Cottage Grove Auto Repair

The team at Honest-1 in Cottage Grove have been awesome to work with. They've earned my recurring business for the big and little issues that may arise with my car.

I was sent a review request by Honest 1 a couple of weeks ago. I decided whenever I got my car back from the dealership I would write a fair review. A review not out of anger, but just my experience. Just to mention when I did complete the review that would have been posted directly to their website. Honest 1 took it down and called asking to talk to me about the review. The fact that now I am aware that all of their reviews are either fake or filtered let's me understand the type of business this is. On June 1st or 2nd I brought my car to the muffler shop down the road from Honest 1. The mechanic informed me he was unwilling to fix the rear suspension on my Chrysler 300c. He stated I had two bad camber links on each side of my rear suspension. He said, the problem is the bolt connected to each link was so close to the frame he would have to drop the suspension to repair them. He apologized for not being able to make the repair because it was to time consuming for him. I immediately took my car over to Honest 1 to see, if they could repair it. I asked could they give me a ball park figure on how much it would cost. The guy working the desk told me around $500.00. He wanted to do an inspection on it first. I left my car with Honest 1. The next morning the attendant called me and told me in order to fix the camber link it would cost $1,900. I was reluctant to pay that much, but I needed my car fixed. He stated also the rear axle needed to be dropped in order to fix it and it's going to take 5 days to get the parts in. About a little over a week goes by. I'm noticing my vehicle hasn't moved from the same spot that I left it. I go in and ask the attendant for an update on my vehicle. He looked surprised to see me. He then says the part hasn't come in. I am going to call and track it. He's says as soon as it gets here I will start on your car. I leave the shop the attendant was not on the phone when I left. I get into the car I'm driving. Drive to the exit of the parking lot and the attendant calls me to tell me he tracked the part and it was on the truck. There is no way he made that call and tracked those parts in two minutes. Fast forward a day later. Honest 1 called me and told me they have good news and bad news. The good news is I don't owe them any money. The bad news is the parts they received was the wrong part. The parts I need is recalled and on back order for 6 months. So there is no way to fix my vehicle. The attendant then calls back and says he can put a aftermarket part on my car and it would be cheaper. The price then will be $1,700 instead of the $1,900. I called the dealership in Roseville the next day. I gave them my VIN # and asked it they stocked the parts for my car. They replied yes, we have them in stock. I asked for the price of the parts and labor. The dealership said , the parts were about $167.00 a piece and $200.00 a side to replace. I made an appointment right then, because my car seem to be an after thought. I went to Honest 1 to pick-up my car. I told the guy the dealership has the parts to my car and they aren't discontinued. The attendant wanted to call the dealership himself to verify my claim. The dealership basically told the attendant they have the parts to my vehicle and nothing that they know of is discontinued. They asked what were they charging. I told them and they scoffed at the idea the dealership would not fix it for the price noted. Honest 1 also charged me $115.00 inspection fee. I dropped my car off at the dealership. They called me and and said, your camber links are fine. The links that are bad are the tension links. They said, they didn't have them on hand. It would take three days to get them. A week later my car was fixed. The repair cost was $1,057.00. The dealership is notorious for their pricing. For the work to be half of what DisHonest 1 charged is insane. DisHonest 1 has some ethical problems. I could never bring myself to using them again. I'm sharing my story in case you decide to use them. This is what you could possibly be in for.

I wanted to get my car fixed before leaving this review to put the entire experience into context. I dropped my car off at Honest 1 on the 1st or second of the month. I took it to a shop down the road at first, The mechanic told me the camber links on both sides of the rear axle were bad. He lifted my vehicle to show me what was going on. There was a bolt on both sides virtually hugging the frame. He said, it would take too long for him to drop the suspension in order to get it done. He apologized for not being able to help me. I then took my vehicle to Honest 1. I told the guys at the desk my last experience. They told me after they took a look they'd get back to me. The following morning the guy at the desk told me both Camber Links were worn and needed to be replaced. He told me it would cost $1,900. I reluctantly agreed to have it done. I told him to go ahead and fix it. He told me it would take a week to get the parts in. A week goes by. I live very close to the shop. I'm noticing my car has not moved from the same space. I go into the shop to get an update. The guy at the desk. Looks at me me with a look of I forgot something. Not really sure what was going on behind the scene. I ask him about my car. He says the part has not come in yet. Its been over a week. He told me he would call and track the part. Remind you before I left the shop. The guy working the desk was not on the phone. I left got in the vehicle I was driving and got a call from him before I could get out the parking lot. He said, he tracked the parts and they should be in tomorrow. I honestly don't believe for a second he tracked those parts in a matter of two minutes. I received a call the next day from the attendant at the desk. He stated I have good news and bad news. I asked what was the good news? He said, you don't owe me any money. The bad news is my part was discontinued and back ordered for 6 months. All this after having my car for a week. So I called the dealership in Roseville. They told me they had my part and it would cost $165.00 each roughly and about $200.00 each side in labor. I set up an appointment immediately because I knew my car was not being touched. I went to Honest 1 to retrieve my vehicle. The attendants at the desk pretty much scoffed at the idea that the dealership would charge what they told me. One of them even asked to call the dealership to verify my claim. I paid $115.00 for an inspection and headed to the dealership. The dealership did their own inspection. They said the tension links were the parts that were worn not the camber links. They said, they were still able to get the parts, but they needed to hang on to the car for a week. A week later I got my car back. The final tally was $1,057 vs the $1,900 dollars from DisHonest 1. Also they made it a point to tell me they did not have to drop the rear suspension to get it done. They just cut the bolt and replaced it with a new one. I believe in a shop ability to make money for a service, but this is well beyond troubling. Will never do business with them again.

Awesome service. I am using Honest1 for all my car care needs.

Thanks guys for going the extra mile. Much appreciated

Great service! Got my rear break pads and rotors replaced here. Service was fast and price was very good. I won't go to Toyota official service anymore, instead, I will service my car here.

Great service! Got my rear break pads and rotors replaced here. Service was fast and price was very good. I won't go to Toyota official service anymore, instead, I will service my car here.

Such a professional team! They have always been there for me whenever one of my vehicles has a problem.

Such a professional team! They have always been there for me whenever one of my vehicles has a problem.

Had an unexpected emergency and the guys got me back on the road in no time. Everyone was helpful, friendly and professional. Great service. Will be using them a lot more in the future. Thanks guys!