ComplaintsforA Plus Repair and Bottle Redemption Center

• Initial Complaint

  08/11/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On the evening of 7/7/22 I dropped my 2005 ** ***** off at A Plus Repair and Bottle Redemption Center because the transmission intermittently wouldn't shift properly, and the check engine light had come on. On the afternoon of 7/8/22 I was called and told my car was ready to be picked up. When I picked up the car, I was told that two sensors were cleaned that correlated with two engine trouble codes and "it might work". After asking for more information I was told the mass airflow sensor and a transmission speed sensor were cleaned, and the engine codes cleared, to see if that would take care of the problem. I was told to call if the problem occurred again. I had not been notified of the findings, nor asked if I would like to proceed with cleaning versus replacing the sensors. I was charged $149.04 for the alleged service. Within a few weeks the transmission shifting issue occurred again and the check engine light came back on (I only commute two days per week or it may have happened sooner). On Monday 8/1/22 I called A Plus Repair to notify them of the problem, and asked for a credit for the labor charged previously to be applied to the forthcoming proper repair, which was denied. I was told that the $149.04 bill "was nothing" and there would be no credit for the labor. I pointed out that I wasn't given an option to choose cleaning over replacement, and the reply was "I was trying to save you money". I then pointed out that I was losing money if I had to pay for labor twice to fix the same problem which was not fixed initially. I again asked for a break on the labor to correctly fix the problem. I was told the proper repair for replacing the two sensors would be estimated, and I would be called with that estimate. I was never called again. Apparently the shop does not stand behind their failed attempts at repairing vehicles. I experienced only monetary loss with no gain, and more time lost while my car is unusable.

  Business response

  09/14/2022

  Let me explain to you exactly what happened on our end.  The vehicle was here when she said it was.  It had a couple of codes (hence the check engine light) so we plugged into our computer and diagnosed the issues.  That charge is one hour, which is $69.  Every other place around is $95 to $150.  The parts that came up as the codes were fairly expensive fixes and would have cost her anywhere from $300-$500 or even more.  She did not answer when I called her the first time so we went ahead with the minimal repair in hopes that it would take care of one or even both of her codes. Not once since we have opened our doors has a customer chosen to go ahead with expensive repairs when there is a chance that cleaning the parts or tightening things up may possibly work, at a minimal charge...one hour in this case. Weeks later she called and said her light came back on and wanted a price to fix and see if we could cut her a break.  I told her we would do what we could, but needed to see the vehicle again to see what code was causing the light.  It could of been one code, both of the previous codes or even a new issue.  Without knowing, I could not quote her until I checked the code, which I would not have charged her for.  However, she never came back.  We are a very small, family owned shop and we have never had an issue like this before.  We bend over backwards for our customers and consider the majority of them like family.  We've been nominated for Best in the FLX and Best in the Region and have a very good reputation.  Our customer base is far beyond Union Springs from word of mouth alone, as we do not advertise.  She is not getting back her one hour diagnostic fee, as you can see she describes the issues we found.  If she wants to be that petty over $69 to a small business that was seriously affected by the pandemic and was very honestly trying to save her money...than so be it.  We do not want any further contact with her.

  Business response

  09/23/2022

  The customer left her vehicle here for us to diagnose...which we did.  She even references the two issues we found in her first email.  A diagnostic charge is $69.00 (1 hour), which is posted in my office and is itemized on her invoice.  When her light came back on weeks later there is no way to tell why without checking it...which I would not have charged her for.  It could have shown we didn't fix either, fixed one and there was one remaining or it could have been a new code altogether in that time frame.  Without knowing this it is impossible to quote.  At this point I strongly feel A Plus Repair did not do anything wrong except get a hold of her so I will give her back that one hour for our attempt to fix and save her a lot of money, but she needs to be honest and tell you I gave her a cash discount, which she has failed to mention yet.  For all we know what we did in that one hour could have fixed all or maybe part of the issue.  Her failure to return is the only issue...not our fault.  At this point I have lost money on this job, which is obviously what she wanted.  

  Customer response

  09/26/2022

  Better Business Bureau: I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below. Yet again, I was charged for two hours, not one.  No mention was made to me of any kind of discount.  As I told the owner when I called after the MIL came back on, I scanned the vehicle and saw two codes pertaining to the same issues the shop reported on my first invoice (however, they did not provide the actual codes at any time). Here is the detail from my scanner:Car Scanner ELM OBD2DTC reportSelected brand: **********VIN: ***************19============1==============P0101Raw code: 0101ECU: OBD-IIStatus: ConfirmedOBDII: Mass air flow (MAF) sensor/volume air flow (VAF) sensor - range/performance problem**********: Mass Air Flow (MAF) Sensor Performance============2==============P0732Raw code: 0732ECU: OBD-IIStatus: ConfirmedOBDII: Gear 2 - incorrect ratio**********: Incorrect 2nd Gear Ratio Please advise how my refund will be processed.** ********

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩