I will NEVER return here. My car stalled out in Alexandria, VA, and I called AAA to have my car towed. I was new to the area, and did not know of any credible auto repair shops around, so I asked AAA to send me to one that was certified by their company standards. Upon arriving to Fairlington Sunoco Service Center, I was stared at by many of the mechanics and felt uncomfortable. The language barrier was difficult to get past, but I tried to help that by giving suggestions (e.g. electrical, alternator) for them to understand what the problem could be. I filled out my paperwork and walked to the nearest rental car service at a Lexus dealership. While in the dealership, I received a call and was rudely interrogated by one of the mechanics telling me I was wrong about the alternator and asked why I would think it was the alternator in the first place. The next day, I picked up my car and they charged me $400 for new spark plugs and a battery. My car interior was muddy, my gas was under a quarter tank (I had a half tank when I arrived, and my car gets 28 mpg highway and 21 in city) and my sound system settings that were tuned up to the amplifier located in my trunk had been tampered with.
Five days later, my car stalled again. I called and asked to talk to a mechanic. One of the mechanics told me that they spent an entire hour driving my car around the city (without my permission) and said "nothing was wrong with it". Six hours later, the manager Milton Hahn called and told me that "The car was not broken down. There was nothing wrong when you brought it in. There wasn't even a battery light on." (the battery light appearing on the dash was one of the things I reported that happened when my car broke down) However, he still charged me $400 for a new battery and spark plugs. I told him I didn't think it was right for me to pay for something that he knew wasn't broken. I asked for my money back since he did not fix my car and had no evidence of my car needing those repairs, and I told him about the conditions my car was in when I received it. He began to yell profanities that were VERY offensive toward me, (such as: B****, "who do the f*** do you think you are lady? You have no idea who you are dealing with.", and my personal favorite: "I dare you to come here and try to get your money back.") and hung up the phone. His threats were very scary, and I was not comfortable going there again alone to talk with him about it any further. Instead, I decided to take matters into my own hands to ensure his crude behavior and offensive demeanor will be documented and investigated.
Fairlington's overview facebook summary is this: "Fairlington Sunoco is an honest and efficient gas station located in Alexandria, VA and tries to do their best at having honest-to-goodness, efficient auto services. We do not lie or cheat you out of your money like the others, and take pride in that. We diagnose your car with the most advanced technology in automotive repair, and have your car available to you faster than the other guys." (reference: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Fairlington-Sunoco/74198899571?id=74198899571&sk=info)
As you should know by now, this is false.
So, I took my car into dodge -- and they ran a real diagnosis (that required a computer chip assessment, not a one hour joy-ride) and said that it was an electrical programming part that needed to be replaced. AND that I NEVER NEEDED a new battery or spark plugs. Dodge diagnosed this problem within a few hours and clearly told me what was wrong with it, and are taking care of it in full.
NOTE: It's obvious that the comment below me about Fairlington being AAA certified was posted to boast about their "credibility". However, I filed a report today requesting their business to be re-evaluated by AAA who is VERY determined to do something about this. Given that AAA is known for good service and cares about what happens to their drivers, my experience (and others' negative experiences that have been posted) shows that this place is not reflective of that in the slightest. It is clear these guys are out for money and don't care about your safety and the reliability of your car on the road. AAA agreed that it would be in their best interest to look into this business and prevent Fairlington Sunoco's poor work from affecting any other AAA members in this area that need auto service in the future. They were so unbelievably apologetic and are notifying me soon about how they are going to deal with Milt Hahn and the way he runs his business. I am also having them investigated by the Better Business Bureau of Virginia on their credibility and treatment of their customers. And who knows, maybe I'll get a refund. Hopefully this will put everyone who has had a bad experience with a peace of mind about this place, and to let everyone know to NOT go here for service! These guys are not going to get away with bad treatment of customers anymore. read more
