Tom Hodges Auto Sales and Service

I have never been a fan of dealers for routine maintenance since I have always found more consistent customer service at local shops — this place fits my needs very well. I had used Hewitt’s for a few years and liked them until their lead mechanic blew me off after I complained about squeaking brakes after a pad replacement (yeah, I know — they will squeak as they break in). After getting nowhere on my 3^rd return trip to Hewitt’s, I went to Hodges. They actually put my truck on the lift and removed the tires to look at the brakes where they found that a spring had been installed incorrectly which was causing a pad to drag as I released the brake pedal causing the squeak. I have stayed with Hodges since then with no regrets. I bring three cars there for routine work and have great confidence in them. (I’m from Jersey — I don’t trust anyone completely…). My work has been mostly routine stuff — oil changes, brakes, tire rotations, plugs. But they did replace the drive belt and water pump on my truck. It came to me on-​time and gets slightly better gas mileage than when I brought it in (21 now — was 18 – 19 before).
A long time ago, I used to do all the routine work myself. But with the age of computerized cars and wickedly tight spaces in engines, I’m glad that I can rely on Hodges to do the knuckle-​busting work for me without paying a fortune or getting fleeced with mystery ailments. I have one minor caution about them. In an age of lawsuits, I find that they recommend new tires before the end of the useful treadlife (I still use the 2/​32″ Lincoln penny trick to check for treadlife). If you can manage to get through that, they are a great place to go for car repairs.

It is with a heavy heart that I have to write this review. When the service department first opened it was great! Reasonable prices, good turnover time, and excellent customer service! Recently we have not had good experiences there and it has left a very sour taste in my mouth. Recently I had a newish car with 50k miles on it in for an oil change and tire rotation. I also asked for a few other things to be looked at.
I was later told that my transmission needed servicing, brakes needed to be changed, the rotors needed to be re machined, and the tires replaced! On a Toyota with 50K this was a shock! I only had them do the transmission, and determined we would do the brakes ourselves. The tires were not immediate. When I got the transmission fluid sample from them, it was still clear, no tints of orange to it, signifying dirty transmission fluid. When we changed the brake pads, we discovered there was another 10,000 miles left on them, and the rotors were fine! I feel like someone was out for a boat payment when they put our car on the lift!
I will be going back to Bayside Toyota for my work from now on, and I would recommend extreme caution with Hodges. Make them show you the evidence, and don’t take their word for «discovered» maintenance concerns!

I’ve made the decision that driving to the dealership to handle routine maintenance is often times not worth the hassle.
I decided to find a local outfit to service our family’s vehicles. I usually do the simple things like oil changes, etc. but, I’ve found that I only save a few dollars. I don’t have a lift and I’m getting too old to crawl under cars. Tom Hodges has been around forever so I figured someone with roots in the county would make sure that they provide excellent service.
I took my recently purchased Harley Davidson to have it inspected. Only took about 45 mins and passed. First test passed. It’s a good sign when outfits don’t push «recommended» repairs during an inspection (unless obviously needed).
I took my wife’s Acura to have the oil changed and tires rotated. I waited while the work was performed. I was in and out in under an hour. Passed the time reading magazines in the well kept waiting room. I was able to use an internet special coupon and saved a few bucks more.
I think I found a winner!