Crabtree Automotive Of Albany

I am rejecting this response because:I feel I was NEVER informed that my car was runningI only knew of that when I read the paper work at homeI would have come to get my car at that point I would NEVER have had the other repairs done Yes my car was towed there and I did agree to the cost of the diagnostic test, by the way with your shop is not included included in the cost of repairs like other shopsOnly you know what your employee said but he NEVER once said to me my car was running in our phoneI guess I am still trying to make that clear I like to check into things before I have work done felt I had no choiceYou had my car and I thought it was not running.It was not several months before I contacted youMy friends husband was a mechanic for several years he said you over charged meAt that point I started to check with other places on cost I needed time to check on cost and you did over charge meI have several estimates from other shopsOne is Captiol Chevrolet where I believe you get your partsYou claim they mark up parts to you more then a customer when you have a contact with themI don't believe that can be trueThat cost was about $moreYes I did agree to the repairs at that point I STILL THOUGHT MY CAR WAS NOT RUNNINGAnd of course it would make sense to repair both pumps at once it would be cheaper repair cost down the line.My intent was not to threaten Crabtree, small claims court was a way to get them to do the right thing and the paper as wellI was only asking for $of my money backThe difference in the cost of partsI felt that would have been fairI still feel the repair where very over priced example charging to replace my gasReplacing all my fluids brake & cooling system, transmission are these all part of the fuel pump or just added on to charge more? I have the estimates if anyone needs to see themAfter reading all the charges and getting mad all over again I wanted to ask for more money backI guess I feel ripped off AGAIN I NEVER WOULD HAVE HAD THE REPAIRS DONEI tried to contact them with three letters Since the repairs MY CAR HAS NOT STARTEDMAKES ME FEEL THE REPAIRS WHERE NOT NEEDED ON THE FUEL PUMPI have replaced my battery and my starter these things do make sense to me over the fuel pumpsI feel business should be held accountable for there business dealings NOT HARDLY LIKE POPCORN AND A MOVIEAGAIN DIDN'T KNOW CAR RUNNING UNTIL AFTER I WAS HOME AND HAD SIGNED THE PAPER WORK DIDN'T TAKE THE TIME TO READ IT AT YOUR SHOPIT WAS NOT SEVERAL MONTHS BEFORE I CONTACTED YOU MAY HAVE BEEN A WHILE BETWEEN LETTERS AND I DESIDED WHAT TO DO.Hope you can see where I am coming fromThanks for your time.. Sincerely,*** ***

On the day of March 14th we had a customers vehicle towed into our repair facilityThe customer described a situation where the vehicle lost power while driving and would not re-start We informed the customer we would like to perform a LevelDiagnosis to allow my technician to properly
diagnose this issue We informed the customer the cost of the Level Diagnosis costs
$and if any repairs were needed we would provide an estimate before doing any
unauthorized repair work The customer agreed to pay the diagnostic fee of $and we informed him at that time we would have our diagnosis completed the same dayAfter diagnosing the vehicle we found the customer had a faulty alternator which would require replacement We also recommended at that time, a replacement of the drive belt due to cracking and glazing of the belt, which can cause noise as well as a potential breakdown We informed the customer there would be no additional cost of labor, only the cost of the part We also recommended replacing
the vehicle's battery because after charging and load testing we found it to be less than marginal, we informed the customer we would clean battery terminals of corrosion and install an
anti-corrosion protectant to terminals also Customer declined both of these service and stated he
only wanted to replace the alternator We quoted the customer a price of $to replace the alternator, including parts and labor as well as the $to diagnose The customer authorized the repairs totaling $460, and again stated he did not want to replace the battery or belt during this service We informed the customer the vehicle would be ready by the end of the day and that we would call when repairs were finished The vehicle was finished under budget and well before the
5pm deadline, the customer was able to pick up the vehicle without complaint After leaving our
repair facility we received multiple phone calls from the customer regarding the services we performed The customer asked why we had not cleaned the battery terminals when replacing the alternator We informed the customer that we recommended replacing the battery which would include cleaning terminals and installing anti-corrosion protectant on the terminals also but
the the customer declined any additional repairs as to that regardWe informed the customer that cleaning the terminals would not solve the problem of a weak batteryWe also informed we would be happy to clean the battery terminals but it would be at an additional charge, as I do have to pay my technicians for the time they work on vehiclesThe customer also stated ha was unhappy about the cost of the alternator as well as the total cost of the job The customer stated we charged him $for the installation on hour of time is incorrect We tried explaining to the customer that in our breakdown of repairs the total cost to diagnose was $99.95, the cost of the alternator both parts and labor came to about $total The labor to replace the alternator was less than $80, not $as the customer previously statedThe customer went on to say that he had checked the local auto parts store and was able to find an alternator much cheaper than what we had quotedI informed the customer that not only do we only install quality parts, so we can provide our month 24k mile nationwide warranty, but we have also found certain brands of alternator are prone to failing prematurely We informed the customer we quoted a quality alternators so we could stand behind our workCrabtree Automotive prides itself in installing quality parts with quality technicians, as we have been doing for nearly years nowWe understand the customer's concern of pricing and would have been happy to work with him to provide a solution to this before repairs were done Unfortunately after repairs have been
completed we are unable to return installed partsIf the customer had stated the cost of repairs was to high we would have been happy to offer other options for different brand alternators or even financing options as wellAfter the second call from the customer threatening us with litigation as well as demanding a refund of services already provided and authorized by the customer, we informed him we would be unable to help him furtherThe customer then stated he would be reporting us with the Revdex.com for his reported "overcharging" on the price of the alternator While I do apologize for my demeanor on the phone to the customer, I have found that escalating our conversations to yelling matches does not do any good for the customer or our resolution While I tried to keep our conversation focused on the possible resolution of the situation, and in doing so I sincerely apologize if it came off to the customer that we didn't care or had somehow "gotten" the customerOur goal has always been to provide excellent customer service and if we did not live up to the expectations we set for ourselves then we do apologizeWhile we would be happy to work with this customer again in the future to resolve any issues, at this time Crabtree declining the customer request of a $refund as the customer authorized the repairs as well as the pricing before serv\ceAt this time Crabtree Automotive is also declining to pay for the customer's vehicle to be diagnosed elsewhere as the squeaking noise is most likely being caused the faulty belt we had recommended replacing I have also attached a copy of the repair order signed by the customer authorizing the repairs as well as all costs and fees applied

Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because:I feel I was NEVER informed that my car was running. I only knew of that when I read the paper work at home. I would have come to get my car at that point . I would NEVER have had the other repairs done.  Yes my car  was towed there and I did agree to the cost of  the diagnostic test, by the way with your shop is not included included in  the cost of repairs like other shops. Only you know what your employee said but he NEVER once said to me my car was running in our phone. I guess I am still trying to make that clear.  I like to check into things before I have work done felt I had no choice. You had my car and I thought it was not running.It was not several months before I contacted you. My friends husband was a mechanic for several years he said you over charged me. At that point I started to check with other places on cost.  I needed time to check on cost and you did over charge me. I have several estimates from other shops. One is Captiol Chevrolet  where I believe you get your parts. You claim they mark up parts to  you more then a customer when you have a contact with them. I don't believe that can be true. That cost was about $750.00 more. Yes I did agree to the repairs at that point I STILL THOUGHT MY CAR WAS NOT RUNNING. And of course it would make sense to repair both pumps at once it would be cheaper repair cost down the line.    Sincerely,
[redacted]

While some information in this complaint is correct, unfortunately I feel the need to inform anyone reading this as to the actually story behind this repair.  On or about April 21st 2016 we had a vehicle towed to our facility indicating the engine of the vehicle would crank over but the...

vehicle would not start.  Upon our initial conversation with [redacted] we informed the customer we would like to perform what we call a Level 1 Diagnosis.  We informed the customer this will allow my technician enough time to properly diagnose the vehicle and get some answers as to what is causing the problem.  [redacted] and I discussed the cost of the Level 1 Diagnosis to be approximately $104.95, at that point [redacted] did authorize us to diagnose the vehicle.  Upon diagnosis my technician was able to check for spark and fuel injection pulse which were in proper working order as well as check for fuel pressure on the vehicle.  Upon our fuel pressure test we found the vehicle was not building any fuel pressure from the fuel pumps.  We were able to check power and ground signals to the fuel pump and found we weren’t getting power or ground to the fuel pump.  Upon further inspection my technician found we had a fuel pump fuse that was burnt out.  After replacing the burnt fuse the vehicle would start and run, although generally fuses just don’t burn out for no reason as we explained to [redacted].  My call to [redacted] went through our entire diagnosis procedure as well as informing her that the vehicle currently starts and runs but we believe the fuel pump may be drawing to many amps at times causing the fuel pump fuse to blow.  We informed [redacted] that if the vehicle's fuel pump fuse were to go out while driving, it may cause her to become stranded.  [redacted] agreed she did not want any further issues regarding the fuel pump and agreed to replace both fuel pumps inside the fuel tank to prevent any further issues.  Contrary to what [redacted] has previously stated we did inform her the vehicle is drivable in the current condition but that we would have apprehension continuing to drive the vehicle without the fuel pump replacement because of possible further issues.  [redacted] agreed to replace the main and auxiliary fuel pumps on this vehicle because it is considered a “saddle back” type tank that requires two fuel pumps.  The customer agreed to the repairs as well as the total cost for the repairs.  After replacing the fuel pumps we test drove the vehicle several times and had no further issues.  The customer has also stated that after our repairs she has had no further issues regarding the loss of fuel pressure.  When [redacted] picked up the vehicle, not only was the vehicle done on time but also slightly under budget, there were no complaints at pickup of the vehicle and it wasn’t until several months later that [redacted] seemed to have taken issue with our prices.  This customer has threatened us with legal action as well as threatening to use her position with the local newspaper to defame our reputation.  We informed the customer that unfortunately after the repairs are made and completed is not the best time to ask about possible discounts or reimbursement for repairs.  We never informed the customer that the fuel pumps had to be replaced at the same time, only that we would recommend to do so before further issues presented themselves.  It is stated on the work order that the customer clearly signed and dated as [redacted] clearly stated.  Why would you possibly wait until several months after repairs to complain about the price.  We would have been happy to work with the customer to find different options on parts pricing as well as any other options to appease the customer if we were informed of any problems PRIOR to repair.  I can only equate this problem to a patron of a movie theater demanding a refund for their movie and popcorn because they felt the popcorn was overpriced after eating it and watching the full movie.