I've had some really awful experiences with mechanics since I moved to the area 18 months ago…read more I've tried Dobbin Auto Repair, an Exxon in Columbia, AAA in Laurel, and two dealerships -- all of which were the worst experiences I've ever had with mechanics. River Hill Sunoco got my car running better than it has in over a year, and I finally feel safe on the road again. They treated me with respect and patiently listened to the list of issues I was experiencing. They quickly diagnosed the issue, fully explained it to me, and completed the repair within a couple of hours. I can't say enough about how great my experience was!

In spite of the pecuniary wealth of Clarksville, the area is generally destitute when it comes to…read moreautomotive knowledge. The River Hill Sunoco preys on this ignorance. Late one night, my girlfriend got a flat tire. As I have done dozens, if not hundreds, of times in my life, I removed the old wheel/tire and put on the spare using nothing more than a scissors jack and lug wrench. As I replaced the lug nuts, I threaded them and tightened by hand before using the lug wrench for one last fastening. As it turned out, there was a hole in the sidewall of the old tire, so Sunoco ordered a new tire that was expected to arrive in a few days. In order for us to commute to Baltimore on the spare, "John" the technician tightened up the lug nuts. "John" did so with an air impact wrench (also known as an air hammer, pneumatic impact wrench, etc). A few days later, we took the car back for Sunoco to install the new tire. This time, the Sunoco technician had difficulty removing one of the lug nuts, and one of the studs snapped. After replacing the tire, Sunoco capped the broken stud and offered to replace it at a cost of approximately $100. Through an apparent miscommunication, Sunoco never ordered the new stud, so we took the car elsewhere for repair. At the other garage, my mechanic had to use a breaker bar to remove two of the lug nuts because Sunoco had over-tightened them (see attached photo showing metal shavings from the other over-tightened lug nuts next to the broken stud). Due to the numerous damaged studs, we replaced the entire wheel hub assembly. Naturally, this cost more and caused major inconvenience as the car could not be driven for several days. An objective analysis of the facts leads inescapably to the conclusion that Sunoco over-tightened the lug nuts, causing the catastrophic failure (breaking) of one stud and the effective destruction of two others. When the first stud snapped, Sunoco did not mention any issue with any of the other lugs or studs. The vehicle was entirely within the control of Sunoco, and it was Sunoco that once again tightened the lugs after they replaced the tire. The thing speaks for itself: only Sunoco could have caused the damage to the second and third studs, and the circumstances strongly suggest Sunoco's fault for the first. Through its manager, Adam, Sunoco has enumerated several excuses to absolve itself. First, Sunoco alleged that I "cross-threaded" the lug nuts when I put on the spare. I reiterate that I hand-tightened the lug nuts, and this excuse does not account for the destruction of the second and third studs, which happened after Sunoco replaced the tire. When confronted with the issue of the additional lug nuts' destruction, Sunoco then blamed me for not making the lug nuts tight enough after the tire change and alleged the wheel was "like a loose tooth" when it arrived at Sunoco (which, of course, undercuts its "cross-threaded" theory). Admittedly, I did not have a torque wrench, but to think the lug nuts had come loose on the short drive to Sunoco strains credulity. If it were true, why then did Sunoco not note damage to the other studs at that point? Oddly, Adam denied knowledge of any technician named "John" employed at Sunoco, though he admitted a technician with a similar sounding name does work there (other social media posts about the River Hill Sunoco, e.g. Anglie's List, mention an employee named "John."). Just so there is no confusion, "John" is the technician who has family in the south of France, though I'm sure Adam knew exactly who I was referencing.

I'll have you know I am the current Duchess of AutoZone... hilarious considering I have only just…read morestarted going into auto parts stores. Now that Jeremy has started a car repair service, I'm in auto parts stores two, three times a week. I head for the stickers and accoutrement sections because that's all I understand right now. I'm not tall enough to see into the hood of a car so I never learned what any of the pieces look like. I've heard them mentioned, so I know they exist, but don't ask me what they do. I suppose that will change over time. I'm in for years of Jeremy telling me about cars. The same thing happened to me with guitars and Star Trek. I didn't know anything about those thing either, until I met Jeremy. Anyway... we walked to AutoZone because Jeremy had a client on Philip Dr. And it was the closest auto parts store, but they did not have whatever we were after, so we went down the street to O'Reilly's.

In and out! The have the' fix it' service and ran a diagnostic because my check engine light was…read moreon. I was helped quickly and efficiently. Yes!

Very professional staff, I will be back nice service. There were three young men working today and…read morethey did a fantastic job. With diagnosing the problem with the tires and giving me the best service.

AVOID THIS PLACE AT ALL COSTS!!!! I chose this shop on Saturday as it's a name brand shop so I…read morethought I'd be more likely to have a smooth experience getting new tires but it was the worst experience ever. Darnell handled my car and damaged it and tried to claim it came in like that... Even after providing time stamped picture proof that it did not.... He still did not take accountability. He was also very rude and was arguing more than he was giving me a solution... He told me he'd talk to the manager about it and have him call me after reviewing camera footage on Monday. Today's Wednesday and I had to call them, just for his manager to tell me Darnell didn't even say anything about the incident to him. On the day I was supposed to pick up the car, after the communicated pick up time, I called about 3-4 times and not a single answer, my brother calls once and an immediate answer. Very suspicious and very unprofessional, seems like they intentionally did not pick up my calls as they were probably trying to fix it. Don't expect any accountability from these jerks. This is my first ever Google review as this was just unacceptable, I had to warn others. STAY AWAY!!! Edit: took them 4 hours for 4 tires btw. No alignment. Insane.

I have been a customer of Hillmuth as long as I've been driving (17 long years ha ha) but they've…read morealways treated my family and I well and delivered excellent customer service as well as stellar mechanical work. My dad has brought his cars to this location before Hillmuth bought it from Ramos. He continues to take his car to Hillmuth because of their consistency, honesty, and efficiency. I moved to California and the last time I had my car serviced here was in 2009. Flash forward to 2014 when I moved home. My husband would do my oil changes and add air to my tires and he even attempted to change my brake pads. He's been busy at work and I thought I will just take my car down the street (see review about Brentwood Automotive). I decided to take my car back to the county (we currently live in Baltimore city) and was so happy I did. Mike and Terry both were so helpful, patient, and answered all questions I had. They didn't sound annoyed when I had no clue about my car and had to call and ask my husband. Sorry, I am old school I don't know much about cars nor do I want to so I appreciate straight shooters and not being taken advantage of by mechanics who just see an easy opportunity to upsell and charge me for things my car doesn't need. After the fiasco I experienced elsewhere I wanted to make sure my car was 'ok' and also was concerned about a nagging tire pressure light that kept blinking. They diagnosed the issue and we decided not to replace the sensor at this time. My husband took his car there and had some maintenance to catch up on. They always call and let you know exactly what needs to be done, what should be done, and you decide whether or not to proceed. They were open with us and we decided to go with about $ 1500 worth of work all of which seemed necessary and vital to extending the life of his vehicle. They also sent a technician to pick me up from my parents house when was car was ready. Such a nice service and a great staff. I can't say enough how wonderful it is to have a trusted automotive shop and I look forward to becoming a Howard County resident again and being closer to the good folks at Hilmuth.

I had a mixed experience with this shop and want to be fair in my assessment…read more On one hand the technical work was excellent. I brought my 2022 Honda Insight in for a fuel injector issue and the team handled the actual repair perfectly. The car is running smoothly again and the turnaround time was reasonable. If you are looking for quality mechanical work they clearly know what they are doing. However I am frustrated by the lack of guidance regarding warranty coverage. This car is still well within its 5 year or 60000 mile powertrain warranty and fuel injectors are typically covered under that or the emissions warranty. Since this was a major repair cost I wish the shop had recognized the warranty status and advised me to visit a dealership before proceeding with the out of pocket expense. I appreciate the good repair work but I would have valued a bit more professional transparency regarding my manufacturer coverage options. If you go here just make sure you have checked your own warranty status first.

Its a little expensive. But its a good warranty policy. Been going here for years and they are…read morefast and reliable

I'm almost certain there's been a change in management or at least the staff since I wrote my last…read morereview. Since then, the service is far friendlier. I also like that the store offers so many goodies and a lottery machine area that was set up in a logical fashion. It's a relief to get friendly service when coming here now. The gruff energy before didn't always deter me from frequenting this place, because they have the lock-up on location, but it did make me have ill will towards them, and the fact that the cloud of resentment has lifted has to be a good thing for not only me, but also for their business.

Staff was friendly and quick to help me out. They had a huge selection of wipers, which I needed…read moreright away (it was POURING rain, and I had to change the wipers in the parking lot before driving anywhere else). Their prices were outstanding. I really hope they get the amount of business necessary to support those prices, because they surely deserve it.

I bought a battery and the old coot just stared at me blankly and blinked when I asked for it to be…read moreinstalled. Naturally once I offered one a 20 dollar bill, I got things done. I mean, really, who buys a battery that they DON'T need installed? I guess it goes without saying, even if my car was broken down in their shoddy parking lot, I'd keep walking.

I don't usually bring my lgbt identity into these types of public reviews, but because I had to…read moreshow up with my full nail gig on, I cannot be more pleased with my experience. Everyone was super nice and they didn't over charge me at all. I bought a used car recently, and honestly they could have up-sold me because I know nothing about cars, but they were very honest and very professional. To all my gals and guuurls out there, this is the place to go when something goes wrong with your car. Happy driving ya'll!

I believe in leaving fair and honest reviews, which is why I'm updating my original feedback. **To…read moreclarify, I have never received any service from this business.** My initial one-star review was based solely on my phone conversation with Lou while scheduling an appointment to have a diagnostic performed. I want to thank Ethan, the service manager, for taking the time out of his busy day to personally call me and explain the company's position regarding my review. I appreciate the effort to clarify the misunderstanding. According to Ethan, the business does not require payment upfront. Instead, the text we received was a pre-approval link meant to inform us of the potential cost following a diagnostic. Unfortunately, this wasn't clearly communicated during my original call with Lou. If he had mentioned that we'd receive a text requiring approval before any work could be done--and that payment would only be due after the diagnostic--I would not have left a one-star review. From a customer's perspective, receiving a $200+ link without prior explanation understandably creates the impression that payment is required in advance. This was a clear miscommunication, and I'm willing to chalk it up as such. That said, I strongly recommend the business makes this process more transparent in future calls. Customers should be clearly told: 1. They will receive a text with a pre-approval link. 2. No payment is due until after the diagnostic is complete. In today's climate, transparency is critical, and many customers--like myself--may feel uneasy approving charges before their vehicle has even been seen. While I still haven't had any work done here, I want to be fair. Ethan's call helped clarify the process, and for that reason, I'm updating my rating from 1 star to 3 stars. My intention has never been to tarnish this business--only to share my honest experience. I hope this feedback helps them improve communication with future customers and avoid similar misunderstandings. Thank you again.

Rolland was fantastic. Professional, honest and followed up with phones calls while my Jeep was…read morebeing serviced. Totally recommend this place!

0 stars, either they're scammers or their prices are outrageous. I went here for a vehicle…read moreinspection months ago in which I was told I needed around $5,000 worth of work. Windshield wipers I just replaced, exhaust clamps that I had put on myself, and engine mounts that were "basically non existent". Speaking of the exhaust clamps when I got the truck back I heard rattling from the undercarriage, rattling that I have never heard before and i've been working on this truck for months (replacing the catalytic converter, changing the starter, etc.) When I asked the mechanic what that rattling was the best thing he could do was say "I'm not sure" give me my keys and walk away. When I got under the truck to tighten the clamp myself (Which for some reason was $25 when I can get it for $7 from autozone) The manager came out and gave me some excuse about expanding and shrinking. Since I've retightened that clamp it hasn't budged again in months or made a squeak. The wait was long but that was expected due to it being a vehicle inspection. Overall my visit was .5 stars out of 5. The only saving grace was the front desk employee who was a pretty nice guy. But my reasoning for writing this comes after having two friends go to this shop and also get outrageous numbers, one got $6,000 in repairs after inspection and another got quoted a $1,300 brake job just for the front. I really hate to leave bad reviews but please go somewhere else and save yourself the headache.