Not Classic Car or Muscle Car Experts.
I'm going to try my best to give a critical review without being vitriolic. However, my experience left me scratching my head about Lakeway Texaco considering all the positive reviews and recommendations online. Despite the considerable number of classic cars and muscle cars you see around their shop and in the graveyard out back from time to time, my experience proved that these guys are not experts in this area.
I brought in a 1979 Trans Am Firebird for a general check over that had recently been overhauled a few years ago with a new Chevy 383 500HP engine, Edelbrock intake, Holley 870cfm carburetor and many other performance racing parts under the hood. From the moment I stepped in the door that morning, Cody seemed to have a chip on his shoulder toward me. He said I had "completely ruined the value of that Trans Am" by having those kind of components in there. First of all, I didn't buy the damn thing as investment; I bought it as a cruiser and something I could have a little fun in. Second, the car is not a trailer queen or show car meant to sit in my garage for weekend roadshows. It's a friggin' hot rod and will be driven as such. Third, everyone knows that if you're looking for an investment, you go for the ones with all original parts. I don't need your negative attitude or opinion about my Bird.
I thought about not leaving the car that morning due to the bad vibe I was already getting, but I thought I would give them the benefit of the doubt since it was 7:30am and maybe he hadn't had his coffee yet. He and another mechanic actually pointed the finger at each other on who's responsibility it would be to do the check over. Didn't seem like they wanted my business. But, I walked home 3 miles within Lakeway anyway. No ride service offered to a Lakeway resident.
Five hours later I received a phone call from Cody with a long laundry list of services that would need to be performed. I do understand that this was going to be a project car for me when I bought it. The most pressing issue at the moment was a ticking/puffing sound coming from the top portion of the engine. I couldn't pinpoint it myself as a lifter, stuck valve, etc., so, this is why I wanted them to have a look. He told me it would take many hours to figure out the problem, and that they would probably have to start breaking down the engine to find it. The summary sheet of the check over even says, "The popping noise will need multiple hours to diagnose. We do know that it is an internal problem." (It actually turned out to be a bad header gasket. External problem. Easy fix.)
On top of all this, they recommended overhauling the entire brake system. So, I asked him how long this would all take if I let them start performing the services. His answer: "Weeks." "Weeks!?," I said. "So, I'll just have to leave the car there for a month or more until you guys can fix these things?" "Basically. We can't be messing around with these project cars when we have other people's daily drivers to attend to every day."
So, let me get this straight. If I'm the same kind of paying customer as someone else, I'll have to wait weeks until you guys can complete this kind of work just because it is not my daily driver? Interesting. This explains why you guys have the same classic cars sitting outside around your shop for weeks and months at a time. I wish you would have just recommended that I go somewhere else from the start. You didn't want my business.
I did go somewhere else. I went to Vineyard Bay Automotive about 4 miles up the road on 620. They work on muscle cars and they know what they're doing. Turns out, that ticking/puffing noise was only a bad header gasket. Exhaust was leaking out of the header creating that noise. No engine tear down needed to diagnose the problem. Just an expert mechanic with a good attitude who wants your business and who can diagnose it correctly the first time.
Brake overhaul needed at Lakeway Texaco? Only if I'm going for a complete restoration. What did I need right now just to make it a good cruiser again? Just a new master cylinder.
How long will it take Vineyard Bay Auto to do this? Just 2 business days. We'll have the parts needed by the end of the day and have your car ready at the end of the next business day. Awesome! Back to cruising within a couple of days.
Oh, and the owner of Vineyard Bay Automotive even personally drove me home that morning back into Lakeway. Now, that's sweet service. read more