I want to preface this by stating that I drive a high-mileage car that sees heavy use. While this…read morestory is somewhat circumstantial, I believe my conclusions are reasonable, and I hope readers will consider them when deciding whether to use Vail Auto's services.
Unfortunately, I have had several concerning experiences with Vail Auto. Over the past two years, they have been my primary shop for general maintenance and repairs. However, in late October or early November, I took my car in for a routine oil change and tire rotation. A couple of weeks later, while driving to work, I suddenly heard a loud banging noise, and my car began to shake violently. I immediately pulled off the highway and stopped at a nearby shop, where I was told that my wheel had nearly fallen off. Three lug nuts were missing, and of the two remaining, one was cross-threaded. The mechanic informed me that I was extremely lucky my wheel hadn't detached entirely. After $250 in repairs to replace the studs and missing lug nuts, they reattached my wheel, and I was back on the road.
In early January, I returned to Vail Auto for another oil change and tire rotation, mentioning the previous incident. They performed the work and noted that one of my studs was still damaged. To their credit, they covered the cost of the repair due to their prior mistake.
Fast forward to early February--I was driving back to Avon from Denver when my car began shaking and making a terrible noise. Remembering my prior experience, I stopped immediately. Since it was a Sunday night, I had no choice but to get a hotel and take my car to a local shop in the morning. After an inspection, they found that my wheel hub was badly bent and my brake rotor was damaged from prolonged driving on a failing hub (the noise was the result of my brake rotor going bad). The extent of the damage led them to ask if my car had experienced any major impacts. The only incident that fit was my near-wheel-loss a few months prior. The shop suggested a strong possibility that the two were related. The repair was quoted at $1,200 but ended up costing me $1,000.
At their suggestion, I reached out to Vail Auto with my concerns. However, they outright denied any possibility that their negligence had caused the damage, insisting that wheel hubs and bearings "just wear out" and that my issue was unrelated. A simple search will show that wheel hub and bearing damage is a well-documented consequence of a loose wheel. I am now $1,250 out-of-pocket for repairs--all within months of the initial incident--and the likelihood that this was mere coincidence seems slim.
Looking back, this wasn't the first time I had wheel issues after a visit to Vail Auto. On a separate occasion, I drove home after an oil change and tire rotation--less than two miles away--only to discover that a lug nut was completely missing.
My warning to those considering Vail Auto:
Can you trust a shop with major (or even minor) repairs when they have repeatedly failed at something as basic as properly securing a wheel? This requires minimal skill--just attention to detail.
Can you respect a shop that refuses to stand behind its work, dismisses legitimate concerns, and ignores the opinions of multiple other mechanics?
I can no longer trust or respect Vail Auto and will not return for service. I have been stranded twice and spent over $1,000 on what very likely resulted from their negligence. Their refusal to take accountability is disappointing. I believe my conclusion is logical, and I hope you take this into account when deciding where to service your vehicle--before you find yourself stranded or facing unnecessary expenses.
