Lin-Mar Motors

AVOID. Worse than a car accident.
We were told that we’d get our car delivered to the mechanic, they’d call when they were leaving at 7 pm. We followed up. Then told that they police and fire department calls take precendence, so they can meet us at 9:15 pm at the mechanic, only a 30 minute or less drive away. We call at 9:30 to find out that they haven’t left. They offered no explanation other than «police calls take precendence» (again) and that they were now on their way. They picked up the car around 5:30 pm and here I am waiting at 9:45 pm. They offered no apology, discount, or any kind of customer service for the repeated lies that they’d be there at a certain time. They did not update me that they couldn’t deliver. I talked to several different people throughout the night, one even said *maybe* I’d have my car if I was more pleasant… I think I had been more than a little patient all night…
The only thing that’s worse than a car accident is Lin Mar Motors.

First let me tell you no one wants to get a tow, but when I did I called linmar, professional, capable, and they take care of there customers. I will be calling them back.

I had to pickup a vehicle from this facility because lin-​mar towed the vehicle from the accident site to their shop.
To keep it short and sweet, the entire process from start to finish was an absolute nightmare. These guys are con’s and know the business of how to take your money because they’ve been doing it for years. Stay away from these people.

UPDATE TO MY PREVIOUS REVIEW
It is now a week later and the car has been sitting at the collision center while waiting for an insurance decision. They call us today to tell us the car is a total loss. We come to the collision center to get the plates off of the car. The only place the car has been at was Lin Mar. We go to take our $ 500 all weather floor mats out to discover they have already been removed. I call Lin Mar and they inform me that they don’t go in the car at all, yet they went into our car to put the front plate into the center console. Needless to say at this point authorities will be informed as this scam artist company needs to be exposed. It’s not even about the floor mats at this point. It’s the fact that this company takes things that aren’t theirs and then lies about it (when I have proof to prove otherwise) What a scumbag company with scummy people. They should be ashamed. Police will be involved at this point.

My car got rear-​ended & destroyed — «tolaled» doesn’t EVEN come close to it — by a kid who was texting and plowed into it while I was stopped at a red light. The speed limit was 35mph and that was the minimum this guy was going, The JOLT of impact knocked me unconscious & my car into the minivan in front of me.
Ambulance. Hospital ER. Concussion. Severe neck strain. Torn shoulder cartilage and/​or ligament. Contusions, abrasions, & lacerations. Fun stuff.
Anyways my ride — crushed front & back — ended up at Lin-​Mar and the folks on
duty there — I hope I recall their names correctly, Caitlan, Tom, and then later Stacy — were patient professional and went extra steps to assist a guy, who must’ve looked like he’d gone 6 rounds w/​Smokin’ Joe Frazier, retrieve the personal effects I had to get before my beloved Scion xA went off to the compacter at the local junk yard.
This entire episode has been an unfunfest of massive proportions but there can still be silver linings in dark — and painful– clouds. Thank you to Lin — Mar for making this my car wreck story a little less of a nightmare.
PS — I am a newly ordained preacher now of ALWAYS checking your rear view mirror stopped in traffic. I made the error of assuming thee was no one approaching and was changing cds in my stereo. «He never knew what hit him» was never more true — or jarring — than in my case. Ugh.

This place is terrible. The employees are rude and the right hand doesnt know what the left is doing. The north shore police automatically tow your car here if it is involved in an accident. Dont let them! They will make you jump through hoops to get anything out of your vehicle once they have their claws into it. Stay away… Far away from these people.

Brought my car here twice — good service. Repair was exactly as long as they quoted and looked good (had damage to rear bumper). Staff very friendly.

My wife had an accident and our car was towed to Lin-​Mar. They were very good about communicating with us and gave us a courtesy car for almost free because our coverage didnt include rental. We didnt end up using their services because the car was totalled but because of the way we were treated I wouldn’t hesitate to use them

(Originally posted this under their towing service, I am re-​posting this here for people who will use them as a body shop who might want to know the bizarre incident that happened to me)
After my car was wrecked Lin Mar towed my car to their location, and then harassed me to get my car fixed there. I told them I was considering another place, then they start telling me negative things about the place that I was getting my car repaired. Concerned, I went to the place my car was being fixed at and they were bewildered. They assured me that they were the real deal and to ignore the phone calls. Sure enough Lin Mar called back and this time a bit aggressive — and I told them I was satisfied with the place I had chosen and to stop calling me before I call the police, to which they didn’t seem to care. It was a bit mafia-​like. I also asked the repair shop to check to see if there was any evidence of parts swapping, as Lin Mar seemed shadier than a maple tree, and my car had been there a few days before being transferred to my chosen body shop. A few weeks later, I see an obnoxious sign by Lin Mar hosting some police event, about the great police force and how Lin Mar supports them, and I recalled how the police insisted on Lin Mar for towing. No wonder they can get away with anything, possible corruption? I don’t know. This was all a very bizarre experience, and I will never leave my car in a place like that — I do not trust them AT ALL. I won’t be surprised if this somehow gets deleted, but thought I should put this out there for other consumers who don’t know, be careful.

My girlfriend was in an accident this past February. The car was towed by Lin-​Mar. The next morning, on a conference call with the insurance company and Lin-​Mar, the owner of the body shop, Ron, was adamant about having my girlfriend have her car fixed at Lin-​Mar. He was extremely rude over the phone to the insurance agent. He continued to insist that his company repair the car. She decided to go with the company her insurance works with (not Lin-​Mar) and was told told that she needed to come to the shop to fill out release papers.
However, two days later, while trying to fill out the paper work to have the car released, she was talked into having the work done at Lin-​Mar. They also offered her a car rental, while the car was being repaired.
After much debate, she decided to have it repaired at Lin-​Mar as long as they used Nissan dealer parts and they showed us receipts for them. Lin-​Mar also quoted us a price of $ 24.95 for the car rental (I wish they put that in writing).
Over the three week period that the car was being repaired, a few calls were made to the body shop to discuss the rental vehicle, a 10 year old Acura MDX, whose heat did not work properly during this frigid time of year. The battery also died on her once, which left her stranded at work for an hour. The rental contact at Lin-​Mar, Katie, was very rude when we wanted some clarification on the price of the rental. She wouldn’t answer our questions directly. My girlfriend was afraid to complain about the rental since she questioned the character and integrity of the company. After some investigation, we have learned that Lin-​Mar has charged her insurance $ 30/​day for the car rental. Interesting…
I’m not a mechanic, but the overall body and mechanical work seems to be good so far. Would I recommend them? I still don’t know the answer to that question. This is a perfect example of why costumer service is so important.

Well, I’ve used Lin-​Mar more than a person should have to but between 2 personal vehicles and 6 work trucks I’ve gotten to know them very well. My most recent experience was during the terrible cold snap. One of my plumbers slipped on black ice and took out the front of his truck. Even though they were swamped they got my truck fixed in 1 day. Amazing.

I honestly have no idea how this company has good ratings. First of all, they attempted to steal my business after my car was towed there from an accident. I wanted my vehicle repaired at a different body shop, they wouldn’t release MY car to MY towing company until I drove all the way down there and filled out a ton of paperwork and answered a ton of unnecessary questions. Then, they gave my towing company the ring around, playing all these games and pretending like they «didn’t know the procedure». Then, when I called and talked to them, they were so rude to me that I was literally appalled that such a place was in business. DO NOT fix your car here. This place is full of a bunch of crooks and liars.

Great service from start to finish! My Acura got hit from behind, and they replaced the rear bumper cover no sweat. They even had a loaner car for me to use for a couple days. Great job, Maurice. Thanks!

I had a great experience with Lin Mar. They were recommended by a friend, so I decided to check them out. I needed new brakes and tires. They had a technician look at my care after I dropped it off that morning. They drove me to work, came and picked me up, and gave me a loaner while they were working on my car. The car was done in less than 36 hours. It was a fantastic experience and I will definitely be back for any more work I need done on my car.

It is no wonder Lin-​Mar is rated so highly…
My review is regarding ‘auto body” work…
If you happen to live in the Morton Grove, Skokie, Niles, Glenview or Lincolnwood areas… YOU HAVE A BETTER CHOICE FOR AUTO BODY REPAIR… and that choice is LIN-​MAR MOTORS…
If you have read my other reviews, you know that I only rate the best; I have no time for losers, mediocre or even «really good»
On that note, there are a lot of «really good» auto body shops, but quite honestly, they are «really good at getting your car back to you fast…»
What I am implying. is that a lot of these shops do «satisfactory repair work», work with your insurance and get your car back to you to make you happy that you have your car back…
LIN-​MAR is different! If you happen to walk into their front offices, you might note the vintage cars they are working on; what this means to me, is that LIN-​MAR customers take pride in the physical appearance and functionality of their cars…
Unfortunately, I have already been a customer of LIN-​MAR twice…
Fortunately, their work is soooooo precise, my car collector buddies were amazed at how good of a job they did on my car… One friend even commented that these guys buffed my car so well; it appeared as sleek as glass!
Okay, now for the nitty gritty…
You bring your car in and see George…
George will look over your car, take your info and engage the insurance company…
A few hours later, or the next day, George calls you to arrange to have your car at the facility…
George also coordinates a rental car for you (I opt to rent one of LIN-MAR’s loaners; older vehicles, but they look great and are mechanically sound). You should note that LIN-​MAR will work with your insurance company’s rental budget…
After George takes your car, you might get a phone call or 2 to let you know the status of your vehicle (Example: «We discovered additional damage and adjusters will be here tomorrow to give okay, so your car should be ready Friday; instead of Thursday», «The part came in, but it was scratched or bent, so we are requesting a replacement», «Car is ready, you can pick it up before 6:00 today!»)
Bottom-​line, when you get your car back, expect it to look like it just came off a showroom floor! These guys have very high standards!
You can’t go wrong bring your car to Lin-​Mar Motors!

Lin-​Mar Motors will be the only place I am taking my vehicles from now on. I had 24′ International work truck that needed the fluids changed as well as the starter replaced. I made several phone calls around to local shops but everyone was real reluctant to service a truck of that size; Hi-​Tech autobody of Skokie was the worst of them all. Not only was I told that they would help me out, they immediately went to work on it as soon as I dropped it off. Not only did they do a great job, they had everything done within 2 hrs. This not only saved me on the hassle of renting a truck to replace it in the mean time, it saved us the $ 200 to rent the truck. I stopped in to pick the truck back up and George stopped in the middle of his lunch to walk me through everything that was done. Great service all around — Thanks!

Have taken my cars here many times for various repairs and have had nothing but pleasurable experiences. They work well with your insurance company and seem to go out of their way to make sure you are comfortable with the process. They moved recently into a huge new location that looks great. Nice to have a dependable local shop to take my cars to. Keep up the good work.

I took in my Lexus after I scratched it against a pole at work. My Lexus dealership recommended them as my dealership doesn’t perform body repairs. I spoke to a guy named George, and he provided amazing customer service. My insurance company had given me a quote for the damage that was about $ 500, but George quoted the damage at like $ 1,300. I wanted to give my insurance a call before I okay-​ed the work for Lin-​Mar just to make sure my insurance company will cover it. Somehow before I was able to reach my agent (less than 5 minutes), George had already called my insurance company and got the okay for the work! Although it took a few extra days for them to repair the damage, the work was fantastic. They’re really knowledgeable about body damage and perform quality work on body repairs. I would definitely go back and highly recommend them.

This is the only place I take my Acura to be fixed. Acura recommended them to me and I have been really happy with my experiences (I tend to hit things often!). They are very nice here and go out of their way to make car repair a pleasant experience. The work is excellent, vehicles are repaired in a timely manner, and they are happy to take care of all the legwork w/​insurance companies regarding supplements etc. I can’t speak for price since I have always gone through insurance here.

Some yayhoo opened his door into traffic and smashed my mirror and dinged up my 4 month old car last week. Getting over the initial shock and anger I found Lin-​Mar and all my worries were put to rest.
I actually was referred to Lin-​Mar Motors by a co-​worker who had some minor body and paint work done to her 1 year old car. Knowing she is a really thorough reviewer I knew I could trust her opinion.
Not only did they put my car back to dealership floor status, they got out scratches and nicks that weren’t even from my accident. It looks beautiful! Linda and Bob provided excellent and down to earth service. I really appreciated the way they treated me and how I felt welcomed.
The only reason I didn’t give them 5 stars was because I had to call to follow-​up after I faxed the estimate, even though they said they’d call. And when I picked up my car they didn’t realize that my clock had gotten messed up as well as all my presets for my radio and Sirius.
But all and all I’d recommend this company for your auto body repair. They have free loaners, and work very well with rental companies. Oh and they made me laugh.