Knuckle Busters

Just finished working on my car. A little at a time, one issue at a time, and each time the car runs better. Quality work from a quality shop!

We bought parts for a transfer case rebuild project and were happy with it, so when our Wrangler developed an oil leak and a «loose bolt sound» when going over bumps, we took it to Knuckle Busters because they called themselves Jeep experts.
James is right, first impressions are a little rough. There’s no sign anywhere. They’re split between a couple of areas (they just moved and are working on their showroom). You don’t know where to park, drop your car, check in, etc. And you’ll likely not be greeted, as we weren’t. But we wanted good work, not a fancy place. Still, it’s tough to find.
So hubby took the car in for an estimate on the leaks and the clunking, which Dave’s team determined were U bolts that needed to be replaced. The written estimate was $ 728. Ouch. But we scheduled the work anyway. When hubby called the day before, Dave said the U bolt work wasn’t included in the estimate, and that it would be another $ 200. Double ouch.
The work was completed over a couple of days. They said they did a test drive and had no other work to recommend, everything else was fine. Well we drove it and found that at MPH 28 – 29 there was a big hitch, like the transmission wasn’t working correctly. You could hear it AND feel it. So we called back and were told that sometimes when you get new fluids it creates new problems. We brought it back on a Friday and they test drove it again. Dave said he had no idea what the hitch/​sound could be and that we should keep driving it until there was a problem. Um, this IS a problem already! Additionally, we asked why it was still clunking over bumps when the U bolts were fixed. Now he said that it was probably the arms or suspension, and that U bolts won’t affect that problem. But that’s what we brought it in for, so why did you recommend they be replaced???
He said we should bring it back Saturday morning and they’d charge us just two labor hours to clean out the transmission to see if that helps, and that they’d push back other projects. He assured us he had hubby’s number to call with an update. So we gave him the keys at 8am Saturday morning and said we’d wait for the call, since this is our daily driver.
The call never came. Hubby started calling early afternoon and never got an answer. Turns out they CLOSED at 1pm! So he grabbed his work truck and headed over to find his Jeep unmoved, unfixed, and UNLOCKED. Awesome.
On Monday morning Dave called to say «I told you there wasn’t a technician on Saturdays». Um, you did not. Because why else would we have brought it in???
We took the Jeep to get a second opinion elsewhere, since «drive it until it totally breaks» is not an option. He told us lifted vehicles often have issues with the torque converter (so we’d likely need a transmission rebuild). He found some loose bolts that he tightened. And that we’d need a brake job soon. Looks like we found ourselves a new mechanic!
We couldn’t be more upset with the money wasted at this place, and the lousy, don’t-care attitude. It was pretty disappointing.

I love these guys! They do fantastic work and are incredible people to boot! We tell the local Jeeper’s about them all the time! I highly recommend them for all your fabrication and any type body work your jeep may need! Thank you for helping us with our recent project!