Motor Mates

I’ve been a loyal customer for a couple of years now. I don’t know the first thing about cars, but the team always take the time to explain what’s gone wrong (or hopefully right). I can’t recommend them highly enough!

I’ve been searching for an honest and reliable garage for years, and I’m so happy to have finally found Motor Mates! The team is professional, knowledgeable, and genuinely trustworthy. Highly recommend!

Bad communication, don’t ring you or update you when your cars in. And managed to melt my wing mirror cap when I sent it in for a replacement.

TLDR: they use aftermarket (ie. non genuine) parts to fix my car without informing me. I feel I have been ripped off and my car still does not drive as it should. Long version: I really don't like leaving bad reviews but I have been very disappointed in the level of care and service provided. My car broke down following an issue with the master cylinder, AA diagnosed it and towed it Motor Mates. I was told it would be around £200 to replace the master cylinder - fine. I came to collect it and all of a sudden the clutch was VERY stiff, and I was told that they fixed the master cylinder and the car was driveable but the clutch would also need to be replaced soon. I honestly did not find the car driveable at all, it was incredibly stiff and difficult to drive having to apply so much pressure to the clutch. This is where I made my mistake and didn't seek a second opinion, instead trusting the garage to fix the issue. I was charged close to £550 for the new clutch - I think these prices are shocking for aftermarket (ie. non genuine) parts especially considering I was NEVER informed of this detail beforehand. To top it all off I was still having issues with the clutch even after it was replaced. I had it checked over twice at different garages and they both came to the conclusion that the part must be faulty/poor quality. I contacted Motor Mates about this, both by visiting the garage in person and speaking over the phone. I was met with resistance at the first two tries. When they did agree to take it back and have a look I was told it was not the clutch that was causing the issue but something else. AGAIN I took it back to a different garage and they investigated again, repeated that the issue was with the master cylinder. At this point I was so fed up I called MM and firmly insisted that the part was defective in some way and I wanted it removed. They said they would take it back and have "another look" - so I asked them point blank, are your parts brand new and genuine? they said no, they're aftermarket parts. I find this absolutely shocking and appalling. Charging me so much money for what are essentially fake parts and not even informing me of it prior to booking their services. I then asked if they would kindly remove the master cylinder, refund me my £200 and I would get the car towed to another garage. They refused. Ultimately I decided against taking it back to them for a fourth time if they're just going to waste my time and install another rubbish quality part. I've decided that when I have the extra money I will pay to have the part replaced at a dealer that only uses brand new parts ordered directly from the manufacturer (the one who correctly diagnosed that my issue was a poor quality cylinder, before I even knew it was aftermarket) who will actually charge LESS than the £200 Motor Mates charged me while also using brand new genuine parts. It also makes me wonder if I had just got a brand new part from the beginning would I really have needed to spend an extra £550 on a clutch? Overall I am really disappointed, it's not the level of care or even pride in your own work that you want your mechanic to have. As a result I can't recommend this garage nor will I return. The other garages who checked over my car were also appalled at the prices I had been charged. I feel there is a serious lack of transparency amounting to deception. At this point the only way I would feel this issue can be resolved is if they remove the parts they installed, refund me my money and let me take it elsewhere to get the work done, but the likelihood of that is nil to zero so I'm forced to leave an honest review.

Barry took my car in for MOT on the day. Gave me the devastating news that it had failed at the end of that day. Gotta say they were fantastic!!!! Worked to get it done the next day despite their workload. Very very personable chaps and kept me informed throughout. Very reasonably priced and bloody good work!! Highly recommend!! Thank you Barry and your team!!! X