johno504

the a/c fails, purchase a new OEM compressor from RA , hand it to the mechanic and TELL him to change the condenser and use your judgement about the evaporator. go to pick up car and.....NO new condenser or evaporator. I ask why ? was told that the fan shroud was too much of a pain in the azz to deal with.... great, no warranty on the $500 compressor since the condenser was NOT changed at the same time. FAST FORWARD to today... hand the mechanic a steel 84 booster and TELL him to install new master cylinder and.... the brakes work but NO new master cylinder. I ask why? was told there nothing wrong with the M/C ( same M/C that has been under 4 ! failed boosters) W T F !!! When I tell a mechanic to DO THIS...I want the repair it to be done MY WAY. I never ask for a quote , just fix the car the way I tell the shop to do. Gentlemen , am I wrong about this ????

Whaleman

You should get what you ask for and are willing to pay for. Either the mechanic is a real jerk and does not care about your business or you are not making it VERY clear what you want done. The more common problem is you take the compressor in to be changed and they change the condenser without asking. I know a lot of people here say just get a different mechanic. Not so easy in some areas. Good Luck, Dan

Ported92

@johno504 I've ran into this problem too many times... Unfortunately shops just aren't what they use to be, at least around where I live. Most of the stuff I do myself now due to being forced to learn because of how shops either treated my vehicles or the quality of their work was a D-. If I were you I would try to do the repairs myself from now. Another option you may have is to ask around at the next car meet if anyone knows of good local shop that will treat you right.

AgentEran

This is why I do my own stuff.. and when I cant, I stay and *help* but really I am supervising.. NEVER leave my car somewhere.

PatternDayTrader

I used to deal with things like this differently, but about 10 years ago I decided I was tired of getting effed over. Nowadays if you dont do what I tell you to do, then I dont pay the bill. Simple enough.

1993C4LT1

Fan shroud a PITA? Yeah man get your parts back if you haven't, and find a mechanic who will listen.

383vett

As the old saying goes, if you want it done right, do it yourself.

confab

None of your requests are unreasonable.. You just need a better mechanic.

confab

Unreasonable people and requests are a different matter entirely.. They should be told to go pound sand.

I just did it this morning, actually.

"How much to rebuild a 6L90 in a Silverado?"

"Well.... "

"The other shop wants XXX and I priced the kit for 700 bucks! So don't tell me...."

"I haven't said a MF word yet and if you can do it for 700, why are we even talking?"

*angry customer* "BYE!!"

But the mehacnic clearly failed you. He is not in this to properly repair cars.. He's in it for the high margin, quick turn around jobs.. That's fine, but he should have turned the job down if he wasn't going to complete it properly, or evaulated it and called you back saying it was too much work for him

It is tantamount to fraud to do HALF THE JOB, do it improperly, and then demand full pay..

Screw that guy, I'd never take another thing to him.

Hot Rod Roy

In California, the BAR (Bureau of Automotive Repair) wants to know about mechanics that don't do a good job. Repair shops will do ANYTHING to keep the BAR out of their business!!!

jv9999

Most mechanics won't use a customer's part. I'm surprised the guy did the job at all.

BTW, not meant as a judgement of the customer, just the fact that most shops are out to maximize profit. They don't care about the guy with the "old vette" unless they can make a quick buck off you. None of my 5 cars have ever seen the inside of anything other than an alignment bay. You'll go broke paying shop labor rates on C4s.

johno504

the only solution I can come up with is to get a signed work order that call's out every part I want changed. no more of " your judgement " as the first shop seems only want to cherry pick the easy jobs. the second vette specialty shop did a $ 900 MSD ignition box replacement with out bothering to ask me if I even wanted another box(I did not) good help IS hard to find no matter how much money is spent.

PatternDayTrader

Any skilled trade requiring the use of ones hands, has become totally corrupted. I could go on for hours about this …

confab

I wouldn't return to a shop that spent a grand of my money without so much as a phone call. I wouldn't waste time with someone I felt I had to lock into a written contract, either.. Too adversarial.

You just need better mechanics.

PatternDayTrader

When I'm paying someone else, I would have everything etched in stone if it wasn't so damn inconvenient, because if everything falls apart, all that's left is the stone.

johno504

MR. Confab & Trader, you are both 100 % correct . many years ago I had the ability to change the clutch in my 66 BB, using my chest as a transmission jack. today I can no longer even hold a wrench. I am at the mercy of these AHOLES now . The only thing left to me is pay the bill and hope for the best. I stopped counting at $12K..... I don't even want to know..............

confab

I feel for you.. Where do you live? Maybe someone on the forum can recommend a shop in your area?

confab

PS: I would NEVER recommend not paying a mechanic's bill. That is a mistake. If you have standing, you are better off to pay the bill and then sue.

Here, as in most places, if someone doesn't pay my bill? I can take their car. I don't do that because it seems like a D*** move and I'm just not like that. At my business, it has only happened once in 15 years, and that was only because Mrs. Confab's ex was being a jerk. So, I took his truck.

But other shops do this very often and by the time you add up the bill itself, storage fees and anything associated with the repair and the unpaid bill? It's over.. You'll never get your car back before it is auctioned or you may not even want it back when you see the total. In theory they could even come after you for the difference between the bill and what it brought at auction.

I would strongly advise against this. Always pay, then take them to court if you must. I even get junk mail from companies which offer to assist in taking cars away from customers for a fee. It is easy to do.

PatternDayTrader

I would.
Equity abhors a forfeiture.
Take someone's car under the wrong conditions and see what happens.
The best you could hope for is the owner wont know what to do about it.
You cant perform job "b" when the customer wants job "a", then bill them for it, and confiscate the car if they don't pay.

markKlein

And yet you keep going back to him, so whose fault is it?