The people here are amazingly nice. I've visited Gab's (pronounce with a long A) three times now. The first visit was outstanding in every way. Dropped in without an appointment. Taken care of quickly and at a fair price. The second visit? Less outstanding. By appointment, the parts ordered were incorrect and I left without the repair being done. It happens. I understand. A revised estimate for the repair, with the new parts, was more expensive than the original. The largest difference in cost was a jump in labor from $35 to $85. Was the repair more involved than initially expected or was I being asked to pay for the time wasted by their mistake? I'll never really know, but it kind of seems like the latter. I do know a couple hours of my time was wasted. Visited a third time. The repair was promptly made at the appointed time precisely at the estimated cost. Overall, two five star visits and one two star visit.
I like Gab's well enough to give them another try. I like to buy cars new and then fully depreciate them, AKA drive them into the ground, before then buying a new one. I'm at the stage where I'm trying to squeeze another 20,000 or 30,000 miles out of a car before it bites the dust. Having abandoned overpriced Toyota dealer service for the remainder of this car's life, I'm still thinking Gab's may be the honest and affordable repair solution I'm seeking.