Car Failed After Service - Suggestions Please

peachyprice

skiddlydiddly wrote: »

Personally I'd say you have to be at last as able a mechanic to do that job as work in a garage, if not more.They're on their own and work in higher pressure situations in all weather at any time of the day or night.

Then you would be wrong.

My friend's husband is an AA man, before that he was a delivery driver, he had no formal mechanic training at all, only the basic training the AA gave which is how to get a car started and quick temporary fixes.

cyclonebri1

peachyprice wrote: »

Then you would be wrong.

My friend's husband is an AA man, before that he was a delivery driver, he had no formal mechanic training at all, only the basic training the AA gave which is how to get a car started and quick temporary fixes.

What do you want/deserve when stranded at the roadside?????:wall::wall::wall::wall:

Your friend, as in to soon be your exfriend.s husband is a bad example then.

But tell me,? Can he now fix a car at the road side, or is he still the total plonker you portray him to be???

skiddlydiddly

RAC/AA men/women aren't there to do time consuming repairs at the side of the road without the benefit of a ramp and a garage full of tools.It would be too dangerous and time consuming and not really what the service is about nor what you are paying for.They are(usually) able to quickly diagnose faults and if its within their capabilities fix it there, if not then get it to a garage asap.I think its unfair to assume they are all clueless morons.My dealings with them have always been good experiences.

kiddy_guy

I think ultimately it doesn't matter whether the AA man designed the Zetec engine and can rebuild it from scratch, or whether he can barely change the oil.

What is of massive concern is that a Ford Garage working on a Ford car with very few miles on it appear to have no bloody idea how to sort it and have had to give it to a 3rd party to sort out.

The AA man might be talking out of his derrier with his diagnosis, but clearly Ford are light years from being able to claim that lofty position. In fact they'd be unlikely to locate their derriere it seems.

Yet one more reason why I wouldn't buy Ford and also another why I wouldn't use a Main Stealer.

skiddlydiddly

Well I wouldn't say any mainstream manufacturers technicians were any better than another.There's no real difference in pay and the novelty of road testing a better marque would soon wear off.

I agree that there's no way they should be having to pass the car onto another garage though, it beggars belief.Unlss of course its more serious and maybe the plug pulled a thread or something.

opinions4u

Okay, let me summarise what we've got so far then:

- the average RAC patrolman should not be assumed to be an expert, although they are independent

- the problem with the car may not be the one identified

- I am totally reliant on the dealer to tell me the truth unless I wish to involve another garage's expertise (but let's say their actions so far look suspicious)

- I should keep hassling them until I am their priority pain in the !!!! customer

- It doesn't matter if the liability lies with the dealer if they are repairing under warranty

- It is reasonable of me to expect them to provide me with a larger vehicle for a longer journey with my family

Does anybody else have any words of wisdom to help me progress this further?

Dave70

don't slate the AA or RAC guy for not fixing the car. He is there to get you going or recover you to your destination or home or a garage for repairs. Fix ing a car at the side of the motorway is leathal so the shortest time taken is the best option so most times recovery is the safest option.

If the garage can't get the sparkplug out then the servicing mechanic must have fitted them incorectly and damaged the thread. since you have no reply from the garage they must be decideing on what to do and who is liable. they will obviously try and deny liability due to the amount of work now required on the engine. so be prepared to call their bl;uff and possibly small claims court of it all goes wrong, but this may need proof from you proving they wer incompetant in their service. i do hope you still have a copy of the service and work done schedule that they should have suppiled when you paid and colected the car.

As for the curtesy car, this is the dealer being generous. they are not oblidged to supply you with a car. As for a fiesta if it's a current model what is the problem ? they are mroe than capable of covering a 400 mmile trip and it is only slightly smaller than a focus mainly in the boot space. going in demanding a bigger car for your journey will most likely fall on deaf ears and possibly a request for you to return the curtesy car as well.

opinions4u

Dave70 wrote: »

don't slate the AA or RAC guy for not fixing the car. He is there to get you going or recover you to your destination or home or a garage for repairs. Fix ing a car at the side of the motorway is leathal so the shortest time taken is the best option so most times recovery is the safest option.

I'm fine with the RAC guy. Turned up in less than 30 minutes at peak time, even though I'm not pregnant, got the car off the motorway, checked it out and then towed it to the dealer - with what I suspect will prove to be a good diagnosis.

If the garage can't get the sparkplug out then the servicing mechanic must have fitted them incorectly and damaged the thread. since you have no reply from the garage they must be decideing on what to do and who is liable. they will obviously try and deny liability due to the amount of work now required on the engine. so be prepared to call their bl;uff and possibly small claims court of it all goes wrong, but this may need proof from you proving they wer incompetant in their service.

Quite happy to go down this line after the event if needed.

i do hope you still have a copy of the service and work done schedule that they should have suppiled when you paid and colected the car.

All paperwork retained.

As for the curtesy car, this is the dealer being generous. they are not oblidged to supply you with a car.

Ok, let's make the assumption that they have made the error (rather than this being a "wear and tear" thing).

If that is the case, I would say that I should not be inconvenienced and as such they should ensure that I am kept on the road. Courtesy car, reimbursement for a hire car etc.

As for a fiesta if it's a current model what is the problem ? they are mroe than capable of covering a 400 mmile trip and it is only slightly smaller than a focus mainly in the boot space.

Boot space is precicely the issue. The car itself is fine for the daily commute. It isn't fine for this specific journey though.

going in demanding a bigger car for your journey will most likely fall on deaf ears and possibly a request for you to return the curtesy car as well.

Again, if they have been negligent, why should a rather important family trip be significantly impacted?

Thanks for all the comments so far. They are appreciated.

Shoshannah

I've personally never had an incorrect diagnosis from an AA man in my seven years of driving, and I've had them out a few times. I do worry about some of the younger ones coming up nowadays, my two cars are 18 and 23 years old - can the new guys go back to basics or are they used to engine bays full of big plastic covers?

cyclonebri1

Shoshannah wrote: »

I've personally never had an incorrect diagnosis from an AA man in my seven years of driving, and I've had them out a few times. I do worry about some of the younger ones coming up nowadays, my two cars are 18 and 23 years old - can the new guys go back to basics or are they used to engine bays full of big plastic covers?

Things have moved on. They all carry a diagnostic device which will do just that for maybe 75% of encountered problems. On earlier cars the guy had to work through everything in a logical manor to find the problem.

The remaining 25%??, probably lockouts, tyre changes, wrong fuel or fuel contamination etc.