J & L Automotive Repairs & Service, Inc

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UPDATE: I received a voicemail from Tim who was willing to make the situation right. But then I got the following verbatim voicemail from the owner:
"Hi. This is John from J&L Automotvie. I just got the message that you're accusing us of cutting something in your car. To make it perfectly clear, we haven't cut anything. It might have been under the seat when the seat was removed to look at your car but accusing of us of doing damage to your car and putting CDs in your car that we found underneath your seat. Ma'am if you didn't like our price or what we were doing you didn't have to come up with excuses not to come back. Just don't come back. But we didn't charge you to check it out and we gave you an honest price. good luck. (Last words said with sarcasm)"

1) they were looking at the roof. I couldn't tell you why the seat needed to be removed nor did they tell me they had done that
2) the strap cut was around the back of the head rest, couldn't have been underneath the seat. Nor was it a part of the car but a personal item in the car
3) the CDs were never an accusation. I just didn't recognize them and wanted to make sure no one had lost their own personal items. Tim explained they found them in the rear console and I was fine with that. I bought the car used and I never sit in the backseat.
4) I called him because he was supposedly ordering parts for me and I thought he should know not to order them since I wouldn't be coming back and that he should know why
5) if he's that po'd, then he didn't need to call at all. I never asked for a replacement. Tim did that in his own.

Also, BEWARE, he bad mouths ppl who give him bad reviews to new customers. He did it when I came in about another bad reviewer.




For the record, I'm really hoping I can come back and update this review with more positive information.

J&L was recommended to me by someone I trust so I was thrilled to find someone that would hopefully do great work on my car.

John was perfectly nice in all my interactions prior to getting up there. And I will give him that he didn't charge me for all the diagnostic work he and his guys performed.

I originally dropped off my car on Wednesday night so they would have it Thursday morning. When I called him to see what was going on with my car, he said he was just getting the paperwork together right then and would call me back but he said "it's serious" so, of course, I start panicking. He didn't call me back for almost 2 hours so *I* called him. He tells me that it'll be around $800 for the part to fix my car. I'm not thrilled but I own a BMW so I knew it wouldn't be cheap. I said "OK" and asked him to look at the service light that was on.

I managed to get a ride from work up to his shop. When I get there, the part is suddenly $1300. He said he didn't realize that the place he got the part from would only do both sides of this particular fix, not just one. He claims to have worked on BMWs for a long long time so I'm skeptical that he couldn't give me the right price but I figure he's human and is entitled to a mistake.

Then he starts giving me this long list of things that is wrong with my car. Even to the point of telling me a light bulb is out (there are no lights out in my car) and that the outside temp gage isn't working (it is). He even told me I paid too much for my car. With the long list of problems he gave me, it seems unlikely I could have driven my car for over a year and not noticed something. But when I expressed some doubts he said it could be that the codes weren't cleared when the car was fixed previously.

I asked specifically if the car would pass an emissions test, he said it would.

He started looking up parts and telling me their prices while I was standing there but then I had to leave (it was the middle of the work day). He specifically said that 2 parts were $300 together and one part was $200. When he called me later, somehow, the parts and labor were over $1500. I was so stunned I didn't know what to think but I told him I didn't have that (which I had already told him). When I asked around, I was told this was too much for used parts and labor. When John sent me the order, the parts were over $700. That's very different from $500.

I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt on being honest but decided to shop around so I didn't take my car back right away.

The "service engine soon" light came back on before i even made it home that day which means it would have failed an emissions test. I took it to my normal car place and they were able to give me an exact cause without all the rigamarole I received at J&L. My normal car place isn't even a specialty place!

Then, when I went to put my dog in the car a couple of days later, I noticed that the strap to his seat had very clearly been cut. My dog is a chihuahua so he couldn't have chewed it and it was fine before I took it there. I had noticed that the seat wasn't up like it normally was, I just figured that they had unhooked it (it's REALLY EASY AND OBVIOUS how to unhook this little seat) but when I saw that the strap had been cut (rendering the seat completely useless) I called and left a voice mail telling them that I would not be returning. I cannot abide needless damage to personal property, especially since they didn't tell me it had happened when I picked the car up.

I really tried to give them the benefit of the doubt. I wanted to believe that he was honest, especially since he touted his Angie's List rating while I was there. I don't know if he thought I was young or thought I was female or thought I was dumb, but I don't like that he seemed ready to take advantage of my willingness to trust him. Or that he lets his guys damage personal property without a thought or at least owning up to it.

Went really well.  They were very upfront on what they do and don't do (a repair shop, not a tire store);  did offer a fair price on the repair work and a good price on tires, but were not put out at all when I opted to buy the tires at a tire shop.  Delivered estimate very quickly and did repair on budget and on time.  Treated my wife like a good customer as well and she is happy to go back to them as well.  That's quite a compliment. 

It worked out good. I have been to them four different times to have work done on the automobile and I tell you what, they treat me good. They are a good shop to deal with. Their pricing is fair.

I have used J&L for about 25 years.  They always take great care of my car needs.  Over the years my teenager and I drove some clunkers, but J&L kept them in great shape and safely on the road.  J&L cares about "you", not just your car, so no matter what you come in for, a small repair, oil change, or major work, they always thoroughly check out your vehicle before you leave the shop.  Prices are fair and they stand behind their work.  I wouldn't go anywhere else for car repairs.

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Our KIA Sedona was running poorly and the Engine Check Light was on. Of course this happens when the tag is due and an emission certificate is needed.
We happened to catch John, the owner of J&L Automotive, on a Saturday in his shop and he said come on by and he would look at it. He determined that I had a major leak in the air intake hose. With a roll of electrical tape he had me on my way in a short period of time.  
I really want to thank John for helping a stranger out with a problem because he thought my wife sounded worried over the phone.
He has earned my business!

I highly recommend J&L for car repair/services.  I have been a customer of J&L for 15+ years and John has always provided excellent service. They have provided service from changing the oil and rotating tires to removing the engine and transmission to reseal the engine block,  and the full gamut of services and what it takes to maintain a car.  John is a board certified master automotive technician and also has experience with European cars.  He is honest, stands behind his work and will never take advantage of any situation. He provides high quality and dependable car repair service at reasonable rates.  He has been a valuable resource when I have talked to him about purchasing a car and the pros and cons of the vehicles.  They are the best! 

He is going to be my regular mechanic. His work was superb and fast!

They did a very good job.

It went well.  Convenient location, they communicated well through the process. Fair price.

They put in a new catalytic converter

I am not from Georgia and just moved to the area a few months ago. I was told by a local Nissan dealer an outrageous price to fix my car so I went and got several other opinions. I found J &L Auto service on Angie's List and when I first called John was so friendly and helpful. They were honest and fair with me and I feel like I can trust them to not push unneeded work on me. The dealership had told me I needed a new CV boot and John explained that for the same price as that little plastic box I could get the whole axle replaced and I would need to do that in the future if the other CV boot broke, so that saved me a lot of money and time. I knew the sensor needed to be replaced for awhile now and they agreed.
My car is running great so far and all of their work is backed with a warranty so I am more than happy. I would recommend them to anyone.

My experience with John the owner and with phil was the best interaction I've ever had with auto MECHANICS.I'd recommend this company to everyone

From our very first phone call to a follow up visit for a mounting issue, the techs and reps at J&L have been exemplary. The cost of the repair was half that of an estimate from a competitor, and Chaz explained the pricing structure of parts so we'd understand why. Follow up was provided. J&L has won our trust which, after several costly and bad relationships with auto vendors in the area, was very difficult to accomplish. We are now customers for life.

I made an appointment ahead of time, when I arrived they took my car in right away.  They have a nice waiting room with wifi... which was nice. They topped off my fluids and even replaced my tag light... which I didn't even know was out. The office staff seemed friendly and honest. They did recommend some work that I should keep in mind to do in the near future. I will definitely be taking it back to them for those services.

It was a good experience, I liked it. I went back to them. I was happy.

service and work performed were excellent. Prices were fair and they are thorough.

Friendly, prompt - and the price was fair.

John and the guys and J&L are the only people I will take my car too.  The first time I took my car in for an oil change I asked them to look at the wheel bearings, thinking were in need of replacement.  They looked it over and told me they were fine and sent me on my way, no charge.  They go out of their way to do a good job.  These are the good guys.

They were convenient to me. I had some problems with the work they did, but I did not give them the chance to correct it. So, I really would not want to ding them on it because I should have taken it back. It was not really their fault.