I am writing today to provide my feedback to an excellent repair that REDLINE JAPANESE AUTO REPAIR performed on my 2006 Honda Ridgeline. I am the first owner of my truck, AKA Baby Doll. She has over 190k miles on her right now.
From initial ownership, until now, I have religiously taken Baby Doll to the Honda dealer for ALL repairs, thinking that I was giving her the best service possible. Clearly, I was wrong. Here's why:
Three months ago, I was getting this rather loud clicking noise from the valves. Looking at the odometer, I thought that it was a little early for them to need an adjustment again (done every 100k miles), but I went with it and took Baby Doll to the local Honda Dealer and described the problem to them. So they adjusted the valves. This is not a straight forward process. Other things get dealt with at the same time. A new timing belt Is installed. To install the new timing belt means that the water pump gets removed, and it is recommended that the pump be replaced at that time as well. Of course, you don't use old gaskets, so those get replaced. And the dealer replaced the accessory belt as well. So far, so good. And lastly, coolant fluid is replaced.
But then after I relieved my pocket book of $2,000, I drove off with the satisfaction that at least the problem was gone. Sad to say, but I was wrong. The noise kept coming back. Intermittently, again and again. I began to see a pattern. The engine being cold and inclines in the road were likely but not guaranteed to trigger the noise.
So over the next couple of months back and forth Baby Doll went to the dealership, three times. Six times if you count the pre-visit, visit, where I would point to the truck, explain the lingering problem, and they would make an appointment. Each time, the mechanics said that they couldn't hear it so they said that they couldn't fix it. Three mechanics and the shop foreman all looked and listened. Nothing.
I was about to take it back a fourth time but then I remembered Einstein's definition of insanity, and my steadfast belief in the ironclad reliability of Honda Service was cracked. I jumped on Yelp! and found a place nearby called REDLINE JAPANESE AUTO REPAIR. It's near Fort Belvoir. It's in an industrial area, near the intersection of I-95 and VA-286 (Fairfax County Parkway). It's a little buried in there, but it is definitely worth the effort to find it. You will want to do use your GPS the first time you go there.
Danny An is the owner and Tim is his skilled staff mechanic. They are both great people to talk to. Danny reminds me of Mr. Miyagi of the movie The Karate Kid. While his English is not the best, his wisdom about all things auto is immense. You would be wise to listen to his suggestions.
So I decided to take the plunge and drop off Baby Doll at Redline. I received a phone call at work and they suggested that I change out the oil pump, oil strainer (not to be confused with the oil filter) and the oil intake tube. I green lighted all of it, because as Tim explained it all to me, it made really good sense. They were literally giving the engine a new heart transplant.
I went to pick up the truck and they escorted me to the vehicle for inspection... who does that anymore? They are proud of their work and want to make sure that you are pleased as well.
I started it up and my ears were amazed. There was no subtle clicking noise. Even the mild iteration of it, that no one at the Honda dealer ever heard, was GONE. I jumped out of the cab and popped open the hood. Again, the clicking was GONE. In its place was a beautiful, harmonious mechanical sound. Sewing machine like in precision. The old sounds of the motor were back!!! The top end of the engine was not getting enough oil.
THREE TIMES I took my darling truck to the Honda Dealer experts. THREE TIMES they were thwarted. ONE TIME I take it to REDLINE JAPANESE AUTO REPAIR, and the melodious, harmonious sounds of a happy motor have returned.
One last point: I was very skeptical about taking Baby Doll to a non-dealer, but I was pleasantly surprised that my Garmin GPS was able to locate the shop, using by name look-up. Clearly, they are not a fly-by-night operation if they have made it onto Garmin's GPS database of locations.
I strongly recommend this shop. ALL future mechanical repairs to Baby Doll will be done there. Great guys. Great analysis abilities. Slightly difficult to find. But as with all good things in life, like my Baby Doll, well worth the extra effort. read more
