BOB WARK'S LIBERTY

I got up this morning, started off on my commute, only to discover my tire warning light was on.  I got out and saw that one of my tires was low.  It was 6:30 in the morning and I didn't want to wait for AAA so I drove over to Bob Wark's, thinking I might have to wait but that someone could eventually help me.  As I drove in, the two service people on duty signaled to me where I should go and how to position my wheel.  They fixed my tire in less than 10 minutes, charged me $20 and I was on my way.  This is the third time I've had a tire or engine problem in the morning and gone to Warks--they always manage to fit me in and get the situation fixed.  I use my dealership for most routine service but I am always so glad I live near Wark's when something goes wrong.  They are truly a great neighborhood resource.

Everyone I know in this area brings their cars here, so being that it was super convenient I decided to do the same. Essentially I could drop it off for an oil change in the morning, walk down the street after work and pick it up.
A few weeks ago I did just that for an oil change ($55) and it worked out great. So, last week I did the same thing but for an emissions test and state inspection. A couple hours after dropping it in the morning I get a call saying that their is an arm's length of repairs needed, for a car that has never had any problems and is barely 4 years old. But hey, that doesn't mean nothing can go wrong with it, so I told them I'd be over soon during my lunch break to talk about the issues that came up.
The first paper I was presented was an estimate of repairs that exceeded $1,000. I was shocked and apparently he could see that in my face and offered to put my car back up on the lift and show me what was wrong with it. Me...knowing nothing about cars I agreed but I had already asked him to explain to me in detail what the issue was, so he knew I did not know anything beyond the basics of cars. During this show and tell, he made a couple references to the much more prestigious and nearly unrelated job he assumed I had (I was in there once before and we never talked about my work except that I said I worked down the street). I really paid no attention to these comments as I was perplexed by the issues with my car and now very stressed at the mounting costs.
As we continued to talk, numbers kept changing, it went from over $1k to 650 to 185. First I HAD to get EVERYTHING repaired to pass inspection, then he said the brakes and rotors did not have to be done RIGHT now but, he kept selling me on the control arm. He told me the bushings were torn and he could replace just those for about $185 but that I would be better off just replacing the whole arm for $650 because I would be paying so much for the labor anyway. He also said that he wouldn't charge me for the inspection again if I got the repairs done there.
I left and called my fiancee because something felt really off, he agreed and that we should not be impulsive about it. I liked that idea, so I took my failed inspection report and went home to think about it. We decided that despite the near hour drive we would take the car to the family mechanic in bucks county.
First thing Monday, the car went to bucks county and a few hours later our mechanic called saying he had absolutely NO idea what this place (Liberty) was talking about. He said that one bushing looks to be cracking SLIGHTLY and it could be years before it actually becomes torn. But other than that absolutely nothing was wrong with any other part of the control arm and that no one should fail a state inspection based on a "bushing that is just beginning to crack."
Shocked but thrilled I told him to go ahead with a new inspection, when I came to pick up the car he said nothing was wrong with it. I said, not even the brakes? He said, "ya they are wearing down but you have another year or so left on them." All in all, our mechanic checked the control arms, did a full emissions and state inspection and replaced the washer clip on my door hinge that had popped off over the weekend...all for $53 including tax!
Long story short... I will NEVER be returning to Bob Wark's Liberty regardless of how convenient they are. They lied to me, on the phone and to my face by making up things that were completely untrue about my car- attempting to rob me. The services I have gotten from them have clearly been poor quality and they were over priced to begin with. I mean, $84 for emissions and inspection? $55 for an oil change? I understand paying a little more for convenience but that is a LOT more and it was terrible service to boot.
My employers, co-workers and friends in the area are now very concerned about the services they paid for from this scam artist...wondering how bad they had been swindled, like how many things they had done that didn't need to be and how much money they'll never get back. While it is true that some people living in the Bala Cynwyd area have "extra" money but the majority do not and no one deserves to be stolen from, we all have places are money actually NEEDS to go to.
Conclusively, I am so glad my fiancee and I trusted our instincts and though the driving time really strapped us for time the past few days it afforded us peace of mind and saved us over $1,000, their is no way to fully express our gratitude to our mechanic nor to illustrate on here how worth it it will always be to take our cars ANYWHERE ELSE.
In short, Bob Wark's Liberty--> ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK.

When my car wouldn't start on a Sunday, I had a tow truck come out, he got it started and recommended I drop it somewhere to be checked out.  I left it at Wark's and got a call the next morning that it started right up.  I explained the issue and he spent the rest of the day testing it to see why it didn't start for me.  Ultimately he couldn't duplicate the issue but tried diligently and gave me some suggestions for if it occurred again.  He only charged me $43 bucks - well below what I expected for the time he spent.

THEY DID EXCELLENT WORK AND I HAD NO PROBLEMS WITH THE SERVICES WHEN THEY WERE COMPLETED. THEY ARE A PROFESSIONAL AND COURTEOUS COMPANY TO DEAL WITH. I WAS HAPPY WITH THE WORK DONE.