We broke the axel on our travel trailer while passing through Downs, IL, late last night. We got help from a local trucker and tow truck driver before we finished the call to AAA. Tony, from Anytime Towing, said he would come back in the morning and we could follow him to the shop where they would replace the axel. He even gave us the number for where we could get a new axel. He met up with us in the morning and we followed him to Baird's. Once we got to Baird's they took great care of us. They were able to get us in right away. It was not what they were expecting to come rolling in on a Thursday morning. They even gave us some options for entertaining our kids and where to eat. We ended up spending the day and having a great time at the Children's Museum. We were back on the road by 3pm. Thank you Baird's!! read more

So we'll go through the entire story. It's not just one vehicle, it's two. First in December of 2024 and they replaced both front wheel bearings on one truck. During that repair the CV axle boot was nicked on top leading to grease leaking down into the wheel speed sensor wiring harness. I had the truck back with them in February 2025 for an oil change. At that time the technician failed to recognize that the CV axle was leaking and told me that I needed a new brake cylinder on that wheel as the brakes were working fine I assumed, correctly, but the technician had no idea what he was looking at. In May of 2025 I had four tires replaced at a different shop where they discovered the contaminated wiring harness. Baird's did replace the CV boot, but during that repair they didn't torque a bolt holding the suspension in and it ended up backing out. Despite extensive effort from Baird's that wheel speed sensor has not worked correctly since. The vehicle that Larry is referring to had lifters and a head gasket replaced at a different shop in December of 25. In April of 2026 Baird's replaced both CV axles and did an oil change. One week later the drain plug from the oil pan fell out while driving. The vehicle was then towed back to Baird's where they refill the oil flushed it and told me everything was fine. Later that day I my son and I were working on the brakes for that same truck and discovered that when they replace the CV axles they didn't torque down the lug nuts on the tires. So my wheels were loose as well. The incident in question happened in July when one of the lifters failed and the truck experienced a misfire eventually requiring a brand new engine to the tune of almost $9000. Hunter the service advisor called me after I stopped in to discuss the situation where upon he informed me that since the lifters did not fail immediately after the oil drained out it couldn't possibly be Baird's fault and the lifters must have been bad from the start therefore it was the other shops responsibility. Hunter was very gracious (sarcasm) an offering me the opportunity for them to tear the engine down at my cost so that they could discover why the lifters failed and then charge me for the engine replacement. There was zero effort to even consider that there might have been an issue with their work. read more

Baird's Auto and Tire - Loose suspension bolt - Auto Repair Near Me - Normal, Illinois

See all

pathetic service! mechanics do not know what they are doing! Took my car in because it was acting weird & they tried to convince me that I needed a 6k transmission & suggested that I should try a $600 trans flush which I accepted after they confirmed that this would fix the issue but of course did not help the issue! I took it to another mechanic he told me the issue has nothing to do with my transmission. I tried speaking with them about charging me for work I literally did not need they were very combative and basically told me to fuck off... don't ever bring your vehicle here they are just trying to upsell & charge you for work you don't need! read more

They did fix my car by replacing the starter, Rafael was great following up the job and giving me updates! The downside is cost, they charged too much for a 100 part read more

I took my car here for a routine oil change, and it turned into a costly and frustrating experience. They failed to put the oil cap back on, which caused oil to spill all over my engine. Not only did this create a mess and a potential fire hazard, but it also put the health of my vehicle at risk. When I brought the issue to their attention, they refused to take responsibility for their mistake. There was no apology, no accountability, and no offer to make things right. I expected basic professionalism and care --what I received was negligence and poor customer service. They conveniently do not have me in their system however I have the bank statement with the date and time. I will not be returning and strongly advise others to think twice before trusting this shop with your vehicle. read more

Rafael was very helpful. He explained what was going on with my car and what needed to be done in a way I could understand. The courtesy driver, Ricky was pleasant and a safe driver. The waiting area and courtesy car were very clean. I highly recommend. read more

Took my car here at the recommendation of a family member. My check engine light had came on. Felt like experience was a scam. Dropped off my car and was told they would call when they know something. Called an hour later saying the initial scan showed warnings for six electrical systems. Wouldn't tell me what systems or what caused it. Said they would need an additional 3.5 hours of diagnostic work which would cost me 600. I told them I would just wait on that, and then they mention that they would bill me 80 for what they have already done. No mention of this initial charge when I dropped the car off. Other places I have gone in town (discount tires and a few others) had absolutely no charge for initial diagnostic. So basically I had to pay almost 90 with tax for zero answers. Only to be told I have to pay 600 for more testing. Also left mud all over my floors and a dirty rag in the cup holder. Scam. I definitely recommend to anyone just to go elsewhere. read more

We give a negative rating if I could due to traveling 45 minutes for our scheduled appointment and find out they couldn't help us. We called one week ahead to schedule a diagnostic test on our classic car. We arrived at 7am as scheduled and at 9:00am were told our service couldn't be done after we transported our car by trailer to their business. Since we live 45 minutes away, we weren't leaving the car overnight especially since there's no guarantee their technician would even come to work the next day. If left the car overnight, we would need to drive back to pick up and spend more money on gas the next day and possibly not even have their service provided. We will never use this auto repair service again and advise everyone else to avoid it. read more

DO NOT GO HERE!!!! If I could rate them a ZERO, I would. Our daughter goes to school at ISU and had an issue with her car. They said the alternator was bad and needed to be replaced. After they replaced it, the battery light was still on. They said the battery needed to be replaced. Long story short, the battery was not bad like they said and we found a loose wire to the alternator that they just installed was causing the battery light to come one. Which means they did NOT do their job properly. They also broke clips, did not put the car back together correctly and lost the engine cover. The owner is extremely rude and does not stand behind their work. He didn't apologize nor did he try to rectify the situation. Instead he hung up on both me and my husband. They are out to take advantage of college kids. read more

I would give this company a negative rating if I could. My husband and I took our car for a standard oil change and soon realized after driving off that there was a loud noise coming from underneath the car. After stopping and inspecting, the new engine splash cover we had just purchased had been replaced with a broken one with missing parts. As if we wouldn't notice the loud noise. After returning to the shop to question what happened to the new cover we had purchased prior to the appointment, they got loud and aggressive, which then moved to laughing in our face. At first, they had pictures to show us, then all the sudden they didn't, they could show us video, and now they can't show us video. He laughed while saying, "Good luck proving this!" The only recourse is to go to small claims court. Our value oil change has cost us safety and another expensive cover at our cost. They are rude, dishonest, and thieves. read more

I asked for a wheel aligment, clearly said 89.99 owner came out trying to sell me parts i do NOT need and wanted to charge me 185 dollars for a cam bolt kit(real cost is 17 dollars yes a simple bolt) plus 270 "labor" all this for u hear it for a wheel aligment lol,when PRICE IS STATED 89 for a simple job he loss a new customer for being greedy, he still charged me 108 dollar for "inspection"(inspections are FREE at all places yes i tried belle tires and took them 5 minutes and free)yes charged me MORE than doing the job itself of 89 and because i declined service he charged anyways and ABSOLUTELY NOTHING WAS DONE, i own 2 more cars that if he was honest he will have my business for long time but he preffer to make easy 108 dollars and lose a customer that can bring him business in the future and yes receipt u see in picture is the cost this place want to charge for a car alignment lol, my car does not even have lane assist or departure or any ada and all bulcrap "i declined", so do yourself a favor and do NOT service or do any maintenance on your car here, just read all other reviews and u will see how bad it is(my mistake i did not so i paid the price), this place is NOT compliant with better business bureau(have F rating) and go look and see all the similar complaints read more

Baird's Auto and Tire - The charge for a simple car aligment lol - Auto Repair Near Me - Normal, Illinois

My daughters are in Normal going to school. They brought their Pontiac G6 into Bairds for a repair with the steering column. Bairds did the work and we paid. Approximately, 10 months later, the part they replaced failed so they replaced it at no charge. When my daughters picked the car up, the airbag light was on. They called and were told someone would call them back. No one called them back and they forgot about it. a couple months later, when they returned home for a visit, 2 hours away, I saw the light on and asked when it went on. They explained what happened. I called Bairds and Larry told me that he had bought the business from Daryl Gentry right after they fixed my car so they were not responsible for anything and do not have any records of any work done before the business was purchased. He said he would reach out to Darrell to get some information and see what to do. He never called me back so after weeks of waiting, I called again. He gave me the same line of BS again and said he would reach out to Daryl and get bak to me. Once again he never did. I called one last time and again he refused to do anything for me and said the same old BS trying to get me off the phone. The light was not on when we dropped the car off and it was on when it was picked up. They should be responsible for whatever they did when they were fixing the steering column. This is a safety issue and Bairds does not seem to care. This is bad business. read more

Honest people here. They will tell you the truth and do their best to get the car on the road.

I would not send anyone here, marking it up to lesson learned, take my advise and shop in your own Neighborhood and only go to trusted mechanics. Did not feel like they deserved one star. Read below for more info! Secretary was very friendly, mechanism also at 1st. Was told by Secretary they would do a though job check it all over and fill out a form for the van we were thinking about buying. I am from the Champaign area. We have places that do this kind of thing. They charge $80.00 and check even the littlest scratch. They keep it between them and you and tell the seller nothing. I was told Bairds would not tell the seller anything. The form was very simple, Jeff the mechanic had marked a few concerns. But he put he marked mirrors, interior, exterior, trunk all good. Passenger Mirror housing and Mirror were both cracked and broken. It was missing a vent in the dash, the step going in side door had been cut away. Back doors were not able to close right due to weather stripping had shrunk and was too short and would not stay in place. When I called to ask about the mechanic, Jeff marking these items as ok. He told me they don't look at every little scratch. They just do the mechanical side. When I explained about the mirror, he said only the housing was broke. I had to tell him the Mirror was too. He said he made sure both mirrors operated good, but didn't know it was broke. The Seller had said he was told it was in pretty good shape for a cargo van. I asked for a refund, because I felt they did not do what I was told they would, they also shared info with seller. It cost me $110.00. I was told no at 1st, then I was told I would get a full refund. Later the owner of Baird came on the phone and said no he was not going to give me a refund. After talking to him and explaining, he explained it is the buyer who should notice what is wrong , it isn't their job to look at ever scratch. They only do the mechanical side. I told him we did look at item saw what was wrong with it. I told him his mechanic Jeff didn't even know the Mirror was broke. I told the mechanic Jeff and the owner we don't know them and I don't know if they really took all the tires and did what they were supposed to, because they failed at noticing some of the things wrong with the van. He said they only notice the they that are important. I told him if the mirror falls off, or the back doors won't close I think are important. He finally agreed to refund me $30.00 of the $110.00, because the Champaign area charges $80.00, even though the Champaign garages do a much better job, and don't tell the seller anything. I just want to not have to go back to Bloomington, so I called today and told them to throw the chart they filled out away, and just tear the check up. I would never send any one to Baird's in Bloomington, IL. read more

I was having a myriad of strange issues with my car. overhead light flickering, the radio stopping when turning, just weird stuff. I took it to a different mechanic and they just shrugged. Took the car to bairds and they figured it out that day (something about the chassis of my car being rusted and thus not allowing the battery to ground. I'm not sure, I'm not a mechanic, but they did explain it all to me). They also recommended replacing a few other replacement parts, as the improver grounding could have caused damage to the power system over all. 6 months later, my charge battery light came on and I was so frustrated. Took it back to bairds, they identified it as my alternator going bad, and since it was under a year they replaced the alternator free of charge. Definitely recommend them and won't go anywhere else! read more

Horrible place of business! A simple fix ended up being a 10 day fix with little communication! Quoted under $400 for the fix. Ended up paying $1045. Drove it off Baird's lot and less than a mile down the road warning lights came on and engine light came on! Same exact problem we had when we brought it in... LARRY said bring it back and we will look at it. At this point we lost all faith in this so called auto shop and took the vehicle to a reputable auto shop. They fixed the problem under 4 hours and under $300. So whatever LARRY at Baird's auto fixed was not the problem. I talked to 2 other mechanics and they both agreed that we got ripped off. I talked to Larry at Baird's to resolve this mess and he did ABSOLUTELY nothing but say oh well... DO NOT TAKE ANY VEHICLE TO THIS SO CALLED AUTO SHOP. LARRY HAS FAILED IN EVERY ASPECT OF GOOD SERVICE AND CUSTOMER SERVICE. He had the opportunity to make things right and FAILED. SAVE YOUR TIME AND HARD EARNED MONEY AND PLEASE GO SOMEWHERE ELSE. WE ARE NOW OUT OVER $700 DOLLARS FOR SOMETHING THEY NEVER FIXED !!!!!! RIP OFF SO- CALLED PLACE OF BUSINESS. ZERO STARS. ZERO REAPECT read more

Just the only place I've had do work on my truck. They are good person ole and get you in and out in a reasonable time frame.

I just started going back here again. Stopped in for battery check and got new one. Should have asked upfront but figured it wouldn't be too bad. Battery ALONE was $129.99! With a 2 YEAR warranty! Total bill over $200 for a battery and labor. Very disappointed they decided to do this. Bye Bye. read more

My daughter called from school (2 hours away from me) to tell me that her car wouldn't start. Through Yelp, I found this mechanic and couldn't have been more satisfied. They assured me that all would be taken care of and it was...for a reasonable price. They were courteous, helpful and fast. I would recommend them to any Mom who has a kid away at ISU and needs the car repaired :) Just an update: I called Baird's 3 months later to ask them to fax a copy of the bill for my daughter's car and the woman I spoke to faxed it to me within 5 minutes. This place is tops in customer service! read more

Round three at Baird's. Fast honest repairs. This is our go to auto service in Normal IL. Thank you for taking good care of my student's older car! read more

A little over a year ago I bought my 1st car. I'm not knowledgeable enough about cars to know when someones lying too me. well I took my car here and I just needed new tires. Daryl seemed so nice and helpful he looked at my car told me what I needed. He sold me 2 new rear tires, I felt confident everything was fine. But it was not. About 8 months later I went to a different shop (I know one of the mangers) to get 2 more tires to replace my front too. They told me that whoever sold me my back two tires sold me winter tires and that why it was around $500 for 2. Daryl told me that they were going to be so expensive because I had an uncommon tire size, little did I know they weren't all seasons tires. And to top it all off I now have to replace the Spicket that comes out of the tire too put air into it. I would not recommend going to this man he will take your money and smile right in your face. read more

DON'T DO IT! If I could give 0 stars I would! The owner, Darrell, is a wolf in sheeps clothing! He lies and is a crook. He'll take your $$ and sleep like a baby! Bought a car from him that he listed as "mechanically sound!!" (Exact words on the sign) He VERY WELL knew it had major issues and sold it to our vulnerable family (that was moving across country no less) anyway $2,300 in repairs right out of the gate! WHAT A DISHONEST business owner! Seriously trying to save another person from this man. Below is the LONG time leaking sludge of the transfer case that had to be repaired ($1,000 for the part alone!!) additionally two rear wheel hubs shot, and he claims he drove the car personally for two months and didn't hear the tires grinding?! Come on Darrell! He acts so humble and helpful and "I'll give you a good deaPhuh! If you want to be rear ended, then yes, buy that used car from him. Your 1 star review will be right below mine! Trust me. UPDATE: November 2018- O2 sensor needs replaced as well as spark plugs. Another $500! read more

Baird's Auto and Tire - Auto Repair Near Me - Normal, Illinois

See all

If I could give this business 0 stars, I would. As a college student away from my hometown I was seeking autocare for a gas pipe leak, which is incredibly dangerous and must be taken care of properly. Baird's charged me about $350 to take care of the problem and the leaking stopped. What I didn't know is that they Jerry-rigged it with a small plastic tube (costing nowhere near $350), rather than servicing and replacing the pipe - like they said they would. Back home for the summer, my car was serviced by a professional auto mechanic who informed me that the plastic tube was completely unreliable and I was lucky that the pipe hadn't burst resulting in a serious problem, maybe life threatening. Don't trust this auto shop. Rip off and they clearly do not care for public safety, just getting their money. read more

I have brought my car here for a few different issues and have always been served quickly by a friendly staff. I had an issue with my transmission in my truck and they made sure to find the cheapest and best option for me and even took care of my car when I had to leave it there and go out of town for a couple weeks before I could pick it up. I will absolutely be going back here in the future. read more

Don't go there. It's an unreliable place that did not fix an issue I had. They charged me $300 and told me it was good to go, when really they only fixed a problem they caused in the first place. read more

I agree with D.S. If you're looking to get screwed over on buying a used car, go to Bairds. I purchased a used car there and was told by the owner its a sound car without problems. WRONG!! Ive put in $3000 to get it fixed to be fit to drive. When I called the owner, he told me, "there's nothing I can do. I don't check every car we sell." WHAT?!? This is one incredibly dishonest business owner. If I could give "minus stars" this place is a 5 minus! read more

Great Place, Very Honest. My son goes to ISU and was having car problems. I had driven the car also and the driver side front brake was grinding when I wasn't pushing the brake pedal. Seemed like the caliper was stuck. He took it to Tuffy Auto and was quoted $760 for one new caliper, one pad and one rotor. I thought this was ridiculous and called my guy here in Naperville and he said should be about $450. After looking at the reviews I called Baird. Talked with Darrell on the phone, very nice guy, and without telling him the whole story asked for a quote on the work mentioned above. He said $485 and that would include a new pad on both sides since they are sold in pairs. My son had the car there by noon and it was done by 4. Price as promised $485. If you have a son or daughter going to ISU and they need auto work done I would highly recommend this place read more

Would not go anywhere else with my car here in town. I had my car towed there after their business hours, and they called me at 7:45 the next morning to let me know what was wrong and that they would get to fixing it. Had it ready to go by 10am. No add on sales, and friendly service from everyone I encountered. read more

We were headed out on a weekend trip and our truck was vibrating horribly. We called baird's hoping they could look at it as we went through Bloomington. They were very welcoming and said they could check it out. He knew it was a bad U joint just from our description, and sure enough it was. He had it repaired and done in just over an hour and we were back on the road. Excellent service, and now we have peace of mind on the rest of our trip with a smooth ride. The lady working at the desk was also very friendly and came over to change the tv channel to something our boys would like. Price was good, and I believe they have moving trucks as well as auto care. If we lived in the area this would be our mechanic. read more

Great service! I am from out of town and that worried me. So happy to have found them. I feel the amount paid for my repair was very reasonable and done in a timely manner! read more

Last time my wife went to get 2 tires they left them so loose she didn't make it around the block before knew something was wrong. Should have never went back then, but I decided to give them another chance and took my van in to find a coolant leak. I know it only take 5-10 minutes to perform a pressure test on the coolant system but they charged me $85 to do this! I will never be back and recommend no one go there unless you want to be overcharged for crappy service read more

They have been doing general maintenance on both my wife's car and my own for a couple years now and we have always been treated great by the staff and owners. Fair pricing and fast work we feel very comfortable going to them with any issues! read more

Wish 0 stars was possible, Brought in car with symptoms of smoke and leaking. Charged $500 and had to bring back in 3 days later with same symptoms as before and then charged $600. When I explained that I should not have to pay the $35 "checkout" fee because they should have discovered the issue the first time, i was treated extremely rudely, especially for a customer who spent $500 less than a week prior. Would definitely not recommend especially for college students. read more

Do not use Baird's Auto Care. I had the hood puled over my eyes by this company's "reputation". Simple problem with a thermostat, had them change it and flush my coolant system. When the thermostat they replaced failed 2 days later, Baird's told me it wasn't covered by their maintenance warranty. They tried telling me I needed a new head gasket, even though there is no issue there, which they would not replace due to mileage, but they would be happy to charge me $2500 for a new engine. Bait and switch!!! Turns out after replacing the thermostat myself (thanks Baird's) the problem was fixed. Never should've invested in Baird's and I hope anyone considering their services for anything besides oil changes and brake jobs goes somewhere else. read more

If you're looking to be bamboozled having your car serviced or when purchasing a used car Baird's is the place to go. The owner is the most dishonest and unethical person I have ever interacted with. Darryl will look you in the eye and lie without a second thought. He doesn't flinch, twitch or any of the things experts claim how to tell when a person is lying. He's lied for so long and so often it's natural for him. I'm sure the most highly, skilled professional specializing in identifying habitual, chronic liars would be fooled by this liar. I purchased a used vehicle from Baird's February 2016 for my daughter and less than seven days there was a problem with the car. I understand the concept "as is" but the issue was something that should have been resolved when he allegedly throughly serviced the car prior to listing "for sale" but of course I had to pay for the repair. Let me not forget that I gave him the title to a 1995 Lexus which he graciously reduced the sale price of the car I was purchasing by $100, putting the purchase price at $2300.00. He shared he was going to junk the Lexus. WOW....surprise, surprise what do I see while driving by Baird's....you are so correct !!! the Lexus he allegedly was going to junk on the lot for sale priced at $1900.00. Only a conniving heartless liar would do such a thing. Today I had to pay for a fuel line leak on my daughter's car. I have a funny suspicion Darryl knew that the leak would be an issue in the near future. I could go on but hopefully my post will assist people to be very cautious before even thinking about doing any type of business with Baird's. Oops...I forgot to put the cherry on top. I received a noticed from the town of Normal notifying me that I owe taxes from the purchase of the car !!! read more

Best place ever!!!! Friendly staff and quality work. I was traveling north from Tulsa OK and my truck broke down on a little used highway late at night. AAA arranged towing from Pate's Towing, also very good, to AAA recommended Baird's. They got my truck in right away the next morning and it was done with quality parts and labor the next afternoon. I would highly recommend their auto care. thanks Baird for saving my trip. read more

We were traveling and our A/C was not working. We called AAA for a recommended mechanic/garage. They directed us to Baird's. What an excellent experience. They took our car right in and even offered for us to take our dog into the waiting area. They checked things out and returned a quick 15 minutes later with their assessment. They let us know the freon level was fine, that it would do no harm to run the AC fan, and they thought it was an electrical issue. They offered to do the work or understood if we wanted to continue our travel, which we opted to do. Later we took it to our Honda dealer and it was an electrical problem. Baird's was so friendly, professional, and accommodating and they eased our concerns. To top it all off, they didn't even charge us for the assessment! Thank you for your hospitality to us! read more

Baird's promptly came and jumped my daughter's car on a Saturday morning and installed a new battery. The price was higher than I thought, but after checking at Autozone, they didn't mark it up much higher than I would have expected. I would use Bairds again read more

I just bought a used car from Baird's last week, and the whole process was smooth and simple! I know nothing about cars, and Darrell was incredibly helpful in explaining the condition of the car and the sale process so I understood completely. The price had no hidden fees, and when I expressed concern about the tires they offered to get me new ones at no extra cost. The process was stress-free and I felt like I was being sold a quality vehicle by trusted mechanics. The car runs like a beaut, and I'll definitely be coming back to Baird's for any maintenance! read more