My most recent experiences with Blue Mule Garage and "Jimmy" Maus will be my last. I brought my…read more4Runner to them for preventative timing belt replacement as it was coming up on 100k since the last time I replaced it. I was prepared to let the dealer do it, but wanted to support a local family-owned business I had good experiences with previously. I have recommended Blue Mule Garage exclusively for auto repairs over the last 2 years to neighbors, family members, coworkers, and people on Nextdoor looking for an honest and competent repair shop. Regrettably, I cannot in good conscience continue to do so following my recent experiences.
These experiences include going to pick up vehicles after being told they're ready to go only to find the contrary. One instance, the hood was not closed and would not close because the hood latch had been removed but not reinstalled properly. The most recent incident included bolts not checked and retorqued as separately requested multiple times, and bolts completely missing, lost, or not reinstalled properly when brought back repeatedly for concerns of loose sounds in the front end.
Every time a concern was brought up or pointed out, I agreed to their recommendation for a path to resolve. The last time the vehicle was initially brought to them for a quoted $1200 timing belt repair. That lead to an oil pump replacement at an additional $1300 because of a stripped bolt inside the engine they found and said was not their fault. When I went to pick up the "ready to go" vehicle, I pulled out of the parking lot and immediately had the dash light up like a Christmas tree and the vehicle would not accelerate past 30 mph.
I turned around and left it with them to resolve again.
The next time I picked it up, the exhaust fell off the next day, and something else sounded loose in the front. At a quick glance, I noticed the majority of the bolts for the skid plates were missing and assumed that's what it was. I fixed the exhaust myself to get to work. Jimmy at Blue Mule admitted to and apologized for not putting all the bolts back on the skid plate because "different techs here worked on it, and we don't know where everything went." They say they never touched the exhaust. In any case, I gave them the benefit of the doubt and the opportunity to fix the issues. I mentioned the concern I had of something sounding loose in the front end (popping noises) and asked for them to thoroughly inspect and retorque front end bolts again.
After another inspection, I was given another estimate over $1k including sway bar bushings, cv axle, and inner tie rods. Since I was told that the steering rack was removed as part of the previous timing belt / oil pump service, I questioned why none of this additional stuff was mentioned before. Jimmy told me they removed the steering rack and either didn't notice any issues with those items or didn't touch them. Whatever the reason, it wasn't their fault. I initially decided to give them the benefit of the doubt again and approved the services, fully expecting to pick up a car free of the issues, which brought the car back to them.
However, when I went to pick up the vehicle several days after being told it was ready, standing at the counter to pay, I semi-jokingly asked if all of the popping noises were gone. The responses included: "I heard the popping as the car was being pulled off the lift to go to the alignment shop, but it's hard to tell where exactly sitting in the car" and "the guy at the alignment shop thinks it's the upper ball joints, and I concur." "All of your aftermarket suspension wears out faster and is causing problems." But, somehow, the car was ready to go?
I paid my bill and left with the car.
The next day, the car started to overheat. Replacing a visibly leaking coolant hose on top of the engine resolved that issue, and retorquing the alignment eccentric bolts eliminated the suspension noise. There were still missing bolts for the skid plate.
Finally, my neighbor recently had them work on his truck, and his bumper came undone on the highway.
I did lose my temper and eventually apologized in writing for my choice of tone and words. They've informed me that I'm no longer welcome as a customer. Le sigh sad panda.
