I have been a customer of Galveston Battery and Electric for quite a few years. They are located within walking distance of my house, so its not hard to understand that its a convenient place to go for all my car battery needs. I am the proud owner of a VW jetta and I love my car. Its given me many years of faithful and reliable service. I was confused as to why my battery was dying, even when I gave the car a jump or charged it overnight, so I brought it in to the place where I bought the battery, and still had the warranty. I brought the car to them for service, and was told that something was draining the battery and they needed to trouble shoot to find out what it was. Little did they know, on all newer vw models, the coolant circulation pump stays on even after you turn the car off, to cool the engine and minimize over heating/wear and tear on the engine parts, and that was the real reason the battery was draining. It wasnt keeping a charge. I understood then that it was the mechanics ignorance of the matter, but I paid the 35.00 service fee anyway, hoping to come back and replace the battery if the problem persisted. The next day, my car wouldnt start, so i faithfully returned to the battery hospital, and this my readers is where the story takes a bad turn.
They replaced the battery, even though I was confused as to why they only sell AC Delco batteries, which are cheaply made and never make it past their suggested warranty. I wanted a bosch battery, made in the same country as my car, but they didnt have them. So I caved thinking it was okay, and a replacement under warranty wouldnt cost that much. I was wrong. The total came out to be 81.00 and some change. A full replacement would have been 113.00, so I wasnt really saving much of anything. I was alarmed at this exorbitant amount, asked them why it was so much, inquired very patiently and calmly. A gentleman behind the counter told the employee I was talking to,""fuc**** piece of sh** volkswagons, just give him what he wants, take the service fee off there and get him out of here"". Little did he know, I wasnt looking for a discount, I just wanted to know why it cost so much and how the battery warranty was pro rated. I think the employee was just as shocked as I was and everything got really quiet. As they fumbled nervously about and did the paperwork so I could save a few dollars, I told the same associate the problem I had the previous day about the fuel pump staying on to cool the engine draining the battery, and that he might want to tell his other associates in case they ever run into the problem again. The other gentleman, who I found out later was the owner,George Newman, then said, ""no, thats not the problem, the problem is there is something fuc*** with your cars wiring"". Which didnt make any sense, because they misdiagnosed the problem to begin with. I calmly told the manager there that Im sorry for the inconvenience I may have caused, but I would never seek service at their store again, and it wasnt the associates fault or any fault of his own, but they would never have my business. Mr. Newmann then told me,""I dont give a fu** because I own this place anyway. Im the owner, so get out of here"".
Needless to say, I dont think George is going to be in business much longer if he decides to treat his customers in such an appalling manner. This was definitely a negative experience, and I wouldnt suggest giving his business a dime of your money.
Pros: Nice employees
Cons: Owner
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