto Repair Service, Inc.

My car was repaired by Brown's on 4/22/14. The car caught fire on 5/1/14.Brown's Alignment repaired my car on 4/22/14. My complaint was that the car was idling and would cut off when I came to a stop. They told my husband that the car needed a Fuel Pressure Regulator. I received my car that afternoon and it ran fine. I drove the car on the next Sunday from downtown [redacted] to church in [redacted] On May 1st, I was on my way to my mother's House when the car cut off. Immediately, the car started smoking. I had too wait for the Sheriff's department and Fire Department to arrive so I could get out of the car. I smelled a strong odor of gas and fumes filled the car. By the time the fire department arrived, the car was fully engulfed. Brown's manager and mechanic came the following day and told us that they would send their insurance people out. This took almost 2 weeks. After another week, we were told that they couldn't tell because of the damage to the car if it was their fault or if it was caused by the part being bad.Desired SettlementI want a refund of the cost of the repair that they were supposed to do. I also want the book value on my car which was running and had several new repairs done within the last 2 years. My car was a 1991 Buick Century and the cost of repair was $308.00. They did not repair my car, and as far as blaming the car part, I'm not the one who put that car part on the car, they did.Business Response Mrs. [redacted] brought her 1991 Buick Century to us on April 22 2014. As noted on the original invoice, the description of problems relayed to us at that time included "erratic idle, cutting off and has a gas smell". The car was barely drivable when it arrived at our business. We diagnosed and replaced a faulty fuel pressure regulator. The vehicle was test driven and visually inspected for leaks prior to release to Mr. and Mrs. [redacted]. At that time with the regulator under its full 40lbs + pressure there were no fuel leaks or fuel smells. The vehicle idled and drove normally during our post repair test drive and we received no complaints from Mr. or Mrs. [redacted] until after the vehicle fire nine days and fifty eight miles later. On May 2 I took one of our technicians to the [redacted] residence to inspect the damage to the car and also to try to determine the cause of the fire. During that time Mrs. [redacted] made several statements while in our presence. In regards to the origin of the fire, she stated that the firemen that had put the fire out thought it started in the vicinity of the car battery. While discussing the lose of the vehicle she also mentioned that "no car means no work" indicating a work obligation. Interestingly there is no mention of traveling to or from work in Mrs. [redacted]' list of trips taken in the nine days after the repair was completed. Mrs. [redacted] also stated to us that she "had inhaled some fumes from the fire and was having trouble breathing". Because of the difficulty in determining the origin of the fire and because of the suggestion of possible health issues we felt we had no choice but to turn this incident over to our insurance company.They require that the fault be a proven installer error in order for them to pay the claim. Otherwise the part manufacturer of the failed part would be responsible for any claims of defects. Our insurance company hired an independent fire investigator to examine Mrs. [redacted]' Buick. His report stated that the cause of the fire could not be conclusively determined. Therefore, the burden of proof that the fire not only started with the fuel pressure regulator but was also installer error now lies with Mr. and Mrs. [redacted]. It is our opinion that there could have been no error in installation. The regulator has one mounting bolt, which was still intact and tight after the fire, and one "o" ring seal. That seal has between 31 and 44lbs of pressure at idle. Any leak there would have been evident on the first start after installation.ManagerBrowns Alignment and Brake Service,[redacted]

I had my car aligned at Brown's Alignment Shop. The alignment is still off. Brown's refuses to acknowledge the alignment was performed incorrectly.I have a[redacted]. I replaced the upper/lower ball joints and inner/outer tie rods. I bought brand new [redacted] tires and had them installed and balanced at a local tire shop. They referred me to Brown's Alignment Shop to get the alignment done on my car. Brown's performed the alignment on Monday, 1/19/15. During my visit to Brown's I observed the tech perform the alignment, then test drive the car, and parked it in front of the shop, letting me know it was ready. The tech never pulled back into the shop to recheck the alignment specifications after the test drive. This is when a specifications sheet of his performed alignment should be printed out. My car is still pulling to the left after the alignment.I've been a mechanic for 18 years and am currently working as a fleet mechanic for one of the largest shipping companies in the world. I have up to date experience and knowledge in the field of Auto mechanics. Brown's shop not backing up their work is unacceptable. I talked to [redacted] at Brown's on Friday, 1/23/15. He blamed the brand new tires and not the alignment. He said that he was looking at the print out of the alignment specifications of my car and nothing was off. I never received a copy of whatever sheet he was looking at. I will never take any of my vehicles to Brown's again, nor will I refer them as a reputable business who warranties their work.Desired SettlementI will not take my car back to Brown's Alignment Shop for anything after this experience. I should not be spending my time writing a complaint about a service I paid them for, but they failed to complete correctly. They can refund my money so I can take my car somewhere else to get the alignment straightened. Business Response Contact Name and Title: [redacted] ManagerContact Phone:[redacted]Contact Email: [redacted]Mr. [redacted] brought his [redacted] to us for an alignment on 1/19/2015. He cited new parts and new tires as reasons for the requested service. The alignment was completed with no problems noted and no pulls detected during the subsequent test drive. Mr. [redacted] did return a day or two after the alignment was performed to complain of a pull. The vehicle was test driven and again no pull was evident at that time. In addition the alignment print out was produced to show Mr. [redacted] that all alignment angles were in specification and would not cause a vehicle pull as set. As a side note, we retain copies of every alignment for our records and they are freely available upon request by any customer. Mr. [redacted] never suggested he was interested in receiving a copy but is welcome to one at any time. It validates our claim of an accurate alignment.An alignment machine allows us eliminate the alignment as a cause of a pull but that is its limitation. It was explained to Mr. [redacted] that there are many other sources of vehicle pulls with tires being one of the the more common. And yes BRAND NEW tires can cause a pull. I have firsthand experience with radial tire pulls in defective new tires. It was also explained to Mr. [redacted] that the angles that could cause a pull (camber and caster) in his[redacted] are not only where the manufacturer requires them to be but are also NOT adjustable. No standard alignment could adjust these angles on his vehicle even if the were out of specification. Unfortunately in the time Mr.[redacted] took to write his complaint he could have done a simple [redacted] search to verify the information provided to him was accurate. In my search for "what alignment angles cause a vehicle to pull" the first two listing confirm what was conveyed to him. Mr. [redacted]'s alignment can not be the source of the pull as its current reading. I have provided the links below.http://www.[redacted] http://[redacted]We have taken time on two separate occasions to courteously inform and advise Mr. [redacted] on his complaint. I would also like to point out that Mr. [redacted]'s statement " the alignment was performed incorrectly" could be consider slanderous and will not be taken lightly.[redacted]Manager Browns Alignment[redacted] Consumer Response The event of the test drive to recheck the alignment never happened. Neither a print out of the alignment was supplied the one time that the alignment was performed on 1/19/2015. I called a couple times after the alignment was done on 1/19/2015 to notify Brown's Alignment about the pull to the left. I was told that the pull was caused from everything else but the alignment. That the specs from the magical print out did not show the alignment was the cause of the pull. I'll say it again, I will never take any of my vehicles to Brown's again or nor will I refer them as a reputable business who warranties their work.Final Business Response We would have gladly provided Mr. [redacted] with a copy of the alignment print out at the time his vehicle was aligned had he requested one. As stated previously, he is more than welcome to come by and pick one up or it could be mailed if preferred. We typically do not provide these to all of our customers because most have no interest in receiving the information. I can however assure Mr. [redacted] that there is nothing "magical" about this print out as he claims. It was dated, digitally stored and generated at the time of service from a state of the art Hunter Alignment Machine. This equipment was installed and calibrated mere months ago. It is not magical, it is in fact a refutation of his claim of an inaccurate alignment.The alignment specification print out provides both before and after readings for multiple alignment angles. With regards to the camber and caster angles, the angles that create pulls, the print out clearly reflects NO change in the before and after readings. There are two reasons why these numbers did not change. First and very simply, [redacted] did not make them adjustable. Secondly, they were within the range preferred by the manufacturer and therefore required no change even if it were possible. The toe angle, a tire wearing angle, was corrected on both the front and rear and was set to the manufactures specifications. Unfortunately, Mr. [redacted] would like us to not only be responsible for but also to refund him for a problem we did not create nor could have solved with an alignment. We absolutely did not tell Mr. [redacted] "that the pull was caused from everything else but the alignment" as he has stated. We did suggest other possible sources of his pull in an attempt to help him resolve his complaint. Again, an alignment can not diagnose other sources of vehicular pulls but can only eliminate itself as a cause. We suggested Mr [redacted] return to the business where he purchased his tires and have the front tires swapped in an attempt to diagnose a radial tire pull. There is no justification for a refund to Mr. [redacted] and I'm not sure how he came to the conclusion that if his car pulls he would be entitled to one. There was never anything stated nor implied to that effect. That type of guarantee would be extremely hard to honor because there are many other factors the effect the travel of a vehicle. There is a small percentage of vehicles that come to us complaining of a pull that can be resolved with an alignment. As stated previously, Mr. [redacted] initially cited new parts and new tires as the need for the alignment. We have adequately provided him with the alignment that he requested and it was set according to the [redacted] specifications. Attempts were made to inform and help him with his concerns after the alignment as well. There can be no accountability for a pull we did not create. Further we can not be expected be correct a pull with an alignment when the alignment is clearly not the source. A pull does not equate to proof of a misalignment. I would ask that Mr. [redacted] please research this issue prior to continuing this discussion. I have provided several internet links to assist him in this endeavor. One of those links contains a very detailed bulletin from GM. Near the bottom of the first page there is a section labeled "Alignment Setting". Within the box at the top is a very succinct description of the basic alignment angles. The alignment angles and their effects are universal and will apply to any make or model. http://[redacted]We will offer to move Mr. [redacted]'s tires in an attempt to diagnose a tire issue if he has not already done so. I have attempted to contact Mr. [redacted], through the phone number he provided us, again on January 26th to discuss this issue further. As of February 4rd we have not received a response from Mr. [redacted]. Regardless of how this is resolved I will also reiterate my objection to Mr. [redacted]'s publicly stating that his alignment was done inaccurately when there is verifiable proof to invalidate this claim. He is obviously free to disagree and take his business elsewhere if he so chooses, however he is not free to damage our business through defamation.[redacted]Manager Browns Alignment 2/4/2015