Genin's Autocare — Local services in Madison

So my car won’t start after leaving work on a cold night figured I would’ve needed a jumpstart call my insurance for road Side assistance. Let’s just say they won’t helpful I Uber home after jumpstaring failed and found myself on google looking at reviews and auto shops in the Madison areas not to far from where I work or live. I called one shop that also had pretty decent reviews but they told me they wasn’t able to fit me in till Thursday which would’ve been 4 days later so of course my reply was is that the best you can do because that’s not going to work for me. My second call was to Genins who give me a two Truck number after jumpstarting fail to make plans to get it to their location. So Tuesday around 11:15am I believe the two tuck took my car from the location in which it was stall to Genins which mind you I called and let them know my car was on the way and give them permission to diagnose and let me know the next step. My car got their and no one contacted me to let me know what was happening I may have call about twice that same day to be told my car wasn’t looked at yet at this point 24hr had went by and I called and had to explain how unprofessional it was that they had my car for 24hr and know one contacted me.I was doing all the calling and I need to know what was going on ASAP because I’ve been ubering to and from work and that was costly. I’m not well vers in cars but I do come from a family of mechanics and know it doesn’t take 24 for a shop to tell you what’s wrong with a vehicle. I got my dad involved because I really couldn’t explain to him what was going on so I had them explain to him after 24 hours all my car needed was a fuse to be changed and a battery recharge. Then I figured they already had the car 24 plus hours why not do an oil change since I’m due for one. I ask if someone could have dropped my car off where I work that way I didn’t have to leave work to pick it up they was nice to do so but when I got in the car my lights to the radio display wasn’t turning on I then waved down the person dropping the car off to ask if he noticed it his response was no but you can call the shop and let them know. At this point I’m just about overly frustrated and was like I’m deal with this tomorrow. To my surprise got to parking my car and my coworker noticed one of the brake light was out. Can someone say frustrating! Called the shop back today to let them know her first response was someone drove behind your car when it was being drop off they would’ve noticed it helloooooo someone also drove my car and didn’t realize my radio display wasn’t lightning up. They told me they could come to where they drop off the car which is my place of employment to look at it but unfortunately I was able to allow that to happen so tomorrow I’m going to take my to the shop so they can let me know if the Lightbulb need to be changed. Mind you I already paid about $229 to have my car Diagnosed,oil change and to recharge the battery. Just about over this let’s see what happens tomorrow! Of course it’s tomorrow and I get to the shop and the young man has no clue what I’m talking. Don’t even think he recall dropping off the car to me. He then went and make a call came back to tell me o yeah that will cost $7 lmaooo. Lacking communication amongst themselves witch plays off to me as being unprofessional. Plus don’t think they spend a fair amount of time making sure when you get back your vehicle it’s probably work. Take some time to notice the little things that will improve your customer service so much it will actually make me want to bring my car to you guys . Safe to say I’m still looking for a Quality auto...

To sum things up, I would only use Genin's in an absolute emergency situation with no other option.

I brought my car in after seeing smoke billowing out from under the hood. My usual mechanic was booked for the next 4 weeks, and Genin's was able to fit me in that day. They fixed the broken oil pressure switch pretty quickly, and I thought why not knock out a few other repairs while it was in the shop. I had initially asked them to take a look at my front right wheel bearings and ball joint, repair my blowers, and replace both battery terminals in addition to the broken oil switch. This is when some red flags appeared.

They replaced the oil lost due to the broken switch, but had not asked me if my car has synthetic or conventional oil. For reference, I drive a high mileage 2008 Subaru Outback, so I use full synthetic rather than conventional oil. They really tried their hardest to convince me that I should switch to conventional oil and needed an oil change. I had done my own oil change the week before, and I had to repeat myself that I do not want conventional oil.

The broken switch and blowers were fixed without any issue, but they discovered that there was a problem with the back left wheel, and I approved the repairs. They did not mention any issues with the front right wheel bearings or ball joint. They didn't mention the battery terminals, and I assumed there hadn't been an issue.

The next day after work my car would not start. I pop the hood to discover the battery terminals had not been replaced, and were still very corroded. I called Genin's, now fairly frustrated, and was told that the mechanic "had looked at the terminals" and not seen any issues. I informed them that the positive terminal would not tighten due to corrosion, and was told word for word "well you're just the little expert". At this point I was very fed up with the whole situation. I only brought my car back to Genin's after they agreed to only charge me for the parts since it wasn;t fixed the first time I asked.

They replaced the terminals, and then discovered that the underlying issue was the starter. It was now about 4 days before Christmas, and I had no other option than to approve the work at Genin's. They did give a loaner car, which I appreciated.

Cut to 4 months later. I brought my car to my usual mechanic for a flat tire, and they noticed that the front right ball joint is in very bad condition . I am beyond frustrated that the joint is in as bad of shape as it is, since Genin's told me they looked at it and didn't mention any issues.

Overall the work was done well, but I do not feel like I can trust what Genin's tells me. I got the impression that they assumed I didn't know anything about cars, and told me I needed an oil change and new wipers without actually checking. I was very disappointed and frustrated with the quality of customer service I received, especially after the amount of money I spent. I would only go back if it was my absolute...

This place has hefty price markup on parts and labor and tries to charge you for everything. Use it only if you like dealer-style repair shops.

I usually take care of my wife's car and bring it to repair myself. I also have a go-to shop that does good work and charges reasonably, but it is a bit far. We decided to try this shop because it is very close to her workplace, so she can drop it off and walk to work.

She dropped the car off on the appointment day and was told at the end of the day that they won't have time to look at it. She brought it again the next day and brought home a bill of $1265 for radiator replacement. It charges $45 for 2.8 QT coolant (you may buy a few gallons with $45), $33 for the radiator cap (a cap, seriously), $532 for the radiator, $50 for unexplained shop supplies, and $375 for labor. It also charges $55 for a cooling system test, $60 for a TPMS check, and $50 for a brake inspection. My wife could not recall that the shop informed her that those checks unrelated to the heater problem we intended to fix were needed and would charge a fee. I have a TPMS diagnosis tool at home and have no reason to use the premium check service there. We also didn't go there for brake service either. For comparison, I recently went to a different shop for my car, and the brake check was free.

We also got a few other repair estimates with crazy price tags. A $2000 ball joints replacement with $600 parts and $1300 labor. A $280 for filters and wipers with a $47 air filter, a $27 cabin filter, three wipers for $25 each, and a $20 shop supplies (I wonder why you need it for filters and wipers). The labor for installing filters is $100 (which I can finish in 10 minutes). The front brake and rotor quote was $650.

The summary is we went to this shop thinking it was a local father-and-son type store that is honest and does not overcharge you. We were deadly wrong.

Reply to the owner's response: As I stated, we would not do those unrelated inspections if knowing there is an expensive cost. The detailed breakdown was not provided before the service which I would certainly ask for, but my wife was taken advantage of because she is not knowledgeable about car. We certainly have disagreement on what competitive price means, and I definitely don't agree $45 for 2.8 QT coolant or $100 for changing filters is. For people reading this post, my lost could be your gain if you learn from my mistake and stay away...