ComplaintsforConrad's Tire Express & Total Car Care

• Initial Complaint

  09/28/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I received routine maintenance on 7/31/2022. During the maintenance, one of the employees backed into something in the garage causing a large, deep scratch on my vehicle. When I picked my car up, the manager told me that he was filing a claim, that Conrad's would make this right, and my car would be repaired. He told me to wait for the insurance company to follow up. I gave them several weeks but heard nothing. On January 16, 2023, I called and left a voicemail asking what was going on with my claim. Conrad's did not return my call. I've tried to give Conrad's plenty of time to work through their process and contact me, but I've heard nothing. I received a $1545.49 quote from Caliber Collision to repair my vehicle, although the quote likely needs to be updated. I'd like Conrad's to pay for the necessary repairs.

  

  Business response

  10/02/2023

  We have reached out to the customer and we are making arrangements to take care of his repairs.

• Initial Complaint

  08/29/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I came in to report I thought I had a coolant leak.I also needed an oil change. I was charged for a pressure test, radiator cap and fluid leak detection and degrease and advised I needed brakes.Above fluid leak detections and degrease it said coolant leak. I picked up the car drove approx 20 miles and then I noticed temp gauge was increased so I checked and coolant reservoir was empty. No coolant leak could be found in my driveway. Came back up they assured me I think they said Jeff was working so he’s sure they topped it off. I asked where it went then if it’s not leaked into my driveway which was how I noticed previously leak. I was advised “ I’m not calling you a liar or anything” but we know the guy working had topped it off. How can they tell me that in all the cars they work on that 13 days ago someone else topped off my fluid and what are the charges for. It says coolant leak with a charge for leak detection and degrease. Also I was just advised they did find a coolant leak but did not see it last time I was here so they thought it was the radiator cap so they replaced that but now they have found it’s actually the heater core. The choice of words they “thought” it was radiator cap makes me assume they charged for something I may not have needed. How many other things did I not need while I was here.**** just confirmed they thought it was something else and it was not but did not offer a refund. I was charged for something that I may not have needed that is unacceptable. **** just confirmed when I asked if I even needed a cap that they just thought so. I may not have needed all this but was charged. I feel this was a predatory act and he was not the least bit bothered when I asked how this could happen. Also they just gave me a new estimate for an additional $1300 plus dollars for yet something else they found when I came back to question the coolant being empty

  

  Business response

  08/30/2023

  We will contact the customer asap and investigate and conclude next steps.

  Customer response

  08/30/2023

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, we would like to know your view on the matter.]
  
  Regards,
  
  ******** *******
  
  
  
  
   

  Customer response

  08/30/2023

  Good morning, you are requesting I accept a phone call from ******** as a resolution. How do I know they will call or even look into this. I do not wish to close this case until ******** and myself come to an understanding. Upon further review after filing claim I reviewed the video and **** told me one of the charges was for oil leak and they needed to place dye in for an oil leak. That was not in the video, that was not on our call to approve repairs. Not to mention how I was spoken to which is a different concern. I do not wish to close this case until after speaking with ******** and we come up with resolution. **** dismissed me and my concerns. He said he was sure someone topped off fluids 13 days earlier because he knows Jeff and he would not forget, he said he’s not calling me a liar but. I hope you understand everything I went through it was demeaning, it was wrong and it was guessing when you are supposed to be the experts. I feel i was taken advantage of and I will continue to move forward until I am sure this is resolved properly. ******** are the experts and I left with a large bill, no coolant, and the problem I came in for never resolved. The treatment of me as a person just added insult to injury.

• Initial Complaint

  08/09/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On May 1, 2023 I went to get an oil change. Upon changing my oil the tech stated there was an issue and a part had to be ordered to complete my oil change. I received oversized plugs during my oil change. I was informed that if I start to see a leak I may need to get an oil pan. Two months later I took my car to another automotive shop for a brake repair and they informed me that I had an oil leak because of the oversized plugs. I was also informed that Conrads should have never put oversized plugs there into my car in the first place and for that reason I would need to buy an oil pan. My car was not leaking prior to me getting my service at Conrads and now I have a leak.

  

  Business response

  08/10/2023

  We will reach out to the customer and report back our resolution.

  Thank you

• Initial Complaint

  06/22/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I had my truck in to Conrads in N.O. on Aug 3, 2022 because there was a humming noise from the rear end. First conrads said they couldn't hear anything, but then said the rear differential seal and bearing needed to be replaced. I picked up my truck and Conrads said I wasn't going to be happy with the fix because the noise was still there. I took my son to practice, and it was worse than before, making a loud metallic clunking sound. I wrote Conrads about the problem. The manager Terry called me and I took the truck back in and explained my frustration with their work. I showed him a video of the noise and he said "It sounds like rocks in your tires", clearly it was not. He went for a ride with me and every time it make the loud metallic clunking sound he said he didn't hear anything, then asked me to pull over because he thought it was something in the bed of my truck. We got out, looked in the bed and it was empty. We drove back and they put my truck back on a lift for about 15 minutes, did something, and then said let us know if it keeps happening. The loud clunking sounds stopped but the humming has been consistently worse ever since. Conrads charged me $662.55. I took my truck to the Ford dealer and had them look at it. Ford told me that the rear end/differential needed to be rebuilt. I showed them the receipt from Conrads and they said that there absolutely must be a Friction Additive added to the differential fluid or it will destroy the rear end. They also said that the differential fluid was "completely toasted" and there is no way that in less than a year and 10,000 miles differential fluid would look that bad since Conrads replaced it. Ford also pointed out a line of burn marks under my truck where differential fluid was spinning out and thrown all over the underside of my vehicle and there was also metal fragments and appeared that the grinding was caused from the differential not being installed/lined back up properly. The cost from Ford is $2,938.

  

  Business response

  07/15/2023

  We resolved this situation with the customer 

• Initial Complaint

  06/21/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  My air conditioner went out on my car. It only worked on 4 and not the other settings. I did some research and it said that it could be the blower resistor. I took it to ******* because I went there once before and they did a nice job. I told them what I thought it was and left the car with them. Later in the day I received a call that the car was done. I went there, paid the bill and got in the car and drove down the street. The air conditioner sounded like a lawmower and then just quit working all together. Did they not check it? Did they not hear the sound? I took the car back and they said that I had to bring it back on Saturday. So I did. I got a call two hours before they closed stating it could be the blower motor. I knew they would not have enough time to fix it and he agreed. So they had my car all day and only told me that "it COULD be the blower motor." What?!!!!! So I took it back again! After looking at it, they told me that I had to take it to the dealership because they didn't want to trip a 'ground wire' and were afraid to mess with it because it could lock up the car. But if it's the blower motor, bring it back to us and we will take care of it. So I took it to the dealership and I'm saying to myself, "how is this happening? Didn't ******* do a diagnostic? This is crazy and I felt taken advantage of." It was the blower motor. I took it back to ******* and it was fixed withn 2.5 hours. WTF!!!! I was even told early on that the sound the air conditioner was making will be there and that it may get quieter. I'm so disappointed in Conrads. Angry. I have to find another shop. I had to take it to the dealership so they could diagnose what the problem was. Wow!! I knew they weren't being straight with me. But I already paid so much money and spent so much time.

  

  Business response

  07/06/2023

  This has been resolved with the customer, she very happy we reached out, We are going to refund original diagnostic charge since she returned 4 times and had to go to the dealer once to get problem fixed. She did say she will inform BBB that she's is satisfied with the conclusion.

  Customer response

  07/06/2023

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. 
  
  Regards,
  ***** *****
  
  
  

• Initial Complaint

  06/10/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Conrad’s allow you to make an appointment online, for some reason the location in question does not honor online appointments. When I went the manager pointed his finger in my face and said as very nasty. He told me I sat in the parking lot and made another appointment on which that was not true. I have emails to prove.

  

  Business response

  06/26/2023

  We will reach out to the customer and follow up.

• Initial Complaint

  05/11/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I brought my car in for a car wash under there umbrella store **** ***** *** ***** My antenna was completely dismantled in the process. I was assured that they would repair/replace it. It was left open to the elements and needed reinstalled. I was asked to get two estimates. Once the estimates came in the district manager refused to cooperate with me.

  

  Business response

  05/31/2023

  This is a correspondence for the complaint filed by ******* ******* under **** ***** *** ***** **** ******** vehicle was washed at **** ***** *** **** in Cuyahoga Falls on 2/16/23. At that time the plastic cover from her antenna on her 2014 *** ****** was blown off in the wash process. After following our incident process, we concluded that the antenna cover is known to have structure issues. There are numerous reports online and through forums were these style covers break or fail due to design. We offered to reattach the cover on the vehicle and Mrs. Burgess was to visit one of our parent company repair stores Conrad's. After speaking with the manager she had never set up a time to have the cover fixed. We have signs on the property stating we are not responsible for antennas, also the make of the vehicle having known issues we would not fully replace the antenna at a cost of over $700. However we did offer a solution for the issue that was not completed by the customer. 

• Initial Complaint

  04/30/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I took my 2008 **** Commander to Conrad's in mid September of 2022 because it was not acceleration as it should. They evaluated my vehicle and told me the transmission needed replaced and would cost close to $2000.00. I agreed to have the transmission replaced. It was a used transmission that came with 12 month warranty. It took them roughly three weeks to complete the job because after the transmission was replaced they found the PCM was bad and they were unable to program the new transmission. They replaced the PCM at their cost and took my vehicle to ******** Chrysler **** in Amherst to have it programmed. I got my vehicle back on 10/07/22 after paying a total of $2044.66. Soon after getting my vehicle back, it started to not shift right into first gear, it would 'kick' hard. I took it back to Conrad's and was told to just keep driving it and it would 'straighten itself out'. I did just that and it continued to not shift correctly. I took it back to Conrad's two or three more times between mid October and mid January of 2023. Each time I was told it wasn't the transmission but the PCM that was programmed by ******** that wasn't programmed correctly and I had to take it there. I took it to ******** two or three times and was told that it was Conrad's responsibility, not there's. This kept happening each time I would take it to Conrand's, they kept sending me to ******** and not taking responsibility for the poor job they did. After taking it to ******** again they finally found that the transmission Conrad's installed was installed with no filter, causing all of the problems, and it was nothing to do with the PCM. This cost me $598.50 at ******** to diagnose the issue and put in a new transmission filter and fluid. Had Conrad's taken the time to properly diagnose the issue and properly install the transmission in the first place it would have saved almost $600 and my time and stress over the two plus month period of being sent back and forth.

  

  Business response

  05/15/2023

  We have spoken to the customer last week, and will be reaching out today to offer a resolution.

• Initial Complaint

  04/17/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  Ok first thing is back in December of 22’ they put in a serpentine belt. I had to go back a day later for having squeaky noises from the belt so they had to tighten the tensioner on it. The car has been running great so far until a couple days ago. I noticed the car running hotter than normal, but not overheating. I took it in for them to check it out(April 15th 2023) and they did a pressure test on it and checked the radiator fan it drove home great. It started up fine this morning, but as soon as I was leaving work to go home I started it up and there was that squeaking noise again, I tried it again and it did it again but almost wouldn’t start. So I drove it to the store, was about to leave and it started fine no noise but the car is running rough. Had to run out tonight and it did it again but almost wouldn’t start. What is going on. I didn’t have any problems until I brought it in for them to do a pressure test and check the radiator fan. No dashboard lights have come on, thank goodness. I’m coming back tomorrow (April 17th, 2023)afternoon for them to check on it. I don’t have a lot of money to keep doing this. The car was running fine until they did a pressure test, now it’s running rough and squeaky belts again. I really don’t know what to do.

  

  Business response

  04/17/2023

  We will have our District Leader of the Hudson location get involved to insure we can fix this situation.

  Customer response

  04/17/2023

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. 
  
  Regards,
  
  ******* ******
  
  
  

• Initial Complaint

  04/06/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  While Conrads was completing a service requested they were to fix a grounding issue when they decided to grind a bunch of paint away and not properly repair the mess up of their mechanics. I went and got a body shop quote and returned for the repairs to be reimbursed so i can take it to a body shop and he will not take care of it. This is ridiculous as they are the ones who made the mistake and need to pay for it to be done the correct way.

  Customer response

  04/07/2023

  RECEIVED VIA EMAIL BY BBB STAFF MEMBER:

  ******,

  
  I had a call from the corporate Manager and discussed the issue with him and he came back with writing a check for the damage repair from the body shop and I am pleased with this result as it was what i was requesting to the store manager when he said he wasnt going to do that. The issue in my mind has been resolved at this point once i receive my finds for the repairs
  
  ****** *****

*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. ↩