SHOP of SHAME: They installed ILLEGAL PARTS 😡  

Props to you for consistently calling out these shady shops. Keep doing your thing! 👊🏾

This is almost like why I got in to working on my own car back in 2014, a shop was trying to charge me over $500 for brakes and I couldn’t afford it at that time so I had to DIY it and since then I’ve learned so much. Mostly thanks to mechanics on RU-vid showing how it’s done. Thank you!!!

That’s why I learned how to work on my own cars. You never know when a mechanic will screw you

Shady shops need to be called out. Customers already do it.

Alex is just a stand up guy . a lot of respect to you man

alex, I love your charisma and communication and people skills. You are an inspiration to rookie technicians, like myself.

I heard of a mechanic shop out in my area who used to used parts out of wrecked vehicles to fix, they got caught by the trades commission for that.

I sure wish y’all were closer. Thanks for being awesome!

Just had your channel pop up and now subbed. As a former auto tech for over 15 years long ago, I commend your straightforward honest approach and diagnosis. Always refused to rig repairs, improper repairs can injure or worse to people. (also the vehicle yet that is secondary) Keep up the good work and you will never regret the discipline to proper mechanic practices.

Yeah those looked like cheap after market cats. They almost always cause a p0420 code. Thats why they installed those spacers. But like you said you never put spacer on the front 02.

Some shady shops have gotten better due to the cameras and social media sites but some still exist and I have huge respect for people like Alex. I too work on my own vehicles from getting burned 20 years ago. I have an attention to detail like no one I know so it only makes sense. Keep up the good work and continue to call out and hopefully ween out the shady shops. Much Props

Wow man good find there. Thank goodness the customernfound you so it can get fixed the right way.

We need more honest mechanics like you who actually diagnose properly

Man I appreciate y’all’s honesty you don’t see that very much at all these days, if I still lived in Savannah I’d bring all my vehicles to you 🙏

Bro I love your honesty and how you treat the customers. I'm in Ga and get some of the same stories from customers about previous work.

Thanks Alex for this video i have 2011 Tahoe if i have problems like this truck did i no what to look for.

I'm just wondering if the other shop really put those spacers on there. If the cats were new, seems like they would not have needed them. Of course, you are never suppose to need them. They may have put them on prior. A mechanic would know how to put those O2 sensors on without twisting up the wire, twist the other way the amount of turns you need where they end up straight when tightened. Thanks for sharing Alex, great diagnosing.

Awesome honesty Dr. Shops don't realize that if you do honest work , ppl will pay. Yes, you will have customers that will nickel and dime, but honest work will have repeated customers.

Alex, Thanks for the ball joint check procedure...Awesome.

thanks for the ball joint big channel lock trick. Ill have to try it.

always a pleasure to watch your videos Alex and Mrs.

Wish your shop was in columbia sc, not many good shops here why I go to the dealership and they aren't pocket FRIENDLY

It's always a pleasure to use the giant pliers! Great work doc

I started learning how to work on my Silverado & it turns out I reallllllly enjoy doing so. I’ve gained so much knowledge in the past 2 months & think this is the beginning of a newfound passion. I don’t have it in my heart to do anyone dirty like others. I deliver quality in my actual job/trade now with whatever I fabricate & weld. Shame on those crooked people for taking someone’s hard earned cash like that.

hey bro I jst looked at ur channel while ago and u say things straight up and I like tht jst whn I watch rays repair and I've working on cars since I was 13 with my sister and she got me into working on cars and loved eversince so good job I'll keep watching ur channel

I know those are cheap cats I bought one off eBay to fix the flex pipe on my 98 Camry lol. After looking at the weld quality I took it to a local muffler shop instead. He welded a new flex pipe. I haven’t had any issues since.

Wow unbelievable that shop can actually get them selves in a lot of trouble and possibly even shut down for doing shit like that…🤬

Mechanic like you always have a blessed Days, Thanks for your tutorial 👍🙏

Safety, speaking of I wish you had supported the vehicle when it’s up. Your a good dude, hate to see bad things happen. Just food for thought. Thanks

nice video, as a retired Mopar tech seen this alot, at dealership. Get vehicles in that the owner is already mad, because they have spent so much money and still have problems. believe it or not there are alot of "people out there that think they can work on vehicle, i call them parts changers. replace enough parts you may fix it. sometimes these parts work, sometimes they don't. Some parts must be replaced with OEM parts, some can be done with aftermarket. Have seen so-called tech, take parts and make them fit other vehicle to spend less on their end of job and charge regular price to customer. believe me have seen my share of shody work, even from dealerships. I used to train new guys at the dealership fresh out of trade schools. I always told the the best advise i had was when you get thru with a job on a vehicle , other than being cleaner, they should not be able to tell it was worked on. that means no broken pieces, wiring and connectors put back as they were designed. No broken connectors or connector locks. all the bolts and fasteners where they belong and the correct 1's.

funny I used those aftermarket cats on 2006 and up Chevy trucks and the vans and we NEVER had any issue using them . now we would never use them on a vw or audi and some Toyota . I have also used the MAGNAFLOW cats $650 worked perfect 💯💯. I used walker for a GMC savanna van $550 again workd perfect . give them a try Alex you won't be disappointed

I aint ever seen a spacer on the pre cat sensors😂. It's one thing to put a spacer on the post cat o2s, it's another to scam someone out of new cats.

Good work - always sad to see tpms light on!

This is a GREAT video, thanks for sharing....Stay blessed

What a surprise the old up sell you need this and that

With the control arm bushing being bad on one side when you think it would be better to replace them both because it won’t be that much longer the other sides going to be bad

I love that you sound like Keegan Micheal Key doing a character, subscribed

Damn!!!! You called the shop out!! 😂😂😂

I put some spacers on the rear O2's on my dads truck, he said he was not getting cats! He just didn't like the light on 😅😁😁

I had to install those standoffs of my rear O2’s as well (not the front lol) cuz the converters plugged up and made my truck run terrible, difference is I didn’t just gut mine I cut them off and took them in for the $$$ and now have just pipes in their place

Appreciate what you all are doing Alex, thank you. If that was my ride, I’d probably just delete the cats.

This is sad, same reason why I work on my own vehicles also! Never know nowdays what kind of work you'll get half done

I use the spacers only on the down streams cause of the aftermarket cats that unfortunately are not that good dealer prices are insane i tell them now they have a choice so that problem i leave it on their end aftermarkets suck

Will this be helpful to pass emissions ? If you have a bad catalytic converter that is ?

In this case the other shop screwed that customer, but I've had customers come to me and beg me to install O2 spacers so they can pass smog and I refuse which usually leads to them doing it themselves, the fact that shop put spacers on the up stream O2's just proves to me those mechanics know nothing as all that will do is throw codes for the up streams not working as expected. Also, magnaflow makes some of the BEST aftermarket cats and I have installed them even on older 5.7 GM's and they worked perfectly and were half the price of the OE cats. Not only that but they offer different cats for different states, I'm in California and even talked to one of the specialists at Magnaflow on the phone and they confirmed to me that their CARB certified and federal cats are exactly the same aside from the CARB stamp which tacks on a $1000 increase lmao and they were still half the price of what the OE wanted. You can also get certified universal cats that are tested to not throw check engine lights on confirmed engines, Magnaflow and AP carries them and they offer them with CARB certification at a FRACTION of the cost of a full replacement and you can turn around and sell your old cats for a cool couple hundred bucks a piece to LKQ. If you buy universal you'll be paying the cost of labor but a decent muffler shop could probably do both in about an hour and you could save your customer a cool $500 or if you're not in California, you could potentially save them close to a thousand.

I been owning and working on GM vehicles the last 28 years and I finally threw the towel in on Gm and jump ship! lol I'm thinking anything from 2000 to 2014 is pure headache far as parts going out left and right! Its a never ending fix. Shout out to you Alex and your crew good work!

Which autel scanner do you use!? And which do you think is the best?

This is a shame that you trust other shops and they use cheap parts I noticed Nissan and American vehicles you can’t use aftermarket parts if it’s a Toyota or Lexus you have a chance but not all the time

I agree with everything you said Except about the cats. Although OEM is ideal it's not the only option. Quality aftermarket Cats are great too and although still expensive they are great option for a customer to get what the vehicle needs and save them money without sacrifice. I live California and we have strict emissions and aftermarket cats work great.

I need a mechanic like this one in Minnesota, LMK WOODBURY

my shop has that same exact scanner

That shop is to say away from called Tarkus Auto Car located at 265 S Main St. Bay 15 Jonesboro Georgia, 30236 STAY AWAY FROM THEM

These videos are great I thank you!

It's such a shame how many people get taken advantage when it comes to car maintenance

Someone put spacers on the upstream sensors. Someone doesn't understand how the system works. Just wow.

So if you remove the upstream spacers, do you get a regain of power? More accurate reading for A/F ratios?

I have coustmer that i have had for years they like my work! And they always do everything they need done! Shame on who ever installed those and made a bad repair!

Ahh yes the old anti fouler trick probably sponsored by your local shade tree.... 😂

Where are you located? I’m in Covington GA and can’t find a noise on my Corolla

That's an AFM motor I think. Wonder if it's had any lifer / cam work.

Looks like it needs tires and alignment too lol

What's the name of the scan tool i want to buy

There's a good possibility that the engine is burning oil , hence the new cats and new O2 sensors. After they installed the sensors they may have loaded up again and thru a cel . So they installed spacers to get the sensors out of the direct exhaust stream. You also have to remember even aftermarket cats HAVE to meet very strict EPA and CAFE standards, they dont make them all willy nilly. Ive never had problems with aftermarket oem styled cats. Im sure there are bad ones from time to time. You'll have that with anything. Im not trying to rain on your parade just my 2 cents. Im glad to see that you look for safety items , there are some SCARY vehicles that share the road with us, you're fixing them one at a time! Keep it up ! Good job !

Fifty years ago, the term "shade tree mechanic" was given to hot rodders who would use a strong tree limb and a hoist to pull the engine out of a car. And I'm sure the shade was a bonus to work under. Today we have some mechanics who don't need a tree to hold a hoist to pull an engine, but they sure are definitely shady as hell. Good on you for calling out incompetent and janky mechanics who are charging outrageous prices for lousy work.

Funny thing, i had a customer purchase cats from me. I installed them and they came and brought me some spacers. I installed those as well and made sure i noted that customer provided some after market sensor adapters lol

I wonder if we will see the day that a vehicle inspection/diagnosis/repair will all be done under surveillance and available for patients owner to watch upon request? I wouldn't be surprised if Alex the car doctor auto repair shop might already do. I should do that to myself when I try fixing my repair but don't remember how reassemble it

Ball joints have a spec that should be measured with a dial indicator. Some manufacturers give more than others. Just a heads up for the potential lawsuits. You seem like you are trying to do good for your customers.

That left front rack arm pad is making me nervous...

Luckily my town has a very honest/ reputable shop.

Hi Alex big fan, just curious why not at the very least fix the exhaust leak and take out the front spacers? I'd think that would take priority over the ball joints...no? Thanks

I installed a spacer on my rear O2 sensor cause be my luck someone would chop off the new cat as soon as I installed it.

O2 sensor out of the flow will also carbon up and go bad.. but how TF did they manage to twist those wires that bad? Isn't there a connector on that?

Lots of shady garages out there.

The spacers are to get the poor quality aftermarket cats to not set codes.

Good call. Cheaper is weaker.

I've went to a garage for 3 weeks started bank 1 sensor one took it to have it put in then they said it needs 2 bank 1 an 2 an yea check engine light still came on soil just fixed it my self

Some guys don’t know what they don’t know. If the repair didn’t work, take a guess and try again, and Whalen that fails go with the Shotgun Method…… Honesty is a beautiful and hard thing to find this trade

Now I’ve put some pretty cheap cats on my personal vehicle and buddies vehicle but at work I ordered them from the dealer or 1-800 radiator they are the on close to not exactly oem quality

Chrysler vehicles actually use the downstream o2 sensor to manage long term fuel trim. If you space them out you will have a constant short term fuel trim adjustment but the computer will never compensate its long term fuel trims.

I mean if it a customer do it right but my car I had my cats cut off right when they said nomo emissions and I don’t have nomo problems

2010 Chevy truck puts in gear opppps all neutrals 😂

I can't stand when mechanics are shady about the parts, putting cheap or used ones on.

If your shop was here in El Paso, TX you would destroy 90 percent of the shops here with no competition.

Love the channel...she needs tires as well

This is why you go in for a 20 dollar oil change and leave with a 1200 dollar bill cause the so called “bad ball joints”

Some people just have the short sighted mentality that they have to scam people to make money. They are also usually quite incompetent, which apparently leaves being a BS artist their only option (like why are you putting a spacer on the upstream sensor to defeat emissions?). The concept of making an honest living eludes them.

So how’d you get the check engine light to shut off? Did the gas mileage issue go away?

Where you located Sir looking for a good mechanic to maintain my SUV

Why would anyone put spacers on the upstream sensors?

That’s what happens when you plug in the sensor before you screw it in. Thats why those wires are twisted so bad

I dont even have front or rear 02 sensors plugged in lmao😂just empty plugs where the 02 sensor wire would plug in lmao😂Been like that for about 8 years on my daily driver since i put my long tube headders on..No cats long tube headders that are true dual no x pipe or h pipe just straight back true dual

You need to wear your safety glasses when you get under the hood period

She gonna have to get her tag in a non-emissions county.

My shop motto is "Just Treating People Right"

I want to work for alex, as a technician.

Good man. I would hire you.

imagine her asking for the old converters back from the other shop !!!! she could of rolled down to the scrap yard for a grand.

Need complete replacement converter y-pipe assembly.? Check to see if MAGNA-FLOW Exhaust makes one for what you are working on. They are FAR superior to the original equipment.

The sad part of all of this is that CUSTOMERS WILL LIE when they to another shop especially when they know they are being cheap. They will go with the cheapest route when someone gives them a suggestion on how to save money and will avoid their regular mechanic on purpose UNTIL that fix does not work. You can't put this all on shade tree mechanics. Customers need to accept responsibility for their own actions as well

The fact they plugged them in then screwed them in is dumb founding