Pep Boys

Took my van in for a winter inspection. After paying for a front brake replacement and power steering pump replacement, my van promptly died on the I-5 Freeway.

Towed it back to Pep Boys in Torrance where they exonerated themselves of responsibility. They diagnosed the problem and said they would waive the $90 diagnostic fee if we would get a fuel pump replacement for $340.

After performing the work, Fernando, the manager in question decided to charge the $90, in violation of his prior agreement.

Then upon inspecting the car, I noticed a large dent on the left rear door of the not previously there prior to dropping the van off for inspection. This dent was apparent from over 20 yards away. When confronted with the evidence, one worker who was there at the time of drop remarked that the dent was fresh.

Fernando the manager disregarded his worker and tried to defend the dent by saying there was "low light" and there was no way to have seen the dent.

1) Fernando was not present when the van was dropped off, so it would be impossible for him to know what the lighting conditions were at the time of drop off.

2) The workers at Pep Boys had to manually push the van into the garage, so any dent to the rear door would have been noticed.

3) The van was under the sole care and possession of Pep Boys.

4) One worker present at the scene noted the dent was "fresh."

After inspecting the dent, some Pep Boys workers then used suction to remove the dent, yet the deep scratch into paint down to the body remained. This action was performed by the Pep Boys staff without my request.

I think this action showed culpability because if Pep Boys did not feel the dent was caused by them, they would not have taken any action.

I arranged for a body repair specialist to come to the van to inspect and estimate the damage. Fernando, after indiscreetly implying I had made up this story, then accepted the written estimate for the fix of the dent. He remarked that the claim would be sent to "corporate" and it may take "longer than a week" to receive a reply.

With the way Fernando acted, I would not be surprised if the claim is never submitted to "corporate." I paid Pep Boys for the work they performed. They left me with a more costly problem than I presented with.

DO NOT go to Pep Boys unless you want to be RIPPED OFF with a smile. I agree with the previous reviewers and have no affiliation with them. I wish I could give them negative stars if possible.

Posted 12/26/08 | Report Abuse

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I brought my car Pep Boys on Sepulveda for brakes last year. They quoted me $300, but ended up charging me under $150 and did a great job. I recently brought my car in again because it was making a rattling noise on uneven pavement. It had been driving me crazy for months, and no one could figure out where it was coming from. Within a couple of hours they diagnosed and fiixed the problem (a windshield loose cowling of all things!). They also reconnected a brake light that was out. When I went to pick up the car, the tech. came along as I test drove it to make sure the rattle was gone. Amazingly, no rattle! I was ready for at least $100 bill, but it was far, far less... they only charged for the clips for the windshield cowling. I highly recommend this Pep Boys!

Posted 08/29/08 | Report Abuse

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Like some other reviewers here I've had 2 bad experiences. I was overcharged twice- had to literally pull the tag off the shelf and show the clerk who literally refused to check the price. It was like I was causing HER a problem. Even though this place is at a very convenient location for me, I go out of my way to go somewhere else and would gladly even pay more for the same product...SOMEWHERE ELSE. This place seems to have staff problems...hahaha...like no service. May I NOT help you, sir.... I'm talking on the phone. There's plenty of other auto places in the area....just go somewhere else.

Posted 02/17/07 | Report Abuse

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Ok, so I went to get tires. Showed up, they drove my car into their garage, changed my tires, and couldn't drive it out. I CAUGHT THEM pushing the car into the parking lot. When I asked what they were doing, they said, "It's Broken" "I Didn't do it". My clutch was broken and they took NO RESPONSIBILITY WHAT SO EVER! Are you Kidding me. It's fine going in and it's not coming out but you "didn't do it"?!!!!! Don't EVER TAKE YOUR CAR HERE - THEY ARE IGNORANT AND IRRISPONSIBLE!

PROS: -0-
CONS: All

Posted 09/12/06 | Report Abuse

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My wife and I waited at the parts counter for ten minutes before we were even acknowledged. Then one of the counter guys made fun of the car we were purchasing the part for. We could not believe that we had come to the store to have a guy make fun of our secondary vehicle when we had driven there in a 2005 BMW. The guy who went to find the part never looked at us in the eye. He seemed angry that we had taken him from behind the counter. In any event, we left the part and went to another store.

PROS:
CONS: Rude, poor customer service at best

Posted 01/09/06 | Report Abuse

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Two absolutely awful experiences have proven the Pep Boys in Torrance to be the worst service I have ever received. The internal store staff was not interested in helping me, after waiting for 7 minutes at the counter, the service station took my keys for the night- without me signing ANY release form- and my car was vandalized. They assumed no fault, and I was missing a radio and left with a broken center consule. Management dodged my calls and concerns, was not willing to even share the responsibility. Choose a different service center, obviously Pep Boys is not concerned with repeat business.

PROS:
CONS: Awful service, incompetant managers, pass-the-buck mentality

Posted 06/07/05 | Report Abuse

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