Pep Boys

TL: DR I got a lot of work on my car done for less than I expected. Everyone was very helpful. ¹⁰⁄₁₀ would come back again.
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I came in today not really expecting to get any work done. I assumed they’d set me up with an appointment but they were kind enough to start right away! It was really surprising and I’m kinda not auto savvy, but I’m not stupid. They didn’t try to sell me all sorts of junk and even tried to keep within my budget~ I learned a lot on this trip as well just from asking questions. Alex and TJ were especially helpful. They didn’t make me feel uncomfortable like many places in California have done even after realizing I had no idea what I needed done. Very upbeat kind gentlemen (considering I came in super early).
So they helped with me with my oil change, tire change, brake inspection and something about a drum (within the $ 600-​$ 700 range). I think it was a Joshua that did the actual work on my vehicle. He did a really good job and it didn’t take forever (maybe 2 hours or so). Now my car runs better than when I first purchased her (used). I actually did a little victory yell in my car when I was able to turn without looking like a turtle and I don’t slide around on grooves in the road anymore. They have a cute waiting area that has dim lighting (I love it) and at the time it was playing some old era tv shows. It has a water fountain too if you’re thirsty. Lots of magazines as well for reading material.
I also had a good experience in the shop! When I first went in there though, if you’re quiet they don’t notice you. They don’t have a door bell or anything. When the man finally did notice me he quickly apologized and asked me if I needed assistance (thumbs up). Later on I had another person help me look for various items and recommended me this really nice spray for my car. I didn’t get his name cause he didn’t have a tag and he never really introduced himself but if you see this thank you! The Scents air freshener works fabulously! (I just tried to check the receipt to see if his name was there but it’s just his employee ID darn it)
I will definitely keep coming to this spot.

My wife and I took our truck to this location after failing a smog test. They looked at the paperwork and said it was likely due to our gas cap not sealing. We bought the gas cap off of them, not having the tool to get the cap to seal my wife asked them to install the cap to which the tech replied «Why? Have you never pumped gas before?». They also refused to check the computer and wipe the code for this issues so I was stuck with having the check engine light on, which I needed off to pass smog testing. I will never go back to this place just because of how they talk down to people and extreme laziness. I’ll be telling everyone that I know to avoid this place.

They took 2.5 hrs to look at our thermostat and they come out saying we have a hole in our radiator! They put a hole in it on purpose to get more money out of us I can’t believe this… I’m taking them to court!!! Don’t trust Kyle with your vehicle!!!

In May I had my car towed to this location after being involved in an accident. Long story short the whole engine needed replaced due to damage to the under carriage of the vehicle totaling almost $ 7,000 in repairs. (Car was fully covered so insurance covered most of this cost.) This took over a month to replace with little to no communication from the shop as to what was going on with the vehicle. I had to call the corporate office and file a complaint and then a couple days later my car was done, imagine that. We had to bring the car back 4 different times since the repairs were made. Once within a week to fix a rubbing with the passenger side tire due to them not putting this back on correctly. 2^nd within 2 weeks after that because the check engine light came one. Having a full engine diag. figured out there was a hole in the mass air flow filter. 3^rd A couple days after that while driving we could hear something flapping under the car, brought the car back in turns out the plastic plate under the front of the car that covers the fenders was not put back on correctly and I watched them put at least 6 screws back into the bottom. I complained to corporate and the shops response was that we damaged the bottom protective plate and destroyed «a screw» and they feel that this was not there fault but they fixed it anyways. However more then 1 screw was replaced so this was completely false. In fact the screws were not even there, how and why would we have done this? Finally, we started hearing a weird clicking noise and our air conditioner just stopped working. So my fiancé called and spoke with the store manager Tony, who I have to admit was very nice and understanding about our situation. And we explained that we felt we had extremely sloppy service and were extremely disappointed as we have used Pep Boys several times in the past. Tony instructed us to take the car in first thing Monday morning and they would look at it. Turns out the right Drivers Side CV Axel was damaged and needed replacement and we had a leak in the air conditioner hose resulting in about $ 900.00 in repairs!!! Are you kidding me, not to mention CV Axel damage could have been a result of the accident or result of them taking this off to replace the engine. After several days of arguing back and forth Pep Boys did agree to replace the CV axel for free. After several months of driving the car, in late November we started to have issues with the car yet again. The engine would seize for no apparent reason. We took it to another shop several times not being able to determine the issue, we decided to take the car to Mazda (Dolan Auto Group) after just a day the service technician stated to us «Pep Boys did not install your engine correctly», They removed the crank shaft harness incorrectly and re-​installed it incorrectly. Which resulted in the electrical wire to continually rub against are CV axel, eventually wearing down said wire which would cause our car to seize. Due to the sloppy service we without a doubt prove, resulted to now another $ 1500+ dollars in additional damages, right before Christmas. Not to mention putting me and my family in a vehicle that was ultimately unsafe to drive, putting not only myself but my 3 young children in danger. I believe that this location is not only under staffed and the employees are clearly incompetent and have no business working on vehicles. Please Please Please rethink bringing your car here.

This store has a nice selection of automotive products, and the customer service employees on the floor that I have dealt with have been friendly and helpful. However, all those positive feelings are usually dashed at checkout because the cashiers there seem so disinterested. Is it really that hard to smile at a customer and say a simple «thank you», instead of a cold stare and «here you go.» What usually starts off as a positive visit there often has me thinking of going to the competition next time.

The service here is great! I live out of the area and was able to get my tires and alignment done with short notice. Tony is a great person to have worked with. He went above and beyond to make my experience very welcoming. Their prices beat other tire companies by far and yes, even Discount Tires. Will come back for all my tires services and other car needs.

I got a quote on a simple repair. It was $ 74, I bought the replacement part and the tool I needed (okay, it was a cheap Chinese import) elsewhere for less than $ 15. Maybe they charge a minimum one-​hour labor for any repair. I didn’t ask. But $ 74 seems high for a 15-​minute fix.

Terrible!
I come in for my oil change appointment and they told me that the ONLY person doing oil changes is on lunch and that I would have to wait 45 minutes! I didn’t have time for that. Why bother making an appointment when this crap happens. I canceled my appointment and went somewhere else.

This shop is just the worst.
I recently came by here to get my brakes and rotors done (I was getting that grinding noise), and after another shop tried to charge me $ 700 for the service, I called Pep Boys to get a quote. When I called them, they said «$ 221 if they can be resurfaced, $ 315 if they can’t,» which isn’t exactly a great price, but I just wanted my car problems to be over. So, this is where I went.
They put my car up, and within fifteen minutes of my sitting down in their waiting room they let me know that without a doubt I need to have the rotors replaced. I say fine. They tell me they have to get the part from the other Pep Boys location in Reno. I say fine. He then tells me that it’ll all cost about $ 371. I, confused, ask him if he means $ 315.71, as that’s about what I was quoted on the phone. Then he makes me wait a bit while he goes and looks at his computer, comes back and says «oh, sorry, my manager built the ticket differently than how they did on the phone. He gave you brake pads that cost about $ 30 more each. But I’ll do some magic to get the price back down to at least $ 320 for you.» I say fine, already annoyed.
An hour goes by. The guy who has been relaying info to me lets me know that someone forgot to put in the request for the part from the store, but that they’re putting it in now and it should be here in a little bit. Two hours go by. He comes back and tells me that the guys at the other store gave them the wrong part and they they’re going to have to leave and come back with the right one. Meanwhile, I’m still sitting in the waiting room (they had initially told me that job would only take two hours.) I say fine. Another hour goes by, they finally have the part. It’s almost 6 when they finally finish, and I’d brought my car in at 2. I don’t know if it’s because I was fuming or not, but the guy at the counter gives me another discount for making me wait for four hours. I end up paying $ 265 when all is said and done.
But that’s not where the story ends.
I bring it home, and the grinding noise is gone. However, I had been having a problem with another part of my car, so I had to bring it in to another show to have something replaced. When THAT show was doing a test drive, the caliper from the front drivers side of my car FELL OFF because Pep Boys didn’t screw it on all the way. So I had to have it towed BACK to Pep Boys to have them do my brakes again. Over all, a terrible experience. DO NOT COME HERE. IT WILL ONLY GIVE YOU A HEAD ACHE.

Terrible!!!
I went in to get a a brake job (new pads and rotors). I had some old rotors from a friend, they said they could turn them. Car came back making a grinding noise when I braked. I went back. They had the car for hours and came back, «we couldn’t find anything wrong with the front, we think the noise is coming from the back. Can you come back tomorrow and we’ll check out the back?» I didn’t return, I went to another guy who confirmed that it was a warped rotor. Switched it out, now I’m good to go. Had they taken apart the back, I still would have had my grinding noise. I will not be returning.

I have given them 1 star for doing a crappy job with my hubby’s jeep. This was the 4^th or 5^th time they tried to fix his jeep and yet the problem is still there. Everytime we go here. there’s a new problem that they say had to be fix and so «they did» fix it according to them. They also said the jeep wasn’t gonna shake anymore (which was the real problem), but after a few hours to a day it comes back again (the shaking) worse than before. Long story short, we are never going back here again. We spent thousands of dollars already, we are done with them.
Reminder to everyone: It’s ok if u want to give them a shot fixing your vehicle, but after one try and the problem is still there just don’t come back.

Pep Boys infuriated me this afternoon. My husband and I went into the store to buy some oil for our car. We found a great deal on their end cap that said you 5 one quart bottles of oil and a filter for $ 29.99. We stocked up and checked out. Upon checking out, they realized they didn’t have the oil filter for our 2015 Forester. So the manager tells the cashier to ring us up for full price but minus off $ 5 for what the filter would’ve been. What?!? So the boy rings us up and our total is $ 38 and some change. I ask them how is it our fault they don’t have the proper stock for the deal, so now WE need to pay $ 10 more with no oil filter. They give me a round about answer and tell me that’s just how it has to be. I walked out and told them they make poor business decisions and I will never be back. Ugh, terrible service.

93 years in service!!! You can’t get there by not doing some thing right. I have been getting my vehicles service here for over 2 years. No issues and honest.
How many businesses do you know of that have been around sense 1921

Took them two hours to do a simple oil change last week. They weren’t even busy, they just completely forgot about it.

We’ve been taking our cars there for some time and never had a problem. But, it only takes one mess up to change an opinion. They don’t have the cheapest tires but they aren’t the most expensive either. Good alignments. Cheap oil change/​tire rotation

This store Is Great, Tony A. The manager is very nice. I really like the selection in the store, there’s more things then Oriley and Autozone. I needed work done on my company glass van, and they were able to get it fixed fast and right, and the prices are great. I will always refer this store to people.

Wow! These guys were great! Being a female and a little naïve when it comes to auto repair, I am usually skeptical of most mechanics. These guys made me feel 100% comfortable. They didn’t just tell me what the problem was. They explained it to me in a way I could understand and also showed me the problem. Never once did I feel pressured or cheated and I was out of there quickly. The two gentlemen who helped me were Jason and Brittan. So friendly and knowledgeable. Thank you for taking good care of me! If my car breaks down in Sparks again, you’ll be my first visit!

Relatively quick service. They say they have the best prices on tires, quick google check for the area says otherwise. Look for the $ 21.99 oil change coupon on their website, although Midas is still better.

Have brought 3 vehicles here for wheel alignments. Planning on bringing a 4^th this month. Have never had a problem with the service or getting treated as a moron cuz I’m female.
The gentlemen have always been friendly and explain everything to me if there is a problem. (Had 1 vehicle with a bent tie rod so they couldn’t do a great alignment, told me how much it was to fix, I passed and took my vehicle home with no problems.)
I don’t know much about their store as I only do alignments here.
It can be a bit of a bugger getting in and out of the parking lot. (Small parking spaces too.) Prater Way is a busy street to get back on to, but have learned to go around to the back alley to hook into East I Street that hits the signal when I leave.

I’ve never utilized the garage portion of Pep Boys, so this review is only for the store. I’m no master mechanic, but they seem to have a decent selection of replacement parts and add-​ons and always have what I need. The prices are higher than what you can find online, but they seem to generally be in line with what you can find at other brick and mortar retailers. This particular store is looking pretty rundown, but it stays clean and you can usually get in and out pretty quick.