Cliffs Notes:
Decent and honest shop with highly personable, customer-oriented service. Post-repair bolt tightening could have been better. I'd use them again if I lived closer.
Unabridged version:
The alternator on my 2006 Acura TL went up and stranded me in Laurel. I did a quick search in Yelp, and these guys had decent reviews and were close by (knew I needed to be towed).
Tony was very polite and professional on the phone and in person. The waiting room is small but was nicely air conditioned and comfortable with a TV running old '70s shows like the Partridge Family (this is not a bad thing). They also have a bunch of free snacks and drinks; very cool and thoughtful.
In addition to the alternator being fried, I was concerned that I blew a head gasket after the alternator blew since I was afraid to turn off the car, knowing that the electrical system had issues because the battery wasn't being charged. Completely neglected to think about how the fan is electrically operated and would no longer be able to cool the radiator. The coolant smoke coming out from the hood was my clue.
The shop replaced the alternator and recommended that the radiator be replaced, to which I agreed to have replaced as well. Not having any prior experience with this garage, I wasn't sure if I was being played, so I asked for the radiator back. When I inspected it at home, I saw corrosion at the seams (marked by the mechanic) and thought their call to replace it was a fair one since it did appear to have a seep leak.
Additionally, the head gasket was fine, so it appears that I may have shut down the engine in time and as I saw the coolant smoke come out of the hood as it hit the hot engine.
I would have given them five stars, but I had to bring the car back for them to address a really bad rattle from the front end. Over smooth roads, something sounded loose. This TL has about 120,000 miles and is a vehicle I purchased last October as a winter beater/rain car to keep the miles off of the other cars. I was always aware of a minor rattle from the front end and had it in the back of my mind that maybe the ball joints were going bad (car had passed a MD state inspection, so this didn't come up as a deficiency). However, the noise was significantly worse after I picked up the car.
Tony said the bring the car back whenever I wanted. I scheduled a time, and they took a look at the car as soon as I arrived. The mechanic said that the front anti-roll bar link was loose, along with one of the tie rods, I think, but that the ball joints were fine.
The weird thing is that whatever the mechanic did, he made the car even quieter than before the initial repair. There is still a bit of a rattle over rough roads, but the noise on mostly smooth roads was gone. I felt like I had a better car, but the mechanic definitely left something loose when I first picked up the car.
Tony and the other lady in the office were super polite, so they seem to really concentrate on excellent customer service. They were honest with the radiator replacement recommendation and didn't BS me about the head gasket being blown. Tony remembered to put the windshield sunshade to protect the Acura TL's notoriously fragile and crack-prone dashboard, so he was diligent.
This shop seems like a good bet, and I would definitely use them again if I were a Laurel resident. read more