Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/29/2022

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Monday (12/19/22) am: Drop my vehicle off (2007 ***** Malibu with over 170k miles).Tuesday (12/20/22): Aamco (represented by ******************* throughout this entire week of transactions) calls me and say they ran the basic transmission diagnostics and cannot find what's wrong and can call me tomorrow but stated they needed $****** to drop the transmission to diagnose. They CANNOT diagnose the issue OR give any kind of quote for price unless they do so. That ****** will be used as credit for repair though. They do not give any indication that it will be a large job, etc. Wed. (12/21/22): Call to say I need a total transmission replacement (metal pieces breaking off from wear-and -tear that also ruined electronic piece). Job was initially quoted close to $3,800 with taxes, etc. but can go down to a flat $3,600. I ask to think about it overnight (as my vehicle is a 2007 ***** Malibu with ******* miles). I state my concern is that it is an old car and that is a huge repair cost- they try to state it would be worth it.Thursday (12/22/22): I decline to get the transmission job because it does NOT make sense to invest in this vehicle or at least that amount of money (probably ever). They state they have looked up a used-part option and quote at $2,900 today. They state they will try to have my car ready by the next day but not sure if they can and I will still be CHARGED $895 FOR THE SERVICE "REMOVE, DISASSEMBLE AND INSPECT TRANSMISSION" (PER MY INVOICE).Friday: Pick up my car they had for 4 days (12/19-12/22/22) and get charged $******. They dropped my transmission, took it apart and put it back together and then charged me $****** for NO REPAIR AT ALL. They most likely are playing on SUNK COSTS when someone does not want to lose the $****** they invested/put down so they will spend ANOTHER $2,000 for repairs. I have no doubt they have to pay people for work, etc. but THAT IS THE MOST EXPENSIVE DIAGNOSTIC TEST I HAVE EVER HEARD OF/HAD and costs almost 1 month of my rent.

  Business Response

  Date: 01/16/2023

  Thank you for the opportunity to solve what we hope is was a simple miscommunication. ************** had brought the vehicle in complaining the transmission was slipping, at which point we performed AAMCO's Free Vehicle Courtesy Check, at which point we confirmed Ms. ****** Concerns and examined all of the external controls and adjustments available on the transmission that could effect transmission function and shifting performance at which we found them all to be in place and proper working adjustment. Now with the current driving patterns and the external controls and adjustments in place it was deducted the concern was inside the transmission and would require transmission removal and disassembly to identify the cause of failure and total cost of repair. Now this is a step that we take as a cost saving measure for our customers to avoid a costly transmission replacement. We offer this removal - disassembly and inspection at a discounted cost of 895$ on this ************* you our posted labor rate is 159.95$ per hour and this job calls for 6 hours of labor for removal and reinstallation with another 2 for teardown. This step was explained to ************** and she had authorized us to proceed with the removal and teardown. With the transmission removed and torn down we found quite a bit of damage within the transmission resulting in a combined parts and labor subtotal of *******  which comes to ******* including taxes and shop supplies. Due to the inclement prices that are associated with internal transmission repair we offered replacing the transmission with a used transmission at a lesser fee as well as different financing options so ************** did not have to pay all at once. Ultimately repairs were declined which is ok however there was nothing that was done during this transaction that was outside of state regulations or brand standards and my employee maintained a moral compass and the upmost integrity.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 01/25/2023

   
  Complaint: 18650411
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  Let's look at this again: 1) I was aware I had a transmission problem (as stated above) so I came to you for a solution and the cost of it BEFORE the job was done 2) You had my car for 4 days (Monday through Thursday) and charged me $895 to assess a problem I knew I had 3) You returned my car to me as is (no solution) and charged me $895. Is this correct? Please answer with a true or false/yes or no.

  Any decent mechanic would have said "Your car would never be worth the value of the transmission we would install (new or used) so probably not worth going forward with the job PER **************** BLUEBOOK." Need more evidence? Look up a 2007 ***** Malibu 2007 LS with over ******* miles in "good condition" with standard factory functions (it's below the transmission price you quoted me). Also- aren't you all professionals? You have never had a 2007 ***** Malibu LS with that many miles come through your shop? You are also a consultant AND as a professional- l think you knew that it was going to be a HUGE TRANSMISSION REPLACEMENT but you could get $895 out of me without a job that no one would pay for. I also think you pressed me to get a $3600 transmission replacement on a 16 year-old vehicle because I am a woman. Actually I looked a little deeper and saw this is a scam you have been implementing (across the entire franchise) across the US. 

  Also for fun- I highly doubt you pay any of your employees FOR ANY JOB close to $30/HOUR let alone $159/HOUR (as you me quoted above). We all know how business works so please don't feel obliged to explain.

  Sincerely,
  
  *********************

  Business Response

  Date: 01/31/2023

  Hello *****, We apologize for the confusion and we look forward to the opportunity to provide clarity
  on the services rendered and the costs charged accordingly, we will address each complaint line by line
  as to ensure we don&#**;t miss any of your concerns. In response to "1) I was aware I had a transmission
  problem (as stated above) so I came to you for a solution and the cost of it BEFORE the job was done."
  We understand that you were experiencing transmission problems, when your vehicle arrived to you the
  first step of the process was to determine what type of transmission issue we are experiencing and if the
  issue is able to be fixed with a minor repair or adjustment or weather the cause of the issue is an
  internal issue. In your specific case *** had his team perform our Vehicle Courtesy Check and the results
  of this determined your specific issue was an internal issue that was unable to be fixed with a minor
  repair or adjustment. Now, at this point it was explained to you that we would need to remove,
  disassemble and inspect the transmission in order to determine the extent of the damage and the cause
  of failure. This is an procedure that we go through in order to save our customers money as opposed to
  simply replacing the transmission with a remanufactured transmission, A service at which would run
  north of 4200$ with todays market and would likely take between 3-5 week to receive the transmission.
  As previously mentioned the removal and disassembly processes is a step we take because we do care
  about our customers and understand money is limited and we strive to save our customers money and
  still provide a top quality product with a nationwide warranty. As for the Statement 2) You had my car
  for 4 days (Monday through Thursday) and charged me $895 to assess a problem I knew I had 3) You
  returned my car to me as is (no solution) and charged me $895. Is this correct? Please answer with a
  true or false/yes or no. In this case you had brought the vehicle in to us on a Monday 12-19-22 and we
  had completed the vehicle courtesy check the same day and informed you that the problem with the
  transmission was internal; at this time you had authorized us to complete the removal disassembly and
  inspection. At that time it was explained to you that Tuesday will be spent removing your transmission
  and getting it torn down, by Wednesday ***** we had informed you of the extent of the damage,
  explained the savings you were getting be rebuilding the transmission as opposed to replacing it.
  Thursday ***** after declining fixing the transmission and also declining the used transmission
  replacement option you chose to have us reinstall an unrepaired transmission back into the vehicle you
  picked it up *****. During the course of the repairs you were given different financing and repair options
  however you chose to decline all of the options. In regards the two following statements: Any decent
  mechanic would have said "Your car would never be worth the value of the transmission we would
  install (new or used) so probably not worth going forward with the job PER **************** BLUEBOOK."
  Need more evidence? Look up a 2007 ***** Malibu 2007 LS with over ******* miles in "good condition"
  with standard factory functions (it&#**;s below the transmission price you quoted me). Also- aren&#**;t you all
  professionals? You have never had a 2007 ***** Malibu LS with that many miles come through your
  shop? You are also a consultant AND as a professional- l think you knew that it was going to be a HUGE
  TRANSMISSION REPLACEMENT but you could get $895 out of me without a job that no one would pay
  for. I also think you pressed me to get a $3600 transmission replacement on a 16 year-old vehicle
  because I am a woman. Actually I looked a little deeper and saw this is a scam you have been
  implementing (across the entire franchise) across the US. At Aamco transmission and total car care we
  repair vehicles to the best of our ability with the integrity to stand behind our work with a nationwide
  warranty. However we are not car salesman, we are not up to speed with the latest sales trends and are
  not licensed to sell vehicles in the **************** or Broward County. With that said try not to extend
  advice to areas we do not cover. I will let you know that due to the rising cost of replacement vehicles
  more and more we are seeing customers choose to repair older vehicle more frequently instead of
  replacing their vehicles regardless of current resale value. I personally always tell customers to not
  weigh repairs on what your vehicle is worth rather what it would cost you to fix the vehicle. Now I will
  let you know Aamco does not stand for intolerance and discrimination. We have an active woman Co-
  Owner who is regularly involved with business activities and events. In addition to this we have a female
  member of our management team that is also available if you have any questions. Again we are a
  transparent company that attempts to provide cost effective repairs with the highest quality possible
  with the industry leading nationwide warranty.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 02/07/2023

   
  Complaint: 18650411
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  I'm sorry that you had to over-explain the obvious (thanks for clearing up that you are not in auto sales...) and everything that I stated in my initial complaint, but it has not been helpful. In order to cease wasting your time as well as mine- I'm asking for a $400 return of my charge. This was indeed a mousetrap and don't think anyone wants to hear your politically-correct but possibly inaccurate responses.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *********************

  Customer Answer

  Date: 02/08/2023

   
  Complaint: 18650411
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

   

  Complaint: 18650411
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  I'm sorry that you had to over-explain the obvious (thanks for clearing up that you are not in auto sales...) and everything that I stated in my initial complaint, but it has not been helpful. In order to cease wasting your time as well as mine- I'm asking for a $400 return of my charge. This was indeed a mousetrap and don't think anyone wants to hear your politically-correct but possibly inaccurate responses.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *********************

  
  
  

  Business Response

  Date: 02/14/2023

  We appreciate your time and communication, However we must decline your request, Agree to amicably part ways. We wish you the best moving forward.