Don't take your car here! My 2007 Mazda3 that had a bad fob battery. It had sat for 2 months and when I got back it wouldn't start. The car's battery was charged but it just wouldn't turn over. I didn't realize the fob battery was dead and had it owed to LeFebvres on the advice of a friend. They charged over $300 to diagnose a dead battery in the fob, even though an OBD reader provides codes for immobilizer problems. You can check Mazda immobilizer manual online, https://www.mazdabg.com/ftp-uploads/MAZDA%20material%20for%20technician/CT-L1007_en.pdf.
Anyway, I didn't know why it wouldn't start when it was towed and I asked them to diagnose it and provide an estimate and also inspect the car.
The next day they called and said the car was fixed and it took 3.5 hours to figure out the fob's battery was dead. They charged $315 to diagnose it. They said the car failed state inspection because the headlights were "dirty" and wanted $75 to clean them. No thanks. Then suggested an oil change / tire rotation. I asked how much it would cost. They wanted to know if the car took synthetic oil & while I was looking up the specs (on the phone) the guy said he looked it up and it takes 5W-20 so the oil change would be $40. I said ok.
When I went to pick up the car 2 hours later, the bill was $431. I squawked. The chief mechanic came out and said they had to work on the car for 6.5 hours to figure out the key fob needed a battery. I asked why they didn't read the trouble code on an OBD (I.e., DTC). Well, he said, they got code P1681 but the code didn't tell them how to fix it, only what was wrong. BTW, P1681 is not a valid Mazda code but B1681 (not "P") is valid - another LeFebvre bumble! B1681 says, "No detected communication with the coil antenna." If they would've noticed it was a B code instead of a P, it might not have taken them SIX HOURS. I asked if they noticed a blinking security light and was told it never blinked. Right.... Anyway, they provided a bill and here is the breakdown:
Labor -
$315 for fob key diagnoses
$20 to change oil
$35 for the failed inspection
$45 fog light repair
Parts -
$7 for new fob battery
$50 for 5 quarts of SYNTHETIC OIL
$5 for a new oil filter
When I saw this, I asked why the oil change was $70 instead of the $40 they had just quoted. Oh, they said, they'd made a mistake. They realized (after we hung up) that the car actually takes synthetic oil. (That's not true -- the owner's manual specs regular 5W -20 oil.) I asked about $45 for the fog light. Huh? They installed a new bulb! I protested that because we'd never discussed a fog light, so they removed the charge.
I paid and took the car home (5 miles away) to clean the headlights. While cleaning I noticed the right fog light was bright white and the left one had a duller, yellowish bulb. On closer inspection, I saw the bright light's lens was cracked. So when I took the car back, I asked which fog light they fixed. The kid at the front desk looked (I had the lights on now) and said it was the right one because it was whiter and brighter. I agreed but then he realized the lens was cracked and said, Oh no, we fixed the left light because the lens is broken on the right. What?? He went back in the shop to ask and came back and said Yep, we fixed the left one. Really?? You're now saying you put a new bulb on the left, yellowish, dull light side? Yep. Then he said they couldn't finish the inspection right then because that guy was busy on another job. Too bad I didn't call first. I asked how long he'd be busy, thinking maybe I'd come back. This kid, who had just LIED to me about the light and oil change, sat there, idly leafing through a magazine and said, I dunno... So I opened the door to the shop and yelled, Hey, when can you look at my headlights?? The kid is like ma'am, ma'am, you can't do that. I could leave that freakin, rip-off place fast enough.
Later on, when I looked at my AMEX RECEIPT, I REALIZED THAT INSTEAD OF CHARGING MY CARD $432, THEY CHARGED IT $477. It looks like after agreeing to remove the $45 for installing one stinking bulb, they charged for it anyway! And cracked my lens to boot! These guys are bad machines! Even before I realized they had overcharged me, I signed the receipt "under protest" because I believe they are freakin' thieves, incompetent or both.
These guys claim 1) it took 6.5 hours to figure out my fob battery was dead (which, if actually true, screams of incompetence), 2) they claim they did not break the lens when replacing the bulb (total BS) and 3) that the car requires synthetic oil and doubled the price for the oil change. Then they charged even more than the final invoice!! Wow! I'm never going back there, not even to have them finish the inspection. I'll go someplace that's honest!!! Because it's absolutely, positively, NOT HERE. read more