Firestone Complete Auto Care Store

4 day nightmare. Left w power steering fluid pouring out center of the bumper. Every time I address the problem the manager says “nothing we did caused this.” Corporate gave me the song and dance someone will get back to you within 48 hrs, and no one has. Wasted 4 days without a vehicle. The air is blowing cool but power steering fluid is leaking in several places. GO somewhere else. They did not seal the power steering line. Totally incompetent mechanics. They will convince you you need other services to pad the bill.

unknown

The short version is long waits, over priced and immoral business practices.
I have been living in the area for 12 years and have tried several different businesses. Dunbars Automotive off Rancier is a long time favorite of mine. Sure the shop isn't anything to look at and the employees don't have pretty uniforms, but they are honest and have very reasonable prices.There was a repair that the mechanic at Dunbars had guess wrong twice and repaired it on the third try. Since I had to pay for parts and labor on all three repairs, I became disgruntled and looked for a different repair shop. So I tried the Firestone in Harker Heights.
I found that every time I went, there were recommendations for expensive repairs even when I went for just an oil change. I handed over about $4000 before issues with what felt like a front end alignment issue. When I brought it in, they said it needed $1600 of work to fix the issue. I couldn't afford it and told them I would bring it else where. Three of the employees then gathered in a huddle and spoke in hushed tones. Since I had purchased the lifetime alignments program, they did the alignment for what ended up being free and the problem was fixed. At first I was happy that I had avoided such a hefty repair bill, but as I had thought about what had transpired, I realized that they had lied to try and get me to purchase a repair that I didn't need. The other repairs that I had been duped into probably weren't needed either. It is these predatory practices aimed at customers that don't know any better that guarantees that I will never go to that Firestone again and I recommend that anyone considering it look to a more honest shop like Dunbars or Running Right Auto Care (right down the expressway from Firestone).

unknown

unknown

I think it went well. I think they were straightforward with their assessments and with their recommendations on services and I thought they presented a good description of their assessment and that they didn't seem like they were trying to put in an agenda or sell me anything. For the quality, so far so good, I have no complaints. I had scheduled some appointments and made some changes and they are very flexible. They completed the work when they said that they would. I plan to use them again.

My tires were needing replaced so I went online to shop prices for new tires. I called Firestone because they were having a sale on a tire that THEIR website matched for my vehicle. I called to schedule an appointment and the woman tried to up-sell me by claiming that the tires I saw would fit my car but were not the correct speed rating. I asked what the speed rating would affect and she did not have an answer. I stated I wanted the sale tires and set up the appointment for that day. I also needed a state inspection. They were fairly quick to get my vehicle in a bay and getting the tires on. A tech came out and told me that my car would not pass inspection until I got my cracked tail light replaced. He then gave me a quote of $400...I bought the part and did it myself for $174. I was given a fail slip for the inspection, then after I replaced the tail light I went back and they re-inspected it. I waited for 2 hours for the re-inspection- longer than the 4 tires took to install on the first visit. Since my visits my tire sensor warnings keep coming on and off. Overall I got what I needed from this company, but still felt like they were trying to take advantage at every opportunity. Just be informed before you go to Firestone.

I am very happy with their services. They were very easy to work with and they call when when your car is due for service. They call and tell you how much it's going to be and it's always reasonable. They take care if you have a problem and get it out of your way.

I had my tires rotated last February and they provided good service. I give them an A rating and I will use them again.

The oil change and lubrication was done as ordered, with no problems to report. They offer three levels of oil changes and I opted for the more expensive "High Mileage" level. I have no issues with the work that was done on my car.

As for the free courtesy inspection - while the car was still in their service bay, the service writer went over some of the problems they found during the "courtesy inspection", to see if I wanted to have some of that work done. I find a few of the problem items to be highly questionable.

(1) I was told their test showed the battery as being weak and it needs to be replaced. I just had a new battery installed in this vehicle on March 31, 2011.
(2) I was told that there are some leaks around the oil pan gasket and around the oil pan drain plug, so I should keep a close eye on it. I park this vehicle on a clean concrete driveway at my home and there have been no oil stains noticed there over the three month period that it has been parked there.

After I left Firestone, I located a local dealer for the manufacturer of the battery that I purchased a few months ago. I had them inspect the battery and the first thing they found was loose battery cable terminals. It took three turns of a wrench to tighten one of the battery cables. After the cables were tightened properly the battery was tested again and showed to be in near perfect condition. With the loose cables, I can see why the test done on the battery at Firestone gave a bad reading. I am not accusing Firestone of tampering with the battery cables, but I do have questions in my mind about why their technician didn't check to make sure the cables were tight before performing the test on the battery.

I am not happy with the "courtesy inspection" that was performed on this visit. I will continue to use Firestone for some auto and tire maintenance work. In this case, I believe some services were recommended that are not needed and that raises a red flag for me.

As far as I am concerned the free courtesy inspections are a waste of time and I will not pay much attention to their findings in the future.

A complete auto inspection was performed for about $20. It included inspection of the major drive train, mechanical, electrical and suspension systems and components, as well as checking the condition of the exhaust system, tires and brakes. Their findings indicated that the front shocks and rear shocks/struts were blown and the rear auto leveling bag was broken and disabled. There were also some bushings worn in the suspension system (front and rear). I was told that it would cost about $900 to replace the rear auto leveling struts and do the necessary repairs to the rear end suspension system, and it will cost about $1300 to replace the front shocks and do the necessary repairs to the front end suspension system. I authorized them to go ahead with the work on the rear end. The repairs were completed in about 5 hours.

Since I had the work done on the old Cadillac, the ride is much smoother and quieter. I have confidence that the work was done properly. I was always treated with courtesy.

All in all, I am very well pleased with the services provided by the facility. The prices are higher than I expected, but this involves an older luxury class vehicle and many of the suspension parts are available only from GM. I plan to use this facility for future services and repairs to the Cadillac, including doing the work on the front suspension as soon as I can afford it
======================================================
Follow up: Oil change and lubrication was done on this vehicle 6/15/2011.