Pep Boys Radiator Service Consumer Reviews

WOODBRIDGE, VIRGINIA -- Here is part of a letter I sent to Pep Boys Corp. and am still awaiting a response. "I found my last visit to your Woodbridge, VA. store a very unpleasant experience. I originally took my vehicle in for the following repairs: coolant flush, oil & filter change, new spark plugs, new serpentine belt, new air filter, 4 wheel alignment, transmission fluid exchange. I brought my vehicle in on October 4th, 2007 at 1:30pm for the above repairs. I left it there and contacted the store numerous times throughout the afternoon and into the evening.

When I returned at 9:00pm that night I was told that I would have to return the next morning because the technicians had run out of time to finish my alignment. I consequently took off of work October 5th to return with my vehicle at 10:30am, whereupon I left it to have the work completed. I received a call at 8pm that night stating that they would be unable to do an alignment because "it had a fixed camber and caster." I paid for and received my vehicle back and did not drive it until Tues. October 9th when I noticed Antifreeze was dripping from under the front of the vehicle.

Upon opening the hood I discovered that a 3/8" open end wrench had been left wedged between my battery and the radiator, causing crack in the radiator and the source of the leak. I returned to the store on October 10th and informed them. They stated that they would replace the radiator at their cost whereupon I left my vehicle overnight, but when I returned to collect my vehicle on Oct. 11th I was forced to pay for half of the new radiator. The manager stated that there was a previous repair done to the radiator that the wrench had "aggravated" and that had started the leaking again.

My position was that it would have been good for another few years, but he would not hear my side. If I wanted my vehicle returned then I would be forced to pay for half of the new radiator. I fail to see why I should be forced to pay for a repair that was not my fault on top off missing two days of work." etc, etc, etc. I would avoid this store at all costs!!!

LAKE PARK, FLORIDA -- Went to Pep Boys for a radiator flush on 11-30-13. Was going on a small trip on Sunday (now canceled) reservoir tank was dirty and radiator needed new coolant. Stay about an hour and before they were even done they try to sell me four other things (transmission work which was done not even done a year ago, power steering, battery, brake problems which was also done at the same time the transmission was done).

So they give me back the truck and tell me they were done. On the way home I thought something was not right. When I arrive home I lifted the hood. But was still too hot and then I notice the reservoir tank was the same way that I had given to them (dirty). I let the truck cool and check the radiator and expected to see some coolant - nothing. So I fill the radiator with water and thought I would see some color of the coolant - nothing. Reservoir tank dirty, and nothing in radiator. I was so upset and totally rip off, trip cancelled and I mean totally rip off. And there is not much the customer can do, you can't call police. So I hope this helps someone, stay away from Pep Boys.

MARIETTA, GEORGIA -- The Pep Boys on Canton Road in Marietta is by far the worst mechanic shop I have ever been to. First of all, the manager was an incompetent idiot. It took him 15 or 20 minutes just to let me know what needed to be checked on the car for a radiator replacement (have a cracked radiator). I simply needed the pressure test done to verify the crack in the radiator. A 30 minute job tops. Gave him the keys and sat in the waiting area. 3 technicians were working; one smoking and on his cell phone, the other one with a wad of dip in his mouth on his cell phone, and one actually looked productive.

After an hour and a half of waiting, my car was still in the customer parking lot. I asked the manager how much longer b/c they closed in 30 minutes. He talked to the technicians and brought me the keys back and said they won't have time to look at it after an hour and a half of telling me to wait!! I said I am not leaving here until someone looks at this car. They looked at it and told me the problem in 10 minutes. I left without paying and will NEVER take my car back there again. In fact, I will probably never go to Pep Boys again.

Simply took my car there because I had no choice. Had an emergency, but regret it. Received my car. Worse, they do tell you they're going to fix it, they give high hopes, but it's all talk. Don't want to take it back to have them fix what they wrong, uphill battle, and will get it worse anyway. They don't go above and beyond, they charge a lot, they take long, they don't communicate, they promise the wrong time. OMG, just simply take your car to someone else. You have better luck.

To unsuspecting new customers, my experience with Pep Boys was a horrible one. The entire mix-up was that the Good-Old-Boys forgot to put the radiator cap back on and in place after fixing my radiator problem. This caused water to splash all over my motor and basically kill the car. So, if you want to brave your way on over to them for service, here's a heads-up: Don't forget to ask them to let you inspect their work when it has been completed.

UNION CITY 94587, CALIFORNIA -- I had earlier bad experience at Pep Boys in LA, still I chose to do routine maintenance of my Toyota Camry at Pep boys in Union City, CA (94587). Engine tune-up was not good. Cheap parts used for wires and spark plugs. They charged me heavily for these. Coolant leak was not reported, that caused overheating after a couple of days.
Manager at Pep Boys was very rude. He answered my questions like this: "Why don't you ask your car why it's not good" etc. Overall, don't ever visit this money sucker Pep Boys' shop.