Beware of Midas!
12-23-2003, 10:00 PM
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Beware of Midas!
So here's the story...(long)
Saturday...notice my muffler is getting loud so stop in to Midas to have them have a look...they tell me that I need everything from the front pipe back replaced to the tune of $800+ dollars...I don't think so. So soon I'm pulling my motor out of my STD and the exhaust on that is still good with a brand new front pipe on it...might need a muffler, but that's no big deal. $800 my ass!
...I knew that I had to change the wheel bearing in my right front (getting a loud roar at high speeds when I turn right), so Sunday I swap out the hub assembly, tie rod end and axle from my smashed STD. My buddy and I take it for a test drive...not as bad but still making a "rubbing/roaring" sound. We go back to his garage and discover that the wheel bearing on the drivers side needs to be done too...make plans to do this on Monday night.
Monday go into Midas to make an appointment for an alignment on Tuesday, I noticed that they only charged $39.95 for an alignment when I was there on Saturday.
Today I go in to get my alignment...I get back after I go for lunch and they tell me it's not done because I need a left front tie rod end, a left upper control arm assembly, and a right inner tie rod...give me a quote...almost $900!!! WTF!?!? ($720 in parts before tax!)
Call around the city this afternoon and get the exact same parts (mind you not lifetime warranty, but I really don't care) and get the SAME parts for $163.00...with tax! So tonight over to my buddy's garage and change everything they said I needed...I figured I needed the tie rod end but I am sure that there was nothing wrong with the control arm...but changed it anyway. I didn't change the inner tie rod because my buddy and I could find absolutely nothing wrong with it. Total time: 4 hours, Total cost: $163.00 CDN.
Remember the muffler...while I had the car up I was looking at the muffler...there is about a 1.5" (vertical) hole in the pipe near a bend (not on the bend) about a foot from the muffler after the first bend from the straight pipe...not one other thing wrong with the exhaust...maybe needs a muffler...had planned on changing that anyway. They had me changing the whole exhaust for a 1.5" hole!!!
So tomorrow I am gonna take my car to another place while I finish my Christmas shopping and have them do an alignment...if they don't even mention the inner tie rod...jesus i'm gonna be pissed. Plus, I'm gonna see if they can either weld this hole in the exhaust or put in another piece of pipe to fix it and weld that in there...if they can...then I'm reeeaally gonna be pissed.
Midas tried to get almost $2K out of me and they didn't need too...and this was the first time I walked through their door...that was the worst first impression I've ever had at anywhere I've taken a car. If it turns out the way I am hoping tomorrow...I have half a mind to go back to Midas and tell them just that!
Thank-you for letting me vent...but damn, that just pissed me off!
Jason
Saturday...notice my muffler is getting loud so stop in to Midas to have them have a look...they tell me that I need everything from the front pipe back replaced to the tune of $800+ dollars...I don't think so. So soon I'm pulling my motor out of my STD and the exhaust on that is still good with a brand new front pipe on it...might need a muffler, but that's no big deal. $800 my ass!
...I knew that I had to change the wheel bearing in my right front (getting a loud roar at high speeds when I turn right), so Sunday I swap out the hub assembly, tie rod end and axle from my smashed STD. My buddy and I take it for a test drive...not as bad but still making a "rubbing/roaring" sound. We go back to his garage and discover that the wheel bearing on the drivers side needs to be done too...make plans to do this on Monday night.
Monday go into Midas to make an appointment for an alignment on Tuesday, I noticed that they only charged $39.95 for an alignment when I was there on Saturday.
Today I go in to get my alignment...I get back after I go for lunch and they tell me it's not done because I need a left front tie rod end, a left upper control arm assembly, and a right inner tie rod...give me a quote...almost $900!!! WTF!?!? ($720 in parts before tax!)
Call around the city this afternoon and get the exact same parts (mind you not lifetime warranty, but I really don't care) and get the SAME parts for $163.00...with tax! So tonight over to my buddy's garage and change everything they said I needed...I figured I needed the tie rod end but I am sure that there was nothing wrong with the control arm...but changed it anyway. I didn't change the inner tie rod because my buddy and I could find absolutely nothing wrong with it. Total time: 4 hours, Total cost: $163.00 CDN.
Remember the muffler...while I had the car up I was looking at the muffler...there is about a 1.5" (vertical) hole in the pipe near a bend (not on the bend) about a foot from the muffler after the first bend from the straight pipe...not one other thing wrong with the exhaust...maybe needs a muffler...had planned on changing that anyway. They had me changing the whole exhaust for a 1.5" hole!!!
So tomorrow I am gonna take my car to another place while I finish my Christmas shopping and have them do an alignment...if they don't even mention the inner tie rod...jesus i'm gonna be pissed. Plus, I'm gonna see if they can either weld this hole in the exhaust or put in another piece of pipe to fix it and weld that in there...if they can...then I'm reeeaally gonna be pissed.
Midas tried to get almost $2K out of me and they didn't need too...and this was the first time I walked through their door...that was the worst first impression I've ever had at anywhere I've taken a car. If it turns out the way I am hoping tomorrow...I have half a mind to go back to Midas and tell them just that!
Thank-you for letting me vent...but damn, that just pissed me off!
Jason
12-24-2003, 12:28 AM
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That's why I don't take my cars to shops. Ever.
Think of it this way: you are smart enough to avoid getting scammed. That's already more then 95% of the population can say.:thumbup:
Think of it this way: you are smart enough to avoid getting scammed. That's already more then 95% of the population can say.:thumbup:
12-24-2003, 05:19 AM
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yep i have to concur anytime u take ur car to a shop they are going to suggest every possible fix and try to charge you for it all, and labor costs are ridiculous. so many times ive needed work done been quoted ridiculous prices then gone out bought all the tools i needed to get the job done right and done it myself, lets just say that now my garage contains every tool you could ever need to fix a car and i have gained the knowledge over the years to do just about any procedure you can think of. only thing i ever go to a shop for is tricky welding jobs cuz i suck with the torch... and arent ashamed to mention it... lol i normally have people bring their cars to my garage now and i charge them alot less to do the same job and 50/hour is good pay and a great deal for most ppl instead of the 70-80 you'll get at any shop around my area. mostly just do basic tuneups/ timing/ axles/ lube jobs and thats about it, but occasionally ill get some more complex jobs.
12-25-2003, 08:57 AM
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Shops!!
I live in an apartment and none of my buddies have good work space so I have been putting off projects lately. I can hear a CV starting to act up and need to jump into my new Honda manuals (factory!) when they arrive to seee if I can sneak the job in out in the parking lot. Shops sometimes highball you with a price and will let you talk them down to what you really need. This is done hoping you will bite on the big price tag and if not and only want say half the work- they are not on the hook for the warranty should anything fail- realted or not- since they ' told you so'. Good job on not gettin crook'd by those freaks. Did the other shop mention the inner tie?
12-25-2003, 09:18 AM
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I'm RICK JAMES, bitch!
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I took my car to midas once because my old exhaust rusted apart so I was going to have them make a custom one. They started to lift my car up randomly under the body and I flipped out and took my car back and drove a way.
I had a Camry at work with 2 huge splits in the underbody because some dickhead before jacked it up randomly under the body and not the jack points, I don't need that happening to me.
I had a Camry at work with 2 huge splits in the underbody because some dickhead before jacked it up randomly under the body and not the jack points, I don't need that happening to me.
12-25-2003, 10:30 AM
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the dumbasses at midas near me (had them weld on a stainless steel tip to my stainless steel muffler as it came with a ricey 4" tip) used regular steel weld wire (did a shitty job too) to weld the stainless steel tips together...guess what...it is rusting and there is a hole at the weld already
if you are ever going to bring your car in the shop for estimates...do it right and bring it to the dealer or a trusted mechanic...the meinike and midas guys have little to no training or understanding of cars
if you are ever going to bring your car in the shop for estimates...do it right and bring it to the dealer or a trusted mechanic...the meinike and midas guys have little to no training or understanding of cars
12-26-2003, 08:15 AM
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cstem if u want come on down to tucson and bring ur car to my garage i can do an axle for 30 bucks in about 15 minutes if u want. axles are cake but any shop will say that its a one hour job as the shop clock says and charge u quite a bit. good luck
12-27-2003, 06:30 AM
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midas just sucks. my cousins car was loud so she took it there for them to look at it. they told her that there was a hole in the muffler and there is no way that she should even drive the car home. so she asked why. they told her that with the hole in the muffler it could suck cold air in it and put it into the motor and cause it to warp. how the hell would it suck cold air in when theres hot air going out of it?
12-27-2003, 09:01 AM
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OK...so here's the latest...
I went on x-mas eve to another place (Canadian Tire) and just asked them to do an alignment (remember I have not replaced the right in tie rod that Midas said I needed)...they slap the car up and 45 minutes later I have a four wheel alignment done, no problems at all.
Next step I take back the inner tie rod that I bought...obviously don't need it.
Then I go to another muffler shop (Speedy) and explain what Midas said I needed and that they quoted me over $800 + tax (977+)...the mechanic's eyes almost fell out of his head when I said that...so he goes and looks at my car, and in 10 minutes comes back shaking his head. He smiles, he goes to the computer, taps a few keys, print out a piece of paper, then says that I have two options....first he gives me the paper he's holding and says that this is for everything that I could possibly need...new...I look and laugh...$340...taxes in! Then he takes me out to show me the actual underside of the car (Midas did not do this...wouldn't let me anywhere near the car)...one of the problems was a cracked weld...this was due to a 'hanger' that had broken off and caused strain on the muffler welds and cracked a couple...he said it's temporary but he could re-weld the broken welds and he'd put in a new hanger...final price for this...$50.00 even!!
As I'm pulling out of Speedy with a big grin on my face...I turn to the right and see the Midas sign...6 stores down the street (place evil grin here) and say to myself...hell yah! I went in to Midas and they were just closed up and all were sitting around having a x-mas drink (this was x-mas eve day)...don't want to bore you with the 'rant' that ensued at this point but I basically told them that I didn't need what they told me, they tried to screw me out of money on parts that I didn't need...on parts that I did need they tried to overcharge me, and that I was totally unimpressed with this behavior. I told them to remove my name from their computer because I would not be frequenting their shop again in the future....then drove away.
Midas Suspension Parts = $720 + tax = $828
Midas Labour Cost = $200 + tax = $230
Total = $1058.00
My parts cost = $130 (taxes in after returning unsued part)
My labour cost = $0 (4.5 hours, having never done it before)
Savings = $928.00!!!
Midas Muffler Parts = $445 + tax = $512
Midas Labour Cost = $200 + tax = $230
Total= $742.00
Speedy Repair cost = $50.00 (taxes in)
(Speedy Replacement cost = $340.00, taxes in)
Savings= $692.00!!
(If speedy replaced pipe = $402.00)
Total Saving=$1620.00 !!!
(if speedy replaced = 1330.00)
That's insane!
I'm grumpy now...going to play with my x-mas toys...
Jason
I went on x-mas eve to another place (Canadian Tire) and just asked them to do an alignment (remember I have not replaced the right in tie rod that Midas said I needed)...they slap the car up and 45 minutes later I have a four wheel alignment done, no problems at all.
Next step I take back the inner tie rod that I bought...obviously don't need it.
Then I go to another muffler shop (Speedy) and explain what Midas said I needed and that they quoted me over $800 + tax (977+)...the mechanic's eyes almost fell out of his head when I said that...so he goes and looks at my car, and in 10 minutes comes back shaking his head. He smiles, he goes to the computer, taps a few keys, print out a piece of paper, then says that I have two options....first he gives me the paper he's holding and says that this is for everything that I could possibly need...new...I look and laugh...$340...taxes in! Then he takes me out to show me the actual underside of the car (Midas did not do this...wouldn't let me anywhere near the car)...one of the problems was a cracked weld...this was due to a 'hanger' that had broken off and caused strain on the muffler welds and cracked a couple...he said it's temporary but he could re-weld the broken welds and he'd put in a new hanger...final price for this...$50.00 even!!
As I'm pulling out of Speedy with a big grin on my face...I turn to the right and see the Midas sign...6 stores down the street (place evil grin here) and say to myself...hell yah! I went in to Midas and they were just closed up and all were sitting around having a x-mas drink (this was x-mas eve day)...don't want to bore you with the 'rant' that ensued at this point but I basically told them that I didn't need what they told me, they tried to screw me out of money on parts that I didn't need...on parts that I did need they tried to overcharge me, and that I was totally unimpressed with this behavior. I told them to remove my name from their computer because I would not be frequenting their shop again in the future....then drove away.
Midas Suspension Parts = $720 + tax = $828
Midas Labour Cost = $200 + tax = $230
Total = $1058.00
My parts cost = $130 (taxes in after returning unsued part)
My labour cost = $0 (4.5 hours, having never done it before)
Savings = $928.00!!!
Midas Muffler Parts = $445 + tax = $512
Midas Labour Cost = $200 + tax = $230
Total= $742.00
Speedy Repair cost = $50.00 (taxes in)
(Speedy Replacement cost = $340.00, taxes in)
Savings= $692.00!!
(If speedy replaced pipe = $402.00)
Total Saving=$1620.00 !!!
(if speedy replaced = 1330.00)
That's insane!
I'm grumpy now...going to play with my x-mas toys...
Jason
12-30-2003, 07:17 PM
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Midas and other muffler shop chain stores give quality dealerships and shops a bad name. I know a former manager of a quick lube and he said that they will do anything to meet a quota. Usually $45-60 dollars for every car they work on. Midas is even worse, they have a quota of $400-700 dollars for every car that pulls in the door. They will sell anything that the customer says ok to. Even if the car doesn't need anywork. I work at a dealership and we have to mention every potential problem on a car, even if it's under warranty. I would probably get fired if I or anyone else at my shop got caught trying to rip someone off. don't just say every mechanic is a crook or con-artist. you just have to find an honest mechanic and they will treat you right.