Garage sheared bolt while fitting alternator - who is responsible?

marke_3

I took my car to a local branch of one of the largest UK auto repair ('fast fit') centres to have an alternator replaced on a 6 year old Ford.

When removing the alternator, they managed to shear off one of the bolts which mounts the alternator to the engine block. So when I returned in the afternoon, I was told it needed to be kept in overnight as they were really struggling to drill out the bolt. Eventually, the car was ready the following afternoon.

The question is whose responsibility is this? The garage state that the bolt was probably cross threaded at manufacture and therefore, there was nothing they could do about it. In my opinion, I give them the responsibility to do a job, and its down to them to complete that at the price quoted, even if something goes wrong/takes longer.

In the end I was charged 2 hours extra labour (£170) to remove the bolt (which they say took 4 hours), which I paid as I didn't know my legal standing at the time and needed the car back asap.

Anyone have any advice or experience on this?


Note, I know rapid fits are bad places - Ideally, I would have taken it to a Ford garage as I have a used car warranty, but they were all booked up for nearly a week and I needed the job done quickly. At first the auto repair centre was very helpful and said they would have no problem getting the repair sorted through the warranty. The warranty however does not cover bolts and fittings etc.

Gordon_Hose

Well they could be lying, or they could be telling the truth. Proving who was responsible is gonna be a problem.

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers!

The other option you had was to have your vehicle trailered to another garage of your choosing.

I think you've been charged fairly. It isn't their fault you supplied them with a defective vehicle.

shammyjack

marke wrote: »

I took my car to a local branch of one of the largest UK auto repair ('fast fit') centres to have an alternator replaced on a 6 year old Ford.

When removing the alternator, they managed to shear off one of the bolts which mounts the alternator to the engine block. So when I returned in the afternoon, I was told it needed to be kept in overnight as they were really struggling to drill out the bolt. Eventually, the car was ready the following afternoon.

The question is whose responsibility is this? The garage state that the bolt was probably cross threaded at manufacture and therefore, there was nothing they could do about it. In my opinion, I give them the responsibility to do a job, and its down to them to complete that at the price quoted, even if something goes wrong/takes longer.

In the end I was charged 2 hours extra labour (£170) to remove the bolt (which they say took 4 hours), which I paid as I didn't know my legal standing at the time and needed the car back asap.

Anyone have any advice or experience on this?


Note, I know rapid fits are bad places - Ideally, I would have taken it to a Ford garage as I have a used car warranty, but they were all booked up for nearly a week and I needed the job done quickly. At first the auto repair centre was very helpful and said they would have no problem getting the repair sorted through the warranty. The warranty however does not cover bolts and fittings etc.

4 hours to drill out a bolt is rubbish, just shows what a useless bunch fast fit places are. My son sheared a wheel stud that had been overtightened by a tyre fitters, it took me about 10 minutes to heat it up with a blow torch ( to break the seal and soften the metal ) then drill it and remove using a stud extractor ( commonly known as an "easy out " ).



shammy

mikey72

shammyjack wrote: »

4 hours to drill out a bolt is rubbish, just shows what a useless bunch fast fit places are. My son sheared a wheel stud that had been overtightened by a tyre fitters, it took me about 10 minutes to heat it up with a blow torch ( to break the seal and soften the metal ) then drill it and remove using a stud extractor ( commonly known as an "easy out " ).



shammy

Don't think I'd fancy letting you loose down the back of the engine with a blow torch if that's what you're suggesting.

missile

I would be disappointed, but IMHO this could easily have happened at a Ford dealer where the charges would have been much higher.

PS: My local Ford dealer is not very good. Twice had to complian and once took them to the small claims court where I won. Then they asked me to take my car elsewhere and I bought an Audi.

vikingaero

Sometimes bolts will be corroded/cross threaded/seized. Bolts in the engine bay subject to water, salt, heat, cold will seize. An alternator bolt is no different to a bolt on a manifold - most of them will need to be drilled out.

colino

A good independent garage could have had the same problem, but they would have drilled it out in an hour or so and probably not mentioned it to you.
Always a grey area when you are fixing cars, sometimes things go wrong and while the owner can say it wasn't like that before, they did want a fault fixed in the first place and no-one (who is any good and hence busy) wants to create unnecessary work.
This one appears to be something they should have sucked up and fixed (quicker) but sometimes fixing one part does disturb something else that is on its last legs/faulty and there has to be some come and go with the owner.

anewman

Sadly this is one of the things you need to learn to deal with, particularly on older cars where the bolt may never have been shifted in it's entire life.

Alternators can be in tricky places to get bolts out so it's not quite a ten minute get out job like a wheel bolt, I think 4 hours is somewhat excessive for a supposedly trained/experienced mechanic though. It could be that tightening the bolt slightly before removing it and/or spraying plus gas on it would have helped prevent it but there's no way of knowing for certain - but an attempt at prevention is better than a later cure.

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers!

shammyjack wrote: »

4 hours to drill out a bolt is rubbish, just shows what a useless bunch fast fit places are. My son sheared a wheel stud that had been overtightened by a tyre fitters, it took me about 10 minutes to heat it up with a blow torch ( to break the seal and soften the metal ) then drill it and remove using a stud extractor ( commonly known as an "easy out " ).



shammy

Wheel studs generally aren't blocked by radiators and other items one would normally find in an engine bay, and if the bolt was cross-threaded on installation then a new thread would have to be inserted.

shammyjack

mikey72 wrote: »

Don't think I'd fancy letting you loose down the back of the engine with a blow torch if that's what you're suggesting.

As a skilled Engineer who is pushing 60 and worked on complicated machinery all over the world I can state that a carefully applied small flame from a " Gas Spanner " is one of the most useful tools you can have.

Pew Pew Pew Lasers! In reply to your last post.

I have worked in much tighter spaces than an engine bay and have probably fitted thousands of Helicoils etc .

But of course I am not in the same class as a " Slow Slow Fitter " !