Sears Auto Center

This was not a pleasant experience...
I made an appointment with Sears Automotive for 9:00 am next day.  Next day at 9:00am nobody answered phones since i called several times to give notice i would be late for my 9:00 am appointment.  Even at 9:15 they still did not answer the phones. This is not the first time they just ignore answering the phones.  The front desk staff is lazy and completely self-absorbed.
Previously, I did my research and wanted the newer Hancook 727 tires, at $95.00 each, to replace the worn out Hancook 725's that were on my car.  The Sears service manager said that my requested tires were a 'T' speed range tire and that the manufacturer, Volvo, recommended a 'V' speed range tires.
I told him, "Look I don't need a high performance 'V' tire rated at 150 mph because we don't have unlimited speed highways in NJ." Shockingly, the manager then told me that he could not put 'T' speed range tire on my car because it was against company policy and was a safety issue. Note: a 'T' rated tire is good to 118 mph.  Clearly this clown was lying thru his teeth.
I then asked, "So what tire would you put on my car?". He recommended a $130 'V' rated tire instead of the $95 'T' tire. I told him that I have been driving on the $95  'T' speed range tires for years and that i don't drive over 70 mph. Why do i need a 150 mph tire".  "Are you telling me that you won't put the tires i want on my car?", I asked.
He then tried to look like he was reading the fine print on the back of his service order.  Then after an excruciating full 5 minutes of silence like he was trying to force me to give in, he finally looked up and said, "It says here... it is not recommended".  Now, I'd say that is a long way from refusing to put on the cheaper tires i wanted because of some bogus company policy.
Clearly this Service manager tried to "strong arm" me into buying a more expensive tire because he was more concerned with his monthly production numbers than in providing clean cheerful service to the customer which was wanted.  
Lastly, I specifically asked for rubber valve stems and instead they put in the more expensive aluminum stems and charged me for it.
Bottom Line... SEARS AUTOMOTIVE MIDDLETOWN IS CREEPY, LOW ENERGY, AND NOT RECOMMENDED.  I WILL NOT GO BACK TO SEARS AUTOMOTIVE AFTER THIS UNSAVORY EXPERIENCE.

It has been very good.

Went in just to have battery replaced. Waited 45 minutes while they tested it. No word from them. Looked in and saw all techs standing around talking; no one testing my battery. At which point associate told me he had forgotten to tell me that yes my battery needed replacing, so I lost 30 minutes there. Then after they finished the job and were closing up shop, they gave me the keys to the car. Starting driving home and found that all controls on steering column were now not powered. They had blown the fuse for those controls during the battery replacement. Have to go back in now tomorrow just because of their improper work on a battery replacement. Cannot recommend these guys.

They held on to the car for 4 or 5 hours and called me to say that there is no PCV in the truck (incorrect), they could not tell if the serpentine was faulty and they did not do the fluid change. They did nothing, however they asked if I wanted the engine flushed!! I said no - they asked if I wanted an oil change - I said look at the windshield sticker it was changed three weeks ago. Basically they did nothing and offered what I did not want. I picked up the truck and Vlad apologized for the bait and switch and said it was not 'his fault'. Senior management at this dying institution may want to put customers first if they want to survive and leave these cheap tactics to the backyard mechanics. I will not be back.

We have always had good fortune with them. I would recommend them. I was very happy with the price and the service. The price was competitive.