HELP- I've been conned by a mechanic!! What do I do??

Nadders01

LinasPilibaitisisbatman wrote: »

Firstly a quote is just a quote.

If the mechanic genuinely did 700 worth of work as instructed then I dont see you have been conned. Its simply a case that it needed a bit more work also they didnt have the equipment to complete.

Mechanics can only diagnose and do their best. Its impossible to know everytime the intriquicies of every fault and repair in advance. this is especially the case with issues like gasket failure as often its caused by other issues which are only determined during repair.

He has made simple errors, not carried out simple tests and should not have taken the job on if he doesn't know what he's doing.
If this was a mobile phone,..a repair centre either fixes your phone and charges you for it,...or they simply cannot fix,..and does not charge.

Silk

Nadders01 wrote: »

Hello,..
The model= suzuki swift 2005 1.3gl
The car was examined and then the quote was given
The cause = hole in the radiator, liquid drained,..car overheated
Length of time= they do not manage their time in this garage, I've later found out their time scales are always way out and take forever doing anything.
He has not completed the job and expects me to pay for the completion.
This is not fair!
I'll have to take him to a small claims court.
Thanks tho,...

Hi Nadders,
So what was the quote for was it for replacing the HG and the radiator ?
When you say it was not completed I got the impression it was completed but you found later it stalling etc and took it back, 3 days later they told you they couldn't fix it and to take it to Suzuki.
Where is the car now do they still have it ?

Silk

Nadders01 wrote: »

Silk wrote: »

Did they explain what the extra was for and why it took longer ???
Perhaps they were waiting for parts or perhaps there was further problems discovered when the engine was stripped ???



When you say it was "not fixed" are you saying they did not fix the head gasket or is this another problem ???



What is the new problem that has been diagnosed and who diagnosed it ?



Apparently the garage haven't put the engine back together properly. Only 2 of the 4 cylinders are working. The cam isn't aligned properly?!
The main gripe i have is that they didn't completely finish the job

I assume by cam not aligned properly this is the timing marks etc to be honest it would only have to be a tooth out to give the symptoms you mention cutting out stalling etc.
That is not a worry but the 2 cylinders not working could be, who has told you this ?
Whoever told you this do you know if they carried out a compression test ?
What did the garage say was the £300 extra charge for ?

Silk

Nadders01 wrote: »

He has made simple errors, not carried out simple tests and should not have taken the job on if he doesn't know what he's doing.
If this was a mobile phone,..a repair centre either fixes your phone and charges you for it,...or they simply cannot fix,..and does not charge.

Which simple tests did he not carry out do we know?
What were the garage saying the situation was during the 10 days they had it as to what problems they were having ?
I assume you didn't just leave it with them and give them carte blanche to repair it and ring you when it was ready ?

Nadders01

Silk wrote: »

Hi Nadders,
So what was the quote for was it for replacing the HG and the radiator ?
When you say it was not completed I got the impression it was completed but you found later it stalling etc and took it back, 3 days later they told you they couldn't fix it and to take it to Suzuki.
Where is the car now do they still have it ?

Hello Silk!
Thanks for your time :O)
As soon as I drove the car out of the garage, I could tell it was faulty. I drove straight back and they took a further 3 days to decide that they'd looked at it and couldn't fix it.
I've been told that the cylinders aren't working properly now, 2 out of the 4 are doing the work.
I have the car and its going in for repair on tues.
I went back to the garage to ask for my money back last night. They were really rude but said they wanted to know who had diagnosed the prob and that they would fix it for free. Fix it for free when I complain and threaten legal action,..when a week before they told me they couldn't fix it and i either sell it or take it to suzuki!!
I'm totally fed up and have to pay out more money :O(

Nadders01

Silk wrote: »

Nadders01 wrote: »

I assume by cam not aligned properly this is the timing marks etc to be honest it would only have to be a tooth out to give the symptoms you mention cutting out stalling etc.
That is not a worry but the 2 cylinders not working could be, who has told you this ?
Whoever told you this do you know if they carried out a compression test ?
What did the garage say was the £300 extra charge for ?

I don't know exactly,..but this new mechanic is a specialist. He has done a compression test. The new bill will cover labour to take the engine apart and re-align whatever needs re-aligning.
This mechanic knows the reputation of the cowboy I originally went to and has advised he's done a bodge job.
I agree with him.
The real debate here is,..what are my rights? How can I get my money back?
And how can I stop him from conning someone else.
Thanks tho

Nadders01

mintster wrote: »

Just as an indication my headgasket went on my corsa - also ended up replacing waterpump and radiator at the same time - cost was around £700. Car was never the same (as is usually the case).

NO WAY!! is this really the case? In what way was it never the same?
My car is still broken,..still cutting out, still juddering.
Surely this isn't an outcome of a HG being fixed?

Silk

Nadders01 wrote: »

Silk wrote: »

I don't know exactly,..but this new mechanic is a specialist. He has done a compression test. The new bill will cover labour to take the engine apart and re-align whatever needs re-aligning.
This mechanic knows the reputation of the cowboy I originally went to and has advised he's done a bodge job.
I agree with him.
The real debate here is,..what are my rights? How can I get my money back?
And how can I stop him from conning someone else.
Thanks tho

Hi Nadders,
To be fair the re-aligning of the timing whilst tricky is not rocket science and would cause me concern with the first garage if they wern't able to do that.
Re aligning the timing cogs alone would seem a bit rich at £230 though but I'm sure if it was to cure the problem you would be happy.
The problem you will have in getting any money back is proving the garage was at fault in the first place which is why you could do with a statement from someone qualified to say so.
The other problem now of course is that they have offered to rectify the error for free.
What was the reason they gave for the difference in price £400 to £700 ???

mikey72

Are you in the AA or RAC, or similar?
If you are phone them for legal advice as to what your rights are. You'll get as many diverse opinions on here now as there are posters. Hopefully a qualified member of any motoring organisation can talk you through exactly what your rights are, and what you need to do.
(I've done heads by the way, lasted years until I usually sold or scrapped the car)

jeannieblue

Some garages just don't know what they are taking on sometimes and it overwhelms them.

We tend to say if it is just the head gasket it will be in the region of.... and estimate (not quote :rolleyes:). Once we are into the work and foresee other problems, we call and advise the customer.

The garage may not have intended to run up the bill, but they possibly came across other problems - as you do - and were stupid enough not to keep the OP posted - or, the job was beyond them, it happens.