1 /5 ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻: Fred has the worst attitude. Ask him a simple question (like when it’ll be done) and he immediately gets offended. He also prices dramatically. When I dropped off my car, I told him—both on the phone and in person—about a coolant leak and a slightly smoking engine with popping noises. He only addressed the coolant leak, completely ignoring the engine issue. While I did sign an estimate for the coolant diagnosis, I expected a competent mechanic to check all concerns I mentioned. Instead, he blamed me for “not mentioning” it.
I ended up stuck with him instead of buying another car. I asked him to stop working and put it back together since I never received a full written estimate anyway, but he refused, claiming he couldn’t because I already authorized (I only authorized opening the engine for investigation, not fix it)—which I didn’t because I hanged up the phone on him after he kept yelling over me. Once you push back, he’ll stop calling you altogether. I had to chase him down for updates. I called in the morning and he said he was reinstalling the engine. I called again late in the evening—he casually said it was done. No prior call, no warning, just a bill for thousands.
This was not my first bad experience with him. Previously before that, I had him look at a check engine light related to the fuel pump after a different mechanic (M1) failed to fix it. I told Fred to fix the root problem. He said M1 installed the pump incorrectly, so he corrected it. A few days later, the same light and code came back. When I called him, he confidently quoted $600 to replace the cluster, saying he’d need to “go under the hood.” That made no sense—replacing the cluster doesn’t require that, neither should it cost that much, especially for an older car like mine. I declined, realizing he never actually diagnosed the issue. Instead, he tried to charge me again after failing to fix it the first time.
The real problem is literally in the back of the car, so I don’t know why he thought it was the cluster. It’s literally the fuel system wiring on the passenger side. I later found YouTube videos explaining this exact issue. Fred didn’t check it at all—either due to incompetence or because he just wanted to milk money. I didn’t catch all these red flags until later.
Eventually, I went to Milt’s Service Garage. They fixed the fuel pump and told me the previous work left the wiring and harnesses in such poor condition, it became a fire hazard. They even showed me pictures. While that may partly be M1’s fault since the part wasn’t OEM, Fred had been the last one to work on it. Unlike Fred, Milt’s diagnosed the main issue that Fred ignored, explained everything clearly, provided written estimates online, told me when it can finish without getting offended, was so quick to get the job done, and finished it for under $600—without shady surprises. They even explained the technical process whilst knowing I’m no mechanic.
To wrap it up: Fred is difficult to deal with, promised the estimate would go down by a thousand but didn’t and raised it again like $500 more, and tried to gaslight me by saying it was the original price. He did end up reducing it by $1k but that’s because I had to stand my ground. He’s unreliable, unprofessional, and disrespectful. Others have since told me he’s known to “get the job done” but is a rip-off. I wish I had known that sooner. Don’t waste your time, money, or peace of mind. Go elsewhere, or to Milt’s like the other reviewer said.
