I took my car, a 1997 Plymouth Neon, to AAMCO on Aug. 19th 2002. There was play in the gear shifter that didn't feel right. Later, I received a call from AAMCO in Decatur, Ga. Telling me that I needed to have new shifter cables installed, but my transmission was fine and that most manual transmissions never need replacing. They said I should also have a new cluth installed. I authorized the work, was told it would cost $1126 and my car would be ready the following afternoon.
I explained that my business, a pet sitting business which requires me to drive around town all day and go into peoples homes, could not operate w/o a vehicle and I could only afford to rent a car for a day. The owner assured me my car would be ready.
My car was not ready the following afternoon and when I called I was told that their technician had accidently damaged my transmission, that it was not repairable and would have to be replaced. They said they would do this at their expense and honor the original price quoted and pay for a rental car until it was ready.
I picked my car up on Aug. 26th, was told I had a new transmission, a new clutch and the car was "perfect", but when I drove it away, I could barely get it into gear. My car had grease on the outside and inside, was full of grease rags and everything—personal papers, pens, change, insurance info-was thrown all over the floorboards and seats. The steering wheel was oily. I was told that the shifter cables are sometimes stiff at first and this would correct itself. They apologized for the condition of my car, grease, etc. Then, my car began to surge and stall, pop out of fifth gear, make grinding sounds, pop out of third and smell like it was on fire. The oil light came on and I pulled into a station. My oil had been completely drained. Empty.
I took it back to AAMCO on Aug. 29. They agreed to "make it right" and pay for another rental car. My business and income depend on me being mobile. At that time the office manager and former technician, Keith, told me that a lot of people were coming back, that they had serious problems with bad work in the shop and promised to take care of it himself, saying the guys in the back couldn't be trusted.
I picked up my car again on Sept. 4 and was again told it was perfect, yet, again, the inside was trashed, I couldn't get it into gear and it stalled at the first stop sign. Something was terribly wrong. The reverse lights and speedometer no longer worked either. This was not the same car I took to them, the car that only needed a simple set of cables and a new clutch.
I then rented a car at my own expense and took it to a mechanic I could trust to find out what AAMCO had done to my vehicle. His report was staggering. They had contaminated my gas tank with something like sugar or malasses, left cables lying on the exhaust manifold to be burned up, shorted out my computer, destroyed the speed sensors inside the transmission, installed an old, rusted transmission with bad bearings, and installed a clutch that does not appear to be new. The fuel pump, filter and several wires had to be replaced immediately just to prevent any further damages from the sugared gas tank. This was $956.
This mechanic, who is willing to testify to anyone about these dishonest and incompotent men, believes they did this in order to kill the engine so I would never know what they had done to the transmission or how badly they had damaged a perfectly good automobile, and says he has never seen work like this done by people who claim to be professionals. I now have no car with which to keep my business running. The transmission is so messed up and the sensors and computer blown out so badly, that it is not safe to drive. All this after $2082.
I went to AAMCO because they are a national name, because I believed this offered some protection and this is what I got in return.
Amanda
Decatur, Georgia
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