Firestone Complete Auto Care — Local services in Carmel

I have been a loyal Firestone customer for years (tires, oil changes, maintenance, etc); we never had any issues with the Firestone in Fishers off I-69. I recently took my car in to the Carmel store on Rangeline Road for new tires. I dropped my car off on a Sunday morning and they told me they would not be able to get to it that day. Ok - I will make arrangements to get a ride to work for the following day. Monday afternoon came around and I never received a call to let me know if the tires had been installed or not. So I called this store and they proceeded to tell me that in addition to the new tires, I have a coolant leak and they recommended a pressure test. Since I obviously don't want to risk my engine overheating and I had always had good experiences in the past, I authorized them to complete the pressure test to help diagnose where the leak was coming from. By that evening - still no follow up phone call and I had to call them back only to be told that there are 2 coolant leaks but they cannot tell where the 2nd leak is coming from. However they said it is likely a major leak that could be coming from a bad freeze plug, a blown head gasket or a CRACKED ENGINE BLOCK! They told me that I would need to take my car to a dealer for a complete diagnosis but this will be a very labor intensive and costly repair. Since that was the case, I asked the manager, Josh, to explain why after I paid for a complete vehicle inspection and car care package, they decided to wait and tell me about this engine leak AFTER I PAID $1045 FOR 4 NEW TIRES?! Why would I want to put 4 new tires on a 2008 vehicle with 172k miles on it when my engine block might be cracked? Even a head gasket repair is quite expensive. After going back and forth, I requested they put my original tires back on the car which they initially said they could not do. I reiterated my logic above and advised I hadn't even picked up my car yet and they still had my old tires. Then about an hour later, Josh calls me back and says he will do it, but they will have to charge me labor twice for the new tires and my old tires. And to add insult to injury, I wasn't going to get my car back until Thursday. I dropped my car off on 11/17 and didn't get it back until 11/21! I had to rent a car for 3 days and when I asked them why, they said they "just didn't have time to get to it." Now I have an expensive invoice including charges for labor x 2, a broken lug nut/stud (which they broke because it didn't come in that way - they torqued it while working on my car), the pressure test, and 4 TPMS kits - what happened to the old ones?! This is by far the absolute WORST experience I've ever had with any mechanic or service shop in my life! The customer service was pathetic and now I'm supposed to pay for some items that I did not receive or I shouldn't have been responsible for?! I truly wish someone higher up would have called me after I expressed my concerns and frustration to the store manager, Josh. But no one did; perhaps someone will contact me now that I've had to write a poor review (which does not stand alone) on this...

I have gone to Firestone and always been happy with their work and with the people who work there. It has become clear to me that the employees are personable in order to make customers feel comfortable while they scam on them. I took my car in and requested a brake inspection. I was told that my brakes were running metal on metal and that my rotors were warped. Thus, I would need full front brakes and they suggested replacing the rear as well. I thanked them and left with my quote. I have had previous experience with brakes and decided to do it myself. Boy was I surprised. Metal on metal is what happens when brake pads are completely gone and this friction causes bad rotors. When I removed my brake pads I saw that they were not gone. They were low. I was hearing a sound that was a high pitched squealing, but not a metal grinding sound. Brake pads have a metal sensor warning that alerts drivers that the pads need replacing. The sound I was hearing was the metal warning sensor on my brake pads. I was told I needed new rotors, as mine were warped and way too thin. Rotor thickness is measured in micrometers. I was told that the rotors on my car measured at 1. Brand new they measure at 9. When I took my brakes apart it was clear that the rotors were not warped in any way. I took my rotors to O'Riley and had them measure the micrometers. They gave me a measurement of just over 8. I had them turned only because my new pads were wider than my old ones. My old pads did not go all the way out to the edge of my rotors and my new ones did. Additionally, I was told my rear drums measured at 3/2 and there was no measurement provided for the rear shoes. Upon inspection, Firestone had not even removed my rear drums. Measurements are unable to be taken without first removing the drums. The number they gave me was made up and totally arbitrary. Finally, Firestone quoted me $65 for new rear brake pads. MY CAR DOESN'T EVEN HAVE REAR BRAKE PADS (because it has shoes). When I called to ask several of these questions I was told I would receive a call back; no one called. This was on a Friday. I followed up with another phone call on Monday and was treated awfully as soon as I started to ask questions. They had no answers. I was told that the brake pads were written up in the quote before the inspection report had been received from the technician working on my car and that they had not been removed once shoes and drums were added. I am not sure how you could miss something that is blatantly listed in a line of no more than 5 things. Furthermore, this means that even before they had any information about my vehicle they were already pricing the most that they could. DO NOT TAKE YOUR CAR HERE. There is no honesty and absolutely no accountability. They do seem like nice and genuine people, but it is only a means to an end. It is not letting me upload pictures at this time, I will follow up with a picture of the quote and of the inspection report.

Also, when doing my brakes I found a wrench under my hood that had been left there...

Complaint for Friday June 20, 2014: When a person takes there vehicle to a service or repair shop, they are taking it there because they need help taking care of it or repairing it. My mother took her car to the Carmel Firestone for a regular oil change, something that should have been easy and a stress free trip for her to make. I have never posted a complaint or bad review on a company before but what happened to my mother and I, is absolutely inexcusable. Carmel Firestone location, worst customer service I have ever experienced at an automobile service center. I am going to start off with stating that my family will NEVER go back to the Carmel location again. There is absolutely no reason we should have been treated the way that we were. My mother is foreign and sometimes there can be a communication barrier, which is why I wanted to speak to someone over the phone when she took her car in. (as I always do when she goes somewhere and needs help, she has the employee call me) I told her to have someone call me when she got there. She told me, that they told her, no one was going to call me. I tried calling 3 times to speak to someone I asked for the manager and I had to call back 2 other times, He hung up the phone on me all 3 times. Firestone; you might want to get an adult to run your store not a kid. Someone that is mature enough to handle issues when they arrive. The store manager hung up the phone on me 3 times. Instead of him trying to let me explain and resolve the issue over the phone he kept hanging up the phone on me. With the end result of me having to call a sheriff because he threatened that he was not going to release my mother’s car. I was so upset, I ended up having to leave work and drive to Carmel to make sure my mom was given her car back. Firestone; I suggest you don’t train your employees to threaten your customers. It’s a bad business practice. I feel very strongly about the horrible way we were treated by the store manager David Louderback. Everyone in Carmel should know what happened and how my mother and I were treated. I certainly wouldn’t want anyone else to be treated like this. I don’t need anyone to respond back to this email and I certainly don’t want any phone calls to be made to myself or...