MIKER

Last night, I called my transmission builder to ask that he check my torque converter for balance prior to cutting it open... Well, it was too late, he had already cut it open but he
said it was definitely welded "crooked" which resulted in a bad wobble.
That likely explains the heavy vibration problem that I was having from just off idle to ~2000 rpm. $180 for 1700 miles of use with that piece of CRAP!!!
To top it all off, I had given him a complete list of all modifications
performed by transmission shop "X".
During disassembly he discovered that the "Trans-go 3-4 WOT shift modification" ($65 for the part) was NOT in the transmission. I have been ripped off AGAIN!!! :mad
I would like to think that I would NEVER do stuff like that to customers if I owned a business.

Buy cheap buy twice. . . Will I ever learn!?! :(

daniel77350

perhaps a trip to the better buisness beuro(sp?)..

Take your old bill, that has all the work labled, then take a statement from your new mechanic...Granted you got scamed, and I dunno what you can do to compensate for you, but if you tell the BBB, then other people will be warned.

Daniel

Smokehouse69

Mike,
Where did you get your tranny? I hope it is somebody you can challenge directly with their fraud! It seems like now days the only people you can trust are people like your friend.

MIKER

Good suggestion Daniel.
I do plan on talking to the guy at that shop first. I do not expect him to own up to it. I'll just hear some lame excuse or denial dribble out of his head. The bottom line is that way, HE KNOWS that I KNOW!

MikeC

Give the guy a chance to redeem himself, but then have a chat with the BBB anyways once you get all you can out of him.

Thats what I'd do at least, but I have been told that I am an butthole(bad word filter, guess what I actually said) sometimes.


[Modified by MikeC, 9:21 PM 2/2/2002]

MIKER

I had the work done at HOWARD'S AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION in Meridian, TX. It is an independent shop.
I used to think that I was a fairly good judge of character. Seemed like good people!?
I will give him the opportunity to explain. I cannot imagine a legitimate excuse but... I'll see.

MIKER

I will go to their shop to discuss this with them. I won't even bother with a phone call. Gotta see if he even flinches when I tell him. Too easy to B.S. someone over the phone.
I'll be sure to let him know that he must have needed the money worse than me to have stooped that low to get it. $65 seems like a small price to sell off the integrity of your family business.

gdh

I agree give him a chance but before you do call your local BBB and make sure you get the questions from them to ask and record his replies. Silly question now, what does "WOT" stand for.

Cruzmeisters

WOT = Wide Open Throttle :yesnod: :yesnod: :yesnod:
Cruz

daniel77350

I wouldn't give him a chance. I'd call my BBB, then aproach him with my facts, and hear him out. No matter what his excuse, the BBB still should hear about it. Even if he says "it was a new guy"...everyone else should know about this "new guy"...Im not trying to be mean or anything. And I do trust people, I trust a lot of people, probably to many, but the minute someone betrays my trust I become a skeptic. And in this case, it seems like he has betrayed your trust....proceed with caution, and plan to hear a ton of BS before any truth is spoken.

Daniel

KENS78SILVERANNIV

I see this all the time on this forum... advice like: "Take it to the Better Business Bureau".
Let's get this straight once and for all. The BBB is nothing more than a club of businesses that agree to join it. It has absolutely no authoritative or legal powers. It cannot enforce law. It cannot "go after" businesses. It's a club designed to promote good business. That's it.
The way to handle a situation like this is to go... in person... back to the shop. Bring your broken parts. Bring your receipt. Speak to the person in charge and tell them in no uncertain terms that you are dissatisfied and expect them to give you what you paid for. 99% of the time a good shop will make it right. They have to satisfy customers or they will be out of business in short order. Go in there like a man and you'll be treated like one.

lbell101

Here Here Ken!

The BBB is a scam in itself. An organization that does nothing but collect membership fees and keep a list of complaints. Complaining to them is absolutely NO THREAT to anybody. Thanks for posting that.

MassVette

You ALREADY gave him a chance-- when you gave him your business.
Time up.
P.S.
I've learned one thing in all my years of business------
The hired help only "gets away" with what the management ALLOWS.
Dishonest employees= Dishonest management!
:yesnod: :smash: :smash: :yesnod:

Rocket Ron

You could also go to the consumer fraud division of your local or state government. I would check there before going back just so you know what you should do or say to the shop.
My life motto: cover your a##.

Gary79

BBB is a joke,don't waste your time. i'd go tell the guy what you know and see if he'll be straight up with you. if you can, go in when other customers are there,and if the shop won't square up with you, you can turn to the other customers are warn them,they're about to be screwed. now the owner won't like this,but i did this once in a Midas shop in Peoria,Il. they charged me double what they quoted me for a muffler,and there wasn't any thing added on from the original quote,such as a new pipe front to back. i was out of town working and the midas guy thought he would take advantage of my wife.when back in town, i went in and politely talked to the manager thru the sliding glass and he refused to do anything and closed the sliding window. so i tapped on the glass and the guy just stared at me. so i got vocal and told all the customers waiting and the 2 guys in line behind me that they were going to get screwed. at this point the guy opens the glass and starts hollering at me, "you can't to that!" i asked him if he had reconsidered, he said no. so i turned and started explaining to 8 customers how midas screwed me and i also directed some abusive language towards the manager, and then left. the next weekend,i rec'd a check in the mail for the difference. needless to say i never went back, and have since moved

dman535

You can always take him to small claims court.

JB

Excellent, Gary! In my experience, that is the ONLY sort of thing that will motivate dishonest businesses--threaten their income. Gary's approach is great if you have the stones. Writing a whole bunch of letters--to the regional office, the corporate office, the guy's wife (it's amazing how much info like that you can find on a company's web page)--detailing the rip off and how many people you've told about it is good, too. I've done the letter writing campaign myself many times, and usually get a reply, and often free stuff (gift certificates, etc.). And SOMETIMES I even get the guy who ripped me off calling to whine and crawl on his belly because the head office ripped him a new poopchute. SWEEET.

JB

'78SA

427V8

probably the most effictive AND the most costly is small claims court. But :U that doesn't sound fun!

BTW I used to think I was a decent judge of charater untill I worked for a TV shop. The guy that ran it was the most evil, vicious, con artist I have ever seen. he enjoyed ripping people off. He would do it so well people liked him, before and after!
It was amazing, I learned more in that shop than how to fix TV's...

Jack71

You've got to go in there first. Tell him that you feel that the work was not complete and you've been taken advantage of & see what he says.

Letter campaigns and legal actions are time consuming and expensive. Plus, he deserves to know you have a problem face to face.

Paul L

Just curious. Why would a torque converter be cut open?? Are they not just replaced? They are a dime-a-dozen in the salvage yards.


[Modified by paul79, 8:25 PM 2/3/2002]