Cadillac Buick Specialist

As you can see by my user name I am part A1 Auto Tech. I have seen this review all over the internet by Zack & I remember him quite well. I would like to tell our side of the story regarding his experience. Zack did do all his homework, and we are one of the best in the emissions & diagnostic fields. We are a State of California Gold Shield Shop (not easy to obtain & keep) and like he said we don't get complaints from the BAR or Better bb. Zack knew his check engine light was on, which he should have told us when he arrived. Zack had had another car into another shop at another time that qualified for the consumer assistance program & he thought he could qualify again with a check engine light. Which, if it was test only directed or he was a hardship case he would have qualified, but neither of those applied. Once we run the vehicle on the dyno there is no turning back...we can't just say oops & not fail it. You can read many things on the internet about how to fix cars & it sounds really easy, as easy as plugging something in & it tells you what the problems are & how to fix them. Unfortunatly this is not true. Today's cars are computers just like the one I am typing on. It takes time to diagnose the vehicle with the proper equipment and a trained technician to do it. We normally charge 1-2 hours to diagnose a check engine light, depending on the year & make of the vehicle. And we do charge for our time on the vehicle. On the subject of Chuck. Chuck has been here for 14 years & he is one of the most beloved people by our customers. A1 has been in business for over 20 years, is run by a hands on owner that believes in integrity and doing the job right the first time. We have a 2 year or 24,000 mile warranty on parts and labor. So I am really sorry that Zack had a bad experience. I feel that he over reacted and now he is trying to get satisfaction with this. We appreciate feedback of any type & will always strive to do better. A1autogirl more

Brought my car in for smog, seeing as how A-1 is AAA certified, ASE Blue shield certified, no BetterBusinessBureau complaints, decent reviews online, etc.(I did a lot of HW) and I needed a new, honest mechanic for myself and my mom. I knew it was going to fail because my check engine light was on, but I wanted to see how they would work with me. First the pros: The receptionist was very, very nice. That's about it. Now the cons: They charge $60 for a smog check, and $40 for a retest, when most places, even gas stations that don't do repairs(aka. make money fixing cars that fail), are somewhere in the neighborhood of $30-40, then free retesting until you pass. OK, I'll give it a shot anyway, I'm here to try a new place. A little while later, 'Chuck' calls me back. He informs me, rudely, that my check engine light was on, which fails the test and wasted his time, and says for $250, which is 2 hours labor, he'll see what it is. I know that checking engine lights is as simple as plugging in a diagnostic tool, and that only once the code is read can the problem be ascertained. It could be something as simple as a low fluid that could take 2 minutes, or something much more serious that could take many more than 2 hours. Don't try and rip me off, estimating a flat fee of $250, that's unreasonable. He then proceeds to tell me, snidely, that if I pick it up, I'm still going to owe HIM $60 bucks. First off, I don't owe you anything buddy, you aren't the shop and you aren't the owner. Second, I know it's $60 dollars, I have the estimate in my hand, I'm not an idiot. In summation, their prices are too high, they charged me $60 to look at my dashboard and tell me something that I could see, and then the one mechanic I spoke with was unprofessional and rude. I would not recommend this place. more