I took my dead car in to the mechanics and asked them to call and let me know what was wrong and how much it would cost. But . they just went ahead and fixed it.
Had I known how much it would be I would have elected to not fix it, and replaced the car instead (it's old and wearing out). That was the point of asking for a quote - so I could make a decision.
Now I have a large bill I didn't want for a car that will have to be replaced sooner or later anyway. I feel that I was pretty clear about what I wanted.
Do I have any comeback on the mechanics! I haven't addressed it with them yet (they are sending out the invoice so I haven't seen the exact damage yet). They have been good mechanics up until now but this has really annoyed me and is going to be costly.
Advice! Anyone else been in a similar situation!
moosie_21,
May 3, 6:13am
Tell them to take everything off, politely, and give your car back in its original shape. The onus is on them for not fronting up a quote, they can pay for the man hours as a penalty.
lyonruge,
May 3, 6:24am
if what you said is all there is to this story, then moosie got it in one, but im a mechanic, and id guess theres more to this than just that.
pete_iam,
May 3, 6:34am
you say you have a large bill now. yet you have no clue how much it is!
sammy7777,
May 3, 6:37am
If you asked for a quote and was clear about it then you dont have to pay for it but then again they have the right to take off what they done to fix it, but at their expense.
k.101,
May 3, 6:38am
It's around $4-500 but I haven't seen the final invoice. I know that's not huge but it's enough.
lyonruge,
May 3, 6:40am
I took my dead car in to the mechanics and asked them to call and let me know what was wrong and how much it would cost. But . they just went ahead and fixed it.
Well, if thats what happened, it's their problem, why even start a thread. just tell, Thanks but all i wanted was to know what was wrong with it.
pickles26,
May 3, 6:54am
You don't know the price but yet you say if you had of you would not of gotten it fixed. Does not really make sense.
k.101,
May 3, 6:56am
Husband and I had decided on a $300 limit to 'patching up' the car. This is definitely over that.
commy69,
May 3, 6:58am
This happened to me once, sort of. Was pretty clear to the mechanic I just wanted a new gearbox and it to be put in ($400 for the Gearbox and was told $500 for the labour, fair I thought so I let them go ahead. I go to pick my car up and get a bill for $2400! they ended up doing heaps of $hit that did NOT need doing, from radiator to spark plugs! needed the car so had to pay up. Roy Turner automotive - Dunedin should be ashamed! (if he's still running that is , this was 4-5 years ago.
lyonruge,
May 3, 7:00am
Yea, i think theres more to this story than is being let on, we dont just go ahead and spend money with out talking to the customer, coz we know, they dont have to pay if they didnt ask for it to be done.
commy69,
May 3, 7:01am
Happened to me, not all you mechanics are all smiles and innocent.
pickles26,
May 3, 7:01am
how do you know! You don't have the bill.
b1979,
May 3, 7:02am
there is, it sounds like it was just a solenoid (going on their posts in their general thread) and going on #1's post, it couldve been taken as I want it fixed and ring me with what and how much, in any event they have the car back without paying the mechanic and are expecting and invoice I wonder what type of car it would be for a solenoid to cost that much! sounds like a new starter motor
jason18,
May 3, 7:08am
I had a problem like this.With subaru I had years ago. ABS light was on.Asked them to run diagnostics and the call me with a quote to fix.They went ahead and fixed it without a call.Turns out it was a blown bulb.I could have fixed that after the diagnostic was done.I paid for two road tests yet they told me they would just run a diagnostic machine over it (which i was also charged. I was young and paid up.Now days I would contest it.
steve-007,
May 3, 7:22am
I ask you would be happy to pay lets say $100 for the garage to 'find out' the problem but not fix it! Or should they gift you some man hours on finding out the problem so you can fix it yourself for free!
k.101,
May 3, 7:27am
No not at all, I'd expect to pay for diagnostic hours. Husband's not a car-fix-it man (other than basic stuff), hence why we are regular customers of theirs.
I have no problem paying people a fair wage for their work. I'm just down about paying for unwanted work.
msigg,
May 3, 7:31am
Well maybe they had to do some things /try things to find out what was wrong in the first place, and then when they went so far they fixed it. Pay up, not worth the hassle, negotiate, whatever but don't get into too much of a dispute for that cost its not worth it,for you. these things happen.
bigfatmat1,
May 3, 7:37am
You're not exactly forth coming in information In my field quite often once the diagnosis is made its pretty much fixed so if you would like sympathy or advice. Then why don't you tell us what the fault was.
kazbanz,
May 3, 7:44am
OP I'm gonna try to put this in non mechanics terms. Imagine saying to a doctor --Hey I've got a belly ache give me a quote to have it fixed. In you go to theatre andtheyve cut you open and see clearly whats wrong. Do they then sew you back up and give you a report as to whats wrong or do they fix the problem! Ya see with fault diagnosis work on a car pretty much thats how it is .You have to half do (oftem more than half do) the job in order to have a diagnosis. Kinda like the doctor above--they have the patient in bits So it can be really hard to price the job untill you have the dead part out in your hand.-reality is you have done the job and the difference between putting the old part in or a good replacement is just the price of the part. Now if it was say--Hey how much to do a cambelt orhow much for an serviceI get that they should have priced it first.
kazbanz,
May 3, 7:44am
OP I'm gonna try to put this in non mechanics terms. Imagine saying to a doctor --Hey I've got a belly ache give me a quote to have it fixed. In you go to theatre andtheyve cut you open and see clearly whats wrong. Do they then sew you back up and give you a report (quote)as to whats wrong or do they fix the problem! Once at that point how much would you expect to pay for the fault not to be fixed! Ya see with fault diagnosis work on a car pretty much thats how it is .You have to half do (oftem more than half do) the job in order to have a diagnosis. Kinda like the doctor above--they have the patient in bits So it can be really hard to price the job untill you have the dead part out in your hand.-reality is you have done the job and the difference between putting the old part in or a good replacement is just the price of the part. Now if it was say--Hey how much to do a cambelt orhow much for an serviceI get that they should have priced it first.
kazbanz,
May 3, 7:50am
From the thread in general it sounds like the starter motor needed replacing or possibly plug leads etc
a.woodrow,
May 3, 7:50am
Yep they probably narrowed the repair down to one thing, fitted the new part to confirm and called it good. And now OP doesn't want to pay so they will have to take part out, charge your maximum $300 and OP is stuck with a not going car. Makes sense
mugenb20b,
May 3, 8:28am
$300.$400 to $500.! What's the difference! All of the above costs are SFA and in return you get a car that you can use. If you weren't willing to fork out more than $300, then you'd be left with a dead car.
lyonruge,
May 3, 8:48am
Then youd be a dick, you are quibling over the price of the bulb, they would have had to replace it to confirm the diagnosis, and doing that without testing it would be fruitless. What do you do for a living! modern cars arent easy to diagnose a lot of the time, and sometimes you have to fix them to make sure your diagnosis is right.
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