Cape Auto Body & Service

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DON'T BRING YOUR CAR HERE!!!
On 11/13/2012 I dropped of my 2003 Ford Escape to Cape Auto Body & Service in Plymouth, MA to diagnose two cylinders that were skipping. Although I do 99% of my own mechanical work, I have been using this company for probably close to 15 years on the rare occasion I do need an outside service company. On 11/14 Cape Auto called and told me when the job was complete. They also told me my valve cover gaskets were leaking and needed to be replaced. I got the vehicle back on the 14th and worked on it myself on the next day to replace these gaskets. In doing so, I found the threads stripped for the #4 cylinder spark plug. I called Jim, one of the service managers, and he denied that they even touched this cylinder.
Now for some background. First, I am certified for numerous brands of engines ranging from air cooled small engines to diesel engines rated at excess of 1,000 horsepower. I personally changed the spark plugs in this engine on Oct. 3, 2012 and torqued them as I always do for plugs going into an aluminum head. Usually when removing plugs set in my engines, I can easily do this with a 3/8” drive ratchet. When I needed to remove the “only two plugs” Cape Auto replaced, I needed to use my 1/2” drive ratchet because they were way over torqued!!! Jim claims that he worked with the mechanic on my engine the entire time and that the mechanic never touched any other plug except the two new ones. As I previously mentioned, I have been using this company for many years and have observed Jim (and the other service managers) these times I've visited. They do NOT hover over their mechanics doing their work. As a matter of fact, the desks they work at face the opposite wall of the service garage giving them no possibility of seeing the actual work being done unless they physically stand over their mechanic's shoulders. And, if Jim had been watching his mechanic closely, how did he let him/her over torque the “only two” spark plugs they claimed to have touched???

At this point, I am going to have to remove the cylinder head for this bank of cylinders and make the repair myself. This repair is going to cost way more then the original service done by this company. I'm not sure what has changed with this company...but I would never use them again nor recommend anyone to bring their vehicle there.

Now I see why they have such a bad reputation in Plymouth. Went there for the first time for an inspection sticker and wound up with a rejection sticker for two frivolous violations. The first violation was for my wiper blades, which had no tears on the inserts or damage to the wiper arms. I guess they figured that I would just want to avoid the aggravation and purchase the blades directly from them at an inflated price. They thought wrong.

They also claimed that my window tint was too dark. The total amount of light being transmitted through the glass of your vehicle cannot be less then 35%. However their tint meter was giving them a reading of 33% on my car. I told them that the tint was installed three years ago by Advanced Glass Coating who does the tint for all the local dealerships, the tint is 35% and has already passed two inspections thus far. I pleaded that their meter must not be properly calibrated, but it fell upon deaf ears. I then asked if I could go elsewhere to prove that their meter was giving them an improper reading. They said go ahead but your going to have to pay us and then pay again to have the vehicle re-inspected elsewhere. So my options were to either rip off all the tint or pay twice for a sticker. I refused to do either because obviously something was wrong with their meter. At that point they went and got their rude manager. Instead of trying to peacefully resolve the situation he told me that he never wanted to see me or my vehicle again and said good luck getting a sticker elsewhere. I told him I already did twice before.

I then drove to an inspection station down the road and explained the situation to them. The mechanic informed me that they obviously don't know their equipment because the Laser Labs tint meters are only accurate within plus or minus 2 percentage points (it even says so right on the meter). So if you take the 33% reading they were receiving and take into account for the 2% inaccuracy of the meter that would bring you to 35%, which is precisely the legal amount. 

This time around there was absolutely no mention of the wiper blades needing replacement and I received my sticker within minutes. I then went home and found my old receipt from the window tinting company and sure enough it said 35% window tint was installed on my Maxima. When I told family and freinds about the issue I had, they all had at least one story to share with me about a similar bad experience they had at Cape Auto. If I had this much trouble with a sticker imagine having your vehicle repaired by them.