Dave's Ultimate Automotive Inc

 

3

4

Noelle N.

Austin, TX

11/19/2009

First off... This has to be the cleanest auto shop I have ever stepped foot in. Huge props Dave's Ultimate!

Second, the customer service was incredibly satisfactory. I was treated in the highest regard and if I had a question, it was answered fully and quickly.

The wait time was close to nothing - my truck was inspected and I was out of there in 20 minutes.

I will definitely recommend this shop to all who ask!

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Elite '09

129

148

Jim C.

Austin, TX

10/1/2009

Summary:

Good service, but they're somewhat cavalier about time promises.

Long version:

I started going to Dave's earlier this year, after my dealer suggested spending $2400 to replace some "leaky" seals, leaky in the sense that the outside of the engine was getting dirty, not that it was dripping or losing fluids at noticeable rates. I've been happy with their minor service so far. Last week, however, was the first time I needed a real repair.

When I picked up my car at the Fast Park after my trip to Sweden, I noticed it was acting funny... the throttle was sticky, and it seemed to be downshifting hard sometimes while driving. I was worried it was the transmission again (am on transmission number 3, or maybe 4, all luckily under warranty), but noticed when I parked it or put it in neutral that the idle speed was revving from 800 RPM up to 2000 RPM at 1-2 second intervals.

Googling showed the most likely cause was a stuck or broken idle air control valve. I called Dave's the next day, asked them if they could look at it that day, and dropped it off. When I dropped it off I told them the symptoms and said I thought it was the IACV. One of the mechanics said it might also be a dirty throttle body, which I agreed to, since the throttle was sticky.

That afternoon, when I picked it up... it wasn't fixed. They hadn't gotten to it, or hadn't diagnosed it.

I dropped it off again the next day. Ryan called that day and said there was a lot of carbon buildup and said he was 99% sure that was it, and also suggested some other repairs (front brake pads low). When I picked it up, as they were backing it out, it started acting up again (it had not misbehaved while they were looking at it, apparently). I took it anyway since I needed to be somewhere, and it was better, but eventually the problem recurred and the check engine light came on again (it had come on and gone off before).

The next day, I dropped it off again, and said I needed the car by 4PM. Ryan said they'd try. (WTF???). I was talking to the guy that drove me to work (they have a nice shuttle service) and mentioned the problems, and he called Ryan and told him to order an IACV, on the theory that they could return it if that wasn't the problem, but if it was they could save some time.

That afternoon, they picked me up... and the car was ready at 6PM. They did fix it properly, I haven't had the issue recur. It ended up being about $1100 for a fuel system cleaning, IACV replacement, oil change, and replacement of the front brake pads.

So: I don't blame them for ignoring my suggestion that it was the IACV and cleaning the throttle body first, it might have been that and it would have saved me money if it had. Besides, I'm sure they get lots of idiots like me who think they can diagnose a car problem off the Internet, I'd ignore me too if I was a real mechanic :)

However, for a place that prides itself on customer service, they're pretty lackadaisical about getting the car back when promised. One nice thing about the dealer was that if I said I needed the car at a certain time, they had my car done or gave me a loaner at that time. If I'd had an important business dinner downtown at 5PM that day I said I needed the car at 4PM, I'd be really pissed that it wasn't ready until 6PM. Luckily for them I just wanted to go sculling before I coxed, so I didn't much mind missing some solo pain and suffering.

I'll go to them again, but I'll definitely note not to count on my car being ready until they're ready to close up shop.

Also, the prices seemed a little high... was $275 for the IACV, it's only $150 on the net. But maybe they had to get it from the dealer, and other parts that are replaced more often they stock themselves and have lower prices on.

But overall, the service is good, I would have given them 4 stars if they were a little more careful about getting my car ready when I said I wanted it ready.

Edit: Got a call from Dwayne at Dave's a few minutes after I posted this. It was a good example of how to handle a not-glowing review, he just apologized and said he'd do more training and try to do better in the future.

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