Import Auto Maintenance

12/01/11

Awesome!!

by DukeNashville at Citysearch

These guys know their stuff and will only do what is necessary. My wife brought in her car that had been quoted as needing a new transmission for over $1500 and IAM replaced their axle to fix the problem for $450. I unfortunately took my car elsewhere when they quoted a job for $1000 and another said $400, but by the end of the day the other place ended up charging me $1800 so I never should have left!! I'll be back for good now!

11/27/11

Lack of communication leads to a lousy experience

by HomerJ64 at Citysearch

I have used IAM in the past and was always very satisfied. My latest experience was so bad I had to have my vehicle towed somewhere else to fix it.

I work in the auto industry and have had many different BMWs, so I have seen a lot of what can happen to them but my 2006 325i was a bit outside my technical ability to repair. I knew it was likely the thermostat or water pump that caused the overheating. I had my vehicle towed there a Sunday afternoon after overheating.

I left my keys at the drop box and filled out the paperwork explaining what had happened and what I suspected was wrong.

I expected some sort of call shortly after they opened Monday to tell me they received my car alright and just to check in with me.

I received no call and had to call later that morning to know they had started inspecting it. They later called me back to tell me they expected the water pump (which I had told them I thought it was) and needed to do a $100 diagnosis to tell them exactly what it was. I explained that I really thought it was the water pump. I was told that they really should do the diagnosis because they thought it was a control module for the water pump which would be less expensive to replace.

I reluctantly agreed to this. After hours later of not getting a call back I called and heard an all too familiar “I was just about to call you", and was told it was the water pump just as I expected. I was a bit upset since I had expected that and just wasted $100 to tell me what I knew. I explained this to the service writer and could not get a reasonable answer.

I was told I needed to not only replace the water pump but also the thermostat and do an extra pressure test. I asked if the thermostat had been bench tested and was informed it was a mechanical unit different than the old units you could test in hot water. I then asked why I needed to replace it since it was not likely to be damaged from overheating like the older model thermostats. I was simply told it just needed it and the service writer could not explain to me at all why. I was then informed the fan was on its way out as well.

I was then told it would be over $2,000 to repair all this. I was taken aback a bit at the total and had to look at my finances to see what to do. In that time I researched prices for the parts and found that they were being marked up over 100% from what I could purchase them for at the dealership. I understand companies need to make money and profit is key but over 100% markup? Is that not a bit over the top? I even asked if any concessions could be made since I paid for the diagnosis or if I could purchase the parts and pay to have them installed? The attitude of the service writer changed and became very rude. I was rushed off the phone and basically hung up on saying they would get back to me.

Of course hours went by and I did not hear back. In the mean time I called the dealership and found they would do all the same work for $600 less and offer a free loaner car! When I got around to calling IAM back I was told of course they would not install parts I bring in and I asked if they could match the dealership price at all to keep my business there. I was told once again they would get back to me.

The day finished and I waited a few hours the next morning for them to open and get back to me on the price. No call back, so I called cashed out my bill of $109 for me to be told what I already knew and had a tow truck bring my car to the dealership to get the work done.

09/08/11

Lost ALL confidence in them

by MelTS at Citysearch

We've been going to IAM since moving here a year-and-a-half ago and thought that they were great but.........

At the end of August 2011, one week before a trip, I took my car in for an oil change, tire rotation, alignment, and pre-trip inspection. The next day, I was called and told that new front rotors and brakes were needed to which I gave them the okay to do. The third day, I got a call informing me that they were having difficulty aligning the tires and that the car needed a new steering rack and tie rods. It was at this point that I called our trusted mechanic in our hometown, one of my husband's oldest friends. It was decided that we'd wait for him to take a look at the rack and rods because this is all adding up to well over $2000. Mind you, we're talking about a 2001 Outback so we're obviously not "loaded".

Picked up the car and paid in total over $1000. The first leg of our trip was the first time that we'd driven the car on the interstate since getting it back. We noticed a new noise and feel in the front end but continued on, thinking it might be the new brakes settling in. The next day, the noise and feel were getting worse. Because we happened to be in our hometown, we called the trusted mechanic who came in on a Saturday to take a look. The lug nuts were not tightened on the wheels! After taking care of that, he put the car on the lift to take a look at the rack and rods. It was at this point that it was noted the brakes HAD NOT been worked on and the rack and rods didn't appear to need replacement.

I notified IAM via email (because it was on a weekend) about the discoveries and asked that we please receive a call to address the problems. The call was received the following Tuesday and they admitted that the brake had not been done. Their "solution" was to refund HALF of the brake work and finish the job. I had a week to think over this and decided that I had lost ALL confidence in them. Upon returning from our trip, I went in to request a refund of ALL ($791+/-) the brake money to which they complied. All that was said was, "Sorry 'bout that" as I walked out the door.

Follow up: Received call from owner who was very apologetic and said this was a most embarrassing mistake and the worst one made since they'd been in business. I DO appreciate his call!

01/31/11

Dissenting Voice

by bubbashocks at Citysearch

I do my own repairs but I needed to get the codes

cleared out of the OBD so I towed to these guys.

They quoted me a 100 fee for diagnostic and code reading. Turns out they couldn't diagnose it properly without charging me an extra 100!

So now I'm in 200 bucks and for all I know it could be an EVAP leak; gas cap or dead battery!

I've never experienced that from any mechanic before.

And none of the diagnostic fee goes toward the repair.

After dropping 775 I didn't get a vacuum or a wash.

Screw these guys! I'm going elsewhere.

04/21/10

IAM is great

by baggsy at Citysearch

I highly recommend IAM. I've been taking my cars there for about 3 yrs now (as long as I've lived in Nashville) and they've always been very professional and considerate.

They always talk to you honestly and candidly, and while they always err on the side of taking the best possible care of your car, if you need to save money they are great about helping you figure out which service items are really 'necessary' and which you might be able to put off without harm to other parts of the car (which would obviously mean much more money in the long run). Plus everybody there is friendly, they always give you a courtesy ride to work or wherever you need to go (and the owner doesn't hesitate to come out and give you the ride if everybody else is busy). They give a 12mo./12,000 mile full warranty on everything they do, and if anything goes wrong (e.g., the occasional mishap where a car gets dinged--has happened to me once, and can happen anytime somebody else has your car) they are completely honest and transparent about everything and go above and beyond to fix it as good as new (and better than the car came in) and to make it right through a rental car, discounts, etc.

All in all, great service, great care for your car, and great people.

• Pros: Service, communication, trustworthiness, price