Karmic Konsumer

This is my personal story about MasterCare Firestone Tire & Service Centers (Firestone Complete Auto Care). Although I can’t tell you that they are a bad or a good company, I can relay this story and let you make your own decision.

It all started about a few years ago. I had a 2000 Oldsmobile Alero. It wasn’t an uncommon car at the time. It wouldnt start and I needed to get it towed somewhere and I wanted to start a relationship with a shop that I could trust. I called Firestone in Germantown, TN. It was a serpentine belt. They fixed it. I opened a credit account. I was pleased.

A year later, my car died again and so I took it to Firestone in La Mesa, CA. The serpentine belt needed to be replaced again. Hm. Well it’s not like I have room to argue.. my car won’t work without it. Conveniently enough, the belt was just barely no longer under warranty. I paid to have it replaced again.

A year later, I needed some brake work. So I took my car into a local Firestone (Ocean Beach). A callipur had gone out and the other one was one the way and everything on the front end needed to be replaced. Ok. I can live with that. The car was kept in poor repair before I got it. I paid about 1000 to get it all done.

A week later, my brakes started grinding. Hm. I took it back. A bad calipur… again. All repairs were under warranty, everything was fixed. Carrie is happy. Two weeks later, I start feeling something when I brake. A week later, it’s grinding again. I take it back. Firestone is mystified. Everything looks fine. They reseat and tighten everything. I leave. Sure enough, a couple of weeks later, it starts grinding again. I take it back. They replace the rotors and give me a lifetime warranty on my brakes for free. The brakes stayed fixed for a whole ‘nother year.

A WHOLE YEAR without brake work! *rolleyes* Like clockwork, a year later, I start hearing grinding again. I take it to another Firestone which is closer to my new home (Carlsbad). I explain the whole history to them and impress upon them that it needs to be fixed for real this time. They look at the car. Would you believe it, my calipurs are shot again. Although they are covered under the lifetime warranty, my rotors are not and need to be replaced. Rinse and repeat. Only this time, I only had to take it back twice before they were “fixed“.

Six months later? Grinding again that required MORE rotars. This time, I had to take it back once that week for more grinding. This was in September and I got rid of the car before I had to take it back again.

I could almost forgive that. Almost. Hah.. who am I kidding.. I can’t. But I’m a sucker.

Earlier this year, I took the Corrado to get an inspection and an oil change. I figure that isnt too dangerous, right? But during the inspection they ‘took the brakes off and the brakes fell apart they were so bad and they couldn’t put them back on and make it drivable’. GAH! So here I am at firestone.. stuck because the brakes ‘fell apart’ and I have no choice but to let them work on the brakes. This time, I speak to the manager before they touch my brakes. I point out the history I’ve had with them touching my brakes and ask him to please oversee it. He assures me that he is putting his best tech on it and will check them personally.

I return to pick up the car that evening. When I arrive, the guy that worked on them test drives it ONE MORE TIME (it has already been test driven once) just to make sure that they work. He then hands the keys over to me. On the way out of the parking lot, I tried to stop at the red light and - I COULDNT. The car just slowed a little and kept right on going… so I gunned it through the red light, turned around and took it right back. TWO PEOPLE test drove it (prefacing the test drive that with all of the trouble I’ve had, he wants to make sure it’s perfect and he wouldn’t send me home in something that was dangerous) and said it was fine and I almost get myself killed pulling out of the parking lot.

They “fix“ it. (Hah! As if!)

My husband’s car has a fan belt going haywire - so since we have an extra, he’s been driving the Corrado. He drives it back and forth from work. It’s had about 1000 miles on it since the brakes were “fixed“. One day, he applies the brakes on the interstate and the whole front end starts wobbling. He pulls over and calls a tow truck who tows it to Carlsbad Firestone. The tow truck guy HAPPENED to see exacty what was wrong and prompted Ryan to have them take the wheel covers off in front of him. They did so… when they did, PIECES OF BOLTS FELL OUT. They were BROKEN *OFF*. THEY PUT THE WHEELS ON WRONG ANRyan THE WHEELS WERE GOING TO FALL OFF WHILE IT WAS BEING DRIVEN ON THE INTERSTATE.

The shop admitted fault and fixed the car for free.

If it were just one car, maybe it’s possible to say that the car was a lemon somehow and SOMETHING about the car was screwing the brakes up. Maybe. But I wouldnt even be convinced of THAT. A qualified mechanic should be able to look at the brakes and tell what might adversely affect them. ‘Lemon’ does not equate to mysterious, invisible broken parts. But it wasn’t just one car with some sort of mysterious problems. It was TWO cars years apart. It looks to ME as a case of incompetence. Even when their managers get involved, the repairs don’t seem to get done correctly. To the point of endangering our lives. That’s not anything to mess around with.

So make your own decision - but I had so many problems with the quality of repairs with so many Firestone locations after 5 years, I’ve closed my credit account with them and I won’t go back.