What clients say about Lester's Shop in San Marcos (TX)
This shop came highly recommended in the TXST Parents' FB group. My son's check engine light came on so I told him to take it there. They called me and were very detailed in what was wrong, said it had a major oil leak and what they would fix to remedy it. Total cost $1,400. My son picked up the car and the check engine light immediately came back on. We took it back. They said it was now another problem and we could pay $2000 more or try a "patch". We tried the patch. I should also state that the work has a "warranty". The main issue was an oil leak. More recently, the car starting massively leaking oil again. Practically all the oil drained out. Towed it back AGAIN. Not surprisingly, the oil leak was not covered under the warranty of the $1400 job that was just done. It was obviously still leaking and the engine light never stopped BUT it was a new problem. The fix another $2000. They do get two stars because they were personable and easy to deal with; however, they did not fix the problem(s) that they very easily cash the check for. Disappointed. We just picked up the car and it is sitting parked and undriveable because the oil just drains out.
Lucas is a savior!! I got a flat tire, but thankfully ended up right next to the shop. Lucas ran across the street with his tools when he saw me and my roommate struggling. Not only did he change it ,but he also had me and my roommate come get our tires checked and filled with air. He did this all for free happily and didn’t want us to pay a thing. Thank you Lucas!!!!
My Volkswagen sounded like a kawasaki side-by-side. I took it to multiple places, told each place that the sound started after my brother was driving my car too fast down a dirt road, they didn't listen, told me I needed to replace the entire A/C assembly, and quoted me anywhere from $1k to $1.6k. My mom recommended these guys, they are located right next to by brother's fraternity house, and she has been doing business with them for years. They actually listened to me, had my car looked at within 24 hours, and called me to tell me it was just a little rock blocking my front fan, and it would be $146 just for the labor to take it all apart and put it back together. All of the men there, especially Mike, treated me at all times with nothing but the utmost respect and consideration. They could have easily (after knowing what the other places said it was and were quoting me) charged me $1k and pocketed the money without replacing the parts, but they didn't. Some of the reviews regarding "predatory" or advantageous behavior towards women are disappointing to say the least, what an extreme assumption and accusation. Mistakes do happen, misunderstandings happen, and cars can absolutely be tricky, because if they weren't, we wouldn't need these guys at all, we would do it on our own. Before simply jumping to conclusions, let's all start trying to be more understanding, and try to spread more kindness and positivity, just as this place has done for me at an incredibly difficult time. Thank you Lester's, and thank you Mike, you have a customer for life!
Do not trust this shop. They charged me $600 for a fuel line injector — and did not even put on a fuel-rated line — which caused fuel to flood my engine. Their incompetence turned a simple repair into over $2,000 in damages and put my and others safety at risk. Stay away at all costs.
My sister recently took her car to this shop, and the experience was extremely disappointing. They charged her for services and parts that were completely unnecessary, clearly assuming she wouldn’t notice just because she’s a woman. That kind of behavior is not only unprofessional — it’s predatory.
They will take advantage of you! They overcharge for labor and even invent problems just to charge extra. Especially if you’re a woman, be very careful, this place preys on that. Do yourself a favor and go elsewhere.
Excellent experience with this auto body shop. My son's car was damaged and Mike and his guys fixed it. It was almost like new when it was done. Highly recommended. Call Mike for an estimate if you need any work done.
They were amazing! Great service, fast, and extremely welcoming and reassuring. Strapped up my splash shield within minutes. definitely will come again!
They were nice and friendly, but it took them two days to put a regulator in my window, which they said it would be an hours worth of work. Dropped it off in morning didn’t get it back until the end of the next day. (I was told there was three people ahead of me but Would’ve been nice to have my car for that evening If they’re not gonna get to it) .. What prompted me to write the review is that they did not put my door panel back on claiming my door handle was broken. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with my door handle. I put my panel on and it took me 10 minutes.. either their technician lied to Mike or Mike lied to me either way I won’t be returning.
COLLEGE STUDENTS BEWARE:
My younger sister's 2005 Acura TSX wouldn't start and was recommended to take it here for a diagnosis. I spoke over the phone with the lady in the office before dropping the car off and she stated that the diagnostic fee is 135 dollars.
My sister then dropped her car off here for a diagnostics test and received a phone call stating that the starter was at fault and needed replacement. They quoted 800 dollars to do this simple job that a 12 minute YouTube video explains everything you need.
I found a starter at O'Reilly's for around 150 and headed over to tow my sister's car to an empty parking lot to do it myself. They handed me the keys after my sister paid over the phone and they handed me an invoice for $146.21 and charged $150.60. They told my sister over the phone that the price is actually 143 dollars, included a 3 percent charge, $5.74 for parts on a diagnostic, and a 5 dollar "hazmat" charge for doing a diagnostic on a freaking car.
The total on the invoice reads $146.21 and the receipt for the actual charge reads $150.60
I am not a professional mechanic by any means and I changed this part out and had the car running just fine in AN HOUR. This place ripped off a young college student and the property overall looks lousy and sketchy.
Reminder that a professional auto repair shop wanted to charge 800 dollars for labor on a 2005 Acura TSX after quoting $135 over the phone for a diagnostic check THAT DOES BOT APPLY TOWARDS THE REPAIR BILL SHOULD YOU CHOOSE THEM. when an average person with little background knowledge on auto repair completed this in an hour in a parking lot with minimal tools. Reconsider taking your vehicle to this place for any service.
Never ever going there! So I had a catalytic converter code and went to them, told them I am a student and can't afford much but they told me in this case I must change the catalytic so left the car with them, after one day and multiple calls (they will pick up say the update will be ready within 5 mins and never gonna call back) they told my estimate is something around 1500$ and I need to change my catalytic converter, my O2 sensor, from their recent reviews I understood something was wrong, so I didn't do my servicing there and brought the car back. Also for this service which I found out already using my OBD, they charged me around 136$ and if you don't pay in cash you have to add an extra fee for that for any transactions through cards.
After 5 days I went to Clif, he just cleaned the air cleaner sensor and told me maybe the engine light is due to the recent dust storm, and that's it, my problems were solved and it took me 40 bucks.
Never ever trusting these guys again
Nice people, were not able to diagnose my car. Tried charging me more than the DEALERSHIP for brakes. Probably won’t go back.
Update: found out they didn’t even complete the brake job properly and didn’t seat the pad against the rotor. Appears they overcharge for incompetence. DO NOT SHOP HERE.
Took advantage of our sun. His truck wouldn't start and they said it was a starter connection wire issue. They called and said it was fixed in ready to go. Then a couple weeks later our sons pick up wouldn't start again. We had it towed from Austin to San Marcos $500+. Called Lester's.They toted to his shop and said it was another starter wire connection issue which I should have caught the first time. Then last night our son's truck wouldn't start again. So we called a mobile mechanic to help. He found the issue and it was the starter wire connection again. Which Lester's said they fixed. They fixed already right with a Zip Tie. This place is a joke!
DO NOT ALLOW YOUR COLLEGE STUDENT TO GO HERE. Great customer service to make you feel like they’re trustworthy. They act as if they’re so caring and would never scam you, yet scammed my 20 year old daughter a month ago. They told her they’re the cheapest place to go to and that she has to fix this thing in her car asap. They made her pay nearly 1k just for her AC to go out not even a day later. Thankfully they fixed that for free and now it’s been a month later and her car is having trouble from the repair they were supposed to have already fixed and THEY DIDN’t. So ridiculous never ever ever go here!!! Shady shady buisness
This company is not a very honest one. We took our daughter’s Mini Cooper in because it was in limp mode and we didn’t understand why.
After checking it out, the service manager advised us that we had a blown head gasket, and they recommended replacing the motor. We have documentation of this diagnosis. He claimed that the radiator had oil in it when in fact, it was just bars leak that they had themselves put into our radiator the year prior on another repair. It turns out that the car only needed one coil pack, and a spark plug diagnosed by the AutoZone machine and has run fantastic ever since.
I would strongly recommend going elsewhere. We have no idea how many people he has done this to I know that the economy is bad, but honesty still pays off.
The service manager was asked about this and he was very rude. It could be you. Hope it helps.
Have a wonderful day
Overall kind and helpful, but very pricey. I was charged over $1000 to fix my wheel bearings. Parts were triple the normal cost and labor costs were added for everything, including $150 for diagnosing the problem that I had already diagnosed. Unlikely to return here.
I have used this shop for years and was always happy with the quality, speed and price of the work. This time they hit on two of the three and so I will not be returning again and also I will no longer recommend them. I had my alternator go bad in my Acura RDX and was able to limp into Lester’s where I told the office guy, Mike, that the alternator was out and described the symptoms. He called me a few hours later and told me the alternator needed to be replaced and the bill was $1008 ! Yes, you read that correct, over a thousand bucks for a job that should be around $400 to $500. I balked at the cost and Mike assured me that the parts were expensive and the job would take a few hours. I am kinda stuck now because the car is there and they have already charged me $135 to “diagnose “ the problem. So, I let them do it. They charged me over $440 for the alternator and $60 for a new belt and over $330 for labor. I researched the parts and the alternator is about 135 and the belt is 16 which was not needed anyway. To bolt in a new alternator has taken me about 90 minutes in the past on a similar vehicle, and I am not a mechanic. Any decent mechanic could do it in less than an hour. So what used to be a good shop charging a fair price is now an okay shop that gouges customers like most mechanics. If you can find another place. Disappointed because now I have to search for a new mechanic. They did the job in less than a day, but I believe Lester’s is under new ownership and new management and it seems like the new philosophy is to gouge.
Amazing!! I was speechless when I saw my car. They went above and beyond, completely surpassing my expectations. It felt like my car was brought back to life. I had to double-check the license plate because it looked so new! Huge thanks to the team for their amazing work. If you want top-notch service, this is the place to go!
Did oil change and brake lights replacement from them. The price for their services is reasonable. They gave me ride home after leaving the car at the shop and offered ride to their shop after repairs were done. Which is wonderful.
Best body shop I have ever been to between the customer service and the results. Cody is just an awesome guy who seems to really care that he provides exactly what is needed at a price better than all of the 6 other body shops I got a quote from in the San Marcos area. I even received a courtesy ride back to my home while leaving the vehicle at the shop and got picked up when it was ready. Matt did great work and I can’t say enough good things about the folks at Lester’s!
Amazing customer service on another level! Cody made it so much less stressful in replacing my hood and even shared his experience of his own. which made for an all around great experience. Very flexible with my time constraints and accommodating. And the work was done super fast. Highly recommend. Ask for Cody! He is wonderful.
Excellent service. Willing to come to place of work to pickup and drop off vehicle within reasonable distance from shop. Reasonable rates. Won’t over inflate pricing. A mechanic you can for once trust.
Lester’s Shop Saved Me $50,000 - I am not kidding! I am Margaret Wood Retired Attorney. MY STORY - a DEALERSHIP OFFERED a discount for registration costs - after its inspection ( years ago) the service manager stated he would not issue registration certificate for less than $50,000 because my 2010 ACADIA required repairs totaling this huge sum. I had heard of Lester’s Shop and its reputation for integrity and I stated I would get another opinion from Lester’s Shop. The Service Manager said “Lester’s is honest” ( implying the dealership was not) I took my SUV to Lester’s who said my car was fine and I secured registration for a small fee! That is how Lester’s saved me $50,000! HALLELUJAH!
Lester’s Shop was amazing! Excellent customer service and maintenance. They called with a quote within 2 hours of having my car and fixed the problems same day. After having a bad experience with another shop, this made my day.
Excellent work and amazing customer service. Everyone at Lester’s is friendly and extremely helpful. They explained everything in detail to myself and my daughter and even picked her up and brought her to the shop to get her car. Definitely the best shop I’ve ever used. Shout out to Cody in the body shop for being so helpful with everything. The car looks amazing.
$450 to paint a scratch?
Had the car for 2 weeks. Charges $110 to say " yep its a scratch " then charged $136 to paint over a scratch that wasn't even fully done.
Last time I let my wife go to a shop alone. Ridiculous. They absolutely took advantage if her. Never again. Our mobile mechanic said he would have done it for $20. They didn't even fix the dent. Just paint over it and " Said yep, half a grand" then didn't even walk her to her car to show the work.
Lester's is highly recommended in a TxState parent group. This week, we needed help for my daughter's car. Lester's was kind enough to give us a tip to try and quick start to avoid towing. That didn't work, but we appreciated the information. We had the car towed and the shop was very nice and as my daughter said "they didn't make me feel like a stupid girl" when speaking to her. They got her car fixed quickly and for a good price. Add another parent to the list that will tout their praises and recommend whenever I can. Thank you Lester's!
Over charging for simple tasks. Wanted $150 to install a new tire. Did decent work on my roommates bumper but charged $400 for 2-3 hrs of work, when the mechanic verbally promised "$110/hr". I understand this is a body shop, but we live across the street (1-min walking distance) and wanted to support local shops, but never again.
I can't recommend this place enough. My daughter goes to Texas State and her check engine light came on. Not knowing and shops in the area I took the recommendation from a TxSt Parents group on Facebook. Mike was amazing and even had someone give her a ride home when she was going to Uber. He called the next day (she brought it in very late) with what the repair was and how much it would cost. It was very reasonable. He called today to tell her it was ready and that her wipers were really bad and he replaced them. I can not say enough great things about this place and Mike. I will have piece of mind knowing if she needs any repairs she can go to Lester's and they are honest and reasonable.
WOW!! I’m impressed by the honesty & the excellent customer service!! We don’t even have this excellent service back home. My kid attends TXST & needed some work on her Jeep & I’m amazed by their excellent work & prices. Tell you what… when I’m in need, I’ll travel that far to get mine fixed by them too!! Keep up the great work!! Mike is THE BEST!!!
1702 S I-35 South Frontage Rd, San Marcos, TXTowing service
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