S4_Obsessed

Today I picked up my car from Masters Autobody in Daly City and i was really happy with the work done. Even more so I was extremely happy with the service provided.

As mentioned previously Masters is part of a direct pay program with Liberty Mutual, AAA and I think State Farm. I ended up going there for my dented door, scratched quarter panel and rear bumper based on some perks presented to me by the insurance company and a conversation I had with the guy that runs the show there. The person running the show there was Eric S. I was sold on using him because of his enthusiasm for Audi and his ability to show me his portfolio of repairs done on similar Audis. I actually found this to be most impressive... he had a database of all repairs completed by his company with digital pictures, before and afters.

How things went down:
Once I decided to use him I signed a form allowing him to bill the insurance company directly for the repairs seeing as how he's in repair programs with them. He then rang up all parts via a computer program he had and created a quote based on part costs and labor. He then let me know that he wasn't going to have me bring my car in until he had all parts in the shop. He had completed a similar repair on an Audi A4 ('02) and had to delay getting the car back to the owner by 5 days because the dent to the door was severe enough that he couldn't bang it out and had to order an Audi door panel. Having learned from the experience he didn't want me waiting needlessly.

Roughly 4 or 5 days later I brought my car in and before I had the chance to give him the keys to the car he showed me every part he acquired from Audi for the repairs to be completed including, the door panel he'd use bypassing the attempt to fix my door and all aluminum rivets for the quarter panel. He also gave me a tour of his shop, touted the expertise of his staff and mentioned that all cars he works on are parked in the shop and never left outside. He gave me a time estimate of 5 business days. With the weekend that basically equated to 1 week the car would be out of my hands. Eric was extremely professional and offered to take care of other scratches on the car at no cost while fixing the damage from my fender bender. On top of that he also had pre-arranged the rental car company to have them pick me up. On top of that he pulled a few strings to have them give me a car 1 step above the range my insurance would normally cover. So when I upgraded the car I actually got an upgrade two levels up.

Finally before leaving the shop he welcomed me to stop by the next day so to take a peak at what they were doing to my car. Since I was traveling to SD that day I never made it in. He also documented the repairs with digital photos and at some point I'll post them. He's due to send me the photos in the near future. From what he showed me there were about 10 or so.

During the 5 days the car was in the shop he called me twice to keep me up to date on the progress of the car. The car was ready when promised 5 days out and that included his bringing in a detailer to prep the car in and out for me (no extra cost). Unfortunately I had afternoon appointments and couldn't make it in to pick up the car so it stayed over one more night.

When I got to the shop to pick up the car he gave me the update on what he had done to the car and pointed out several aspects of detail that you'd never know other wise. The car looked immaculate and like brand spanking new. I also checked the odometer and the car had the exact same mileage as when I dropped it off. No joy rides Following my look over of the car Eric and I talked car detailing for a short while and he gave me a gallon of Zep-O-Wash or Zap-O-Wash for free and told me to give it a try. Happy to have my car I quickly took off to see a matinee movie in the area.

When I got to the theater I noticed while walking away from the car that there were streaks on my trunk. Being super **** about this sort of thing I walked back, wet my finger and tried to wipe the streaks away. Low and bedold the streaks were actually fine scratches. I mulled it over and went to see my movie. When I got out I drove back to the shop and talked to Eric about it. Now it could be that they were from my washing or normal wear and tear, but I honestly didn't remember the scratches being there. I looked over the car and only found the scratches on the trunk... maybe a few minor scratches on my roof. With out any hesitation Eric pulled a person off another job and buffed out all scratches with in 30 minutes. No wait, no hassle and no attitude! All the while Eric informed me of the technique and materials used to remove the scratches. His moto was no matter what make things right for the customer so that they (I'll) return. He also mentioned that at anytime after this repair if I had a scratch to remove to bring it over and he'd do it at no charge. One other thing mentioned was that if I needed any Audi parts to contact him and he'd extend his wholesale 10-15% discount to me.

I can't guarantee that everyone will have the same experience at Masters, but I was extremely impressed with the service and knowledge of Eric and his staff. Based on what I encountered I would recommend the place. As if all of this wasn't enough he mentioned a dent repair person that he works with on a regular basis he wanted me to use for my trunk dent. This dent was not related to him, my accident or anything else. Of all things it was from my elbow. Anyhow the dent guy doesn't use a pick to push the dent out... he heats the metal and massages out the dent so as to not crack the paint and increase the risk of rust taking hold. I talked to him about working with him to use this guy and maybe getting a quantity discount if other Audi people wanted to use him. He was very open to the possiblity.

Anyhow as if you couldn't tell I thought he and his shop were one of the best I've visited. If you do use him let him know that I (Jim) recommended him to you. Feel free to email me and I'll be glad to pass on his name, number and store location.