I feel compelled to write review of Faucette Automotive after my experience there earlier this week. I was driving my 2000 BMW 328i between Raleigh and Charlotte for work when my check engine light came on and the car began running very rough. I knew from a prior repair that I was having misfires and I could damage the engine further if I continued on. After contacting my home mechanic and going thru NAPA's 800 # they connected me to Faucette. The mechanic Sam told me they didn't normally work on European cars (i.e. they didn't have all the specialized error code software) but to bring it by if I like and he would take a look. The garage was less than 2 mi from the highway, very much in the country, behind a house. The place looked modest but well-kept, with a mix of trucks, older cars being restored, and a few sedans (1 Lexus, 1 VW). Sam politely asked me a couple of questions and then immediately popped my hood to take a look, explaining what he was doing along the way. He quickly determined I had another burned out ignition coil (I could easily see it wasn't the newest one, and he tried the bad coil on another cylinder to confirm it was the culprit). He gave me a ballpark of $200 part + labor and thought he could have the part there within an hour. While I was waiting another businessman came by to pick up his car (the Lexus); while Sam stepped away I asked the other customer about his experience with these guys and he gave them a very positive review. Based on some things Sam said and looking around the office you could see this was a family business, with pictures of some racing and car restoration they had done. The part arrived shortly and Sam had it installed in no time, then another mechanic took it for a quick spin to verify it was running clean. Sam also took a moment to try to fix a loose grill piece for me (unsuccessfully, but he suggested some workarounds). Total bill came to $152 (at least $80 of which was the part). If I had landed at a less scrupulous place that took advantage of my situation, or a dealership, I'm sure I would've paid twice that, if not more. And after a handshake and my sincere thanks for the fast work, I was back on the road within 90 mins.
(P.S. the father has a childhood friend of his with a slight mental disability who helps out with odd jobs around the place, which given some my personal experience with Easter Seals kids just proved to me further that these are good people. Treat them with respect and they will do the same.) read more
