So I don't usually write reviews, but I feel it is necessary in this case. I originally had my car towed to Joe's Automotive as my car battery was drained(0.01V display from multimeter), I recently just installed a new alternator, brand new terminals/connectors for the battery, and a remanufactured starter. All the attempts to start had drained what charge was left from the battery, and I suspected the starter was bad and possibly draining the battery. To their credit they got the car started, but the only change was slightly different cable angle on the starter & alternator, and severely damaged battery terminals that look like they have been smashed in with a hammer, and tightened so tight that they can no longer be removed. I took before and after photos of the engine, and these are the only things that were altered, so I can only determine that they charged my battery successfully and slightly changed the angle of the battery connections, and then smashed in my terminals so they could no longer be removed. I was then charged $280 for this privilege. The only saving grace was that they also confirmed the starter was bad, which I thought was the case anyway, and once I swapped out and reinstalled a new starter it functions properly. (The starter ended up melting the testing device used at the location I bought the starter...) TLDR: They recharged my battery, shifted cable placement, smashed in my battery terminals so they are now permanent battery fixtures, and charged me almost $300 for that amazing service... Edit for owner response: Which specific wire are you claiming to have melted? There are only three wires/cables that connect to the starter, the positive battery cable, the starter solenoid wire, and the negative battery cable to ground. None of which were replaced OR melted. Do you have any pictures of these melted mystery wires? The bolts were also not tightened to the point that the report claimed, as my wireless ratchet wrench is not physically capable of tightening them to that degree, as it automatically stops when it meets resistance. It cannot overtighten things. The alternator was also installed correctly, there are only two connections to the alternator and both were fully connected and in the same locations before and after pickup. "would never damage parts of the vehicle to get things back on." My mangled battery terminals beg to differ, as my attached pictures can attest. They were brand new and installed that same day actually, not a scratch on them until they were brought to you guys. The damage didn't just magically appear on its own.
Malevolyn, we are sorry to hear you were not satisfied with your recent visit. When first inspecting your vehicle we noticed there was a wire to the start that fused/melted together and was a fire hazard, The alternator hooked up incorrectly damaged the start and was what we believe shorted it out. When we brought the vehicle into the shop we unhooked the battery cable as it was an immense fire danger. We had no issues getting the battery cable off and back on with our tools. We do charge at $145 an hour and worked on your vehicle for 1.7 hours. We take pride in providing quality, reliable service and would never damage parts of the vehicle to get things back on.
- Joe's Automotive Repair