MONRO MUFFLER BRAKE & SERVICE $310 FOR AN ALTERNATOR AND IT WAS DEFECTIVE! WILLIAMSTOWN New Jersey
I was doing work in the area (Glassboro, NJ), 300 miles from my home in Pittsburgh, Pa. I was having issues with my alternator, I took it to Monro, store 345 in Williamstown, NJ as it was the closest service station to my hotel. Having replaced several alternators in the past (the vehicle is 12 years old) I had a pretty good idea of what the cost of an alternator would be, $125-$160.
I dropped the vehicle off and got a ride with a coworker (whom was also from out of town) to our hotel. Not 15 minutes after dropping it off, Chris (manager) called and confirmed that the alternator (I had purchased the year before from Auto Zone) was indeed bad. Chris then proceeded to tell me that it would be $350 + tax to replace it.
I WAS SHOCKED! I questioned him on the price, and let him know that thats not what Auto zone charges for that alternator. He proceeded to tell me that that might be why mine went bad (low price=low quality). He said his alternators were worth the money and come with a 1 year warranty. Being from out of town, my options were limited, so I agreed to have the alternator replaced by Monro. Within a half-hour they called me to pick it up, the work was done.
I drove it 5 miles back to the hotel and noticed that my battery voltage gauge was not going up, or charging. I new I didn't drive enough to charge the battery completely and thought nothing of it. Wednesday I did not drive it at all. Thursday morning, I started the vehicle and the battery gauge was at normal, I was relieved. As I drove,(20-minutes) the voltage gauge got lower and lower. This was stressing me out, as I was planning on driving back home to Pittsburgh that night.
To play it safe and thinking that I may need a battery, I stopped at a local AutoZone to have them check the battery after the alternator was replaced, the battery tested good. Then the clerk asked if I had just had that alternator replaced, I said "yes", I had Monro up the street do it, he said Monro called Tuesday evening asking if we had an alternator for a Ranger (which they didn't). Then I was infuriated! This was the same guy who just the other day, said that I would just be replacing alternator after alternator if I continue to purchase them from AutoZone.
Did I pay $300 for a $125 alternator from Auto Zone? Or did they just not replace the alternator and charge me for a new one? Or did they sell me an alternator without testing it first? Either way, I can't help but feel that I was taken advantage of, especially when they new I was in a helpless situation and 300 miles from home. Now I have to stay and extra day at the hotel ($80 a night) and deal with this problem that has now cost me over $450.
Ihateautorepairshops
MCKEESPORT, Pennsylvania
U.S.A.
3 Updates & Rebuttals
Steve
Bradenton,Florida,
U.S.A.
Suggestion for "Ihateautorepairshops".
#4Consumer Suggestion
Thu, January 10, 2008
"Ihateautorepairshops",
Well, your name says it all, However there is one option here you overlooked.
You could have bought that AutoZone alternater yourself and the few hand tools it takes to change it, and done the job yourself.
You want a shop to do the work, so you don't have to, but you don't want them to get paid? That auto repair shop is not the welfare office. It is a for profit business.
Anonymous
Millville,New Jersey,
U.S.A.
Forgot to mention
#4UPDATE Employee
Thu, January 10, 2008
I work for Monro currently and was a little disturbed to read this story. What was forgotten here was that this person drove to another Monro shop and the alternator was replaced at no cost to the customer. Apologies were made by the management and things were rectified. What most people fail to realize is that there is a lot of pressure on the manager of any auto shop. A business can only stay open if a profit is being made. Its my opinion that $310.00 for an alternator is pretty fair especially when I know first hand that some shops will charge almost twice that and most of the time the customer paying is more than happy to get the work done. Just about anyone knows that there is a markup on parts everywhere you go, and the person behind the desk doesnt make up the prices he just gets to tell them to you.
Dblaze
TONAWANDA,New York,
U.S.A.
EXPENSIVE TO RUN A BUSINESS - PRICE WAS MORE THAN FAIR
#4UPDATE EX-employee responds
Thu, January 03, 2008
i am a former store manager for monro muffler brake and now manage a shop for a competing chain. the price for the alternator was more than fair considering the cost of doing business. it is expensive to run a repair shop - insurance, rent, taxes, payroll, payroll tax, utilities, cost of goods, - a repair shop is not in business to compete price wise with autozone or any other discount auto parts chain.
complaining about the cost of the alternator at monro is like going into bob evans restaurant, eating breakfast and then filing a report because they charge more for one egg than the local super market charges for an entire dozen. i bet that monro was more than happy to replace the alternator for no charge - and as you said before it took them only 1/2 hour to do work which is great service.
no one likes to spend money on auto repairs but it is necessary and without shops like monro your vehicle would be tied up for days for a simple repair. when parts are bought from a local supplier like auto zone the cost is greater than if it is a normal stocking item so it must be marked up. the normal markup is 2 -2.5 times the cost plus labor. at this price companies like monro make just enough money to stay in business. great job guys at monro for great service and quick turnaround on the work.
former monro manager / current service/shop manager in auto field