Complaint Review: Midas - Pikesville Maryland

The above mentioned claim is an obscurity of the truth. It is true we have never delt with this customer before and he came in due to the excellent maintenence package of 19.99 oil change and tire rotation. This particular customer, if it is the same person (since this is a blind sided post which we stubbled upon while doing an internet search), came in with a 2000 GMC Safari for a maintenence package. As the technician drove the van into the shop he was unable to because the brake were soft. He proceeded to exit the car and tell the service writer that there is an issue with the brakes. We charge for our brake inspections. However, if the customer is interested in having us do the work and are authorized to do so, we waive the inspection fee. He refused making it seem as though we sabatoged his car. The customer still wished to have the maintainence service done and so we filled the van with brake fluid to find it leak back out from the bottom (brake line leak) and pulled it into the shop. We performed the services and backed the truck back out onto the lot. We told the customer again that the brakes are bad and it is leaking brake fluid. The customer paid for the services performed and left. As he got in the van to leave he must have noticed what we were talking about came back in and said the brake are soft and that they weren't like that before. We told him that was what we were trying to tell him all along. This was the reason why we needed to do a brake inspection. (which is what he declined) He left the office and was sitting in his car. A car pulled in a Lexus and the GMC owner opened his window to talk to the Lexus owner. After a minute of talking she rolled her window up and drove off. A few minutes later A regular customer of ours pulled up and was struck with a conversation by the owner of the van via rolled down window. The techs in the shop warned the service writer that it seems he is "bad mouthing"us to the customer. The service writer then proceeded to approach the two and asked the regular customer if the other was saying negative things to sway away business and the regular customer said "yes". At that point he was disrupting business and the police were contacted. The regular customer got out of his car and proceeded into the office and requested brake work. When asked why he came in and did not leave he said he had brake work done in the past and was very satisfied and came to have more work done. I hope people can make the right decision when it comes to who was making ove on who. Not all mechanics are crooks!

In response to this complaint, when the customer brought in the vehicle for his initial visit it was for an oil change. Upon performing the service it was noted by the technician that oil had leaked and was all over the engine. Therefore, a power wash was needed to identify the leak. In addition, the customer asked to check all fluids, as we found, the transmission fluid was dirty and recommended a "BG" transmission flush. The power wash was an one hours labor expense. The LF tire also had a nail in it that was repaired. The customer left and returned five days later to have the power cleaning done and find where the oil leaks were coming from. We performed the cleaning and found oil leaking from the valve cover gasket. The customer authorized the power wash, the gasket repair as well as the transmission flush, which brought the price to a combined total of $550.00. The vehicle left with the proper amount of motor oil, with 103,184 mile on the odometer.  Roughly 30 days later Maven motors called saying they had a car at their shop that we last worked on and now had a seized motor. They claimed we did not put oil in the car. Our head tech went to the location and met the manager to look over the car. The vehicle had around 1500 more miles then when we last serviced it. In the presence of the manager we looked at the dip stick to find that oil was registering at the tip of the dipstick (an indication that the oil was slightly less than 3/4's full). The manager also confirmed that there was no existing external oil leaks from the motor. As we walked to the rear of the car the exhaust tailpipe had a build up on the inner walls of the pipe and similar debris on the rear bumper consistent to the by-product of combusted motor oil. The manager signed a document verifying this information. They also acknowledged that this is a common problem saying 'they had a car in the previous week with the exact same issue, and actually had a used motor in stock' to perform the needed repairs. If the motor oil was not filled in the engine it would not have lasted longer than 2 days. The fact that black debris was exiting out of the exhaust and blackened the bumper, as well as, the fact that no external oil leaks could be spotted on the motor. For these factors, we at Midas Pikesville, as well as the insurance company they tried to have pay for the repairs, refuse to be responsible for the claim of faulty work.

its been a year; it was sometime in the fall of 2009, I do not remember the exact dates). After hearing their ad for an oil change on the radio I decided to give it a try. I was in the waiting room when someone behind the counter asked me whether I knew that I had no breaks. I said "no" & was suprised & thought he was being sarcastic, I thought to myself he's just trying to find new probems so as to scare me to fix it so he can benifit his own pocket (as is most common with half if not most meachanics/dealers). After the oil change was finished & I paid, I went back to my car & started driving out of the parking lot. It was when I tried to slow down to make a turn & yeild to the oncoming cars that I realized I HAD NO (BEARLY) BREAKS! I understood what happened & very carefully backed up & re-parked it. When I came back to the store & explained they told me that they had told me I had no breaks. I was infuriated. The car couldn't make it 100 ft without escort, & yet I drove from almost a mile away (greenspring area) to get an oil change & the car was fine. I was planning to go to catonsville a 25 min. drive the very same day. I had drivin it all over with no problems for months including catonsville a couple days before. They offered to inspect my car for a fee to only then diagnose the problem & charge again to fix it; NO THANK YOU. It was when I was in the parking lot waiting for a friend to come & give me a hand that another customer parked right next to me. He rolled down the window & asked if they were open, I replied yes along with what had happened. Expecting me to relate the story to the parked customer, out came the person behind the counter & asked if I told him anything negative about the place, to where he replied yes & the guy went back inside. He called the police. I should be the one to call the police if not for the fact there's not much they can do. It was a big mess, ending in me driving my car with hazards & being escorted to another car service station to get the fixed. I lost time & money for having to get it fixed. Their best claim is that I had this problem all along & drove from a mile away- TO GET AN OIL CHANGE! It's over now, but being my lack of means & experience in the court system; what could I do ?? It's like this in many areas of life; people are ready to sell you as a slave in exchange for shoes. Beware. All will be judged in the end.