I had heard that Temple is the place to go for repairs in Dinwiddie. So when a water pump gasket went out, I had my car towed there. A bonus is that at the time I lived within walking distance of the place.
First, I'll say that they apparently did a competent job, and at a reasonable price. Less than $200, which for that job on that car is not out of line.
But it took over a week to do. I get that they're busy, and they had to order the gasket (an o-ring). So it goes.
The real issue for me was one of attitude on the part of the owner's, or someone acting like the owner. Not sure, and frankly it doesn't matter.
The car was towed on Saturday. On Monday I went in and talked with someone who was polite, helpful, and who told me they'd call once they diagnosed the problem.
The same fellow called me Tuesday or Wednesday, told me what was going on, that they'd ordered the gasket, and it would be done by Thursday or Friday. Fine, I had another vehicle to drive.
When I didn't hear back by Monday I called to ask, and a different guy - for some reason I think it was the owner, but maybe not - told me it would be ready when they got to it, and then asked if I expected to be put ahead of others, or something like that.
Seriously?
I'd suggested no such thing, and was kind of surprised at his saying that. Maybe he was having a bad day. Maybe the folks at Temple don't talk to each other about their schedule. But no need to be rude. So I thanked him and waited. I think the original guy called me back on Tuesday or Wednesday, said it was ready and how much it cost. Done.
Based on the rudeness of that one fellow (the owner?), and the time it took for a simple job, I decided to look elsewhere for future maintenance and repair work. Which is tough, because there are few shops in Dinwiddie (that I'm aware of). Fortunately, Dewitt Tire has been a pleasure to deal with.
So I guess I have that guy at Temple to thank for the incentive to look at Dewitt. It worked out well for me. Between my two older vehicles and some friends' vehicles, Dewitt has received a pretty decent chunk of business as a result. read more
