I just moved from Seattle to the DC-area. I had a great mechanic there (Biggs Eastside) who only worked on LRs and who I trusted completely not to rip me off. I am not happy about having to find a new mechanic and am hoping someone will have a recommendation for me--somewhere I get an oil change and feel comfortable going when I have bigger issues.

 

Roverland

 

Dunno about Roverland. I spent a few hours prowling around talking to all sorts of people there one morning and afternoon. The owner is a nice guy, he owns a restaurant too and my impression that's his main focus. The 2 Rovers I know he owns looked very well cared for... The front desk guys though refused to answer general questions such as in ball park figures, like how much does it cost to replace a radiator and hoses or roughly how much does it cost and what are the cost factors to replace head gaskets. The owner offered to sell me a Disco II in his lot but his front desk people were too busy to get me the keys to check it out... Because they didn't seem to care or have the time to talk to a potential customer (even though they were having fun talking among themselves) about seemingly simple and common repair subjects and questions , I was not left with that warm and fuzzy feeling... The two mechanics I spoke to impressed me and gave me great insight about the common types of Rover repairs they see in their shop; they should put one of those guys at the front desk. The shop appeared very busy and had everything from serious rock crawling rigs to shopping mall buggies in their queue. So I may be completely wrong. Online reviews I read are mixed with majority complaining about having their auto repaired with used parts and not liking the fact they failed early and had to go back for repeat repairs in a short period of time; but people are more quick to complaining about something that praising it so take that for what its worth.

Me, I'm checking my other options and interview Loudonrover, and 4x4Land before I let a stranger put a wrench to my machine because I absolutely hate having to re-do shoddy work from some bugger I counted on and paid good money for. A family member who has a small fleet of work vehicles tells me Curry's Autocenters are good for general maintenance and since one of their 7 family owned shops is close by, I'll test them out with a front end alignment on one of my BMWs first ( It drives true right now and I recently finished rebuilding its front end steering and suspension).

I have had good experiences with Rosslyn Automotive in Merrifield. These people are car aficionados and take pride in their work. I like places that talk cars, seem like they love their work and job, are knowledgeable and back their work with solid guarantees.

So please, if I stirred this pot, let me know about your personal experiences with shops in the NOVA area because like thelawgoddess I think a good and trust worthy shop is golden and I too want to know about it.

P.S. I just remembered there is a auto hobby shop (Northern Virginia Automobile Repair Shop | Fairfax DIY Auto Repair | Loudoun Do It Yourself Repair Center) in Sterling / Dulles airport area. They rent bays with lifts for what seemed like a reasonable price and have complete sets of tools and diagnostic equipment and a couple of mechanics you can rent by the hour to help you too.

 

Cool!^ I've never heard of one of these DIY Repair Shops, very neat idea indeed! I wouldn't mind trying one of those out.

But if you're leaning to independent, like it seems you are; this is all you need.

www.lrshops.com Just type in your location and it does the rest! Phone numbers, addresses,etc. Great site!

 

Well, I ended up just going to Rosenthal--the LR dealership in Vienna, VA. As always, even the thought of going to a dealership makes me cringe... but I always know I can at least trust LR mechanics to "know" Land Rovers (and dealerships generally have a ton of parts of hand). I'm sure I ended up paying a premium, but I am very happy with the customer service I received. I felt like there was an issue with the car after I picked it up, so I brought it back and they gave me a loaner overnight so they could give it a more thorough test drive in less traffic the next day. When I went back in, they had left it on the lift so they could show me exactly what I was hearing. I appreciated the mechanics taking the time to do that because it showed me that they really want their customers to rest assured.

 

INDEPENDENT | Land Rover Specialists

Independent | Land Rover Specialists

Independent Land Rover Specialists - Bethesda, MD

 

Never dealt with Rosenthal LR but Rosenthal Honda has a reputation for being really pricey. I suppose thats true with all dealerships though, the plus is most warranty any repairs they do. Stay away from Loudoun Rover they have a habit of telling people who know no better that there is much more wrong with the vehicle than there actually is. They then try and buy it for nothing only to fix it and sell it on craigslist. They have 3 or 4 Rovers on there now that they picked up from customers who couldnt afford the repairs.

 

I have used roverland 4x4 before they replaced my head gaskets and did an engine "reseal". You are right about them being busy though. Overall I was happy with the work and price plus they went above and beyond on the service i had done.

I have also used the Jim Coleman stealership and will never return to that place.

 

I have no idea if they are good for Rovers but when we lived up there we took all our vehicles to A&M Automotive.