ComplaintsforA+ Auto Service, LLC

• Initial Complaint

  03/21/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Our son got into an accident back in October, 2023, and we had the Tahoe towed to their shop for them to repair the damages. They were awful to deal with. Their customer service and communication were non-existent. After 2 months, still nothing had been done. I had to call every other day to get information, even though they continually said they would call us back. When we called, they gave us the same excuses day after day. They had to replace the fuel pump at our expense, an issue created by them not working on it for those two months. When we got the vehicle back the floors and leather seats were covered with mold and mildew. They removed our aftermarket cold air intake that was not damaged and replaced it with a stock part. The floorboards were still soaking wet and there was rust over all of the metal, inside and out, from where they had left the windows down during rain. The person working the counter showed no care, offered no assistance, and kept saying I would have to call the manager on the following Monday. Less than a week after we got it back the transmission failed. We found that they had not put transmission fluid back in after draining the lines. Called the manager in hopes he would fix the problems, but they denied all responsibility on all issues. Instead, the manager threw all blame on us. I'm not sure how their employee's negligence is our fault. The manager was impossible to work with for resolution. This was the absolute worst customer service that I've ever dealt with.

  Business response

  05/01/2024

  Regina

  I'm sorry for the delay in my reply. This matter was just brought to my attention. My name is Jaime and I'm the GM at A + Auto Service in N. Charleston SC. The vehicle in question was indeed brought here after being in an accident. It suffered heavy front-end damage. At the outset we informed them that due to the amount of damage and the car's age the vehicle was considered a total loss. If they were to pursue fixing the vehicle it would be very costly from both a financial and long completion time standpoint. We told them finding suitable replacement parts for a 210k mile, 20 + year old car is very time-consuming and to expect several months before it could be repaired. This does not take into account diagnosing and repairing any issues found along the way. The customer, after being told all of this, decided to go forward with the work. From the outset, after being told this, they called weekly expecting the vehicle to be finished. 

  The car sat for a considerable amount of time after its initial assessment until we were able to find the necessary parts to begin repairs. During repairs we discovered the frame was also damaged and this would take more time to correct. Again, they were informed of this. 

  I'm not sure how to respond to the accusation of their fuel pump going bad from sitting a long time. There is no fault here. We did not discover this until midway through repairs. As the vehicle came in not running, nor did we attempt to start it due to the large amount of damage to the engine cooling system on arrival. Once we attempted starting is when we discovered the fuel pump being failed. Also, the vehicle did not come in with a clean interior. There was evidence of something being spilled about the interior. This is pretty common when cars are involved in accidents. This is likely the source of the mold. We did not charge for or have the interior of the car detailed.

                 The vehicle was filled with essential fluids once completion came close to happening. After the vehicle was aligned, about 5 days prior to the customer picking up the vehicle, the technician test drove the vehicle to check the alignment. He traveled about a mile in the vehicle and returned to say the transmission was not shifting properly. I called the customer to inform him and asked if he would like us to diagnose the issue. His exact words were " no, don't worry about that ". This is documented on the invoice that he signed at pick up. He then drove the vehicle out knowing it had a problem with the transmission. Approximately 2 weeks later he called back accusing us of causing damage to his transmission. I reminded him that he declined diagnostics and drove it away knowing it had an issue. He did not dispute the conversation but still expected us to take responsibility for him driving the vehicle away and probably causing more damage to it. 

                  I understand the frustration of a large repair bill and being without your car for a long time. This is precisely why we forewarned them about all of this prior to going forward with repairs. This is the nature of repairing very old cars that have been in accidents. 

  
  

  Respectfully,

  Jaime

• Initial Complaint

  06/14/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I ****** *****, decided to drive my vehicle to A+Auto Service located at 3824 w Montague Ave north charleston sc, to have this business do an alternator change on my vehicle, same as they had done the previous year before now. After dropping my vehicle off to A+, I received a call from a gentleman by the name of Lawrence, stating, that the technician, in an attempt to replace my alternator, had broken the belt tensioner that holds the belt in place to operate the alternator. I was then told that, this was going to cost $3000 for the business to repair, outside of the $800 they were charging me to replace the old alternator with a new one. Mind you, this same repair had been done by the company the previous year along with an oil change and the price for it was around $550, around that margin, but this year for some miraculous reason the price has been altered to $804, just for the alternator replacement minus the oil change. I am being told that my vehicle is not operational until this company can make the repair on what they have broken. I've been going thru the reviews posted on Google for this company and it seems as if $3000 is their go to number when it comes to their seemingly shady business practice. I would like for this business to repair what they have damaged and fix any overall issue that they may have created in the past or present to my vehicle, because after leaving this business the previous year, I noticed a few screws missing off of my engine block, which caused the oil to leak from my engine onto the alternator which possibly, slowly created this overall issue with my vehicle.

  Business response

  06/15/2023

  Mr. ******s car had the alternator on his car replaced last year at his request and declined diagnostics. This is clearly stated on the document he provided from last year. He brought the car back due the alternator failing from oil leaking directly above and onto the alternator. Had he not declined diagnostics previously we could have made him aware of this. The oil leak was from a failed gasket and not any missing bolts, as we had no need to remove any bolts not related to replacing the alternator. He did not provide the document from his recent visit ( the one he is now complaining about ) which clearly states we found a failed repair ( not done at this shop ) to a pulley. The found failure would prevent completion of the alternator replacement. The proper repair for this failure is to replace the component where the failed heli coil is located. He was made aware of this. He asked what his charges were for the labor he already approved to stop where we were at and declined repairs. The heli coil that failed was not installed here and therefore no warranty is provided. He would have to take it back to the shop that installed it for any warranty on that repair.  

• Initial Complaint

  02/02/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I took my card to a + auto service I told them that my alternator was bad when I took it yo auto service the battery was charged and it was running I went to pick it up they charge me $250 dollars for a diagnostic that i was told would only costs $125 then they told me it would cost me a $1000 for a alternator and I said I'll just come and pick up my car and then I came to my car they had left my key in the on position and then they turn sll my lights on to purposely kill my battery because when I took my car to auto service I had a tow truck drop it off and I never turn my dome lights on and they was on also and I told them I have the battery disconnected because the alternator was bad so when I asked them why did yall do two diagnostic when one test would tell everything that's wrong with my car ones you put in on the computer and they couldn't give me a answer and I was not gonna fight with them at all

  Business response

  02/07/2023

  Dear Sir / Ma'am,
  On 1-10-23 Mr. White brought his 2005 BMW with 290077 miles on it to our shop asking us to look at it for two issues. 
  1; The car has very poor throttle response and lack of acceleration.
  2; The battery has a draw. ( meaning it goes dead after sitting )
  Each of these diagnostics he asked for carries a $125 charge that he was made aware of and approved. I even called him to explain we would have to charge for both, because they are two different issues. We first investigated the acceleration issue and after extensive time then testing could not reproduce the problem he described. We then did electrical diagnostics to his car to try to find the source of the battery draw. His battery had to be on a charger while doing this due it being dead on arrival. The technician determined the first failure we would have to repair was his faulty alternator. Upon relaying this to Mr. White he then said he didn't want two diagnostics and he decline replacing the alternator. I explained we had already done what he asked and the total is what he agreed to. He asked why we did two diagnostics and I re-explained that he asked us to look into 2 different issues and he agreed to that. So that is what we did. We cannot give refunds for services that people ask for. 
  We did not, and never, leave electronics on in cars. His battery was dead on pick up just as it was dead when the car was towed in due to the electrical draw he said the car had. Which was one of the reasons he brought it to us.
  VR
  Jaime

• Initial Complaint

  07/06/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I was stalled on the highway in North Charleston and I had my car towed to at auto repair service because it would run then stop when I put my foot on the gas. They said they would fix it. The radio was torn out of my car even though the doors where locked no signs of breakin visible. I had gone back two weeks later to get my car when they said it was fixed and it was still doing the same thing. They charged me 805.00 to pick up a car that I had to junk the very same day.

  Business response

  07/13/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2022/07/11) */ Hello, Here are the customer concern notes from her call prior to the car being towed in. " Customer states the CEL came on and they took it to AutoZone for a code scan. Code came back for a knock sensor. Customer did not replace sensor. Vehicle stalled out on the highway and would not start again. Being towed in." The owner advised the car had been sitting roadside for a few days prior to calling. Upon arrival found signs of vandalism. The center console with the radio had been torn out. We told the owner we would have to go through the wiring to be sure the car was not in an anti theft mode. Once this was corrected, found the car needed a battery. With new battery in code P0335 was present, also found wires to the crank sensor chaffed. Advised the owner we have to start with these repairs and retest. The owner approved. With the repairs complete the car started fine everytime. Code P0335 was no longer present and the car drove fine on 2 test drives of aprox. 5 miles. The owner left the car approx 10 days past completion. Once picked up, they drove approx 90 miles and called to say the car now will not move. I explained we need to see the car back or it needs to go to the nearest affiliated service center. I explained how to find one. They began being abusive, using vulgar language, and I ended the call. They never brought the car back for further diagnostics. Consumer Response /* (3000, 7, 2022/07/12) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) My name is ****** I was the owner of the vehicle. The reason that my car was being taken to the shop was because it was stalling it would still turn on but it was stalling. In the process of me calling to get my car towed and it arriving at the shop the radio was taken out and I was unaware of that until I received a call from MY FATHER putting me on a three way call with the shop did I learn that my car radio was taken out. The doors were locked and I made sure of it. So there was no way of someone just opening it and getting in. They informed me of doing repairs to the car, however they did not inform me about replacing my car battery because it was brand new. They also did not inform me of retesting the car for the anti theft alarm. The reason I took my car to the shop was the same reason I called an complained the same day I took my car out of the shop because a couple of hours after just getting my car back it starts stalling all over again therefore it was never fixed to begin with. There was no visible signs of vandalism. Business Response /* (4000, 9, 2022/07/12) */ the missing radio and center console pieces, are a sign of vandalism. This was all explained on the phone to the owner. The owner is now saying it is stalling. On the phone, she and another person said it was running but wouldn't move. This is not a stall. See her first complaint "it would run then stop when I put my foot on the gas" Again, the car got to us not starting or running at all. The car started and drove out of our parking lot to Columbia SC. Approx. 90 miles away. My initial response is accurate and still stands.

• Initial Complaint

  01/10/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Unanswered

  More info

  I took my truck in for repairs in August 2021. I paid $2,769.44 for the repairs. The company guarantees all of their work for 4 years or 48,000 miles. Within a few days I had problems with the repairs. The parts fell off and caused my tire and tie rod to buckle and my truck hit the ground also damaging the fender, ball joint and bearings on the left side. Had vehicle towed back to A+ and they said they would fix everything, including the new damage caused by faulty work the first time. They had my truck for an entire month and when I got it back it wasnt fixed properly AGAIN. Now they don't want to honor their warranty and are giving me a hard time. They also refused to give me my invoice for the warranty work they did. They said it's private information and refuse to let me see what they did on my truck under the warranty. Not true, it's my truck and I have the right to see what work was done. They are trying to cover up something in my opinion. I need to see what work was performed and they need to honor their warranty. I have tried reaching out to the owner but he won't return calls or emails. I have done everything in my power to resolve this but I'm at a dead end now.

*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. ↩