Firestone Complete Auto Care

So I go to get an oil change and they end up recommending $300 worth of stuff... when I ask why, they say, ""Well, it'll improve your gas mileage.""

To be fair, as a non-car person, I do not really understand said stuff. Still, I've never had anyplace recommend $300 of work right off the bat when going in for a routine oil change. I've always gone to another Firestone location where I've never doubted that the people are honest - but this one rubs me the wrong way. It seems like they recommend huge amounts of work as a routine thing.

I didn't do the work they recommended, by the way. Buyer beware.

I had a flat about a week ago. Dropped by this location and they fixed me up super fast! Cost was about $12, which I thought was very fair. Kudos!

went in with a coupon for a tire rotation and oil change.. I'm new to this side of town, and don't have a favorite oil change/tire place yet.. they said it'd take an hour.. whatever, walked down the street for a sandwich.. which was fantastic.

I ate.. went to Office Depot.. Michael's.. Pep Boys.. finally they called me to tell me they were done checking out the car (??? no wonder my oil change took over an hour).. They wanted to install a new master cylinder, replace u-joints, flush and replace every fluid in the car.. I kept saying ""no"" as he rattled down the list.. the whole time thinking this was just the price I was paying for using a coupon. The cost for all their recommended services would have been more than $1,100..

Then the zinger.. which was the cheapest item on his list, but annoyed me the most.. he said the oil cap was stripped..
""You mean the little plastic cap on top of the engine?""
-- 'Yes, it's stripped and needs to be replaced. It's $10'
""Actually, I'm at PepBoys across the street, they're $5 here.. should I pick one up?""
-- 'No, our guys can get it.. it's $10'
""Hm, no thanks.. please put the old one back on""

I picked up my car.. popped the hood.. nothing wrong with the oil cap.
I'm sure some of the recommended services might help my beater with $200k miles live a little longer.. but the hard sell is really annoying. Definitely will not return.. even with a coupon.

I still take my car out to Ed Little Auto Service in Culver City.. one of the most honest and reliable mechanic shops I've come across.. that's the type of loyal customer I am.. and these guys blew it with the hard sell.

I had a bad experience there before but since they had usually been reasonable I let it slide. This time I had the previous bad experience validated. When you go in, be ready for a hustle, they will try to make a $25 oil change turn into a $250 job. Be ready for it. I paid for a tire rotation and noticed the next day while putting gas in the car that the front right wheel was in the same position as before. What else did they charge me for and not do? It's too bad because it's in a convenient location but now I'm going to have to look for another garage. For a few bucks they screwed themselves out of thousands in legitimate work. Hope it was worth it.

I have not tried any other service except for their oil changes. They are generally pretty fast, and they are courteous. Since they are right next door to the Office Depot, I usually just browse around Office Depot while waiting. The fact that they're open 7-7pm is very convenient for me.