I went there for a front-end alignment (i do all my car repairs myself, the alignment is the only work i can't). Was highly skeptical at first (especially given the reviews i read), but they earned their money and their keep, fair and square! The part i didn't like at all was inclusion of $8.80 in "shop fees" on top of the quoted $80 for the alignment. For putting the car on an alignment rack and not using any actual consumables (no oil, washers, bolts, rags, etc), charging shop fees for this is lame. But i said "meh!" and just moved on. I was also suspicious when i didn't see anyone working on my car (a couple mchanics were casually chatting outside the service bay) and when they claimed the tire pressure in one of my tires was low - but it turns out there WAS someone actually working on my car (i just didn't see him!) And they were right all along about my low tire pressure! So KUDOS to them on that, and sorry for giving them a hard time. At the end, after approx 1 hour, the alignment was absolutely PERFECT (well within the tollerances), the steering wheel perfectly straight, and the car perfectly aligned on the road! They also gave me a printout with pictures of their findings - i already knew what was going on with my car, but for everyone else this will be very helpful. Tips: As part of the work they do, they also offer a free "pit stop inspection". DO take advantage of it! It takes an additional 30-40 minutes and it will tell you lots of good info about your car. Did they have the lowest price for the front-end alignment? No. There are shops in the Livonia /Dearborn Heights area that do an excellent job for $60 (no shop fees and with all taxes included) - if you have time, call around and you'll find them. Their price (Farmington Garage) was $80, and i guess that if someone lives in the Farmington (Hills)/Bloomfield /Rotal Oak area (where the shops charge $100 and above for the same), this may seem quite decent. But i do shop around and know my car shops. I chose Farmington Garage this time because they were close by and due to the proximity and my time crunch, paying them an extra $20 seemed like a good compromise for me. For the West Bloomfield / Farmington /Farmington Hills / Novi residents, i think Farmington Gagarage is a good choice. Would i go here again? Probably yes - the quality of work was outstanding, and despite me being clearly suspicious, the service advisor (Sara) was still highly professional and curteous (and at the end, after seeing that there was nothing shady going on, my suspicions vanished and i had changed my mind). Another note: their customer waiting area was clean and organized, they had water / coffee / soda drinks available in a fridge, and a jar of snacks & a coloring book for children (the last 2 came in handy for me, as i took my toddler along on this trip and it kept her happy and busy). Additional kudos for thinking of this ;) I would add a couple more coloring books to the pile, though, they're cheap Dolllar Tree purchases ;)
Luc, thank you for the in-depth review. We know we may not be the cheapest but we do value following all MAP guidelines when it comes to suspension and alignments. All of our parts and labor come with a 3 year or 36k warranty. Not many shops can offer that type of warranty. We are happy to here Sara impressed you as well as our shop. If you ever want to view your vehicle on the hoist you are more then welcome to. Thank you for also taking note of our waiting room area. We now its not fun waiting for any type of service so we try to provided as many comforts as we can. I will make sure to restock the coloring books and crayons as well of the little tikes. - The Farmington Garage
- The Farmington Garage