MIDAS Expert Auto Repair Sucks

4/14/2011 My car was towed into Midas on Ocean Avenue for brakes, 50,000 transmission service and oil change. The manager said I needed a motor mount, a new oil pan, new gaskets etc. I asked them if they were qualified to do the transmission service on my Cadillac STS otherwise I would take the car to J&S motors, which has been working on Cadillacs for thirty+ years. In fact, John and Steve are former Cadillac certified mechanics. Midas assured me they were qualified and had started working on the car so I should let them do the repairs. Three weeks later, Midas called to say they had to take apart the engine again, because after their repairs, the car still leaked oil and transmission fluid. At this point, the bill was a staggering Thirty-three hundred dollars, ($3,300.00)! They dismantled the engine again and replaced the oil pans, there are two, gaskets, mounts etc. Two weeks later they, called to say the car was ready and the bill was over Forty-Two Hundred dollars,($4361.09)! I picked up the car and drove it for two weeks. Something was not right. I pulled into a service station only to find not a drop of oil or transmission fluid in the vehicle! I added 5 quarts of oil and transmission fluid. A few days later, I had to take a friend to Stanford for some rather serious medical examinations and the car smoked and sputtered like an old relic. I pulled into a Chevron station. Upon examination, Midas had installed or reassembled the hose/fan belt incorrectly thereby causing the belt to burn a hole through the radiator hose, spraying antifreeze all over the vehicle and the street. Another couple of miles and the engine would have thrown a rod. At that point I had the car towed to J&S Motors to check out the car and give me a assessment of the previous work. Also, I called the Bureau of Automotive Repair, which assigned Walter Wong to the case. the car was inspected and it was determined that the repairs done by Midas were incomplete, parts were defective, if not used, and the workmanship was poor at best. To make matters worse, the reassembly of the engine by Midas was so poor, three of the nine, or twelve, bolts required to reassemble the casing to the block, snapped at the entry of the sockets and the entire engine had to be replaced! Mind you, the Bureau of Automotive Repair determined Midas to be responsible. Midas refuses to refund any of the money they charged. Further, the additional cost of repairing the vehicle and replacing the engine is over $9,000.00! No sanctions or penalties have been assessed against Midas as of this writing. Stay tuned.....It is not over by any means!