This time,the customer IS right

[protege]

I know they thought that if they ignored me I'd just go away,they're about to learn that was a very bad idea.This is also a very small town,they have no idea who I know (for the record,it's a whole shitload of people,including the former mayor,the fire chief-my neighbor-every single Realtor,all my former clients& a buncha friends) so I'll make sure the word gets out.When I win this case I intend to take out ads in the local papers detailing what happened.

When I went through similar crap with the MG, I found myself in a similar situation. The shop that had "restored" the car, was well-known in local circles. With that said, you'd think that they'd not want to piss off their customers. But, after chatting with several MGB owners, they all told me that "everyone's had a car at (garage) once." With emphasis on the "once." After seeing how they operate, it's no wonder that people, myself included, no longer rely on them. In fact, from what I understand...said shop has had to cut back on hours...and is no longer a major player in the classic-car maintenance field.

When I had issues with them, my first reaction was to go over there with a bat, and go "GTA" on their asses. They weren't answering phone calls, the owner would 'disappear,' etc. I'd had enough. Had they come out and said "Hey, we fucked up, but we'll take care of it" I probably wouldn't have wanted to throttle them. But, considering that I put up with delay and excuse after delay and excuse, I was tired. I wanted my car back, dammit! Sorry, but putting a bumper on should *not* take a week. Seems (and I've heard this from other owners), that if you're dropping by to see how things are going...they'll drag things out. I don't exactly understand that--you'd think they'd want to get the cars finished, and to get paid quickly!

But, I pity the guy who owns the '58 Chrysler 300B--that's been in there since I started going over to that shop...roughly 20 years ago!

[sstabeler]

wow. Beung thta stupid, how on earth did they fill in the nessecary forms to legally operate as a business? lets see, fitting a part on BACKWARDS ( which I very much doubt can be done accidentally, by the way.), not to mention damage the vehicle (welding up the track bar) and also over-pressuring the tyre (I know its within the maximum safe limit to avoid a blow-out, but it is too high-pressure for conditions, so it's over-inflated) and to top it off, doing this ina small town so their business's reputation will go straight down the sewer. ( I know the usual phrase is go down the toilet. it's likely to down further than people usually mean whne they say that though.)

[Frantic Freddie]

Update: Talked to a lawyer,he advised me to 1st try to work it out,seemed like a reasonable approach to me,so I did.

Waste of time,their whole attitude at 1st was :"Well,we made a mistake,people make mistakes",my answer was "I understand that,it's how you deal with the mistakes","Well,people make mistakes" another 4-5 times.Then he says he disputes the fact that the ball joints were adjustable,I said it didn't matter,they were installed backwards,"I'm gonna need proof they were adjustable",fine,I'll have that in a day or 2.I also made a point of mentioning my 13 year patronage of their establishment & the literally $1000s I'd spent there,he acted insulted.
I called JC Whitney & had them email me my invoice & I droped it off to them saying to the desk guy "I'll be out of town 'til Tuesday,have G call me by that afternoon"

No call so I trotted myself down to the courthouse on Wednesday & filed a $5000 small claims case against them.

I know they thought that if they ignored me I'd just go away,they're about to learn that was a very bad idea.This is also a very small town,they have no idea who I know (for the record,it's a whole shitload of people,including the former mayor,the fire chief-my neighbor-every single Realtor,all my former clients& a buncha friends) so I'll make sure the word gets out.When I win this case I intend to take out ads in the local papers detailing what happened.

I'm real easy to get along with,but don't piss me off!!!

[Jester]

First of all, fuck an' A!

Secondly....

Turns out they did install the parts I bought,but the incompetent fuckin' morons installed 'em backwards.

I would imagine that even an incompetent mechanic would know to put in a part the way it is supposed to be in. Might not get the fit or connections right, but at least would get the direction right. How the flying ferret fuck does one install a part backwards when one is (allegedly) a professional mechanic? The mind, it doth boggle.

So tomorrow I'm goin' over there,with the documentation that 4 Wheel Parts is providing for me & I'm gonna tell 'em they WILL refund me the money I paid them for installation ($700+) & pay for the repair ($650) or I WILL see their sorry asses in court.

Thirdly....

Suggestion: if their (apparently literally) ass-backwards installation caused any damage, I would suggest billing them for said damage to the vehicle as well, such as the cost to fix said damage, or the potential future cost to fix said damage.

Just a thought.

[Frantic Freddie]

Update: Turns out they did install the parts I bought,but the incompetent fuckin' morons installed 'em backwards.That's why the caster & toe-in were so far off & the parts wore out so quickly.

So tomorrow I'm goin' over there,with the documentation that 4 Wheel Parts is providing for me & I'm gonna tell 'em they WILL refund me the money I paid them for installation ($700+) & pay for the repair ($650) or I WILL see their sorry asses in court.

In my case it ain't an idle threat,we make enough money to have legal insurance,I've already talked to the lawyer & it won't cost us a dime.

[Geek King]

No. Don't tell them that. Have Pro Comp and BF Goodrich email you their opinions on the matter, print those out, and bring the printouts into the shop.

Although this may be a moot point due to your intention to sue them. Billing you for parts they never installed? Clear case of fraud and perhaps even criminal negligence. (I'm not a lawyer, nor do I play one on tv.)

Don't forget theft, as I'm sure they didn't give you the uninstalled parts back. Good luck, you've got one hell of a case.

[Jester]

I'm goin' back into the shop in a few days & intend to tell them that.

No. Don't tell them that. Have Pro Comp and BF Goodrich email you their opinions on the matter, print those out, and bring the printouts into the shop.

Although this may be a moot point due to your intention to sue them. Billing you for parts they never installed? Clear case of fraud and perhaps even criminal negligence. (I'm not a lawyer, nor do I play one on tv.)

[Victory Sabre]

Oh, my.

I don't blame you for being pissed. Sue the SOB's for all they're worth.

[Sapphire Silk]

Oh, man. I don't blame you.

What they DID do sounds awfully dangerous, IMHO.

[Frantic Freddie]

Update:

I am fucking pissed off!!!!!

Because those guys claimed they couldn't properly align the front end with the new adjustable ball joints (why the fuck not?) I took my Cherokee to 4 Wheel Parts,a nat'l chain for off-roaders.

Well well,come to find out all those nice new ball joints & tie rod ends that I bought & paid good money for were never fucking installed & they welded up my adjustable track bar.I think I spent about $500 on parts & over $700 on labor.

So I'm collectin' the records & they're goin' to our pre-paid legal service in preparation for me suing the crap outta these fuckers.I'm also gonna see if I can get the Attorney General involved since it can't be an isolated incident.

[draggar]

and I've been learning how to fix the car myself

That is a very important trade now - especially with minor repairs. A month ago my neighbor taught me how to replace the brakes in my car. $40-$50 (middle of the road pads) is much better than $100-$200 at a shop (he said most of the time they don't do the rear brakes because that don't need it - but still bill you the full amount). He said he'd check them when I do my brakes so then I can take it in to have all 4 done (mine are odd - they are a lot of work so it's worth it to have a shop do it).

[protege]

They both agreed with me

Good call. There's nothing like getting a second opinion...especially when it's from a manufacturer of a product They just love dealing with idiots, especially when said idiots are potentially damaging their reputation by not following the proper protocol when it comes to their products. Who knows, if they have a "licensed by manufacturer" type of thing with the shop...they'll pull it. A company's reputation is everything, and they won't tolerate those who tarnish it.

I'm goin' back into the shop in a few days & intend to tell them that.If they don't agree then I'll tell them I'll look to take my business elsewhere....after 10 years & countless $

Another good call. I'm sure I've posted about what the "garage" did to my classic car, and how I resolved it. In a nutshell, some of the work done either wasn't done correctly, wasn't done at all, or they double-billed on a few things. But, what *really* pissed me off, is they managed to leave a huge dent in the hood..by trying to force it shut

They kept saying "oh, we didn't do that." I had the car looked at by a local body shop, and one of the "dent-removal" guys. Both told me the same thing--someone had forced the panel, and creased it. The proper way to shut an MGB hood? Push the release knob all the way in, and then firmly push down on the panel's corners. If you push down in the middle, you'll dent it!

But, after the car's annual state inspection, I had the shop by the balls. At the time, the horn didn't work, the turn signals were wonky, and the windshield-washer jets were disconnected. All of those things would have caused the car to fail. Yet, it passed

At that point, I knew I had them. Rather than get pissed, and go over there with a bat (trust me, I soooo wanted to!) I took a more diplomatic approach. That is, I drafted a rather blunt letter listing all the car's faults, threw in the inspection fraud, and then Cc:ed it to one of my dad's friends...who happens to be a lawyer. From what I heard...when the shop owner was presented with the letter...the color literally ran out of his face

They fixed the hood, the wiring, and a few other really annoying jobs (like installing the seats correctly) that I didn't feel like doing. Car still has some things I need to work on, but in the end...I cut my losses. I found another mechanic who really knows what he's doing...and I've been learning how to fix the car myself

[lordlundar]

Someone really needs to clue those idiots in that the tire pressure labelled on the tires is a MAXIMUM SAFE level, not a recommended level. Anything over means you're risking a blowout, especially after the vehicle has been in motion for a while.

Now where in the heck did I put that clue - by - four?

[Frantic Freddie]

That's just dumb. The 245's aren't all that much narrower than the 265's so the air pressure should be around the same. If you are getting consistent wear across the width of the tire then you have the air pressure about right. I run plus-size on my car in the summer (225 vs stock 205), only had to drop the pressure a couple of pounds.

Keep in mind these are LTs (light truck) tires,not Ps (passenger).They're 10-ply,P tires are 2-4 ply.Max psi on most LTs is about 70,at that pressure they're rated at 3,000+ lbs load capacity per tire.

[It's me]

That's just dumb. The 245's aren't all that much narrower than the 265's so the air pressure should be around the same. If you are getting consistent wear across the width of the tire then you have the air pressure about right. I run plus-size on my car in the summer (225 vs stock 205), only had to drop the pressure a couple of pounds.