I strongly advise against patronizing this business.
The short version: they didn't listen to what I asked for and accused me of lying about it, they got the interior of my car dirty, they did a mediocre job on a wash, a very bad job on a wax, did serious damage to my car's entire paint job and some of the trim which I now have to get repaired, wouldn't allow me to explain what damage appeared to have been done, denied all possible responsibility, escalated the conversation to an argument, then physically menaced me in an effort to get me to leave. The entire experience was surreal, and I can only assure you that I'm not exaggerating. Though the business's owner is reasonable and professional, he isn't always onsite, and the staff aren't just unprofessional but actively hostile, particularly the woman who appears to run the office. I can't stress enough how potentially damaging an encounter with her might be.
The long version: I took my car in for a wash and wax because it had been parked under a tree and there were spots of sap in various places. I was aware of the sap and mentioned it when I checked in. I asked them not to do any work on the interior and repeated it three times to the woman at the desk just to be sure. To be clear: this is not a case of a disgruntled Entitled Customer. I work in customer service and I know how demanding it can be, so I work very hard not to be difficult or judgmental of customer service representatives. The experience took almost five hours, and I managed to stay civil until hour four.
When I tried to discuss my concerns about the appearance of my car following their service, the woman I take to be the office manager dismissed me completely and with utter contempt. She cut off almost every sentence I started, with blanket denials of any possible damage. I was never even able to fully articulate my concerns. She raised her voice just enough to drown me out. She wouldn't make eye contact, laughed at my questions, and repeatedly changed her explanation of what had caused the apparent damage. I'm embarrassed to admit that I lost my temper when she accused me of lying about having asked them not to service the interior (she was the second employee to do so), not just because of the accusation, but because she had again raised her voice to prevent me from speaking and it was the only way to be heard. She was literally repeating, "No you didn't, no you didn't, no you didn't," and I shouted that, yes, I had.
The most disturbing part happened when the staff heard me shout. Five men angrily came out of the back and surrounded me in a half-circle. Two of them approached with the threat of implicit violence, one coming so close that his chest was inches from my face. When I asked if they were planning to hit me, one man said I was trying to provoke them. The latter man actually turned out to be the calmest, most reasonable person there once he saw what the situation was, and I believe he was just trying to frighten me. The other man had to be verbally restrained by his co-workers, however.
To his credit, the owner asked me to call him later in the day to discuss things in a calm environment. He was professional, discussed the damage with me, and, though he believed the damage was impossible (having now investigated the issue, I believe it was caused by their using an improperly stored microfiber cloth which had picked up some grit) he did offer to take a look at it, which I appreciate.
My suggestion would be to drive thirty seconds up Bankhead to One Way Detailing. Not only is their shop clean and professionally run by very nice people, but when I took my car to them to ask if anything could be done to hide the damage, their expert was able to demonstrate in seconds how to improve the paint's appearance, where the staff at 1-Stop seemed to believe it couldn't be done. read more