Why 5 stars, here's why:
1. Dave and all his crew are very nice and friendy, and that is important when you grumpy that your car has a problem (not that I knew I had a problem after getting a "25point" inspection at the dealer).
2. Shuttle Service - always nice, especially at an independent shop.
3. The mechanic came out when I picked up so I could ask him any questions. I love it when I can talk to the mechanic at pick-up time.
4. Honesty and Intregrity! Yes, exactly. (see below)
5. It seems they don't want to take your money unless you need to spend it. Wow, what a concept!
I took my Toyota Sienna to the dealer and had it aligned, oil changed, and an inspection (we're getting ready to drive over the Rockies and back and I told them to please inspect thoroughly). The dealer returned it with no problems reported. The dealer also mentioned I was due for a 30k service but I'd have to make another appointment for that (seriously?).
So, I took it to Toy-Auto Masters to get the power-steering, transmission, brakes and coolant flushed for safe measure (what was left on the 30k mtc over what I already did) - the car is 4 years old now. Dave told me he'd inspect them all and flush unless it looked excellent. The expected bill was about $430.
Toy-Auto Masters called me back a little later. They would do the brakes ($120), but didn't want to do the others because the coolant is life-time, shouldn't need flushing and looked great, plus I had a leak from the Transmission Pan Gasket that they said the dealer should repair under warranty. Also it had a leak from the Power Steering Rack. They suggested I take it back and push for a "good will" repair on the steering rack. They were honest enough to tell me what the dealer didn't (I'm guessing the dealer would have waited til spring when my powertrain warranty expired), and to send me back to the dealer with details on what was wrong.
So, in the end, Toy Auto Masters gave up $300 (or a couple thousand if they just said they'd repair it) and the Dealer is doing the repairs, plus Toyota is covering the power steering rack parts ($600) and I only pay for the labor ($330). All in all, I'm paying what I expected to pay but I'll have two issues corrected too.
That is why I am giving them 5 stars. While I still have a warranty on the power-train until next March, I'm taking my van to Toy Auto Masters from here on out.
2010/12/17 update : A couple months after this visit we got the engine warning light and some other signals. Toy Auto Masters again pointed us back to the dealer to have our Catalytic Converter replaced. This would have been a very expensive repair, but they told us about the 8yr/80k warranty on emissions equipment. We also had them replace our broken right side mirror, a quick and great job. 5 stars again!
2011/03/23 update : Yep, same thing, great service. Was thinking of doing some work on my car, but after looking at it decided I didn't have time to try it. I took it to Toy Auto Masters and they did the work using my parts and then even better, the bill turned out about 20% less than the estimate. Honesty and Integrity. Oh, and my car is running really well now. read more