I'll begin by citing the 40+ five-star reviews that Tom's Automotive boasts on google. It's the reason we chose to hire him in the first place. Terrific reviews, happy customers - we couldn't go wrong! But oh so wrong we went... My daughter's VW Tiguan snapped a timing belt on July 22nd. After calling to discuss we had the vehicle towed to Tom's on July 22nd. After a few days he called with a diagnosis. A few rods were bent and it would take 2-3 weeks to repair. Estimated cost was $2,500 to $4,000. I asked him to proceed. I told him our daughter was going off to college on August 23rd and she really needs her vehicle back by then. Fast forward 151 days and our vehicle was finally ready for pick up. That's nearly five months. I had to consistently request status updates - Tom never reached out to me himself. It honestly felt like he was keeping our car prisoner. He provided every single excuse in the world (I'm sick. Don't feel well. 'In prayer'. My employee left. Doctor said I need bed rest. COVID. Can't figure out what's wrong. Back in the hospital. And on and on). What he did not mention to us, and what we believe the real story is, he has a drinking problem. We saw him at the bar across the street from his shop numerous times while working on our car. And more than once he responded that he was "under the hood now" while my spouse was filming him drinking at the bar. Not once did he say the repair cost would increase beyond his initial estimate. And once he finally did say the vehicle was ready he hit us with a bill of $7,500. Of that, $5,000 was for his "labor". I'm including some snippets from our terrific text history for your amusement. Best part of this entire ordeal? The check engine light came on the next day! We towed it to the VW dealership in Stone Mountain. They put into writing the repairs were not completed properly and it took an additional $1,495 to get my daughter's car running again. read more