Alright the story starts with checking the Meineke web site. On the web site when you choose a city to find a service provider it says to click on the individual store web site for hours, services, etc. When I choose the site specifically for Merrimack it states they accept the Meineke Card. So I called, made my apt and dropped off my car. 7 hours later I stop to pick up my car and when I presented my Meineke card the man behind the counter says "what is this?" I say, it's the Meineke Card, shouldn't you know that. He says he needs to call his manager to see if they will accept it. After having the phone thrust upon me to speak with the manager (who had no idea that I was being handed the phone) he told me they will not accept the card, and that I should understand. I informed him no I didn't understand because the web page says they accept it. He then said to me, oh we do, the old version, we are not set up to take the new version. I said the web page does not state it, and his reply was we don't even carry the application forms for the new cards. At which point I said to him, sir how would I know if you carry the application forms I already have the card and your individual store site says you accept it. I didn't have the money to get my car any other way so I asked what they could do to work with me. I was told nothing, and if I tried to take my car I'd be arrested less then a mile down the road. When I pointed out that the web page clearly says they accept the card, I was told they do.. just the old cards and that he was sure I could understand. I was really upset and asked for a number to call, please keep in mind it wsa 5:15. The manager kept me waiting for 20 minutes for the customer service number at which point I called only to find out they close at 5:30. Some people would say that was chance, I say he planned it like that.

So I called for a ride home and locked my car, and rolled up my windows. I called the number on the back of my card, but they said they only make the cards they can't help.

Today I called the customer relations line explaining I'd like to file my complaint and the person (David) on the phone was rude and told me I didn't know what I was doing, that nothing really would get done. He talked down to me when I talked about mis-representation and fraud and tried to tell me writing a letter and contacting consumer affairs and the BBB is pointless. Eventually after being talked to like I was a child I asked to speak with a manager because he said they wouldn't change the page, that they own many companies all over the world and they know what they are doing. When I asked to speak with a manager I went directly to voice mail. I called back and spoke with the manager who was taking inbound calls because in the "Multi National" Company they only have 4 people who take customer service calls, and 2 where out. When I spoke with the manager and told them that at the store it was a horrid experience and the last person I spoke to was rude and bored with the call she sounded like she understood and the first thing she did was say "well how about we contact the store, find out if they are excepting both versions of the card, and if not we'll have the page changed"... which is exactly what the other rep told me couldn't happen.

I will be contacting consumer affairs and the BBB and writing many letters, and to those people who have complaints against this horrid company, I suggest you do the same. Eventually the right people will get the right amount of complaints and take action.

$8, 000 timing belt replacement?! Read on..
Took my wife's Infinity QX4 in for a water pump (first mechanical failure *ever*) at the end of March 2008. They suggested replacing the timing belt and crank seal(s) at the same time. I agreed. 2, 000 miles later (July 5) my wife calls me from the other side of the neighborhood telling me there's an awful noise. I drive over and initially find one belt is off, but when I go to pull it off I find the lower pulley is flopping and loose. Worse yet the bolt holding it on was only finger tight. I was able to remove it without any tools and pulled the pulley off, drove the car 1 block home. When I looked at the pulley I found the key was sheered off inside the pulley keyway, half the key was in the crank and half was in the pulley, and the internal bore of the pulley had a visible taper.
I immediately called the shop and talked to Barry, the manager. He insisted that their work had nothing to do with it, "I''m a certified mechanic with 32 year experience and I know it would not have lasted 2, 000 miles". I asked him 'what do you think?', his reply was that he 'had customers in his shop and didn't have time to talk about it'.
I called 2 Nissan dealers and described the scenario, the first in Blue Springs stopped me in mid sentence to ask "have you had the timing belt replaced lately". When I told him 2, 000 miles ago, he said that if not reinstalled correctly the pulley will work loose, it could take a few thousand miles to happen, but he's seen it in his shop.
I had it towed to my local Nissan dealer (0.8 miles from the Meineke shop) and on Monday the 7th they called me to say the damage was more severe. In fact the crankshaft was damaged and the only cure was a replacement short block... $7, 000 installed. I asked if the recent timing belt replacement was the cause, they said 'there's nothing else to consider but that'.
Since smiley Barry (actually very belligerent) was denying any responsibility I called the corporate office. They were even more useless, but I really wasn't expecting a whole lot, the operator read from a script so I asked for a supervisor and she refused. I asked for a 'formal escallation of the call', she paused, put me on hold, and came back to say her supervisor would not take the call. In a last ditch effort to get something I asked for the contact info for the regional director in charge of Kansas City metro. That request was refused as well. While ending the call I told the operator "Please make this not in the file you send to the regional manager, I want them to call me on my cellphone, do you understand this instruction?" She replied "yes I do". It's 2+ weeks later, and of course no call.
I have since talked to smiling Barry again, he told me to have it towed over and he'd have a look at it. I told him the car is 8/10's of a mile away at McCarthy Nissan and he should go over and look at it. "I'm too busy to leave the shop and do that, I'll have it towed over here for you". I have not yet taken that offer, do I really want a belligerent shop manager to have access to my car without adult supervision? I'm not so sure I do. I certainly would not trust them to replace the engine, they can't even replace the pulley.
So, I paid Meineke $800 to replace the waterpump, timing belt and seals, and due to that job being botched I have another $7, 000 to shell out to fix the collateral damage. Small claims limit in Kansas is $4, 000 so that route is insufficient.
My advise today, don't let ANY Meineke do ANYTHING to your car.