Complaint Review: Just Brakes - Tampa Florida

I'm normally very pleased with my experiences at the 'Just Brakes' located on 2304 E. Bearss Ave in Tampa, FL (SVC CENTER #619) but the weekend of July 4th was a nightmare. I took my 2004 Kia Optima Saturday at 7am opening to get a oil change & inspection. There was a noise under my hood and I figured the knocking sound was due to the oil being low. But after Jeremy the store manager put my car on the lift and checked it, I was informed I needed to have the following replaced: oil pan gaskets, water pump, coolant & antifreeze. And once labor was added on, the total ended up being $1081.74. I originally came in for an oil change but it's now been discovered my car required over a thousand dollars worth of work. Alright, I opened a credit line with the company because of the 12 mos./no interest policy and I wanted the issue fixed.

Jeremy let me know it would take a few hours so I cancelled/rescheduled my plans for the day. Unfortunately I had to call the shop almost an hour before they closed since I hadn't heard from anyone all day. Per Jeremy, there was a mishap. When I asked what it was, he said the specialist who was originally supposed to work on my car didn't show up so they had to find another one in the area. Jeremy said he'd also contact with any updates. I knew I would not get my car back that Saturday evening. Sunday morning rolls around and I had to call an hour after the shop opened to find out the status of my car. I spoke with Jeremy again and was informed it would be ready within an hour. Apparently he and said specialist had worked on the car well into the night to fix it which I was happy to hear because I had to leave town for the plans I had to reschedule the day before.

After arrival, I started my car and discovered a new problem... the steering wheel & engine were vibrating horribly. I didn't have time to ask at that moment cause I had to leave. But while driving at higher speeds on the interstate, the vibrating was noticeably worse. I went to my brother's place and caught a ride with him to the event. Once I reached my destination, I called the shop as soon as I had an opportunity to ask about it. I asked if the alignment could have been messed up somehow but before I could get into an in-depth discussion about it, I was placed on hold for over 5 mins. I hungup after deciding it would be easier to just take it back to the shop Monday morning as I was out of town at the moment anyway.

So I return to the shop at 7:30am Monday to find out what could be the cause of the vibrations since it was not a problem before getting the above mentioned work done. Per Jeremy, the harmonic balancer was now the issue. He stated with labor it would cost 501.80. I had a hard time understanding how the vibrating was not an issue before getting the water pump/oil pan labor done. And I find it odd no one had noticed the vibrating or bothered to mention it to me after the car was ready Sunday. Since I wanted the vibration issue fixed, I paid to have the harmonic balancer replaced. After those repairs were completed, my car was still vibrating. I was then informed the left and right engine brackets need to be replaced. I thought the vibrating issue would be fixed if we took care of the harmonic balancer.

I've taken my car to this same shop earlier this year and none of these recent repairs were reported as potential problems after the usual vehicle inspection. Even when I had to go to Sears to get an alignment, they did not see any issues with the above mentioned parts. And to then pay the considerable price for the repairs but have a previously nonexistent issue unresolved is upsetting to say the least.