I fail to see why so many people left a 5-star reviews, as the overall experience I had here was subpar. The reason for my visit to Tire Choice Auto Service Center was for a brake concern. The brakes on my vehicle was making noises that raised my concern, so I decided to take a chance on a small local repair shop that was fairly rated on most social media platforms.
Day 1
The original concern was "Customer states to check parking brake," but the service writer failed to accurately capture this concern as he only wrote down: "Customer states to check brakes." This was obvious since all the technician did was a visual inspection on the brakes. And returned to the waiting room, telling me: "Your brakes look fine." So, after re-instating my original concern, the technician finally decided to remove the wheels and do an ACTUAL parking brake inspection.
By this time, we had figured out that the friction material on the parking shoes had simply fell off the backing plate (not good). At the same time, Tire Choice Auto Service Center also noticed the left rear caliper was leaking brake fluid. This is something that would not been noticed if I had not requested for a REAL brake inspection. Being a smaller shop, the service writer told me that they do not have the parts onsite, so they would need to order the parts and it would arrive the following day. Thus, we made an appointment for first thing tomorrow morning to get my vehicle fixed. But when the vehicle was returned back to me, I noticed that the technician lacked the common curtesy to wash his hands or even to put on some gloves before stepping into my vehicle, as the steering wheel was covered in dirt and grease from the brake inspection.
Day 2
On day 2 it was a different service writer at the counter. I walked in and told him that I was here to get my brakes fixed and I have an appointment. He asked for my name and proceeded to search me up on his computer. Then moments later, he left the room without any notice and started calling someone on his cell phone. To me this is a universal sign for "We forgot to the book the customer down for an appointment." Regardless, the now newly notified service writer returned to our conversation and asked for my car key.
At this point, it was me and another gentleman in the waiting room. But after several minutes, I notice that my vehicle has not been touched yet while the other gentlemen's vehicle is already being serviced. So, I ask the service writer why my vehicle is still sitting in the parking lot, he replied and explained that me that the other gentlemen arrived first, and I was second. So now knowing this fact, I'm wondering why I had made the appointment in the first place, since it seems like they forgot to set my appointment in the first place and level of priority does not matter if you have an appointment or not. Setting appointment scheduling aside, I must put this fault on the service writer himself, as he should of have disclosed this information and set the expectation before I handed him the car key.
Now fully disappointed with the overall service experience, I decided to leave the vehicle and come back later once the service is complete. A few hours later, I decided to call the shop and ask for an ETA. The service writer who is now working on my vehicle explained to me that they are shorthanded and he himself must work on my vehicle. This was not an issue to me as I can understand this is poor management and he was not responsible for any of the staffing, but the part I was disappointed on was the communication. The overall communication quality of the shop was just poor along with their terrible customer service skills (if any) was just bad. The service advisor told me that he was going to get my vehicle finished within today's time but had no ETA of when it will be finished. Right after that comment, he proceeded to hang up before I could reply. 3 hours later, the vehicle is finally finished but even after going through all this. Guess what, the steering wheel is dirty again from all the work done on the car.
Overall, the customer experience and service that was conducted at Tire Choice Auto Service Center was a solid D minus. Just barely enough to pass for me, the job requested was done to a minimum and the quality of workmanship was also terrible as some of the brake hardware was installed backwards and the technician didn't even bother to adjust the parking brake cable after he installed the brake shoes. Lastly, PLEASE wash your hands or put on some gloves after you are done working on a customer vehicle. read more