Complaint Review: Meineke Car Care - Antioch California

Please read it all as its relevant, and I have been through a lot of grief.

On 04-25-12, I took my car into Meineke to have the Differential Pinion Seal replaced and gear oil flushed and refilled. I was informed the old gear oil was flushed out and new oil was replaced. Upon completion I noticed on my receipt it stated that my rear differential required inspection of gears, whining, possible worn bearings, chipped gears, etc
(A catch all). I wanted to speak to the mechanic who worked on my car but was advised he was not available due to it being near the store closing time.

I drove the car home and heard a whining noise from the rear end of the vehicle. My car Never had this noise. I brought my vehicle to the shop the next day only to be told by the Master technician and Manager Mark to reschedule another day for a free complete inspection of the differential to pinpoint the issue. I advised I was going on vacation but they were unable to accommodate me. A few weeks later upon my return mid MAY I called and set up and appointment.
The appointment was pushed a week further due the shop being "Busy". I set multiple appointments over the phone within the next few weeks and continued to get pushed further weeks away as the shops Manager Mark
stated he only wanted their Master Technician to look at the vehicle.

Finally approximately July 5th I decided to bring my vehicle to the shop as calling seemed pointless. I complained to the Traveling Manager Anthony Zimmermann. I was again delayed because Zimmermann told me they were busy and did not want to lose business by tying up their one and only Master Technician with my car. A few days later Zimmermann finally had a technician drive the car around the "Block" and heard the whining noise, (they were suppose to open the
differential and thoroughly inspect it). When I asked Zimmermann what the results of the tear down was he stated the gears were possibly grinded or damaged. After further questioning he admitted the tear down did not occur they only drove the car around the neighborhood and listened to its noise. I further complained because I felt like I was
provided a mere guess of the issue and was promised a thorough inspection.

Zimmermann then had the vehicle inspected approximately two days later, and advised me the car was most likely damaged because it ran low on oil before I had initially brought it intothe shop for repair. I found this strange as when I initially looked under my vehicle before any repair was done the leak appeared minor and my car is always garaged with no oil leaks on my garage floor.

Zimmermann still did not appear sure when I asked him exactly what had to be changed. Zimmermann added that the pinion bearing was also Re torqued and that they had called FORD to get the exact torquing specifications.

I requested a written estimate of what exactly needed to be fixed to clarify the situation. I asked for it that day which was approximately 230PM and he stated that the FORD Parts department may be closed. He told me to come back the next day to pick up the estimate because it would take him some time. I got suspicious and decided to further
question him. I asked who had initially worked on my vehicle back on 04-25-12 and was advised that the employee was no longer with the company because he was terminated. That seemed very odd to me. I asked what kind of gear oil was put in the car since my initial invoice did not state it. I was advised it was Mobil One Synthetic and nothing additional.

Zimmermann provided me a written estimate the next day stating all my bearings had to be replaced costing approximately $300 in parts and $800 in labor. So on 07-09-12 I took my car to La Morinda Auto Service Repair in Moraga CA for a second opinion. Without opening the differential (to not void any warranties) the owner of the shop advised me the Pinion Bearing was possibly Over Torqued and the Pinion Seal Was clearly leaking Again. He concluded this by lifting my vehicle on a lift and listening to each bearing with a stethoscope. The owner provided an estimate and recommended that I take the car to FORD. I provided the La Morinda Estimate to Meineke Corporate Manager Bruce Clarke. Clarke was VERY rude and initially agreed they possibly damaged my car and since it was a cheap repair the General Manager approved of it. Bruce told me to take it into the Antioch Meineke for repair. I pleaded him to allow me to take it to any Other Meineke location due to the constant setbacks and bad experience. Bruce asked me, "Are you kidding me? You are going to argue with me after I told you we will fix your car? Take it to Antioch Meineke"

On approximately 07-10-12 Manager Mark at the Antioch location told me to bring the vehicle in on 07-11-12. I brought my vehicle to the location on 07-11-12 to be told by the Manager Mark that a Dodge Charger that was in the shop was more important and to reschedule the appointment. Mark stated the Master Technician was going to be tied
up with the Charger and it was priority since it has been in the shop for over two months. I was very upset and called Bruce to complain only to be notified that they changed their minds about repairing the car because the initial repair bill stated that the differential should be inspected for possible damaged gears. I tried to explain the situation
to Bruce only to realize he did not care and stated he was hanging the phone up on me.

I then took my car to Walnut Creek FORD on 07-16-12 for a Diagnosis. I spoke to a gentleman named Robert in the Service Department. Robert was informed of the situation and added that for my vehicle required a Limited Slip Additive
to be mixed with the gear oil, this was not done at Meineke. I called Meineke a second time and spoke to a Mechanic named Bruce. He again like Zimmermann confirmed they only put Gear Oil in the car. Robert advised that not adding the additive could be the or partially the issue in itself. Robert kept the car overnight and on 07-17-12 advised me they
opened the differential and that the pinion bearing was Over torqued and damaged possibly by an inexperienced mechanic. They advised me this could have caused further damage to the other five bearings and I might require a rebuild of the differential costing up to $3,000. My car currently sits at Ford as they want an additional $400 to inspect
further. Robert was confident that the vehicle was damaged by a mechanic and referred me to BAR and said he would gladly talk to anyone who called him regarding my vehicle.

As of July 20th 2012 I have called Bruce Clarke over 20 times to get some type of answer. I have no answer as of yet and am told he is either on the other line or too busy to speak to me. I have faxed my estimate from FORD to Clarke and the one time I talked to him he stated he never received it. I had Ford fax it to him over 5 times and he continued to say he does not have it. I then scanned the estimate and emailed it to him.

As of July 24th 2012 I have been told Clarke is in office but "Busy" and he will call me at "His convenience". No answer as of yet and no returned calls. What a joke of a company!

I would also like to note my car only has 43k miles and both LA Morinda Auto and Ford advised me it is very unusual for a car with low miles to have bearing issues.