Wiygul Automotive Clinic-Pickett

As one would hope--timely, professionally done.

Excellent!! They were extremely customer focus, professional and helpful

On time, polite. Some confusion about the coupon.

Have used them for many years and am very satisfied with their honesty and quality of their work.

All work was performed as expected. I will continue to use them on a regular basis.

Perfectly as always. They replaced (under warranty) one of the new front wipers at no charge because it would not lay flat on the windshield. Remind me that I will need new tires soon because of weathering cracks (even though low mileage).

Very well and tires will be more affordable now

They changed my wipers and charged me for the removal & wiper blades, when I did not ask for this.

They did a good job. Always finished the car when they said they would. Very friendly & would always explain what they were doing and why.

I think they are honest people. They do the work that I need to be done and they don't try to do a lot of stuff I don't need.

Inspector was very, very, very thorough. My car failed for front brake pads. I changed them myself later, and measured the old ones. They were close, but within acceptable limits. On a previous inspection, the car failed for a burned out running light. When I said I would fix it myself, it was discovered that the bulb was ok, but had come out of the housing. The inspector legitimately caught a couple of iffy items that other shops probably would have passed. I have since found another shop that I'm very happy with.

It went fine. I am disappointed that it was necessary to replace the brakes on a 2-yr old car, but that is a complaint against the car manufacturer (Subaru) and not against Wuygul.

Returned 6 hours later to no bill and a car with 4 working tires. Haven't needed to re-inflate since. Not sure what they did, but just they fact that they could have put a new tire on and charged me and I wouldn't have known the difference but chose not to makes them ok in my book. Would and have recommended to friends.

Very good. Thorough and professional.

I have been taking my car to Wiygul for years and they are always extremely helpful and professional. They also will drive you to and from your home (if you live nearby) or to the metro so that you can leave your car with them while they work on it. They have always been extremely punctual in returning my car to me when they said they would. If they are very busy when you bring your car in, they will be upfront with you in telling you that there are several cars ahead of you, but they will still estimate when it will be done and are very good about having it completed by that time. I fell that they may be a little bit more expensive than some other local shops, but I am willing to pay a little more because of how they treat their customers. They always explain what work needs to be done and will tell you if work needs to be done immediately, or if it is something that can wait a few months. Highly recommend!

The work there is good. I have used them for several years in preference to the car dealerships. The mechanics have been good, effective, and thorough. They do their vehicle inspection and their reports have been accurate on things that they recommended and things that they found. I never had a problem with jobs being done incorrectly or parts left off or loosened up bolts. I would recommend them. They are fairly popular so you cannot always get in when you want. They have been able to complete work on time or ahead of schedule.

Generally the work and repair was good, as was the customer service. However I found that, as time went on, everytime I went to them, I ended up needing more and more work. They seemed to also become quite overpriced as I continued to go to them. I emailed the owner about my concerns and received no response. I also asked to be removed from their email listing, and they still have not done so.

The tires I wanted were not in currently in stock when I called. I had a nail in one of the old tires on my car in the meantime. They patched the old tire for free until the new tires came in. Their price was $40 higher than buying tires online but offered free rotations and "convenience" of dealing directly with them if there are any warranty concerns with the tires instead of an online company. A couple days later they mounted the new tires and did a four wheel alignment. The only problem was I noticed the new tires had the wrong speed rating, it was lower than the rating of the recommended tires for my specific car model and which came with the car when new. It was a simple mistake and they admitted very readily that the higher rating tire is recommended. Seeing as they had to get another set of tires ordered and they could not return the tires they mounted if I drove away with them, they offered me a loaner at no cost. They were very reasonable, didn't try to argue to get me to just accept a set of tires I didn't want, and didn't hit me up for having to pay additional costs for the mistake. The next afternoon I had the right set of tires mounted.

I'm afraid it did not go so well. First, after contacting several shops that specialized in automobile transmission repairs, including Wiygul, I chose Wiygul because of its Angie's List listing and because the receptionist said that Wiygul would provide a free assessment of the problem. Upon arrival I was informed that in fact there would be a charge for such an assessment -- $116 (the other shops with whom I checked said they would charge from $69 to $120) but that the amount would be rolled into the price of whatever work needed to be done. Although somewhat disconcerting, I was there, and somewhat concerned that the transmission was on the verge of giving out completely, and therefore decided to proceed. Wiygul personnel apologized, said that the receptionist with whom I spoke was new, and that it was hoped that I didn't have the impression that Wiygul was engaging in "bait and switch," and finally that it was their hope that I was there was because of Wiygul's good reviews. I took all of this on board and said to proceed. Second, Wiygul determined that the reason for the increasing difficulty in shifting my automatic transmission between reverse, drive and park was due to a rusty shifter cable, the end of which apparentlysnapped off during the inspection. They replaced it for $746, over $100 more than I later found out that the dealership from which I purchased the car would have charged. My experience with dealerships is that they typically charge more than independent shops like Wiygul. So, I was a bit surprised. That said, and to be fair, the shifter cable appears to have been installed properly. Third, and most relevant to this review, Wiygul assessed that the transmission was leaking. Although an old but well maintained car, not entirely unexpected (although this particularly model is recognized as being a long-lasting workhorse). I asked Wiygul if it made sense to first check for leaks. It was recommended that, rather than chasing such a leak at additional expense, I instead consider replacing the transmission, at a cost of either $2925 for a used transmission with a life-time warranty on the part only, or $4,453 for a Jasper transmission assembly with a three-year warranty on parts and any labor involved if the transmission needed to be replaced during that time. The latter, more expensive assembly was recommended because of the extended warranty. Given the cost, I sought a second opinion, at my original dealership, which I have not sought service from since my warranty expired years ago. They recommended checking for leaks first, which they did. They found no leaks, but rather a transmission that had been overfilled with fluid, and which appropriately was draining off, via the "breather valve," as a transmission apparently is designed to do when overfilled. Bottom line, my impression is that Wiygul in this particular case appeared too anxious to sell me a new transmission, without first more carefully and appropriately checking for leaks. $4,453 is a lot of money, and I am glad I didn't have to spend it. In good conscious, I could not recommend this shop to my fellow Angies List devotees, at least if they are seeking automobile transmission assistance.

It went great. It was the pulley's for my belt that needed replacing.

The main reason we always take our cars to Wiygul's is because they're honest. If it just costs $0.75 to fix something, that's what they charge. And they have very professional, well trained mechanics. They're not cheap, but they're honest and the car gets fixed right the first time. For general auto work, I've never found any place in NoVA as good as Wiygul's.

You buy their little coupon book for $59. It comes with "Free oil Changes". $10% on other services etc. Went in for a free oil change "can't do it today but we can change you axles for $850.00 today." Went another location for the oil change " it will be a 3 hour wait". I went else where for the leaking boots and axle replacement and saved over $300.00. Wiygul's get you in with the coupon book and screws you good. Making up problems. I got into a disagreement, with Wiygul's, Dave the Manager on Picket street. I am on his radar, since then he gives me very poor service. But if he is not around and I speak with someone else get a different, more reasonable. I get my questions answered and the answers are more honest. Dave LIED and stated the car would not pass inspection unless he replaced the boots and axles. My gut told me not to trust Dave the Wiygul manager. I Then took my car to another service station, the owner looked up Virginia's regulation governing inspections and axel replacement. And stated what Dave would have commented fraud had he forced me to replace the boots and axels in order to pass inspection. You can be sure if Dave the Wiygul manager is behaving this way with me he is lying taking advantage of others as well.

The State Inspector kept failing the car for a very minor mechanical issue. The repair estimate from Wiygul was huge (more than the car was worth). I took the car to another inspector who verified the issue but thought it was insignificant and not sufficient to fail the inspection (and was willing to bring in a Virginia State Trooper to verify), found some other issues (including a major hole in one of the mufflers), and worked with me to repair the car economically. (All issues fixed for about half the quote from Wiygul on just one problem.) As it turned out, the first inspector was well known by the second place, had previously worked for them but been let go, and gone to work at Wiygul. I'm not sure if state safety inspectors are employees or contractors or work for the state ... it seemed as if they are somewhat independent of the shop they operate in. But there is a clear conflict of interest for the inspectors to generate business for the repair shops. And the repair shops don't often question the inspectors. Beware! In other visits, Wiygul has been very accommodating and helpful, if pricey. I like the place and people, but am more wary about taking my vehicles there. They'll do a good job, but not in the cheapest way possible. They are happy to service with expensive labor and new parts, but seem less adept at keeping an older car on the road at minimal cost. If price is no object, Wiygul is a competent and good choice. When cost matters (like on older cars), not my first choice.

We have used Wiygul Automotive Clinic for nearly every oil change, safety inspection, and auto repair need we have had since we moved to the Alexandria area in 2003. The most recent service was an oil change (approximately 12/2013). Other services we have had include: tires, windshield, engine mounts, CV joints, headlight, timing belt, brakes, shocks and struts. The mechanics and managers are always friendly, in good humor, and responsive. I have often dropped off my car before work and received a phone call to explain the diagnosis for the car by the time I get to my office after a 40 minute commute. The shuttle service they offer is also quite helpful - they even ran the shuttle shortly after Snowmageddon.

Wiygul Auto did the repairs, but they ALWAYS found something else broken, so their repairs were over quotes. They also seemed higher priced and less trustworthy than another local shop.