STEVE'S BODY AND FENDER SHOP

At first I thought this would work out. Steve sent someone to take pictures to my home to get an estimate. The price seemed reasonable, but because the work would not be backed by insurance, he demanded the full price up front. Originally this was $5000. With help from family I paid this. The work seemed to be going well and my questions were always answered rapidly. The true trouble started when I told Steve I was going out of town for 2 weeks. He called the morning I was leaving and said that he needed $2000 more to complete the work. I told him that I would be unable to do this as I did not have the money and my family that was helping me was also out of town. Instead of finishing the work while I was gone, he just sat on the project. This delayed the repairs further, now stretching into 8 weeks. Then I got a call from Steve saying that instead of replacing the airbags at his shop like he said that he would do, he was going to send the car to the Chrysler dealership in Spokane. This started another round of issues as they would not do it without replacing the dash as it had been torn, something that had not been the case when I last saw the car. I believe the technician as Steve's tore it and that Steve did not want to take responsibility for the damage. This was settled between Spokane Chrysler and myself, but was another headache. Also, the last time I had a message from Steve before he would release the car to me was appalling. He called, said the car was ready, and sounded polite and professional. It wasn't until after he THOUGHT he hung up that his true personality came out. He started griping to another customer about how bad I had been by not paying him and taking up space in his shop. He said he was doing me a favor, a statement I disagree with as the price went up by half as much and he did not do all the work he promised. This tirade to another client went on for three full minutes before he realized that he had not hung the phone up. When I saw him again he was all smiles and courtesy, but the message on my answering machine told a different story. All in all, the work ended up being of a substandard quality as the A/C was never fixed, only filled so it leaked all of the fluid out, the alignment left the steering wheel off-center, the hood has warped, and the replacement headlight cover has yellowed instead of staying clear like the factory one on the other side. I also had continued problems with the electrical system in the car for a number of the years. The only thing was pleased with was the paint job. Also, I have never worked with a company that refused to do any work until paid in full, or with someone who was so two-faced or unwilling to compromise as Steve was. I have told many people my story and never recommend Steve to anyone for any reason.