Merlin 200,000 Miles Shop

Recently took my car in for what I thought would be a costly brake job (given the grinding sound). Also had them replace an expensive lamp that’s a pain in the butt to get to (friend wouldn’t even attempt as part of the bumper needs to be removed to access). Oil change and fixing a broken windshield washer. Was called and informed brakes still had 80% of the pads left and not to worry. Just some rust. I’m not cynical but who does that anymore? Who foregoes the opportunity to pocket another $ 300-​$ 500 from an uninformed customer? The service techs at Merlin of Fox Lake, that’s who! Walked out the door for $ 118.
Keep up the good work. There aren’t enough honest business folks out there anymore.

Great shop. Diag my engine problems with ease. Honest and straight to the point. Known Don the shop owner for years and will only go there for my repairs.

We love this Merlin — we have been taking our vehicles here for almost 4 years and having been to other repair shops and having awful experiences, we have never had a bad experience at the Fox Lake Merlin. (Avoid going to the Merlin in Crystal Lake though — we have had several bad experiences there and they totally rip you off there).
These guys though are awesome. They are honest, fair regarding costs, and we trust their work. There was a time when something didn’t get fixed properly but we took the vehicle back and they fixed it correctly, admitted it wasn’t done properly the first time, and didn’t charge us anything. We will be loyal customers here for many more years to come! Keep up the good work guys!

Strange to write a review about a repair shop making a mistake. This shop is very honest. I went to them at the recommendation of a friend — I needed a catalytic converter replacement. They replaced it at a fair price (compared to the dealer) but my check engine light came back on. Took it back in and they told me they’d written down the diagnosis code wrong (transposed some digits) and replaced the wrong converter. Then they replaced the correct converter at their cost. I’m very impressed with their straightforward honesty. I’ll definitely give them my repair work from now on.

The Fox Lake Merlin shop is one of my two go-​to auto repair shops in the area. I feel like they are honest and does good work for the money. Fixed several issues on our old Jeep GC. Definitely will be back.

Great courteous service. They took me right in with no appointment. The price for regular service was about the same as a Jiffy Lube but the quality was much better.

I brought a challenging electrical issue with my truck and trailer. They did a great job !! Well done positive friendly service !!!

I do some work on my car in my garage but for other repairs that I can’t do or don’t have the time to do I bring to them. Very reasonable priced and honest. They seem to know there stuff. I have a German car that most shops charge an arm and leg to do anything. This shop can do it all and won’t rip you off. Would highly recommend.

To clarify some feelings I am sure many Unilocalers have as well: I know a thing or two about working on motor vehicles thanks to my father. I hate car repair places with a burning passion, but on a whim I decided to go here because i was visiting my parents after being laid off from my job of 10+ years because I needed a new muffler.(NOT HAVING A GARAGE AND NO WELDING EQUIPMENT IN THE STREETS OF CHICAGO IS NOT AN EASY WAY TO DO THIS TASK).
Not only did I call them 1 hour before they were closing with no notice, they politely said «come on in» despite being busy as FUCK on a Saturday.
They were so polite, honest, and cheap I could not believe it. I watched the young gentlemen doing the labor behind the glass as well, he was on point. Highest possible recommendation if you live in this area.