AAA - South Square

Reviews

Reviews are sorted by relevance, with the most helpful and insightful feedback listed first for easy reference.

  Jim A
4 months ago
I ran over a 4x4 (think deck post) and it ruined two tires on the right side of my car while driving on Interstate 85 in North Carolina on my way back to Virginia. It took the dispatcher quite a while to get a location for me, but eventually service showed up. A very nice fellow who, unfortunately, forgot to check the rear right tire. As a result, we drove 35 miles to the AAA service station dragging a flat rear tire that ended up dissolving into rim by the time we arrived at our destination. He pretty much accepted full responsibility and JIM STEWART, facility manager at the station at 3505 Westgate Drive, Durham, NC was fantastic. I called him constantly and he was very receptive and even helped lead me through the beginning parts of the damage claim.This was handled fairly and quickly. AAA paid for a sizable chunk of the fee, and I was surprised and pleased. It was a good experience.... after a really bad one.

  Dmitri Fisher
4 weeks ago
Perhaps the best experience I have ever had at an auto repair shop. My car was towed to the lot on Sunday, and today (only 2 days later) I was able to pick it up fastest turnaround I ve ever seen! Mike was incredibly kind, patient, happy to answer any questions, and transparent throughout our interactions. He was also prompt, when he said that the diagnostic would be done by the end of the day and that he would give me a call he followed through same with the repairs today. Mike and his whole team made it clear to me that they cared about ensuring I had a good experience, and I appreciate them for the work they did on my car and for being so accommodating!

  Nate Harned
a month ago
Very friendly and helpful staff. Mike helped me get a pre-purchase inspection and he was great to deal with. Their inspection reports are very detailed and helpful, by the way. Highly recommended. (If you are waiting a while for your car here, walk over to solera taproom - food was amazing.)

  David Lacey
5 months ago
My interaction with the AAA car service team was extremely disappointing. I made a scheduled appointment for an oil change at 12:30pm, only to arrive and be informed that my appointment had been delayed until 2:30pm. The lack of consideration for my time was frustrating, as I had planned my day around the original appointment time.What made matters worse was their recurring excuse of staff shortages and people calling out, which seemed to be a common occurrence. It's simply unacceptable for a service provider to consistently fail to meet their agreed-upon appointment times. This pattern of unreliability demonstrates poor service and a lack of care for their customers.As a loyal AAA member, I expected a higher level of professionalism and respect for customer appointments. Regrettably, this experience has left me questioning the reliability and commitment of the AAA car service team. I hope they take this feedback seriously and make the necessary improvements to ensure better service in the future.

  Deborah Swinton
5 months ago
I took my car to have it inspected today however , I thought my appointment was at 11am but I had made it for 10:30am. Mike was very nice and told me that he would fit me in today. This was very important because I needed to get my registration sticker. Mike was able also help me with an urgent problem that needed to be taken care of right away. This was done in a timely fashion so I didn't have to wait very long. He also gave me a very useful tip that I will be using with my truck. I find that Mike is very courteous, professional and patient. I like this AAA location on Westgate in Durham. They always make me feel like a valued customer. Thanks Mike.

  Danny Epstein
2 months ago
The front desk is polite, but if you make an appointment for an inspection you have to wait 1 1/2 hours which is ridiculous. Several times AAA has told me that things were wrong which other mechanics told were perfectly fine. Be careful dealing with AAA.

  Sean W
6 months ago
Terrible terrible experience. I had sensor lights go off, took it in, paid $900 for replacing them. Drive about 15 min away after my car was returned , all the sensor lights go off again. I return it, this time they say it s the ECM and now my car is in the shop for 3 weeks waiting on a part and someone to come and program it. I get no active updates, I am the one always calling to get them. Twice they have told me it s ready, and I drive off and the problem returns. At this point, after having my car in the shop for over a month and $3k spent on all the replacements, I come in to complain and all I get is a shrug and we ve had problems with these sensors as if that s a reasonable excuse. I m told I cannot talk to a manager until sometime on Monday and he will call me at some point that day. No sense of urgency or apology. Avoid this place. And this is coming from someone who is a AAA member but honestly after this exp I m just using my insurance for roadside assistance. What a terrible place. My only regret is that I cannot rate this place lower than 1 star.

  Anup Thomas
4 months ago
We were charged for a locked out service when we called the AAA service to our house. But when we went in to this office, we spoke to Arnette Lawrence, who was super helpful and was extremely kind to us. She did the needful and assured us that our situation was taken care of. Thank you Arnette for a pleasant experience over there.

  Paul Bryant
a month ago
Terrible place to take your car. $150. just to look at it had it over a month, still not fixed. THEY SUCK!! They told me, "Well I didn't have a car before", SHUT THE HELL UP!

  Triangle Detecting
2 months ago
Call the number listed on Google to make sure that they didn t take a lunch to do passport photos and to get my customer number that I have misplaced. Drove 30 minutes down here and was told they are not doing passport photos today.

  Scott Muir
a month ago
These folks derailed my family's entire weekend because they couldn't manage to put on a single tire when they had all Saturday to do it. Didn't bother to tell me until a couple minutes before the place closed. Will not be going back.

  Justin M
a month ago
Quickly answered my questions. Went in for an international drivers license and they had me out the door in minutes. But maybe they just didn t like me, who knows.

  Kevin Clancy
7 months ago
When you fail at the simple things how can you manage the other (car services) well. Your listed Saturday hours for Travel Services on your Web site show the Durham NC South Square and Research Triangle branch offices as open. Yet when showing up both were in fact not staffed. I had tried calling as well the numbers specifically designated for Travel Services at the South Gate branch and it just kept ringing.Thus, FIX YOUR OPEN HOURS ON YOUR WEBSITE!!! And, LEAVE A MESSAGE FOR THOSE CALLING ON THE WEEKEND THAT ALL THE OFFICES IN THE RALEIGH / DURHAM AREA ARE NOT STAFFED. THE OBVIOUS: MOST PEOPLE DO THEIR ERRANDS ON THE WEEKEND! AND POSTING THE CORRECT HOURS AND LEAVE A PHONE MESSAGE FOR CUSTOMERS ARE SIMPLE, SIMPLE FIXES. TAKES A FEW MINUTES AND SAVES COUNTLESS CUSTOMERS UP TO AN HOUR PER PERSON. FIX IT.To fellow Google Maps users reading this, take your business elsewhere. When a business cannot manage the simple things, how can they fix your car? Ask yourself that before getting a membership or using their car maintenance / repair services.

  Marino Leone
9 months ago
They ll tell you that your $700 AC compressor has to fail before they ll replace it, and then after it fails, they ll tell you that, whoops, it exploded and now you actually have $2300 of work to do. They make their own business, they won t take responsibility or offer a discount when it s their fault, and that 3-year warranty they brag about doesn t even pass to the next car owner, so it s useless if you re planning on selling your car within 1-2 years. They won t even give you the 10% AAA member discount if any single part of your work is done under warranty, even if the rest of your work totals over $2000. They don t give you enough information to make informed decisions, and I see now that that s because they have so much to hide.

  Mel Montano
10 months ago
Terrible customer service. They installed a damaged headlight with multiple obvious paint blisters on the reflector and refused to order a replacement. After a long back and forth, they updated the part warranty from 30 days to 1 year and admitted to the blisters on the paperwork. Found out after the visit that they also broke the cap to the washer fluid and didn't notify me.The guys at the desk are awful, they mentioned the manager on site Jim Stewart and when asking to speak with him, the first answer was that he would be available if I waited around as he was "doing tickets" and then after they updated the part warranty they stated "he doesn't want to talk to you."It should be obvious, but don't go to AAA, if you ask how to file a support request they will pull up AAA on Google in front of you to tell you to report it there.

  Amber Frans
8 months ago
AAA Travel, Car Care and Insurance team is great to work with. They are honest, professional and are always smiling! The past 3 months there have been unstaffing issues, but they are getting back to a full team! AAA is always there for you and cares about your safety.

  JENNA SoPRETTY (JennaSoPretty)
5 months ago
I ve been going to AAA for over 8 years. My vehicles have been well taken care of. If they make an era they correct it or pay whatever you ve paid to recorrect it. Their honest, service and knowledge kept me as a valuable customer.When I say extra impressed I mean it. Jim I thank you my truck is running almost like new. One more repair and she will be. I think you guys are AWESOME. We had our ups and downs but what FAMILY doesn t all that matters to me is the fact you guys were there and didn t stop working until you got to the root of the issue, Cam thank you as well. You endured all my yelling and you stayed professional and keep say hi Mrs Goss . I ve been a valued customer now for 9.5 years and I m staying. ( 10/19/2023 added post)Services: Exhaust, Auto battery replacement, Steering & suspension repair, Auto water leak repair, General repairs & maintenance, Steering & suspension replacement, Auto brake repair, Tire rotations, Vehicle Inspection, Wheel alignment, Brakes, Vehicle safety inspection, Wiper blade installation, Auto maintenance, Oil change

  marie szalanski
a year ago
I was so grateful. As a nurse I need to be ready for changing conditions. Having my newer vehicle not running properly (sputtering, losing acceleration without a check engine light coming on) the day before a busy holiday weekend was not good. I called, they had my Jeep by 0830- diagnosed it and had it fixed in hours. Always friendly and helpful. They have worked on both my vehicles, in a timely and thorough manner.Services: General repairs & maintenance, Auto engine diagnostic

  eric hofmann
8 months ago
I would HIGHLY recommend NOT using this place. Wish I could give a negative star. An electrical component went out on my car and this shop was the closest so I took it there. When they told me the problem we asked them if they were able to handle the job and they assured us they could. Over two months later and horrible communication while ordering wrong parts the car is still not right. Careless work with dirty/oily fingerprints on interior trim. Trim pieces broken and not put back properly. Missing knobs on control panel. Dealing with this place was an absolute nightmare. Awful customer service!!!! Again, please don t take your vehicles here.After they returned the car to us there were lights and some electrical components not working properly. The AC would only work in park and not drive. After we told them that this was not how it was when we dropped it off they said there s nothing they can do for us. the steering wheel was a good bit out of alignment from then pushing the car in and out of the shop with it off and them forcing the steering wheel. After we told them that the alignment was off they said they didn t touch the steering wheel but there were missing cover pieces from the steering wheel when they went in there to do work on the wiring. The people working here are liars.We ended up taking it to the dealership and they went through it all and determined that there were two plugs that AAA put in the wrong spot and that this was causing all these problems. At first AAA would not respond and then after having our lawyer contact the store owner we finally got it resolved after a month or two. AAA finally admitted they were wrong and agreed to pay the bill from the dealership. Just when we thought everything was over the first check we received from them wasn t the full amount we agreed upon. it wasn t for awhile after that we finally got the second check. From when my car went to their shop untill we got the final check was about a half of a year. Again, please try to find another shop to take your automobile to.

  Beverly El-Amin
10 months ago
I only have my car serviced at AAA. They have proven to be reliable over the years, and even with staff changes, they manage to maintain a high level of customer service. Joshua helped me this time, and he was delightfulto work with. Thanks to the AAA car care staff at Westgate. Great work!

  Tip
a year ago
2-9-2023MIKE made it more than car care service he extended that to customer care service!!! Here s how. Brakes overdue and in a frantic to get them serviced as soon as possible, Mike from scheduling the appointment to when the car was repaired and even beyond that, made sure my experience met my safety needs. He was polite, professional, and down right good people. He was patient and presented me with all the information as possible to make an informed decision without being rushed. 8months pregnant and a whole lot of other complications that arose same day, he remained calm and level-headed and made sure to empathize my safety was most important and he would do everything within his ability to make sure that was the focus. I cannot thank him enough for the wonderful service he provided today! I m beyond words to express my gratitude for the experience. Many thanks! Keep up the great work and I ll see you on the next service visit!T.H

  Syed A. Hassan
3 months ago
Got my alignment done, after alignment weird sound coming from right wheel. More importantly they scratched my steering wheel so bad.

  Jonathan Greene
2 months ago
The manager was so helpful to me when I needed a quick jump on my battery! Very friendly staff, would recommend

  Matthew Holt
a year ago
My vehicle had a very dead battery. To the point that it couldn't be jumped off. Had my vehicle towed to this location. I had a AAA battery that was outside the 3 year free replacement period, but still within the 6 year prorated warranty period. Date code was M-18 so the battery was not quite 4 years old.I asked to have my battery tested and replaced if it was bad. This was around 1 pm, so about 5 hours prior to close. That allowed five hours for someone to work in a simple battery test.I was told I would have to wait for the following day because they were booked up.I informed them I was traveling and didn't have any arrangements for a place to stay, and couldn't leave my car overnight.They didn't offer me any sort of solution.I decided to replace the battery myself because I didn't have another choice. I pulled it out, and brought it inside and asked to have it tested and prorated, so I could purchase a new battery and install it myself.They informed me that the battery test has to be performed while the battery is still installed in the vehicle in order to be prorated.So I purchased the battery at full price, installed it myself, and drove away.Earlier this year I was employed as a GS-2 at a AAA car care location on the other side of the state.It doesn't take much time nor effort to set up a battery on a GR-8 battery tester for a diagnostic charge and walk away. While it isn't a B2Q test, as long as they attach the test printout to the battery, The warranty will still be honored.Unless a new policy has been put in place since 07/01/22 there was no requirement for the battery to be in the vehicle when tested.In my two years at AAA our service advisors never told someone who needed a battery that they would have to wait for the following day, unless we didn't have a battery in stock. Especially if they were traveling. AAA is supposed to be there for you in emergencies. If it had been after five o'clock, then waiting for the following day would be understandable. But this was at 1pm. This was a simple battery replacement, it took me about 10 minutes, and I even offered to do the labor myself. All they needed to do was throw the battery on a tester, and honor the warranty.As such, I'm not particularly pleased with my experience with this particular location.Service: Battery

  Jessie English
a year ago
I dropped off my car and keys at 10:20 am for an appointment for an oil change without any other service at 10:30 am. My car was not ready until 1:24 pm, and then it was only because I called and asked to be given my car back without a service at 12:38 pm.I've had my oil changed several times here. I'm always required to make an appointment first, and then it still somehow takes an hour to change oil. The last time I went I mentioned that I was getting picked up and I was told to expect 1.5-2 hours. I was shocked because what is the point of scheduling an appointment? Fortunately my ride would still be available in 2 hours so I rolled with it. After more than 2 hours I still had not received a call but my ride had brought me back to that shopping center, so I called and asked for the status of my car. I was told the person handling my car was at lunch and could I wait about 20 min for him to return and call me? I said I'd rather not, I need my car back, I'm here now, and if it's not done I just want to pick it up without an oil change.I was placed on hold and when the person came back they said my car is in the bay and will be ready in about 15 min. They said my paperwork got put in a black folder instead of red because I wasn't waiting with the car, and so it was not considered a 'priority' job. The suggested solution was to always say I'd wait with the car and never say I have a ride..... again I want to know why I need an appointment and why I was told a time frame of 1.5 to 2 hours.Anyway, after all this and being told my car was in the bay and would be ready in 15 minutes, it was another 45 minutes before I was called (which tells me my car hadn't been touched until I called after the first 2 hours.) When I picked up my car I also noticed that my oil life gage had not been reset, either.Service: Oil change

  Sheila Cook
5 months ago
Went for annual NC Inspection which was very thorough. Didn't realize they had full service garage there. Good experience.

  Cooper Towne
a year ago
Worst repair experience ever. Communication was negligent at best, they charged me for things my insurance had already sent proof of payment for. They gave me my car back with new damages form them hitting things in their shop. I had video evidence of this and they chose to do nothing about it. Took them almost three months to complete repairs they quoted me less than two weeks for. Ordered wrong parts THREE different times. VERY misleading with what little communication I did receive. I was told they processed insurance paperwork DAYS ago, only to call my insurance company and they hadn't heard form this AAA in WEEKS. Then later that day after my insurance agent calls the service manager the paperwork shows up within hours. Horrible experience, my car now has more damage than it did when I brought it to them.

  Hannah DeNuzzi
2 years ago
I cannot recommend the service department at this location enough. Not only was the service I came for speedy and excellently priced (replacing a flat tire), but the service staff went above and beyond for me in regards to another issue I had with my vehicle s engine. After a passing mention of my issue, Mike and another staff member were looking up codes for me, searching TSB reports, and even offered to take a look at a write up from a previous service I had done at a dealership all things completely unrelated to the service I had come for and paid for, out of the kindness of their own hearts. They gave me invaluable information and advice and really took the time to make sure I understood the process. It s clear that Mike and others at South Square really care about their customers and I will definitely be back for future service!Service: Tires

  Roy Hart
a year ago
I have been going to this facility for 15 years. It is the only auto shop I trust. They always do a thorough vehicle inspection and follow manufacturers recommended service. They give you the recommendations and you decide what things you choose to do. They are not pushy or try to sell you something you don't need. Unless you have a personal mechanic you won't go wrong taking your cars here for service. Btw, they are VERY busy and you will have to wait. Make an appointment and drop the car off if you can and come early if possible

  Diana Peronis
4 years ago
I had an excellent experience using my AAA membership benefits and the car care services of the AAA Car Care location on Westgate Drive (South Square.)My van had been having battery and starting issues. I called to have the battery services come and they jump started the vehicle. They determined that the battery needed recharged and directed me to go to the Car Care Center for charging. This could have been a great inconvenience since the center is normally very busy and I had a mid-morning engagement. However, since I had some possible issues with the vehicle, I hoped to consult with them on the problem.When I met Jessica, Assistant Service Manager, at the counter, she immediately began taking charge of the situation regarding the battery charging and listening to the details of the history of the vehicle. Her customer service skills are top notch. Her focus is on the customer and I was truly put at ease. She offered for the courtesy car to take me to my engagement or pick me up, whatever I needed. She personally consulted with the technicians on a plan for running tests. She kept in communication with me. The AAA team discovered a parasitic electrical issue that was draining the battery. They fixed it by the next day and I was more than pleased. I had never considered the AAA as offering more than basic car care, but I would have to say that they offer good diagnostic services and repairs as well. Kudos to Jessica and the team!