My car is a 1991 Toyota Camry. It’s got about 173,000 miles on it, and gets me where I need to go in northern Virginia. It’s the rare year I drive it more than 1,000 miles.
I had some problems with the car shortly after I moved here in 2004, and got ripped off at a couple of places. To make matters worse, I was living on next to nothing to begin with. So, I asked my car insurance agent for a recommendation. Thus began my love affair with Japanese Auto Clinic on Lee Highway.
Here’s my most recent story: The car’s alarm system always has been a little crazy. A few weeks ago, my sister and I had been out to Antietam Battlefield and Harpers Ferry. We put the car in our apartment garage, and the alarm went off. It wouldn’t stop for 10 minutes, no matter what we did. The car worked fine for a couple weeks, then the alarm started going off without warning. Finally, it wouldn’t start. I got it jumped and took it to Japanese Auto and asked them to remove the alarm system once and for all.
Everything was good when I picked up the car the next day. Then, three days later, the same thing happened with the alarm. I went back. Steve at Japanese Auto was shocked. He said Jay, the owner, had done the work personally and would want to look at it. A few days later, I got the call: there had been two alarm systems. Jay had taken one out. But he didn’t have what he’d need to dismantle the original equipment given its age. When he tried, the car wouldn’t start at all. They recommended I go to a nearby dealer–and said they’d refund the money I’d spent.
When I arrived to pick up the car, I was surprised to find Jay at the desk. He insisted I take the full refund. “I didn’t fix your car,” he said. “I failed.” He then told me how much it should cost for the dealership to do it and to not agree to any more than that amount. I argued with him a little bit–he had, after all, removed one system and spent the labor time–but he was adamant.
I keep thinking about that honesty and integrity. Of course I’ll go back to Japanese Auto again, but it’s not because they’re walking distance from my house or because they’re super mechanics or even because the prices are incredibly low for our area. No, I’ll go back for the same reason I’ve been going there for seven years–because of Jay’s dignity, honesty, and integrity.
