Honest mistake, or are they ( Chevy dealer ) raping this girl.

[fastfredracing]

My best friends gf from back in high school, ( hot ) contacts me via facebook, and asks if I will look at her 2006 Aveo. She says that everytime she walks in the dealers door, she walks out with a $2000.00 bill.
They failed her ( state inspection) for a bad inner tie rod end, and it is not serviceable through GM so they quoted her for an entire rack and pinion at somewhere around $1100.00.
I have been through this before, and Moog makes an inner tie rod end, costs about $40.00 , goes on like butter, and with an alignment, she is out the door for $250.00. I check it out this morning, and it is not even the inner tie rod end, it is a bad lower control arm bushing. $75.00 arm, and about the same in labor. Job done, no play in front end anymore. I did have to look twice as I at first thought that it indeed , was the inner tie rod end, but it did not feel like it when I wigggled. A closer look ( about 15 seconds of my time) and I discovered the bad bushing.
So did the tech make an honest mistake, or are they trying to make some easy cash?

[kaisen]

As you know, techs make honest mistakes all the time. Esp techs that aren't that experienced. The real "crook" in this scenario is the service advisor who tried to sell her an entire rack instead of thinking outside the box and searching for an aftermarket (Moog) fix. Again, he may not have been experienced. But he's also paid commission.... the higher the bill, the more he makes.

[speeder]

That's absolute highway robbery. Even if the tech is that big of an incompetent or a thief, there should be a shop foreman who at least looks at something before OKing an $1100 repair like that.

Terrible story but thank god she knows you.

[Groesbeck Hurricane]

Mistakes are easy to make. She should do a quick review on what the dealership has done and what it has charged her. If they are consistently making $2,000.00 mistakes then I think I can give you an answer.

[svandamme]

hot?
pics!

[dennis in se pa]

I have experienced similar on body repairs. Was charged for a new front lower valance among other things. A year later a small dent revealed they had straightened and bondo'ed the old valance. This was outright deception. Such people deserve to burn in hell forever.

[GH85Carrera]

Everyone has some horror stories about stealerships. My own MIL has a Mercedes. She took it in for her last warranty service. They called and said her front brake rotors were shot and she need new rotors and pads and the calipers need to be replaced. I called BS on the entire thing and told then NO! They did the rest of the service and actually had a sticker on the paperwork that the brake repair was not done against their advice. I got it home and took the wheels off and check it out and it was in great shape with well over 1/2 the pad life left. She has been driving it for three years more and has yet to have her brakes worked on.

I should have called the dealers association and the TV stations about it. I just let it drop.

I heard they fired that service manager shortly after.

[nota]

fraud starts with the manufacturer claiming the tie rod is not replaceable
that is a common wear part that surly will be replace in a normal vehicle life time

it would be fun to see if allowing the repair to process at that shop
resulted in the rack being replaced
or just the bushing but billing for the rack !!!!!!!!
or just use the moog part tie rod and bill for the rack
or do the correct cheap fix only with the correct bill

there is a reason they are called stealorships

[widgeon13]

Every time i go to a dealer i am getting screwed. No doubt iny mind. They dont make it off the sale, they want their blood on the service.

[speeder]

Originally Posted by GH85Carrera

Everyone has some horror stories about stealerships. My own MIL has a Mercedes. She took it in for her last warranty service. They called and said her front brake rotors were shot and she need new rotors and pads and the calipers need to be replaced. I called BS on the entire thing and told then NO! They did the rest of the service and actually had a sticker on the paperwork that the brake repair was not done against their advice. I got it home and took the wheels off and check it out and it was in great shape with well over 1/2 the pad life left. She has been driving it for three years more and has yet to have her brakes worked on.

I should have called the dealers association and the TV stations about it. I just let it drop.

I heard they fired that service manager shortly after.

This happened with an exGF years ago who had a newer MB under warranty. I was at the dealer with her when they came out and told her that she needed pads and rotors. I asked the service salesman if I could see. You should have seen the look on his face, he wasn't expecting that. He probably thought that she was there alone.

He had no choice but to show me the brakes. The rotors were perfect and the pads were over 50%. This was on an S-class that went through brake pads like crazy, (I now knew why). I asked him for the measurements on the rotors. He was honestly about to go into full cardiac arrest-- this was the most prominent Mercedes dealer in town and this was not exactly something they were used to. I can't remember if he let me measure them or just admitted that they were in spec at that point but either way he just went into this BS spiel about how they "always replace the rotors in a brake job" because of the safety issue, etc., blah/blah/blah...

I made them put the wheels back on and told them to go fk their mothers. I hate thieves. The bottom line is that one dealership has fleeced god knows how many people out of god knows how much $$ due to their commission-based service sales people and the incentive to fk people.

I'd love to name the dealer but don't need to trouble if I had to defend this story, though it's 100% true. The bottom line is that they are mostly all the same, some just a lot worse than others. You need to really watch your back with dealer service depts. as well as any shop that you do not know and trust completely.

[recycled sixtie]

Good on all of the above to challenge these stealerships. Hold their feet to the fire. No wonder there are so many indy shops around. I have found a good indy shop for our Nissan xtrail and Camry. As for the Boxster I might drive a few hundred miles for any major servicing. These dealerships and some indy shops treat customers as if they are brainless. Obviously they have got away with it many times because many people are gullible. And they will continue to do so. Caveat emptor.

[rattlsnak]

Originally Posted by kaisen

The real "crook" in this scenario is the service advisor who tried to sell her an entire rack instead of thinking outside the box and searching for an aftermarket (Moog) fix. .

i dont agree with that. a dealership is not going to use aftermarket parts. and a service advisor has no technical skills anyway.

[kaisen]

Originally Posted by rattlsnak

i dont agree with that. a dealership is not going to use aftermarket parts. and a service advisor has no technical skills anyway.

Really? Neither are absolutes.

I've met many good service advisors that were once very good technicians -- they either got tired of wrenching or it was too hard on their body, or both. Technical aptitude will really help both sales and work-flow management .... both are essential for a successful advisor's paycheck.

And I've run many, many franchised dealerships that would suggest aftermarket parts for out-of-warranty vehicles. Think about it: you either let them leave with a $2000 estimate and watch them go to an independent, or give them other alternatives and let them decide. Not everyone wants to pay the premium. Smart dealers have known this for a long time.

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by rattlsnak

i dont agree with that. a dealership is not going to use aftermarket parts. and a service advisor has no technical skills anyway.

Yep. You got to wonder why she was at a dealer to begin with?

I just went through this with an older lady taking a car to the Lexus dealer far away when there is a good full service shop within walking distance to her home. And they provide a shuttle!

[VincentVega]

I get a bunch of work from similar dealings, unfortunately. Mistakes are 1 thing but far too many times I've seen work orders for parts that dont exist or are nearly new.

I've come to believe the many start off fudging a bit and then turn into complete crooks.

[looneybin]

i took my Durango to the dealer to fix a seatbelt latch recall & they told me i needed a new serpentine belt and battery ground cable - get this - they quoted me $500 bucks for that.

I ran like hell and have NEVER gone back
unless it's a warranty fix NEVER NEVER NEVER take your car to the stealership
Even then, most indie shops are able to do warranty repairs

[kaisen]

Originally Posted by looneybin

Even then, most indie shops are able to do warranty repairs

Only in California, where it's law

Other states? Never

[rnln]

Do dealer use after market parts? No
Do majority of advisors have much tech skill? No
Do majority of them lie and steal? Yes, big time.
stories like Speeder told above about brake pads and rotors is normal to many dealers. I heard this many times. A friend of mine even experienced they telling him that dealer won't replace pads without replacing rotors.

Originally Posted by rattlsnak

i dont agree with that. a dealership is not going to use aftermarket parts. and a service advisor has no technical skills anyway.

[kaisen]

Originally Posted by rnln

A friend of mine even experienced they telling him that dealer won't replace pads without replacing rotors.

Several shops, independent and franchised dealers alike, will not do a brake job without either replacing rotors or machining them. Makes sense, doesn't it? Would you slap new pads on unknown rotors? Brand new brake job STILL makes noise and pulsates. Then it's back for re-work, for free. Better off doing it right the first time.

Before you say, "yeah, but you don't need NEW rotors, just machine the old ones" let me point out that my cost on new Bendix rotors for most 'normal' cars are under $20 each. For the expense of a brake lathe, and the time it takes to turn two rotors (while the car is taking up a bay) it is cheaper to put on new ones.

[sammyg2]

Unbenownst to me, my wife and daughter took my daughter's car to the nissan stealer last week when she was home for spring break, just to get the oil changed.

The dealer inspected the vehicle and provided a write-up of recommended service. nearly a grand worth.
It included new wiper blades (I replaced them in December) a radiator flush and new coolant (they replaced the radiator last September because a rock went through it), a complete transmission flush and new fluid and filter (they replaced the transmission under warranty last July), a new battery (this one is less than a year old), new front brake pads and rotors (I replaced the pads last summer, rotors are fine) and several other things that absolutely do not need to be done and they would know that if they actually inspected the vehicle or had checked their service records.

Luckily the wife was smart enough to show me the list before authorizing the work.

I haven't quite decided how to handle this yet but you know I can't let it go.
I already canceled the credit-card charges for the oil change and inspection, do ya think should talk to the service manager weasel first, or channel 4 news first, or go right to my state representative?