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Garage pulling a fast one?
sugarspunsister
Posts: 448 Forumite
in Motoring
I'd really appreciate some quick responses if you have the time!
My elderly father had a £600 bill for repairs to his car last Christmas Eve, this included new brake discs and pads.
In July/August, he noticed that the car would judder when braking (the same kinda sensation as when you're in too low a gear).
He was on holiday at the time and spent a while wondering if it was just the road surfaces. It has steadily gotten worse and is now unmistakeable as a problem with the brakes.
He returned the car to the garage yesterday for inspection.
The garage phoned my Mother this morning and told her it was the brake discs, that they had rusted. She told them they were only replaced at Christmas. Their response was that perhaps they'd braked hard then driven through a puddle which would cause the rusting. <--- That sounds like a line, surely? Please correct me if I'm wrong though.
Since stating that, they have now phoned again and said that the brake discs are infact warped. They have stated again that the brakes heating up then driving through a puddle could have caused this. Or that they could have been faulty.
My father has questioned, if faulty... would they send them back to the manufacturers and issue a refund on the parts? The garage have stated that it would take 3 months to do so and that there would be no guarantee of a refund.
Please could we have some advice as to how to proceed? Is what the garage are saying fair/right?
It all seems rather unfair to only get 6 months use out of a new brake discs/pads and for that to be perfectly acceptable? Oh, and as far as they can remember... no harsh braking has taken place!
Many, many thanks!
My elderly father had a £600 bill for repairs to his car last Christmas Eve, this included new brake discs and pads.
In July/August, he noticed that the car would judder when braking (the same kinda sensation as when you're in too low a gear).
He was on holiday at the time and spent a while wondering if it was just the road surfaces. It has steadily gotten worse and is now unmistakeable as a problem with the brakes.
He returned the car to the garage yesterday for inspection.
The garage phoned my Mother this morning and told her it was the brake discs, that they had rusted. She told them they were only replaced at Christmas. Their response was that perhaps they'd braked hard then driven through a puddle which would cause the rusting. <--- That sounds like a line, surely? Please correct me if I'm wrong though.
Since stating that, they have now phoned again and said that the brake discs are infact warped. They have stated again that the brakes heating up then driving through a puddle could have caused this. Or that they could have been faulty.
My father has questioned, if faulty... would they send them back to the manufacturers and issue a refund on the parts? The garage have stated that it would take 3 months to do so and that there would be no guarantee of a refund.
Please could we have some advice as to how to proceed? Is what the garage are saying fair/right?
It all seems rather unfair to only get 6 months use out of a new brake discs/pads and for that to be perfectly acceptable? Oh, and as far as they can remember... no harsh braking has taken place!
Many, many thanks!
don't blow out other people's candles to make your own burn brighter...
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Comments
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How many miles a year does your father drive?The man without a signature.0
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Hi, thanks
The car has done 6000 miles since they were changed.don't blow out other people's candles to make your own burn brighter...0 -
Do we know for sure the disks were changed at Christmas?, go and see the current disks, if they are warped they are warped and need changing.0
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I would seek independent advice/inspection on this one.
My car has done 93,000 miles and i have never changed the discs only the pads and they work just fine.
The stuff about driving through puddles is a load of cobblers.
arent brakes supposed to live outside in all weathers?0 -
Well, they were billed for them being changed at Christmas.
The garage first said they had rusted... now they're saying they are warped.
We don't dispute that they need changing... we're disputing the fact that we have to wait 3 months to see *if* we get our money back on brake discs that have only lasted 7 months. But we're a bit clueless and not even sure if that's standard practise.
The garage suggested that brake discs *do* sometimes only last 6/7 months and that it's basically tough luck.don't blow out other people's candles to make your own burn brighter...0 -
Disks should last longer than this, presuming your parents aren't fond of track days or such like!
Your contract is with the garage so if the goods supplied by them are faulty it is for them to sort out and replace the disks it does not matter what there relationship is with there supplier.
My bet is that they did not change them at Christmas maybe they skimmed them to tidy them up, but I don't know how you prove this.0 -
Thanks MX5, my father says he's just been to a mechanic friend who has now shown him what a worn brake disc should look like. He says that no way should they wear after 6000 miles and that if they look anything like the worn one he showed him (grooved and worn on both sides), then he would be willing to bet that they just didn't do the job at Christmas.
Oh well, I'm off to take him to the garage now. Wish my luck. The manager is such a surly so-and-so, not looking forward to this!don't blow out other people's candles to make your own burn brighter...0 -
sugarspunsister wrote: »Well, they were billed for them being changed at Christmas.
The garage first said they had rusted... now they're saying they are warped.
We don't dispute that they need changing... we're disputing the fact that we have to wait 3 months to see *if* we get our money back on brake discs that have only lasted 7 months. But we're a bit clueless and not even sure if that's standard practise.
The garage suggested that brake discs *do* sometimes only last 6/7 months and that it's basically tough luck.
the garage really is taking the michael,they wont rust unless you park it up from one xmas till the next.ask about getting the discs skimmed wont cost that much0 -
Warped discs are normally caused by incorrect placement of the disc or pad, or because they were originally faulty. Im not sure what sort of guarantee comes with mechanical work but it should be expected to last longer than 6 months. I would seek independant advice, return to the garage and if they refuse to put it right take legal action.0
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Thank you everyone.
Ok, well... they're sending the brake discs back to the manufacturer. We asked to see them and they were visibly new. So I'm happy that they *were* changed at Christmas during the service.
I hinted that I didn't believe the whole brakes heating up then getting wet suggestion as to why they were now warped. Perhaps suggested it was a load of old cobblers a little too obviously as he became fiercly adamant that it had happened to him and that it had even caused someone elses brake discs to shatter.
I believe he's suggesting harsh braking and accelerating as a possible cause... however, he doesn't know my father. We're talking someone who frustrates me with his ultra slow and careful driving and it's a bleedin' Citroen Picasso - hardly performance material.
As it stands, he's returning them to the manufacturer for testing... this will take 3 months, no budging on timescales. We won't find out if they're faulty (entitled to a refund) 'till then.
He doesn't think that they were faulty from new because the same garage did our MOT in April and he reckons that the warp would have shown up on one of their machines when the tyres were balanced or something?
In the meantime, my father has just paid out for the new discs, pads and a tyre. £270-odd quid. Expensive stuff this!don't blow out other people's candles to make your own burn brighter...0
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