AAMCO = MAACO :roll:
Just in case this is news.
Unfortunately, you don't hear many success stories about this service. I have never used them, but because of the number of horror stories about AAMCO, I probably wouldn't either. Conversely, it's also the success stories that you never hear about, so I suspect for every 1 horror story such as j-turbo's, there are prolly 10 happy customers.
BUT, AAMCO corporate suits should do better than allow their name to be used by dealers who routinely screw the customers - as this is poison for any business. Kinda makes you wonder why anyone would want to do business this way.
Research, research, research. Then do more research. First warning flag is NEVER take your vehicle to a franchised chain servicer. Find a local independent shop with a positive history - ask for opinions from the various parts houses, search the web - discussion boards, etc. Even where I live, I've talked with a couple of local-yocal shops who talked a good game, then did pretty sorry work - so you just have to be absolutely careful. I've learned to do as much as humanly possible on my own vehicle even though I've had to spend quite a bit on tools - and as much as I hate doing driveway jobs - that labor rate is pretty good incentive to do my own work and deal with my own consequences if I mess it up.
One thing that isn't always possible, is to inspect the vehicle after the work is done with the tech while still on the lift, if at all possible and have the tech go over what was done - some shops do this and I used to do it wth customers at the RV shop I worked at.
I actually enjoyed this as it was a point of pride to show what work was done - and at a labor rate (at the time of $50/hour) that can run up in a hurry, it makes the customer feel better about the service.
ALWAYS get estimates in writing, and read EVERYTHING, especially the fine print for
exclusions - if the bill is going to exceed the estimate, then find out why the estimate was wrong in the first place (before the work is completed) and if the service with not stick with the estimate, don't allow the work to continue. Escalate up the management chain if at all possible when estimates don't jive with the final bill - and most of all - don't pay the bill when the discrepancy is huge. Make sure the originals (estimates and bills) are protected somewhere and work with photocopies for possible future legal action.
Sorry to hear about your bad experience j-turbo. Maybe you can hook up with some 'Zuheads in your area and get the trannie replaced with a legit reman from ISUZU or something. There are plenty of units out there available from the various online salvage sources.
Good Luck.
Cheers,
