WEB LINK: Consumer Info From Automatic Transmission Rebuilders Association

KISSIMMEE, Fla. -- Some consumers claim a local repair chain held their cars hostage, after running up their bills for charges they never agreed to. And that's just the tip of the dipstick when it comes to complaints against a transmission repair chain with a very familiar name.

TAKE ACTION Do you have a consumer complaint that you can't resolve? Let the Eyewitness News Action Nine office give it a try.

For several consumers, a trip to the transmission shop put the scare into car repair.

"Somebody was trying to take money out of my pocket," says Bill Hall.

"I never gave them authorization to do anything," comments Mancione D'Escalarre.

"I had no choice, I had to pay it, or I had no car," says Caroline Perdomo.

All three consumers took their cars to an All Transmission World, operated by the same owner who has shops in Kissimmee, Apopka, on Orange Blossom Trail and on West Colonial Drive. The chain has a troubling history of customer complaints.

Fifty consumers wrote to the Better Business Bureau in the past three years and Action 9 received more complaints about this transmission chain than any other.

"I felt he was using me," says Perdomo.

She dropped off her minivan at the Kissimmee All Transmission World for a transmission tune-up and used a $19.95 coupon. Instead, Perdomo heard the entire transmission had to be rebuilt for $2,000.

She said no, but still got hit with a $362 dollar surprise; the cost of removing and diagnosing the transmission.

"I was shocked, because I only went there for the transmission oil change," she says.

Later, another shop told her nothing was wrong with that transmission.

The West Colonial shop told Bill Hall his Jeep Cherokee's transmission had to be rebuilt for a thousand bucks.

He said no thanks, and then another repair shop told Bill his Jeep only needed a tune-up. "I feel real cheated," he says.

Who could blame Mancione D'Escalarre for feeling that way, too.

"Well they told me the diagnosis was free," she says.

But after the Kissimmee shop removed his transmission for the inspection, he got hit with that $362 dollar diagnosis fee and this ultimatum.

"He wants cash, otherwise I can't have my car," D'Escalarre says.

Steve Hoffman manages that shop on Highway 192.

"He said he wasn't told about that diagnosis fee," Action 9's Todd Ulrich told Hoffman.

"He signed it sir. He actually physically signed it," Hoffman replied.

"I got a copy; I don't see any signature on there," Ulrich said.

"He failed to mentioned he's already took us to court," Hoffman replied.

D'Escalarre denied that.

When Action 9 took a minivan to the Kissimmee and West Colonial shops, undercover, for a transmission check, we too were told the inspection was free and, in our case it was, since they didn't remove our transmission.

They did take out Mancione D'Escalarre's transmission to inspect it. He can't afford the $362 fee, never got his car back and now takes the bus to work.

"I didn't ask for this; I just want my car back," he says.

Transmission repair can be a tricky business.

Frank Laquinto owns those shops and told me his company has few complaints compared to its high volume of repairs, and every customer is told about the complete diagnosis fee.

In the undercover test, did the shops charge us for service we didn't need? No they didn't and there wasn't anything wrong with our transmission.

We should point out, there are other All Transmission Worlds with different owners, who have fewer consumer complaints.