The Car Doctors

I have reviewed the response offer 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.
I have no desire to go back and forth listening to an unethical car mechanic who comes up with lies and excuses as to why he is not taking responsibility for his actions.  But I will summarize:1. He underestimated the repair work by more than $700 dollars, knowing I was a captive audience - I was stranded driving through Virginia.2. He installed unrelated parts like theromstates and a water pump without my authorization, which added to the bill.3. He lied about me giving him an unlimited budget to repair my 13 year old car.  I would NEVER give anyone free reign to my credit card, much less a mechanic that I stumbled upon while stranded.4. He installed an engine with a visible defect at the top of the motor - which was the reason the car failed a second time.5. He caused more damage to my car by cracking  transmission  bellhousing when installing this "new" engine and tried to conceal it.6. He billed me for seven quarts of oil - when my car only takes six.7. He charged me for 8 brand new spark plugs when two were brand new from the first garage - the day prior.In summary, I never expected the owner of The Car Doctor to do the right thing for the client - because if he did, I wouldn't be wasting my time filing a complaint with the Revdex.com.My only hope is that he is EXPOSED as the unethical, lying mechanic they he is and other stranded or innocent victims are not taken advantage of.  I believe in Karma.  Good luck with that Tobby!
Regards,
[redacted]

Complaint ID[redacted] - Second responseThis customer supplied her own engine and asked us to install it. She was given a Mitchell Labor Guide estimate of 22.9 hours to install this engine. At $70 per hour, that estimate was for $1,603 for the labor only. She was told that this price DID NOT include any other parts needed. She told us to proceed with the work and said “do whatever you need to get me going”.The parts we replaced were removed from her old engine, inspected, and found to be in questionable condition. Because the water pump and thermostat are such critical parts and can potentially damage the new engine, we replaced them. The engine was installed correctly and this customer paid the bill with no questions asked and was extraordinarily happy when she left.Unfortunately the engine she supplied has a defect and requires a warranty repair. She purchased the engine from [redacted] Parts and they have told her that they would take care of the problem by repairing or replacing the engine she purchased INCLUDING parts and labor.Her unwillingness to allow them to honor their warranty on the engine she purchased is the only thing that is causing her to spend any additional money.The Car Doctors

This is in response to the above complaint for The Car Doctors. This customer broke down during her travels on Saturday, 10-31-15 and had her van towed to a nearby garage. An employee at that garage told her she needed an engine which she ordered and paid for herself on Monday, 11-2-15. The...

engine arrived at the other garage on Thursday, 11-5-15 and she was informed that this shop would not be able to begin her engine install until Monday, 11-9-15. On Thursday, 11-5-15 she was referred to my shop and asked me for a second opinion and stated that she really needed to get home as soon as possible. She said that if she DID need the engine replaced that she had already ordered and paid for one from [redacted] Parts and that it had been delivered to the other garage. In the afternoon of Thursday, 11-5-15 after looking at her van, we found that a valve spring had broken allowing one of the valves to drop into the cylinder causing catastrophic damage to the cylinder, piston, and head. We advised her that the fastest way for her to get home would be to use the remanufactured long block engine she had already purchased.We gave her a 22.9 hour estimate on labor based on a Mitchell Labor Guide for long block replacement and told her that this estimate DID NOT include any additional parts that we may need to replace. She approved the work and told us to do what we needed to get her home. I did call [redacted] Parts on her behalf and asked them to pick up the engine that she had purchased and deliver it to me which they did in the morning of Friday, 11-6-15. When it arrived, it had already been opened and removed from its crate. There were no labels to indicate who the manufacturer was. We made her repairs our top priority for the next two days (Friday, 11-6-15 & Monday, 11-9-15) and even dedicated two technicians to getting it ready as soon as possible. There were some parts on her old engine that we felt should not be re-used such as spark plugs, ignition coil boots, thermostat, and water pump; as well as a couple of small parts that broke when trying to remove them from her old engine such as the dipstick tube and a temperature sensor (corrosion and rust have a way of sneaking in after fifteen years). After repairs were made on Monday, 11-9-15 she rode with us on a test drive where the van ran flawlessly and we even stopped to help her hook up her trailer in the rain. She paid her bill and left very happy. The next day on Tuesday, 11-10-15 she called and indicated it was leaking some kind of fluid and running very rough. We advised her to get it looked at and even called a repair shop in her vicinity that could do warranty work. She took it to a Ford dealership that checked it out and told her it was a bad ignition coil and a leaking head gasket (which comes pre-installed on long block engines). [redacted] told her that they would take care of parts and labor to repair or replace a defective engine but rather than let them honor their warranty, she’s demanding a full refund of parts and labor. [redacted] is not blaming us for anything but rather told her that they cannot refund labor and that she would need to take that up with us. We told her we could not refund labor on work we did at her request. Complaints listed on:[redacted] Toby Guynn The Car Doctors [redacted]

Virginia's Lemon Law only applies to a new vehicle that is less than 18 months old and has the same reoccuring problem(s), not for installed after market parts.   The engine has been returned to [redacted] Parts.  We will not be reimbursing her for the labor.    The engine was purchased directly from [redacted] Parts by Ms. [redacted].

Review: Toby Guynn, owner of The Car Doctors in [redacted] installed an engine for me, a woman stranded while traveling through the State of Virginia. The engine was from [redacted] and failed within 24 hours. He lied to me about the cost of installation and the time it would take to put it in. He also installed numerous parts that I did not authorized like a water pump and other items.His bill came to $2135.21 for labor and is not warranting ANY of his work. He just continues to point the finger at [redacted] My only choice is to continue with an inferior product from [redacted] or to take the losses for what appears to be FRAUD. I have asked several times to be credited for this installation of a bad engine and the unauthorized parts to no avail. He has lied over the phone stating he didn't know what type of engine he was installing or who it was from, yet he coordinated the movement of this engine to his garage. Toby Guynn, in my opinion is an unethical person and a person that seeks to exploit women that are stranded from out of town with no options. PLEASE EXPOSE HIM.Desired Settlement: Please assist with a billing adjustment on my credit card. If he continues to lie to you and those at Revdex.com, simply expose him and his garage. He is money hungry and a liar.Women and innocent victims need to be aware!

Business

Response:

This is in response to the above complaint for The Car Doctors. This customer broke down during her travels on Saturday, 10-31-15 and had her van towed to a nearby garage. An employee at that garage told her she needed an engine which she ordered and paid for herself on Monday, 11-2-15. The engine arrived at the other garage on Thursday, 11-5-15 and she was informed that this shop would not be able to begin her engine install until Monday, 11-9-15. On Thursday, 11-5-15 she was referred to my shop and asked me for a second opinion and stated that she really needed to get home as soon as possible. She said that if she DID need the engine replaced that she had already ordered and paid for one from [redacted] Parts and that it had been delivered to the other garage. In the afternoon of Thursday, 11-5-15 after looking at her van, we found that a valve spring had broken allowing one of the valves to drop into the cylinder causing catastrophic damage to the cylinder, piston, and head. We advised her that the fastest way for her to get home would be to use the remanufactured long block engine she had already purchased.We gave her a 22.9 hour estimate on labor based on a Mitchell Labor Guide for long block replacement and told her that this estimate DID NOT include any additional parts that we may need to replace. She approved the work and told us to do what we needed to get her home. I did call [redacted] Parts on her behalf and asked them to pick up the engine that she had purchased and deliver it to me which they did in the morning of Friday, 11-6-15. When it arrived, it had already been opened and removed from its crate. There were no labels to indicate who the manufacturer was. We made her repairs our top priority for the next two days (Friday, 11-6-15 & Monday, 11-9-15) and even dedicated two technicians to getting it ready as soon as possible. There were some parts on her old engine that we felt should not be re-used such as spark plugs, ignition coil boots, thermostat, and water pump; as well as a couple of small parts that broke when trying to remove them from her old engine such as the dipstick tube and a temperature sensor (corrosion and rust have a way of sneaking in after fifteen years). After repairs were made on Monday, 11-9-15 she rode with us on a test drive where the van ran flawlessly and we even stopped to help her hook up her trailer in the rain. She paid her bill and left very happy. The next day on Tuesday, 11-10-15 she called and indicated it was leaking some kind of fluid and running very rough. We advised her to get it looked at and even called a repair shop in her vicinity that could do warranty work. She took it to a Ford dealership that checked it out and told her it was a bad ignition coil and a leaking head gasket (which comes pre-installed on long block engines). [redacted] told her that they would take care of parts and labor to repair or replace a defective engine but rather than let them honor their warranty, she’s demanding a full refund of parts and labor. [redacted] is not blaming us for anything but rather told her that they cannot refund labor and that she would need to take that up with us. We told her we could not refund labor on work we did at her request. Complaints listed on:[redacted] Toby Guynn The Car Doctors [redacted]

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response offer 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.

While the basics of the chronological events are correct, I disagree with the The Car Doctor's response to this issue. They are not taking any responsibility for installing this faulty engine and for the DAMAGE they did to my car while installing this engine. In addition, them adding new parts and labor without consulting the client is deceitful. Part of my decision to have this used car fixed versus finding another way home was the PRICE I was quoted to fix this problem. At some point the thousands and thousands of dollars you put into a used car only becomes an exercise in paying mechanics and hotel fees while stranded for nine nights. In my opinion, I was an open wallet to these folks as they knew I was stranded.Within 24 hours this "new" engine from [redacted] failed. There was a visible defect in the engine near the head that was leaking. This was found later by the Ford mechanics.I called the owner of Car Doctor several times to assist with this leaking engine and check engine light and could not get ANY local mechanic to look at this vehicle - including the local person that Toby suggested. I finally went to the Ford dealership in [redacted] for assistance.It became evident very early on that the warranty department and the [redacted] engines that [redacted] sells is known to be riddled with issues and I decided to have this "problem" engine removed and returned - at my expense. It cost me another $1100 to remove this lemon engine.While removing the engine, the Ford dealership noted that The Car Doctor cracked the transmission bell housing on the upper left side at the engine mounting bolt. The Car Doctor attempted to cover this problem with a "repair." The cost to fix the damage that the Car Doctor did is an additional $700 in labor and $3000 in parts. I find it highly deceitful to cause damage to someone's car and to NOT disclose it. I would have NEVER found out that Toby of the Car Doctors cracked my bell housing if I did not have this lemon engine removed.In summary, the Car Doctor installed a lemon engine with a VISIBLE manufacturer defect near the head that was leaking, installed unrelated parts like a new water pump and thermostats without my approval, over charged from what was estimated, and most importantly caused more damage to my car while attempting to install this lemon engine from [redacted].I have included pictures of the damage to my transmission housing and the engine leak.It is clear to me - both in my conversations with Toby and the physical inspection of my vehicle by the Ford mechanics, that the The Car Doctor is a dishonest business, owned by a dishonest individual. Them accepting no responsibility for the part in the disaster is evident of their unethical business practices.Regards,

Business

Response:

Complaint ID[redacted] - Second responseThis customer supplied her own engine and asked us to install it. She was given a Mitchell Labor Guide estimate of 22.9 hours to install this engine. At $70 per hour, that estimate was for $1,603 for the labor only. She was told that this price DID NOT include any other parts needed. She told us to proceed with the work and said “do whatever you need to get me going”.The parts we replaced were removed from her old engine, inspected, and found to be in questionable condition. Because the water pump and thermostat are such critical parts and can potentially damage the new engine, we replaced them. The engine was installed correctly and this customer paid the bill with no questions asked and was extraordinarily happy when she left.Unfortunately the engine she supplied has a defect and requires a warranty repair. She purchased the engine from [redacted] Parts and they have told her that they would take care of the problem by repairing or replacing the engine she purchased INCLUDING parts and labor.Her unwillingness to allow them to honor their warranty on the engine she purchased is the only thing that is causing her to spend any additional money.The Car Doctors

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response offer 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.

Dear Reader:Please find attached a third party's diagnosis of the Ford Econoline E250 (2 pages) and its LEMON engine installation by The Car Doctor. With this diagnosis and additional mechanic monies spent, it was uncovered that their was DAMAGE TO MY TRANSMISSION BELL HOUSING BY THE CAR DOCTOR and attempted to repair it with silicon - this was never revealed to me. He broke the bell housing on the engine mount (exhibits attached). In addition, [redacted] Parts has returned my original engine and has accepted the LEMON engine back. I have a check to pick up at the [redacted] Store. In addition their legal department is currently researching the Lemon Laws for Virginia in regard to this manufactured defected engine and the reimbursement of all labor related to removing this engine and the cost of putting a new, NON-LEMON engine in - by a company that DOES NOT SELL NOR INSTALL LEMON ENGINES.The defect was visible by the naked eye and obviously ignored by The Car Doctor.The Lemon law states that the customer has the right to $50 per hour labor reimbursement costs.Please also note that Toby's response that I gave him FREE rein to SPEND whatever he likes on this used car repair is an OUTRIGHT Lie. Actually I asked for HIS second opinion because I thought the need for an engine was FRAUDULENT and excessive. I told him I just wanted to get home and joked " I would love to have a whole new face but I have to be realistic - this is a USED car with 167,000 miles on it. I just want to get home."

Regards,

Business

Response:

Virginia's Lemon Law only applies to a new vehicle that is less than 18 months old and has the same reoccuring problem(s), not for installed after market parts. The engine has been returned to [redacted] Parts. We will not be reimbursing her for the labor. The engine was purchased directly from [redacted] Parts by Ms. [redacted].

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response offer 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.

I have no desire to go back and forth listening to an unethical car mechanic who comes up with lies and excuses as to why he is not taking responsibility for his actions. But I will summarize:1. He underestimated the repair work by more than $700 dollars, knowing I was a captive audience - I was stranded driving through Virginia.2. He installed unrelated parts like theromstates and a water pump without my authorization, which added to the bill.3. He lied about me giving him an unlimited budget to repair my 13 year old car. I would NEVER give anyone free reign to my credit card, much less a mechanic that I stumbled upon while stranded.4. He installed an engine with a visible defect at the top of the motor - which was the reason the car failed a second time.5. He caused more damage to my car by cracking transmission bellhousing when installing this "new" engine and tried to conceal it.6. He billed me for seven quarts of oil - when my car only takes six.7. He charged me for 8 brand new spark plugs when two were brand new from the first garage - the day prior.In summary, I never expected the owner of The Car Doctor to do the right thing for the client - because if he did, I wouldn't be wasting my time filing a complaint with the Revdex.com.My only hope is that he is EXPOSED as the unethical, lying mechanic they he is and other stranded or innocent victims are not taken advantage of. I believe in Karma. Good luck with that Tobby!

Regards,