Doesn't Recommend

Tessa W.

Joined 7 months ago

11/16: Had work done on our FAMILY van for drive cross country- snow tires, safety check, oil change... all of it. $1200+ willingly shelled out for what we thought was good work and would be worth keeping our family safe... UNTIL WE ALMOST DIED NEAR CHICAGO TONIGHT!!! One of our brand newly FASTENED on and bought tires was coming off! Missing two lug nuts, two barely holding on, and the tire wobbling!! We veered across two lanes of traffic, nearly rolling into nearby traffic!!! I Want a head to roll, but of course they don't even have an answering service!

Doesn't Recommend

Maria d.

Joined 1 year ago

Meh...They don't listen if your'e a female?. At the end of February 2012, I took my car there after it failed DMV car inspection. I dropped it off right before noon and handed the print out I received from the DMV to the clerk at STS. The print out stated the check engine light bulb was out and the diagnostic codes that caused my car to fail. I reiterated to the clerk that the check engine light bulb was out and the rest of the work has to do with the exhaust system based on the diagnostic codes and based on the fact that I smell residual gas everytime I fill my car up. He said they'll run their own diagnosis to figure out the specific cause for the codes since each code can be caused by multiple things (understandable) and replace the bulb. He said it'll take an hour or two and they'll give me a call. Cool. I go about my business and figure I give em extra time to take care of what they need to 'cause sometimes things take longer than expected. Later on I realize it's 30min. to closing, and still no call, so I call them. Clerk says "Oh, I was just about to call you"... right... he passes the phone to the mechanic to tell me what they worked on; they replaced a corroded hose within the exhaust system which caused fumes to leak, which is probably why the car failed inspection, they "couldn't run the rest of the diagnostic test because the gas tank was more than half full (I just filled up my car the night before) and I should drive the car around for a few days to see if the check engine light comes on." Alright, not thrilled that they said I may have to bring my car back in but whatever. I go to pick it up. I look over the charges(which is very clear, completely transparent) Their diagnosis around $80-$90, hose $19.95, labor $40 + tax=Total $154.63. And how much was the check engine light bulb, or was that negligible since it's so tiny? But then again, what about labor? Clerk says to me that to replace that, you have to take the entire dashboard out to replace that tiny bulb and it takes a while, and blah blah blah. You had my car all damn day and not only was that one of the things printed on the DMV car inspection failure report, but I specifically told him to his face that it needed to be replaced. On top of that, how in the world am I supposed to "drive the car around for a few days to see if the check engine light comes on" if STS didn't replace it?!?! I asked him this, and he had no good explanation, kept going back to they couldn't run complete diagnostic because gas tank was more than half full so I should bring it back in a few days.

And I wonder, is what happened because I'm female? 'cause I was very clear as to what I wanted and gave them that DMV print out just in case I wasn't. But my boyfriend always brings his car there without a problem.

2 stars only because the bill was clear and they haven't screwed over my boyfriend

Doesn't Recommend

newjersey2011

Joined 2 years ago

CRIMINALS. I have taken my car to STS in West Caldwell for over 2 years now and they over charge me. Three days ago I got my car back from them and a day later it wouldn't start. They are criminals and I hope they buy poison with the all the thousands of dollars I spent there. I wouldn't tell my worst enemy to take their cars to get fixed by these crooks!

Doesn't Recommend

Sleebbie

Joined 2 years ago

Do work you don't need. I took my Jeep here for the second time (first time was for a tire rotation) because it was pulling to the right and I thought it needed an alignment. The service dept. called me about an hour later and said that it was pulling to the right because the tires on the right of the car were worn & that an alignment would not really help much. I came back to the store to find that they did the alignment anyway and also charged me $10 more for it than they quoted me on the phone when I made the appointment. The store manager said the vechile DID need an alignment (even though I'd had one done only 6 months previous). So I paid for it and took it for a drive. Wouldn't you know, there was NO DIFFERENCE in the ride than before the alignment was done. I called the store manager to complain about this, and he said "well the vehicle still needed an alignment and you'll have to get a couple of new tires before it stops pulling to the right". But the thing is, when I get new tires, I will need an alignment again anyway! Complete b.s. and a waste of $105 (interesting how i was quoted $79.99 over the phone for an alignment and it jumped to $105, right?). This place sucks like all the other car shops in the Caldwells and I'll never go back there or recommend them to anyone.

Recommends

CPorter16

Joined 3 years ago

They treat women with respect!. With floor to ceiling windows of their garage, great customer service, and patient explanations, this is an excellent place to get your car repaired. They always bring me the part that is being replaced, explain why the work needs to be done (and when it can wait). The only draw back, its a busy shop. (With their level of customer service, it is understandable.) So make a reservation in advance.