To cut to the chase: be very careful. I took my car here for a burning smell; they looked at the…read moreissue but were unable to diagnose a cause despite there being 3 potential sources including the engine running out of oil, the engine being overfilled with oil (documented on their invoice) and the timing cover reportedly leaking oil. We were then told not to drive it on the interstate, suggesting a safety concern but they did not indicate a reason or any urgent recommendations.
They also recommended $7400 of additional work for 10 issues they discovered. Given the extraodinary cost, I took it to our usual mechanic at Fresh Pond Gas (we had tried GNG on the strong recommendation of a friend), who had no idea what they were talking about aside from 1-2 of their listed issues. One of the more concerning details was Good News flagged the AC compressor (and we had never complained about issues with our AC) as seized but the AC works-- this is impossible if the AC compressor is seized. The only explanation for this is they never ran the AC or they fabricated the entire issue. Of note, the replacement they quoted was $1500. The other issues they claimed involved different components of the car that were reportedly leaking and rusting out; my trusted mechanic assured us any rust was due to normal wear and tear(superficial rust is ubiquitous to vehicles in NE due to the salt and weather)-- not issues that needed attention or even monitoring; nothing was leaking. The quotes on these issues were significantly greater than the average cost, some times 2-3x's.
However, the most concerning fact was they flagged a rusted subframe but never alerted me to this issue. The subframe is a structural metal frame that supports the engine, suspension, and steering systems -- it's fundamental to the car's safety and handling. Damage to it is one of the most serious findings a mechanic can make. If the subframe is in any way rusted to the point where it is flagged by a mechanic, the owner needs to be aware of it because it is a huge safety issue. Either GNG neglected what could have been a wildly dangerous situation or the rust was not an issue.
Interestingly, while diagnosing numerous issues as noted above, GNG seemed to miss a number of items that ultimately needed to be addressed including a failing battery, clutch, flywheel, and rotors-- all which needed replacement. The failing battery became problematic because it died suddenly on me while I was driving, requiring me to have it towed to my mechanic. My understanding is that a battery that suddenly fails can be dangerous since the steering is often electrically powered (as my system is). In their defense, they did diagnose 2 issues correctly-- front control arms and brake pads (which they overquoted).
I also found the invoice intriguing-- it was professionally printed out with my information, VIN, license plate, what was done, the charges, etc. On the bottom, the list of recommendations was listed. However, the estimates for these recommendations were all handwritten in pen and not itemized with estimates for labor, parts, etc. I was under the impression that for any modern computerized system for a garage, which GNG presumably has, an itemized estimate for a proposed recommendation would be printed out with the rest of the document. I could not identify any legitimate explanation for this practice at a modernized garage.
In the end, thank god we got the second opinion, because it saved us at least $5000.
To conclude: we were really disappointed in GNG after hearing so many positive reviews; we felt as if we were presented with so many unnecessary recommendations without documentation as to how they came to their conclusions with vague estimates far above the average rates. If you decide to use this garage, I would have a very low threshold to seek a second opinion and to always check their prices against market rates.
6/11 update: Casey reached out to me and we had about a 30 minute conversation. He agreed a seized AC compressor could not blow cold air and stated the diagnosis was due to a miscommunication with his technician. He would not provide me the name of the technician, despite MA regulations, stating, "you've been posting reviews." Stated that his technician smelled a burning odor consistent with a seized compressor. When I asked how often a diagnosis was made based on smell he said, "there are no standard anything in this business-- every situation is different." When asked for documentation re: more details on how the diagnosis was made (given it's a $1500 replacement), he stated, "nothing gets logged into a computer." RE: the subframe, he denied it was a safety issue and that during his career, he had never seen one break. Stated that the "rusted subframe" that was listed under recommendations, "was for us to keep an eye on, it wasn't for you-- you didn't need to know about it." There were other issues, but I'm out of characters.
