Family Auto Service

Bob Bowen's Auto Service (Now Family Auto Service, stated on the receipt) has overcharged me egregiously for their service of a supposed "simple" break and tire check. The car was finished and drove fine but I left with a sour taste in my mouth... I couldn't help but feel like I had been scammed. The workers promise to give a fair service to their customers and charge accurately yet they seemingly forgot this about me because they saw that I am single, young woman and that I am not familiar with cars. I know this because I got a second opinion from a friend who knows a mechanic and looked at the bill, telling me that I was obviously scammed. There was a wheel alignment ($100) on the bill that states what was done but there is no proof. There's supposed to be a diagram of the car before AND after the wheel alignment on the same day that it is done and should be given to the customer but I didn't get it. After really looking at the bill and seeing the prices, I searched up the part numbers online and did some research on how much the parts actually cost from simple searches on google. I was charged $355 per part for 2 control arms with ball joints in the front and $140 for brake pads. Online on Amazon (again, simple search that I can provide proof for or can easily be verified) the control arm WITH the part number they gave costs $60 each and the brake pads could be found for around $50 (~$175 approximately, whereas I paid $850). Being suspicious now, I went to Hyundai dealership to get a quote and the mechanic there said that the control arms may not have needed to be replaced because it has to be a really hard crash (The reason I went to mechanic was because I had crashed lightly and wanted to make sure the car was okay). The car actually drove fine, only making strange noises occasionally. Max quote was $1200 and I paid $1470 at FAS with a $50 discount. FAS said the reason for the prices is due to a warranty that I was not even told about which was given to me...

I took my car to the Family Auto Service in La Mesa to have the ir conditioning checked and the oil changed. They charged me $70 to checked the Air Conditioning for leaks which they did and said they found none but than told me I had to pay another $90 to have dye put in the system to check again. Complete Up sale. Then they changed the oil and did not put the right seal on the plug on the oil pan. The oil leaked all over my driveway and unfortunately I had taken the car up to Big Bear. They told me to take it to a *** care facility in Big Bear which I did and that facility confirmed it was the wrong seal. That business called Family Auto Service and told them about the issue as have I numerous time and they have totally ignored me. This business has some issues.

Went into auto shop asking for them to take a look at my suspension and overall diagnostic:
1) Suspension - said I needed new struts and suspension. Quoted me $1,800 for struts, suspension and alignment parts& labor included. Called 3 other shops and highest quote I received was $775 for parts and labor for same repair. Then took my car into Toyota dealership to get some recalls taken care of. Asked what they would charge to do same service using factory parts and they quoted me $1,035. A little over 40% difference. Doesn't sit well with me.
2) Diagnostic - Asked how the rest of the car was and Family Auto Service said 'oh the lights do come on (after I inquired about what was wrong with them), but the technician couldn't identify the problem because of your issue with the recalls on the car and suspension problems.' I took that at face value until I asked the Toyota dealership and they said the lights coming on would have no relation or issue to either the the recall issues OR the suspension. This could mean one of two things: Bob Bowen (now known as Family Auto Service) didn't check and lied to me, or they were incorrect and did not know what they were doing. When I talked to owner, Rob, he said there was nothing in the company notes about lights going on. You do the math.
3) Communication - I appreciate that I received a call from the owner, Rob, personally. Unfotunately, it was the results of what I can only determine as a poor review on yelp. He attempted to explain that this doesn't normally happen and that all the issues were a communication lapse. Well that was nice to hear but, from my perspective, it was all lip service. Actions speak louder than words. I gave multiple opportunities to initial service person, assistant manager, and manager to respond and remedy situation.
My motivation in sharing my experience is to warn others and let the Revdex.com know that this is not an A+ company in its current state. From looking at yelp, I am most certainly not the only one to have this experience which leads me to believe there is a problem and this is not a one-off experience. My greatest hope would be that ownership takes this seriously and implements a change to culture and values.

I had an oil change performed on 5/26. The service technician did not correctly reinstall the engine splash shield, and the following week when I went on vacation it became loose and dislodged under the vehicle, requiring removal by an auto service facility out of town (san bernardino). The splash shield was destroyed