So my car broke down near this shop and I’m not from new Baltimore I’m more towards st Clair area and I ended up calling a tow truck and the guy had told me to drive it over to sterling car care which was right across the street. So I gave them a chance, so after the tow truck guy told me my belt came off and my water pump needs to be fixed I went into the car shop and one guy greeted me so I’m talking to him telling him my issue and he’s looking at me like I’m stupid and don’t know what I’m saying which makes sense because I’m sitting here saying “my timing belt needs to be fixed” mind you I was unaware that I didn’t have a “timing belt” on my car because I drive a 2012 for fusion… so this guy CLEARLY takes advantage of me of knowing I’m just a silly 19 year old girl who knows nothing about cars, so I leave the place and I leave my car there as I got a ride home. I call this place in the morning and they state that it will be $970 something dollars to fix my “timing belt” and “water pump” .. I was suspicious right away because I did my research about belts on cars THAT night and I said “so my timing belt needs to be fixed” he said “yes” I looked up how much a timing belt was and the price was accurate so I agreed to let him fix it… UNTIL I made a Facebook post about my car and what issue it had and a kind gentleman texted me saying he owned a shop near me and that there was no such thing as a timing belt on a 2012 ford fusion and that it was most definitely my serpentine belt and that it was only gonna be a $370 fix MAX. So I called this place back and kindly asked for them to not do work on my car, they asked me why and I told them exactly what happened and they tried LOWERING the price to $700 .. first off that’s still a crazy number and secondly these guys lied to me and tried fooling me because they knew that I didn’t know much and they could easily scam me and how is it that your price could go from $970 all the way down to $700?!!! This place is a JOKE do not go here alone if you are a woman and don’t know anything about cars like me , yes it was my fault for not knowing what was wrong with my car but these guys could of been more generous and said “hey it isn’t a timing belt u don’t have one it’s your serpentine belt” and not try to scam me out of almost $1,000 as a 19 year old girl. Mind you I also had to pay $40 to just remove my car from their parking lot… and they gave me a $10 reward towards my next visit sorry to tell u sterling car care but you can take that off because I won’t be visiting, or maybe add it back onto my card …
Hi Madison, I’m sorry you had a bad experience with a recent visit to our shop. I tried reaching out to you and the phone disconnected after you answered. There seems to be quite a bit of confusion I’d like to clear up. I am Joe, the one who spoke to when you brought your vehicle in, and also after we checked it out. When you brought your vehicle in you had said you needed a new belt as it had come off no mention about a water pump. I explained we will look into it, as belts do not normally come off. I inspected your vehicle and found the water pump shaft is very loose. I called you and explained what I had found, the water pump and belt needed to be replaced and suggested a coolant flush at the same time due to the age of the vehcile. You then authorized to repair the vehicle, there was no mention about a Timing belt. You had called back a little later and spoke to TJ, and wanted to hold off on the repairs, you said you were taking the vehicle to your Uncles. At that time you mentioned the repairs of a timing belt, TJ said we were not doing a timing belt, it was the serpentine/ engine belt, water pump and coolant flush. I was surprised you canceled, and that is when I called you back to see if there was anything we could do. It was here that I did say again the coolant flush was recommended but not necessary to get you back on the road, and we could hold off on that service to lower the price down, and then I also threw in a coupon to help out more. You did politely decline as you said your Uncle was going to help you out. I really hope this cleared up any misunderstandings , and I hope your vehicle is back on the road. ~ Joe
- New Baltimore