[hooverdl]

HILTON AUTO REPAIR -- BUYER BEWARE!!!!!

On Friday, July 12, 2013, I took my car to Hilton Automotive, 16420 South US 441, Summerfield, Florida, 34491, (352) 347-3565 to have my air conditioner system purged and recharged. The air conditioner worked fine for a couple of days and then did not cool. I took the car back to Hilton Auto and the service representative determined that the air conditioner evaporator was leaking and needed to be replaced.

On Thursday, July 18, 2013, I returned my car to Hilton Automotive to have the air conditioner evaporator replaced. The service representative stated the job would take all day. Later that day, I received a call from Hilton Automotive stating the job was more difficult than the installation instructions indicated and that they had to “crack the case” (whatever this means) to get the evaporator out; and the car would not be ready until the next day.

On Friday, July 19, 2013, I picked up my car and paid the $1,177.61. On the way home and upon further investigation later that day, I discovered the following discrepancies:
• Air conditioner not cooling
o Fan on high; temperature set at 65; recirculation on: WARM AIR
o Fan on Medium; temperature set at 65; recirculation on: COOL
o NEVER GOT COLD
• Air conditioner motor pulsating or breathing
• Air conditioner loud as if vents are not connected
• GPS Navigation not working
• GPS radio not working
• GPS Box in the wrong location
• GPS wires in the wrong location
• IPOD connection in the wrong location.

On July 24, 2013, I returned to Hilton Automotive to have them fix the above problems. They fixed the GPS and IPOD issues. The service representative stated the adjusted the air conditioner so that the temperature was 45 degrees and they did not know what was causing the pulsating or breathing sound. For the next few days, we drove the car around the local area of The Villages. The air conditioner emitted cool air as long as the outside temperature was in the low 80s. However, when the temperature reached the upper 80s and lower 90s; and/or sat outside in the sun, the following problems remained:
• Air conditioner not cooling
o Fan on high; temperature set at 65; recirculation on: WARM AIR
o Fan on Medium; temperature set at 65; recirculation on: COOL
o NEVER GOT COLD
• Air conditioner motor pulsating or breathing

On July 30, 2013, I returned to Hilton Automotive to request a refund. I told the service representative that the problems still existed and that I wanted a refund. The representative told me that the air conditioner was providing 45 degree cool air both in the garage and on the road. This may be true, but when the car sits outside or when the temperatures become really hot, the air conditioner malfunctions as stated above. He asked if I wanted to bring the car back in for a third time and I told him no because I felt the job was above the capabilities of Hilton Automotive and that I wanted a refund. He stated that they don’t give refunds and that he was not going to give a refund after performing $700.00 worth of labor. I told the service representative that I would pursue a disputed action with the credit card company for a refund. The service representative stated: “go ahead it won’t do any good.”

As part of the dispute process, I took my car to the Toyota dealership in Leesburg. The cost of the repair would be $1200 or more and would include replacing an expansion valve, which was causing the iron lung affect, and a condenser filter. So if the Toyota dealership could figure this out, why couldn't Hilton Auto.

After 45 days, we lost the dispute with Hilton Auto and lost the almost $1200 in repairs.

BUYER BEWARE!!!

[beekman]

Thanks for posting as your info will be helpful to all. We need to get more consumers to post their personal experiences on this site. You should also post on YELP.com in regards to this business.

[buzzy]

How did you lose the dispute? Who decided that?

[hooverdl]

UPDATE: After months of claims and counter claims, we finally had our money refunded. However, instead of costing approximately $1200 to repair the air conditioning system, it will now cost approximately $2700. I will provide more of an update when the final repairs are made.