Effingham Tire & Auto Center Inc

Complaint: *** Effingham Tire and Auto Center has been in business since 1974, we have ASE certified technicians who are very experienced. We have technicians with each over years of experience. Customer service is very important to us. Our satisfaction rating is very high. Anytime there is an issue with a vehicle that we have worked on and the vehicle is not in the area we ask the customer to bring it to a reputable shop and have them call us so that we can determine what is going on with the vehicleThis is necessary in order to resolve any issuesWe have asked this customer to do this but at this point we have not heard back from the customer or another shopThe customer said that when he called back and our manager *** “supposedly wasn’t there”. The evening that the customer called back, the time was around 7pm. It is important to note that most shops are not open at 7pm, however we stay open until 11pm days per week because we are located on the interstate and we run a 2nd shift for traveling emergencies. While we always have a manager on duty every day from 7am to 5pm, a manager is not always here after 5pm, but there is always a manager available for any of the 2nd shift technicians to call when any questions or issues arise. When the customer called that evening, the technician on duty did talk to Steve. *** instructed our technician to let the customer know not to overheat the vehicle and to take it to another shop so that we could find out why it is overheating. The customer also stated that he has called for *** twice and *** was not there. *** is always available during the day. If he is busy or on the other line he will promptly return the call. *** is very professional, he has been a service writer for over years He did talk to *** the next morning, *** asked him to bring it to another shop so that we could determine why the vehicle was overheating. The customer has stated that there was not enough coolant in the system. The coolant was full when the vehicle left our shop. If it was not full it would have gotten hot while we let it idle in the shop for minutes, or during the mile test drive, or before it had been driven the miles to StLouisWe are not aware of any head gasket additive that guarantees to fix blown head gaskets or cracked cylinder heads, however if this fixed the customer’s vehicle that is good. So at this point, in order to try to resolve this matter, we would like to hear from the customer or a shop that the customer knows and trusts so that we can find out why the vehicle was overheating and what damages may have been done. If a manager is not available when the customer calls he can leave a message and we promise that his call will be promptly returnedNOTE: The transmission fluid was full when the vehicle left our shop. We checked the fluid and noted it on the invoiceAlso, we replaced the idler pulley because we found that it was leaning and the bearings were going out. The serpentine belt runs on this pulley, if this pulley fails the water pump will not work; which will cause a vehicle to overheat, also the alternator will not charge, which will cause the vehicle to quit running. We talked to the customer about this before we replaced the pulley and we noted it on the invoice. The cost of this pulley was $and there was no additional labor charge for replacing this part. This pulley could have been the cause of the original overheating problem and definitely would have caused problems soon if it was not replacedBest Regards, *** ***

When this vehicle came into the shop Mr*** explained that the belt had broken and his vehicle overheated while he was driving it. We explained to Mr***, as we do anytime a vehicle comes into the shop that has overheated, that when a vehicle overheats there is the
possibility of head gasket damage. We inspected his vehicle we found the belt was shredded and the belt tensioner was broken in piecesWe then explained to Mr*** (and he said he understood) that in order for us to do an accurate head gasket test we needed to replace the serpentine belt and the belt tensioner assembly. The reason for this is that the coolant has to be flowing through the system for the test result to be accurate and the coolant can not flow through the system with a bad belt and belt tensioner. We called the parts stores that were open on Sunday, the belt and belt tensioner were not availableOn Monday we called other parts stores that were not open the previous dayWe did call *** *** Chevrolet, we were told by *** at *** *** Chevrolet that they had the parts on hand but they were special ordered for another customerWe gave Mr*** an estimate of $before we did the work. He approved the charges. We replaced the belt and belt tensioner assembly and we did a head gasket test; it failed the testThis indicates that the vehicle had a blown head gasket and/or cracked cylinder headWe explained this to Mr*** and we let him know that his vehicle would not be able to be driven very far in this condition. We did let him know that we could do the head gasket work however he said he would prefer to have it towed home. He explained to us that he was just going to drive it across the street to the hotel and wait for his father to come there and tow it homeWe did not overcharge him for the service he receivedAfter we received his complaint we asked the service department at *** *** Chevrolet to give us an estimate for doing this same job at their dealership; the price was almost the sameWe did not mark the parts up times, we always mark up parts by the standard markup rate in the industry. (Attached is a copy of our invoice to Mr*** as well as an invoice for the belt from *** Auto Parts and an invoice from *** for the belt tensioner each showing the vendor's suggested retail price). Mr*** did have to wait a few hours on Sunday because we are the only shop in the area that is open on Sunday and we are often busy. In summary, *** explained to Mr*** the situation with getting the parts from *** *** Chevrolet, Mr*** approved the charges before we did the work and Mr*** was fully aware of the fact that his car had a blow head gasket and/or cracked head and was not able to be driven. Finally, when Mr*** posted a complaint on Google we reached out to him or times to discuss this matter, we left phone messages and text messages; he did not respond. Please call if you have any questions. ***

Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because:
We spent dollars on head gasket repair additive that is GUARANTEED to fix head gaskets or cracked blocks the car worked just fine after adding it so yes we did indeed drive from st Louis to *** and again the vehicle cooling system was air locked when I opened the radiator I got bubbles and it needed coolant ...and fyi the vehicle did overheat on the st Louis bridge k told someone that because *** supposedly wasn't there and he couldn't answer any of my questions because *** had to answer them he stated it was impossible not to over heat the vehicle since it was in the middle of the st Louis bridge with no pull offs and there is no possible way the transmission was full because we have added quarts of fluid and it is fine now does not slip at all and it hasn't went down at all since adding the transmission fluid and I have tried to call *** twice both times I called I was told he was not there so I figured I was being avoided and I also forgot to mention your garage replaced a pulley that I most certainly was not contacted about this problem and never gave the ok to do this as it was not a major problem and as I previously stated my father,brothers,and I are all mechanics I could have had this changed without the extra money on the already outrageous bill
Sincerely,
*** ***

Dispute Resolution Department: This is in response to ID ***. This vehicle came into the shop on April 7, It was a Chevrolet *** with 112,miles on itThe customer stated that it had overheated. We checked the vehicle and found that there was
transmission fluid in the cooling system. Further investigation found that the transmission cooler in the radiator had cracked and was leaking into the radiatorThe radiator needed to be replaced and the cooling system flushed in order to determine if there was damage to the engine and/or transmission. We replaced the radiator and flushed the cooling system. We filled the radiator with the manufacturer’s recommended mixture of 50/coolant and clean water. We evacuated and recharged the A/C system because the A/C condensor was unhooked when the radiator was replaced(There was no charge for evacuating and recharging the A/C system)We then did a block test to rule out a blown head gasket. The block test came back negative. We let the vehicle idle in the shop for minutes in order to make sure there were no air pockets in the cooling systemWe then test drove it for over miles. The vehicle ran good and did not overheat, however the transmission was slipping occasionally during the test drive. We checked the transmission fluid; it was full. We noted on the invoice and explained to the customer that there was possible internal problems with the transmission. The customer picked up the vehicle in the afternoon of April 13th. Later that evening he called to say he was in StLouis and it was getting hot. He stated that it did not overheat but that the temperature was going up. We cautioned him to not let it overheat as overheating could cause damage to the engine. We explained to pull the vehicle over and let it cool off for a few minutes if the temperature begins to get towards the red zone. We asked him to bring it to a shop and have a technician at the shop call us so that we could understand why it was getting hot and try to come up with a possible resolution. The next morning, Saturday, April 14th the customer called again and spoke with our manager Steve. Steve again asked him to bring it to a shop and have them call us. We have not heard from the shop that looked at this vehicle, nor have we heard back from the customer since he brought it to the other shop. (Note: the vehicle was driven over miles after it was repaired here; it is unlikely that it had a blown head gasket when it left our shop. Also, the customer stated that the vehicle was driven from StLouis to Pennsylvania. It would be unlikely that a vehicle could be driven this distance with a blown head gasket even with head gasket additive in the cooling system). We are still waiting to hear from another shop and/or the customerThank you, please call if you have any question. *** Best Regards, *** *** Tell us why here