Sears Auto Center

HOW TO SPEED UP YOUR WAIT TIME AT SEARS AUTO
what is wrong with these people? that’s what i found myself asking. if you’re familiar with the Seinfeld episode about car rental reservations, you’ll understand when i say they know how to MAKE appointments… they just don’t know how to KEEP appointments, and that’s really the most important part, isn’t it?
the key here is to let them know you’re watching and keeping track of how they’re shuffling around cars. a big part of how mechanics operate is they’ll put off working on YOUR car if they know the guy who came in AFTER you will complain about the wait.
if you absolutely gotta be outta there by a certain time, don’t leave the premises or lose yourself in the TV or your phone. you can’t counter their lame excuses if you weren’t paying attention (see @BO W’s review where, apparently, 3 HOURS was not enough time for an oil change).
here’s my play book for speeding things along:
1. make an appointment and when you arrive, ask how many cars are ahead of you.
2. let them know you’ll wait in your car till they’re ready to work on it. this LET’S THEM KNOW you’ll know exactly how long your car was just sitting there.
3. park your car so the mechanics can see you watching them and how many cars they bring in before yours. while in your car, remove all items that could possibly be messed with.
3. once your car is on the lift, make sure they start on it right away (i.e. draining the oil). now is a great time to grab some PORTO’S across the street but come right back and do a visual check before heading to the waiting room to eat your Cheesy Spicy Pepper Potato Balls.
4. get up periodically to physically check that someone is continually working on your car. be visible but not antagonistic.
5. don’t hesitate to ask about delays.
6. don’t fall for how their oil change takes «close to a full hour» because they «do a better job checking everything than Jiffy Lube places». they checked off all my fluid levels as being «ok at this time» even though i knew my steering and transmission fluids to be low. and they left my wiper fluid chamber bone dry. wiper fluid is the one fluid they are supposed to top off as part of the service.
doing all this, i’m guessing it’ll probably still take 60 minutes MINIMUM because, according to Adam, appointment times mean only that you’ll «have priority over walk-​ins».
MORE SUGGESTIONS
— only come here if you have a coupon and time to burn. if you pay $ 29.99 for a conventional oil change, you’re getting ripped off. i got a $ 16.99 Groupon but the guy ahead of me paid only $ 14.99 with a Sears coupon.
— no wifi here. they have wifi at the department store across the street.
— CHECK, DON’T TRUST. check under the hood before you drive off. i mean, make sure your oil cap is there and on tightly, and check the oil level. check your wiper fluid and ask for a raincheck when you find it empty.
— supervisor Adam needs to find some purpose in life or find another line of work, maybe a Tony Robbins seminar might help. obviously, this suggestion is for Adam (hope he reads it!). Carlos was cool.

Giving one star because I can’t do a review without… Bad, really bad costumer service !!! If they say it is going to take 30 minutes more be prepared to wait for an hour and a half!!!

I’ve never been here and I won’t be coming back, unless it’s to replace the battery that I bought from them which has a warranty. The guy who answered my phone call was a bit rude, but at the same time I’m sure he just never learned proper phone/​customer service ettiquette. Then when I’m there getting my battery changed, there was some guy super close to beating his wife/​gf inside the business. They should have called the cops right away instead of trying to be mediators too.
I bought a battery from them. They could of at least installed it for free. Instead, Sears charges an additional $ 20 for installation.
No Thank You.

I try not to write negative reviews but I really wish I had read the reviews on here before coming in. As soon as I arrived the employees seemed rude and like they didn’t want to wait on me. I had an appointment but it still took 20 minutes of waiting before they got to me. When they finally got to me they said they couldn’t process the groupon I brought. The oil change took way too long and was way more expensive than most places. I only came here because of the groupon — had I known how much I’d have to pay I never would have stopped in. I would definitely never come back here and I feel bad for anyone who makes the mistake of coming here.

I always bring my ride here for battery and tire service. Been coming here for years. Recently I had a flat and had to purchase two new tires. So I go and noticed the staff has changed. Only saw one familiar face in the service area. But, staff inside was new. Right away I sensed the vibe was different.
All of them looked like they didn’t want to be there. And, the customers felt it as well. Saying they’ve been standing there for awhile before anyone came up to help. So I blew it off. Because I always come here.
When my turn came. Explained what I needed. He told me what was available. And, done. Told me it would take two hours.
So I go outside to watch them work. And, they were blasting their music. Just playing around. Other customers were coming outside wondering why it was taking long for their cars too. Overall this was the first time I’ve hated my visit. For the money I spend here. The very least one would expect is some professionalism at the workplace. Some common courtesy towards customers. Like it used to be.
I hate to give such a bad review. But, I noticed I’m not the only returning customer who had noticed the difference of service at this location. Feel free to read the other post.
Sorry guys this last visit you get 1 star for overall service.

Nice people but too long for just a simple oil change. Told me it’d take an hour and a half but since I made my appointment during my lunch break they said they’d try and do it in an hour. Took them almost 3 hours!
When I came back after the first hour and a half they hadn’t even gotten my filter yet. Time is very valuable to me so I probably won’t be coming back here

I took my car on March 10,16, as i had already asked for appointment. i needed only oil change, and i got my car back in a reasonable time. The problem was the next morning, when i noticed the engine was leaking, and everyday it become worse, i took it today to the Mechanic, and they checked and told me that, they did not tight enough the cap, that, s why of leaking. This place is very fishy and not at all a good customer services. Never back again

Their customer service is superb! This is the most important service I do appreciate from a company… A cute experience to share: How cute it is when a nice lady, on the waiting line, started talking to you, asking if you’re married and began to introduce you to her son??? LOL!!! How adorable and sweet of her!!!

Drop off my car 12n for my 12n appointment. After 45min they took my car inside and it was seating inside for 1hr and 45min. Finally left Sears 2:45.
Basic oil change 2hrs and 45min.

What happened to this place? I used to go in and out in less than 15 minutes to drop my car off for an oil change. Took them an hour to finally get someone in their lobby so I can finally have a face talk to. But hey, phone was going off and no one was answering, 3 other people before me just left pissed off, and I peeked at the techs in the back and it looked like they were having a dance party. C’mom Sears… Get you shht together.

Went here to inquire about replacing tires– cost and brand… It took me 30 minutes just to get a quote!. Guy told me to make an appointment so that it will only take about two hours to have it done, if not it’ll take 3 or more hours. Told all about it to hubby, so he booked an appt a couple days after. He came there as per appt only to find out they overbooked and told him the appt is no longer considered. Duh! He came there at 12:30 and finished after 5 pm!!! Almost 5 hours to have two tires replaced and have it aligned… Furthermore, he had to fup on service people busy chatting at the back to pay and go. No apologies … I told him I had a bad feeling about him going there… I preferred going somewhere else. He only wants it here because of the no 12 months no interest thing… What a waste of his precious time just waiting there.

I have sent a complaint to sears couple of days after this experience. I guess customer’s voice is nothing to sears nowadays. I never heard back from it. My friend and I drop off both our cars at 12pm for our 12pm appointment. We asked separately on when we going to get the car back. The longest estimate was like 3 hours max and said they would call us when the cars are ready. We went on to have lunch and shopping at the galleria. As the sun was setting, we decided to go back at 4:30. While, we were walking back, I got a call saying my car’s ready. When we arrived, my friend’s car was at the same spot as she parked at 12, they told us that her car hasn’t been worked on. That’s horrible. Some of my paper works are lost. There are other customers there that were very upset about their similar situation. Some staffs have attitude as if they don’t care. My time is very valuable. If we got our car back by 3 as promise, we could do a lot more other things in other area. We could have done so much more with the time that we have wasted on trying to get oil change. Why did we go with Sears? Because it’s a big brand. We thought it’s big brand, quality must not be too bad. It’s even more horrible than the small shop that I used to go to. I had my wiper to be changed that day. Frankly, I don’t even see the difference from before. I highly doubt if they are new ones.
Service satisfaction guarantee? Am I going to get a refund on this horrible experience? And my friend whom wasted good 5 hours for it (we started walking back at 4:30, after we arrived, we waited for a long time before someone show up, and it took them a long time to get us checked out. It was actually 5:30 when we finally leave)
What can you do for her? What in the world is happening with Sears? My elderly relatives have this trust towards sears, always recommend Sears for everything. This experience is worse ever.

Today I went in for an oil change and some other automotive services. I just wanted to leave some positive feedback for the two customer service advisors working the floor today. Their names were Isac and Carlos. These were two very calm and collected fellows. All day Sunday, they dealt with a long and continuously forming line of average (And of course sometimes cranky) customers. They kept their cool the whole way through, treating each customer equally, and with a high amount of respect. They told me when my car would be ready and they called me when it was time to pick it up. I was very pleased with their customer service skills. Needless to say I was also pleased with the service done to my car. I will definitely be returning for future automotive servicing. Thank you Isac and Carlos for making my experience at Sears Auto Center, a pleasant one. I hope you are both recognized and rewarded for your service. Keep up the great work guys!
–Andrew

The pace of service here is horrendous. Everyone who works here is under motivated, and as a result, the operation moves at a chronic snails pace that is both frustrating and inconvenient. Choose a different service center of you can.

Juan is the man! He’s obviously doing a great job turning this place around, I have only received excellent service here. ESPECIALLY the most recent visit which literally could not have gone better. These guys work hard and do a good job for a good price — I’m a loyal customer moving forward.

I’ve had different experiences but today I finally was helped by Vicky wow! What a difference more women please, super helpful, nice and eager to please. I was so appreciative with her customer service.

It took 2 hours to put ONE tire on my van. The tire had been ordered and was in the shop. But the wait was 2 hours, however, I had been warned I started the work order. Next time I’ll get my tires closer to home.

I ONLY come here if Juan the manger is working! I took the husbands car to get the serpentine belt done. I got a better deal here than all the places I was quoted for. Valvoline and private auto-​body shops. I called up Juan to see if he can take care of me and give me a better deal. And YES he for sure did.
The only problem was it took way to long to get my part. It was 3 hours over the time quoted for. But Juan informed me almost every 30 mins. Telling me where my part was, what happened and apologized and made me feel better. I could have gotten pissed but he reassured me that he will take care of me. Sears was lucky they had a coach, TV and the remote right there for me to use. The ONLY thing is try don’t have a plug to charge my cell phone. I’m sure I could have asked but I was good.
They fixed my hubby’s car. Let me know what else I needed to get fixed but did not push and forced me to get it done. It was all in my decision to do it. And that is what I like about that. No pushy Sears people.
Thanks for a great job on my hubby’s car!

I’ve been going to this location for years now but lately, something is not quite right. Every time I come here for noises I hear from my car, they diagnose with different causes. Each time, the noises go away and come back a few weeks later. I have no problem paying for services needed as long as the element of trust exists. For the past 2 visits, it was the same mechanic test driving with my husband, and diagnosing the issue. This is the older Hispanic mechanic. He explains the problem to us in English but he talks about the issue with Carlos in Spanish. ???
Today, he did the same thing, and then, he pulled Carlos (one of the guys in front) into a room to talk about my car’s issue. Then, Carlos makes a comment to me in Spanish that «it is no problem, you have mucho dinero». This talking in Spanish makes me suspicious that, either they’re ripping me off, or they’re making fun of me. I can think of nothing positive from those actions.
I call the attention of the manager, Juan Lopez. Please tell your employees to speak in English in the workplace, and please, no pulling other employees aside. What can you (mechanic) possibly tell Carlos that you can’t say in English in front of me? Add to this, the other guy on the front desk was not professional, too. He came out of the office into the shop where the Hispanic mechanic was, just as I was driving away, smiling and talking to the guy while looking at me with a smirk.

Mom’s car needed a new battery… it’s been four years, so it was due. I didn’t have an appointment, but Carlos took care of everything in about an hour and a half. Corrosion on battery terminals taken care of for free! Battery credit of $ 33 for purchasing one here four years ago. No one wants to spend an unexpected $ 92, but Carlos made the experience virtually painless! And he is professional and has a great attitude and smile! I’ve been coming here for years and have never had less than terrific service. Thanks Carlos!