5 /5 Blair Boudousquie: I want to express my huge gratitude and appreciation to the team at the Novato Toyota Service department for going above and beyond to get us back on the road. Especially Bob Carpenter and Bing.
My partner and I were stranded Saturday evening in Mill Valley when our 2001 Toyota Sequoia wouldn’t start. We live n the foothills, and work weekends on the Bay, so we had to camp out until Monday morning. We assumed it was the starter, and because it is located under the intake manifold in the 2UZFE V8, I knew it would be a big job. I wanted a genuine Toyota starter so that I could go another 23 years before needing to replace it, rather than every 2 years of I went to another shop. The plan was to tow it to Marin Toyota, as it was the closest. I was nervous if they would have space in their schedule when I showed up first thing Monday morning.
I spoke to a friend in Novato and she insisted I go the extra distance to Novato Toyota, as her sister had a great experience with their service department. I relented, as it would cost me an extra $160 in towing fees. After reading some reviews, I made the decision, which was confirmed by our tow truck driver who said people he tows have had much better experience at Novato versus Marin. As we drove past Marin I could see that it was already a Zoo, at 7 am, and I imagined my we would have been waiting hours before even speaking to anyone.
As soon as we pulled in to Novato Toyota, Bob came out to greet us, like a ray of sunshine, assuring me they would take good care of us and get us back on the road as soon as possible. I felt hopeful.
They were quickly able to do the initial diagnosis, confirming that it would need a new starter, as I expected, and they found one in San Ramone. He assured me that they would get to work as soon as it arrived later that afternoon. They gave us a complimentary ride to our friends house in Novato. The quote was $1600 for labor, which I expected, because it is a big job for this particular engine.
Later that day I got a call from Bing, and he informed me that upon further electrical testing they discovered that the relay wasn’t getting juice. This meant that the starter wasn’t actually the issue! He did some detective work and found some strange wires hanging from the drivers footwell. He discovered some kind of alarm system that had been kicked, disconnecting the wires that fed the starter relay. He even sent me pictures of what he discovered. He said they would figure it out and put it back together, and have it ready for me to pick up first thing in the morning. They were working after hours at this point. The best part is that the new total went from around $1800 to less than $500! I picked it up Tuesday morning, and we were back on the road.
I generally have a mistrust of dealership service departments, but I will not hesitate to take my beloved Sequoia to Novato Toyota for any future needs.
