5 /5 Alexandra Dominguez-Ramirez: Would give this place 500 stars if I could — especially Jay.
TL;DR at the end.
Story time:
I went to Les Schwab in Lake Stevens for a pre-trip safety check before driving our family car across the country. They told me I urgently needed new brakes and tires — claiming the tires wouldn’t last much longer and the brakes were on their last legs. The quote was over $2,300.
When I asked questions about the tires, brakes, and rotors, the only answers I got were, “I don’t know" and "I cant tell you until we start working." That didn’t sit right with me, so I started calling around for quotes. When I called Bucky’s in Everett, Jay answered and asked what was going on with my brakes. I explained nothing felt wrong — I’d just taken it to Les Schwab and they told me I needed new ones.
Jay immediately said, “Come in — we’ll check it out for free.” I drove over, and they got me in right away with no wait. Jay and his team inspected the car in front of me while explaining everything as they went. It was educational and respectful.
Turns out, my brakes aren’t even close to needing replacement — they’re not even squeaking, and Jay said with my driving style, I probably have a couple years left on them. Then he showed me the tires and said they were still in decent mid-life condition — totally safe for gig work and the cross-country move.
Jay even walked me through what PSI I should use for the trip, factoring in extra weight and summer heat, the history of rotors, even Ohm’s Law during a battery/starter test, and everything in between.
He told me he became a mechanic because he was tired of seeing women get taken advantage of in auto shops.
TL;DR
Les Schwab tried to charge me over $2,300 for work I didn’t need. Jay at Bucky’s Everett gave me honest, expert help for free and saved me a ton of stress and money.
Manager Jay deserves a raise.
