Just Brakes

I was a little skeptical to try this place after reading the past reviews, but I took a chance and am very glad that I did. I called for an appointment at the Howell Mill Rd location and they were able to take me the same day for front and rear brakes and rotors (I knew I needed both). I told them I was going to wait for the car (2009 mini cooper). They gave me both a time and cost estimate (both of which were reasonable) and sure enough both were spot on.
Prior to doing any work, they checked both sets of brakes and rotors to make certain that I actually needed what I said I did and they gave me the actual specs on the rotors before agreeing with me that they needed replacing.
There was a small problem with one of the new rotors that they took out of the box (slight rust on it) and rather than put it on my car (I probably would never have known) they immediately called for a new one and explained the situation and that it might make them miss the time estimate (it did not). Once everything was installed they took it for a short test drive and I was all set. They even gave me a coupon for a free oil change.
It doesn’t stop there. They called me the next day to make certain that the car was driving well and to see if I had any issues/​questions.

At a time when my BMW dealership failed me, This Just Brakes location stepped up and went above and beyond their scope of work.
They took the time to explain what was happening with my vehicle, brakes and tires. The thoroughly inspected my vehicle and found issues my dealership failed to find and/​or failed to inform me about.
I will be using THIS Just Brakes for all my minor vehicle maintenance needs.

Before coming here I was a little nervous even though a guy at advanced auto parts recommended them. A knowledgable guy named michael greeted me and asked me details about my «hot rod». I respond with «I don’t have a hot rod, just a beat up 97 maxima». Immediately this helped break the ice. He then diagnosed my car without trying to charge me a dime and no promise of me getting it worked on. I had to go to work so I had a chance to ponder it.
I didn’t get a chance to bring my car by until 4:30ish for my alternator to get replaced (which is difficult to do) and they had it in and out in a couple hours so I could have it the next day. They were a little below to average pricing and knew what they were doing and fixed it well. It’s about time I found someone in this area I can take my car to.
Ignore the old reviews because that was under the old owners. With the new ownership group and mike and Collins running the show this is the place to go. You won’t regret it.

For the last two years I normally chose to bring my car to Just Brakes on Howell Mill for oil changes and minor issues. I really like their space since they moved across the street to the larger location.
This past Tuesday my car did not start after I stopped for gas about a mile away from Just Brakes. After jumping it did not work I decided to try to have it looked at. Just Brakes was first on my list. By the time I got my car towed there is was 5:30 or so. Since they close at 7pm I prepared to leave my car and planned to Über home. Well within 10 mins of arriving they had my car cranked and had diagnosed the issue… my starter was bad. Replacing it would take 2+ hours to repair. I approved the work and let them know I’d come back tomorrow. I was told to wait while they see if they could get the part soon. If so they would stay late and work together to replace it so I would be able to go on with my daily life.
They were able to find the part a few doors down at Autozone. One of them walked over there to pick it up. Two employees stayed a hour later to make sure I was taken care of. They kept me updated from the moment I walked in their door until I left right before 8pm.
Their customer service has always been great but that day they went above and beyond. I cannot thank them enough for considering the inconvenience car issues would have on my life and taking an extra hour of their day to ensure I was taken care of.

They will rip you off, tell you need things done that you don’t and try to get you to open a credit card to pay for it all.
I had a bullseye on my back when I had a two truck drop me off. Tried to tell me I needed $ 3400 worth of things done. I did part of it and got a second opinion on he the rest. This place told me I needed a new ABS to the tune of $ 2,200. And was trying to get me to put it on a new credit card. The thing I’m most disgusted with is that when I brought it in, they fixed the brakes, called me and told me about the ABS and then tried to tell me they couldn’t turn the beeping noise off for the ABS unless they fixed it or I paid them $ 325 for labor for them to just stop the beeping. When I really started complaining that was BS, they could magically do it as a courtesy.
I took it somewhere else and that place said there was nothing wrong with my ABS. Nothing. I even took it back to the second place to have them check it again a few days later to be sure. The second place still didn’t find anything.
If you want to get ripped off, go to just brakes. If you want a reputable mechanic… there’s one down the street from them.

They lied to my face and told me I needed front and back brakes. Glad I didn’t believe them because I took my vw to the dealer and they told me my back brakes were fine. On top of that they were charging me dealer prices.

New mgr. Cepeda (?) is a clown. I called twice to determine if my car qualified for the $ 99 brake special as «10% of all cars don’t qualify». When I got there they then said «Oh, your car doesn’t qualify after all». Complete bait and switch and waste of time! Do yourself a favor and go elsewhere.

I have to give 5 stars because of 2 excellent experiences I had. About a year ago my brake light went on saying i needed new pads. I took it in to the Howell Mill location where they saw that my pads were fine and the wire was being pinched to fault the brake light. I took it to the dealership as it was something they had done when doing a recent maintenance. I was pleased of the honesty of just brakes i decided to come back a year later. I had needed new brakes for real this time and they showed me the condition and detailed what they would fix. They did an excellent job. No appointment. Finished within an hour and a half and now my brakes are making me fall in love with my car again. I know establishments like these tend to have dishonest reputations, however this one (howell mill) stands apart from the rest.

Money-​grubbing liars!
I called ahead to see if they would plug in the computer to diagnose the ABS warning on my car. I told them I was driving from 20+ minutes away, not exactly convenient. When I got there, they tried to charge me $ 59.99 for the computer diagnosis and tried to upsell me on a tune-​up, which I wasn’t interested in. It’s called «Just Brakes» for a reason!
I told them I could drive less than a mile to Goodyear, where they would diagnose the brake error code for free. They shrugged. I left.
There was no one else at this business, at 11:45 a.m. It’s not like they could afford to turn away potential business. At the very least, they should’ve offered to apply the $ 59.99 to the repair bill.

Slow and incompetent.
I went in for an oil change and stayed over an hour.
They took off all my tires and took out all the filters after I told them I wanted no additional services and only wanted the oil change. I still had to be read a list of all the «issues» my car was having. The list was not personalized; standard printed page for every customer. I went to the dealership afterwards to have the items checked, and NONE of them were actually an issue.

Just got my brakes changed on a 2006 Mini Cooper after the brake warning light on my car came on. Steven (I believe he is the store manager) was very clear in explaining the cost of the parts and labor. I didn’t feel like I was being ripped off.

The dealership said I needed new brake pads, that I only had 5% left. So I figured I would get to a brake specialist asap, rather than pay dealer prices.
I called ahead just to be sure they would be open/​available. Steven was fantastic, answered all my questions and said they could service it in just an hour or so.
When I arrived and explained what the Volkswagen dealer recommend, he thought it would be worth looking at them first. They checked all four wheels, but found there was probably 8 or 9 months worth of brake pad left. No reason to change them out on the spot. And the inspection: totally free. Really nice guys, genuinely helpful. In 8 or 9 months, I know where I’ll go back.

The story gets worse from here. I ended up just hanging up on a representative from the Just Brakes corporate office who was so incredibly insulting by telling me that this story was not believable.
(This story picks up 2 months after the auto service shop who replaced my tires noted that, while replacing my tires, the last time I had my brakes changed that my rotors had not been replaced. My car is now grinding terribly, and I will have to spend hundreds of more dollars to fix something that should be in perfect operating condition.)
I was so upset about the state of my vehicle that I sent an email to «Just Brakes» through their corporate website explaining the situation. Much to my surprise, I actually received a voicemail a couple days from Dean, a representative from the company. I returned his call two times and left nice voicemails. No returned call. Finally, on my third attempt in two days, I was actually able to get through to the rep in person.
I explained the situation to him, to which he replied that this story was completely unbelievable — that there was no way that my mechanic could tell after two years that my rotors hadn’t been changed. Hmmm. How about the fact that after two years and only 20k, there is an excruciating grinding going on? How about the fact that my mechanic, who works on my type of vehicle exclusively, noted that the pads were at 50−60% but the rotors were shot?
Yes, Just Brakes, I have nothing better to do with my time than to make crap up two years later about the brakes on my car and sit around and email your corporate office and make call after call to you to try to get some sort of resolution or even a freaking apology from you. I have ABSOLUTELY NOTHING BETTER TO DO with my time than to sit here and write lengthy reviews on a social media site about a fake experience with your company.
Do I sound furious? I am. I am furious and upset that I was robbed of hundreds of dollars of parts by your company. I am furious that when I invest this significant amount of time in trying to resolve this issue I was immediately insulted by your representative and told that this was not believable. I am upset and completely disillusioned that I actually thought that the representative would be empathetic and offer some sort of solution to rectify the situation but instead treated me like I was a liar and a piece of crap.

Used Just Brakes in Vegas, as I knew a mechanic there so trusted them.
Went to the one on Howell Mill, and they are a trip.
Brought my car in, and when it was returned to me, my emergency brake was broken. Um… say HUH?
When I asked what happened, nobody wanted to say anything. I asked again, and the man said, «coulda been from just normal wear and tear.»
I said, «Um, MY EMERGENCY BREAK WORKED WHEN I DROPPED THE CAR OFF.»
Long story short, they replaced the part — I paid for the part and they installed for free.
Won’t be bringing my car there again. Especially after reading the other two reviews.
Having car problems is the only time I hate being a woman. And I felt like Just Brakes on Howell Mill exploited that to the max!

Pros: for 100 bucks minus 10 coupon online you can’t beat 4 new brake pads plus machining. Also they offer free checkup.
Con: Took me 2 ½hrs to get the work done plus as always they insisted I had to get more work done such as brake flushing, new calipers which would have costed 350 dollars more. I took the car to just brakes on Buford hwy, and they gave me an OK on everything.