this blog is about my experience i had with aamcon in concord, but they have a new owner now. so i hope its better. reflecting on this, i think people try to do the right thing, its just as consumers, we demand too much. but when you tell someone somethin
THE AAMCO TRANSMISSION SHOP IN CONCORD ARE A RIP OFF, DON'T TAKE YOUR CAR TO THEM
The following Monday I took my car to the local AAMCO shop on Market Street in Concord, Californai. The guy told me to bring the car first thing in the morning and they will inspect it and give me a quote. So next morning, I asked permission from by boss to get the morning off. I dropped the car and went to work. A about 2pm, I got a call from the AAMCO guy. He said that my transmission needed new House Bearings and it would cost $900 dollars to have them replaced. I asked them about my clutch; they said they test drove the car and the clutch felt good so it appeared that I didn't need one.
I relied on their advertisment and trusted AAMCO to be a reliable company to do business with, I told them to go ahead and do the repairs since I already had the car at their shop and it was cheaper than the other place. They told me they would have the car ready for me by Friday. Friday afternoon came and I hadn't receiv a call from them so I called and asked if my car was ready. They told me that they found out that the transmission housing had a crack and it would require a new transmission. I was upset at that moment; I asked them why they didn’t call me to tell me that. They game me a lame excuse that they were about to call me. YEARH RIGHT! At this point, they had the transmission removed from the car. They guy told me that I could take the car back or they can continue with the repairs, but if I took the car back, they would have to charge me $350 dollars for the time they spent on the car. I got more upset after that. I didn't know what I was going to do. I had no choice but to have them change the transmission. You see that's where they get you, they take your car apart and since you have no choice, they tell you that your car needs more stuff, - what are you going to do? tell them that you are going to take your car in pieces.... Anyway, Buy now, the total charges were going to be $1700 dollars, $800 dollars more from the original quote. After I agree to get screwed, they told me the car would be ready by next Friday.
Next Friday came and I called them in the morning to ask them if my car was going to be ready as they promised, they said yes. I asked my boss for a couple of hours off in the afternoon so I could pick up my car. When I got to the shop, they told me that they've been having a hard time locating a transmission for my type of car. I asked them why didn't they tell me that in the morning when I had called, they only excuse they could give me was "The person who told you that, must have gotten confused with another customer". YEAH RIGHT!! (The guy who told me that in the morning, was the same guy on the phone)... to make things worst, he said it would be a good idea to change the clutch since the transmission is off the vehicel, I dint want to make a bigger deal out of it, cuz I know when you loose your temper, you make things worst. At this point I needed my car back, it my source of transpotation. I todl them to go ahead a change the clucht and I asked them when they think it will be ready. He said it should be ready by Wednesday.
Wednesday came, I asked for a day off from work for. I called the shop in the morning and asked them if my car was going to be ready or not. He said yes. (This time I confirm he was talking about the same car) At about 2pm, they called me to tell me that the car was ready... I test drove it and it rode fine.
Three weeks and $2700 dollars later, I finally had my car back. I promised myself never to take my car to any AMMCO transmission shop, EVER AGAIN!. BIG MISTAKE! After two weeks of driving, the clutch started to get very stiff, it was difficult to change gears. So I called them to have my car checked, they advised I needed an appointment. But the next appointment available was not untill next week...OH MY GOD, THESE PEOPLE!! I told them to make the appointment.
Next week came by; I took the car to the shop, the mechanic test droved it and confirmed that the clutch was bad. I left the car there that same day and took the train back home. This time they said it would be ready in two days... I called in two days and they said that it was going to be ready by next Monday (7 days later). On Friday they called me to say that there was a part in the shaft (some joints) that needed to be replaced, at this point, I had lost all my trust with these people. I told them to leave it alone and just fix whatever they screwed up. On Monday morning I received a call from AAMCO to say my car was ready. I asked my boss again for the afternoon off. I picked up my car from the shop but the transmission was still a little difficult to shift (not as smooth as the when the first time they gave me the car). I was fed up with these people and didn’t' want to deal with them. Whats even funny (now that I read this), they were charging me $500 dollars for the new clutch. I kept telling them that they gave me a 6 moths warantee, but they wouldn't believe me. They said they couldn't find any record with my name. I took the train back to my home to get the receipt, then take the train back to prove to them that I still had a warrantee. Once I showed them the receipt, they shut up and didnt charge me.
Anyways, if you are having trouble with your transmission, my advise is to never take your car to AAMCO. They are rip offs. So if anything you can learn from my ordeal, please: