Danny’s Car Care Center

Been bringing my cars to Danny now for over ten years. He’s the only mechanic I really trust. I recommend him to all my friends and family, whenever they need service.

Only place we take our vehicles, even just for oil changes. Knowledgable and honest. Numerous times they have hand a chance to say it was something more expensive and get away with it, but they never have. Very happy here.

Best Car Shop in KS! Seriously Danny and his team are honest and do excellent work in a very timely manner.

My car is long past warranty and my airbag warning light was on indicating it is deactivated. The shop tested the problem by trying to find the error code and then just reset it hoping that was the easy fix and save me a big expense. The light was on again before I made it back to my office. So I took it back and the shop did additional testing and research to narrow down the problem. And, they called a couple of their parts suppliers, including a local OEM dealer, to see what parts were in stock if the solution was found.
Long story short, they needed it for a day to tear into the steering column and once the problem found, order the part and have it in the next day. Both my wife and I need cars in our jobs so this is always a major inconvenience. I also received an estimate from Danny that was a little north of $ 500. Just to be sure, I called the local GM dealer and the airbag on this make/​model was not currently under recall and they asked me to bring it in for diagnosis that would cost more than $ 200. UGH.
I took it back to Danny so they would have it to work on the first thing in the morning. They found the problem AND found the part locally so they could call that afternoon to tell me it is finished. They exceeded my expectations!
Tip: If you have a problem that needs diagnosed and/​or repaired, you must get your car to them first thing in the morning. While sitting and waiting for their original diagnosis, several customers came in after 9:00 and they had to be turned away because the schedule was already filled. If it is just routine maintenance (oil change, etc) you might call to see if they can work you in later in the day.

It’s an unfortunate thing when you have to write a negative review, but hopefully the business will take this information into consideration and be better off for it (hopefully future customers will be too).
I took my car to Danny’s Car Care in Topeka to have the thermostat replaced as they had the best pricing — $ 200 versus the $ 400 other shops wanted to charge me.
Within a week of getting my car back it began making a terrible (and loud) squealing noise when moving into first or reverse gear, or when turning on the AC. In my research and consultations, I was able to determine it was likely something to do with the serpentine belt being loose and slipping. For an MK4 Volkswagen, this belt is typically loosened to more easily reach the alternator, which is generally moved to reach the thermostat.
I called Danny’s and let them know what was happening, and that I wanted them to take a look and be sure my car was put back together properly. They said it shouldn’t take too long to just look at the belt and I brought it in the next morning.
This is where things got dicey.
I was right that the serpentine belt was loose and slipping. They even let me come back into the garage to see for myself. However, the owner (I believe he was the owner) claimed that his tech did not remove anything to replace the thermostat. First off, the tensioner hides one of the bolts to the alternator, which covers the area where the thermostat is located. Danny’s Car Care claims that they simply pushed the alternator aside to change the thermostat. Before leaving, instead of offering to schedule a day for me to bring it in and investigate further, to be absolutely certain they didn’t screw things up, I was instead told that I probably need a new tensioner and I was given an estimate for one.
Back at home, I consulted with a local group of Volkswagen techs, mechanics, and enthusiasts who were able to pinpoint the problem from photos I posted of the tensioner and belt. The problem was not my tensioner. The problem was that my tensioner had in fact been removed and, when it was put back on, the bracket was placed behind (on the inside) of the tensioner, instead of on the front (outside) of the tensioner. As a result of this, recognizably easy, mistake, the tensioner was misaligned and kicking the serpentine belt off. (I’ve posted a picture showing the bracket on the wrong side).
Thanks to this online group, I was able to go into a local KC garage and work with a tech to fix it. It took probably 5 – 10 minutes and my VW runs great now (with no squealing).
Granted, Danny’s may not have been aware that this bracket was misplaced and so they didn’t think to mention that as a possibility when looking at my tensioner and belt. However, they claim they never removed the tensioner, which clearly isn’t true.
To sum up, if you have a complicated car, like a Volkswagen, your best bet is to take it to a shop that’s experienced in working on them.

Nobody likes car repair but you at least want to know that your mechanic is honest and is fixing the right thing the right way.
Had a $ 800 estimate from another car place, Danny said — yes, that would fix your problem but so might a $ 25 part and new fluids. Let’s try that first. We did and it worked and haven’t had a problem since.
We’ve also had a big car repair with Danny as well. It was done perfectly.
We have two older model cars — A Toyota and a Nissan — and we don’t take them anywhere else. Even for oil changes.