I recently moved to the valley about five months ago, and as time goes by, our vehicles require…read moremaintenance. As I generally try my best to stay away from the dealership, I took to Google and Yelp reviews to find a reputable shop to perform maintenance on my vehicle. My search brought me to Import Auto Experts.
Making the appointment was a strange experience. I spoke with someone named Jeannie who was very pleasant on the phone. I informed her that I wanted to schedule an oil/filter change and a battery replacement. She scheduled me and attempted to end the call (in a very professional way), but she never asked for the year/make/model of my vehicle which I thought was weird, so I spoke up and asked, as I wanted to ensure the technicians were using the parts that that I requested. After I asked, she sounded surprised at herself for not asking. No big deal at all.
Within a couple hours, she called me back and asked which battery I wanted to purchase. She provided prices, but no information on the battery specifications, so I had to specifically ask. Again, not a huge deal, but I'm used to this information being given up front.
Accessing the shop was easy, and there was lots of parking. Their waiting area is nothing special, but it was clean and quiet. I was the only person in the waiting area, so it was fine. If there were more than a few people in there, I don't think I'd want to sit there. Too cramped.
After I checked in, I gave my keys, and they said they'd let me know when it was ready. I thought it was strange because they did not have me sign a quote before beginning the work. I thought this was required by law, but perhaps it was a state law and not applicable in Arizona. Also, if something regarding prices changes after the vehicle is in the possession of the shop, I thought they had to contact the customer to let them know of the additional costs before starting the work. Anyway, I basically went in without actually knowing the exact price for the quoted work other than the battery and battery replacement - which turned out that the quoted price I received for the battery was $130.99 and my paid invoice says that I paid $143.99. I personally don't care that much about $13, but if some people might, so that's why I'm mentioning it. I didn't speak up about it at the time as they wanted me to pay before I even saw the invoice. It's mostly on me for paying without asking to see the invoice before tapping my card.
The bigger disappointments were discovered when I got home. After arriving at home, when I went to gather my things, I noticed that my seat was a little dirty. Nothing that couldn't be cleaned up with a damp towel. Then I noticed there was a dark liquid substance on my door handle. I'm thinking either the technicians hands were dirty, or perhaps the silver foil was removed from the bottle of oil near my vehicle and it splashed on it as it wasn't that much.
These weren't big issues as I easily was able to clean it up myself, but the bottom line is there is clearly some lack of processes that either aren't being followed or don't exist at all. I don't take my car in for maintenance/repairs for it to have to clean up after them.
Overall, the prices for my oil change and the battery swap were fair, and the work was done in a timely manner. I'll probably go back and give this place one more chance. But if the end experience is the same, I'll probably try to find another shop.
