Have I been ripped off? New to forum...

LM22 · 22-09-2009, 10:06 PM

Hi there, I am after a bit of mechanical advice from those in the know!

I have a 95 Falcon station wagon which was shuddering and felt like it was really struggling badly when I put my foot down to accelerate...So we called a mobile mechanic service (I am sure you know the one!) to come out and fix the problem... We only had it serviced 7 weeks ago by the same guy who returned this time but with another guy as well...We explained the symptoms when they got here...

Firstly they checked the water, and found it to be really low, and they seemed very concerned by this...Asked if the car had been overheating to which we replied definately not (I assume they were thinking it was the head gasket?)...They then, without checking with us first performed a compression test...Shouldn't they have just performed a pressure test on the radiator? They found nothing with the compression test, and this cost $105 alone...They hadn't test driven it yet...

So then they took it for a drive, and thought it was probably the coil...They performed another test to confirm this and it was the coil...The mechanic asked my husband very rudely "Who changed the leads without changing the coil?", my husband told him that my father is an ex-mechanic and the car was his up until 2 years ago when he gave it to us, no one has touched the leads in that time...The mechanic then said "Well, the leads look brand new, tell him that next time, DONT change the leads without changing the coil" in a real smartarse voice...Is this correct? Must the leads be changed with the coil? My dad said he has not heard of this other than a way to make more cash from customers and to cover their ***** if something goes wrong...So the coil and leads cost us $150 and $72...

My next question is, that we had the car serviced 7 weeks ago...Just a minor service was done...Would the coil have been checked in that service, and could it have gone in that amount of time? Also, is it possible for the car to lose 2 litres of water in 7 weeks without a major leak being found? Did the guy possibly not check it properly last time? We were also charged another call out fee as the problem was not related to any work they did at the service 7 weeks ago...

I just feel a bit uneasy about the whole thing, wondering if we were ripped off with having to pay for a compression test and new leads?

Sorry this is so long, if anyone can answer my questions it would be much appreciated...

TIA

ratter · 22-09-2009, 10:19 PM

Coils do not normally need to be replaced when leads do, but mechanics in the know may pull the coil off to inspect it for cracking/arching etc as they are known problem.

Leads, coils etc are not checked in a minor service, infact some mechanics do not even check them on a tune.

Stattic · 22-09-2009, 10:22 PM

check the seals around the water bottle.. when you go for a long drive and the car heats up, pop the bonnet and you will hear a hissing if there is a leak, i have one there myself and have to fill up water and coolant every couple of weeks (i should just get a new hose clamp or whatever it is lol) and check for cracks on the bottle
does the car blow any white smoke (not just on cold mornings)
and i have also never heard of changing the coil every time you change the leads... i guess some might do it for extra insurance but if its not in bad nick then its simply still working
also if they were planning to do tests which are going to cost you, im sure most would want to be informed first
you may have eventually checked these things tho, who knows

GTpilot · 22-09-2009, 10:35 PM

If it has lost 2 litres of water in two years there is a problem, let alone two weeks. How the radiator cap looking. It's possible the spring is shagged and when the system pressures up it is allowing the water out of the over flow.

Also , Never heard of it being "madatory" to change leads with the coil, I'd question if the leads were new why change them. I'd also question the leads being new, Who was the last one to work on it? Din't you say Mr Mobile mechanic?? Sounds very fishy to me. Perhaps those "new" leads have now gone on to the next car he services.........

sgt_doofey · 22-09-2009, 10:46 PM

My coil packed it in as I was reversing a trailer full of road base through the gate. Just gave up the ghost without any warning. I'd say that they can just go. One minute I was reversing the car and the next I was scratching my head wondering why it wouldn't start and how I would manage to shift a trailer that weighed about 1 tonne through the gate so I could shut it!
Being an E series Falcon, I would have thought that the mechanic would have an inkling that it was a head gasket failure, but you'd see symptoms like milky residue on the oil filler cap and loss of coolant. If they show up, then a compression test would confirm it.
As for loss of coolant/water, check all the hoses and connections and see if there is any residue around them. That might give you a clue as to where to water is disappearing to. Another possibility which I hope isn't the case is that the radiator might have a crack in it and the water is mixing with the auto transmission fluid. Might want to check that out as well.

LM22 · 23-09-2009, 08:31 AM

Thanks for the replies everyone...

In the 2 years we've had the car, the temperature gauge has never really moved above warm, we check it monthly and it rarely needs filling up, so we found it odd that since having it serviced with them 7 weeks ago, 2 litres has been lost...Weird

Stattic, the car has never blown white smoke that I have noticed...

Surely a major symptom of a head gasket failure would be overheating of the car, which has never happened and we told them this BEFORE they did the pressure test...Really feel like we should've been told the cost of the compression test before they performed it, and it was seriously like they got here, we told them the car was struggling, they asked if had been overheating, we went inside and they popped the bonnet, checked the water and then did the compression test straight away!

Yes, jgb this was exactly what my dad thought too about changing 'new' leads...The mechanic himself said they looked brand new, so why did we need to fork out $72 for new ones? My dad said they were really good 8mm ones he had put on there (?) and he said did they offer to give them back to you...No, they didn't, I am sure they will be used on someone else's car!

Might give their HO a call and speak to a manager about it...The mechanic also mentioned that our front brake pads needed doing, and my husband told him that my dad would be over visiting us soon (we live in different states), and that the car doesn't get driven very much at all, so we would leave that until then thankyou...The mechanic actually said "Well, you've got a child in the back you know" !!!!!!!!!!! How rude! What if we just didn't have the money right then to also fix the brakes?! Talk about guilt and pressure to spend more money with them!

XR.1967 · 23-09-2009, 09:17 AM

Sounds like your lucky he didn't want to change the plugs as well... Got me lost why he would have changed the leads but I would give the HO a call just to give them a bit of feed back it never hurts... You should ask why he changed leads and not plugs as well... Good luck with it

ltd · 23-09-2009, 09:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LM22

Thanks for the replies everyone...

In the 2 years we've had the car, the temperature gauge has never really moved above warm, we check it monthly and it rarely needs filling up, so we found it odd that since having it serviced with them 7 weeks ago, 2 litres has been lost...Weird

Stattic, the car has never blown white smoke that I have noticed...

Surely a major symptom of a head gasket failure would be overheating of the car, which has never happened and we told them this BEFORE they did the pressure test...Really feel like we should've been told the cost of the compression test before they performed it, and it was seriously like they got here, we told them the car was struggling, they asked if had been overheating, we went inside and they popped the bonnet, checked the water and then did the compression test straight away!

Yes, jgb this was exactly what my dad thought too about changing 'new' leads...The mechanic himself said they looked brand new, so why did we need to fork out $72 for new ones? My dad said they were really good 8mm ones he had put on there (?) and he said did they offer to give them back to you...No, they didn't, I am sure they will be used on someone else's car!

Might give their HO a call and speak to a manager about it...The mechanic also mentioned that our front brake pads needed doing, and my husband told him that my dad would be over visiting us soon (we live in different states), and that the car doesn't get driven very much at all, so we would leave that until then thankyou...The mechanic actually said "Well, you've got a child in the back you know" !!!!!!!!!!! How rude! What if we just didn't have the money right then to also fix the brakes?! Talk about guilt and pressure to spend more money with them!

Sounds like they should change their slogan from "they'll fix the car" to "We'll rort you hard".
Mechanics for these guys are very arrogant, and overall bad quality service.
I think they've serviced your car on the basis of pressure selling rather than trying to fix what is wrong. I'd definately ring HO, and tell them what has happened and what they've done. If that brings no joy go to consumer affairs.
Your car itself has probably got a leak around the thermostat housing, pull the hoses off, scotchbrite the area clean and put it back on.
As for the surging, tell your father to get some throttle body cleaner and clean the gunk out of the throttle body.
As for leads and coils at the same time; total BS.
Compression test? Waste of time and money
Good luck.

Bushbasher · 23-09-2009, 09:35 AM

I Sounds to me like they saw you as naive chumps and padded the bill. $105 just for a compression test is a bit steep to say the least. Even paying 2 mens wages that's a hell of an hourly rate considering a compression test would only take 10 minutes. If on the other hand the $105 was the total labour cost and included the coil test and replacement then ok, plus flogging you a new set of leads AGAIN after telling you the leads looked new is just lining their pockets especially if they conveniently pocketed your "new" looking quality 8mm leads as well. How long were they there and what was the total labour charge including call out fee?

Bushbasher

OLDFORDNUT · 23-09-2009, 11:01 AM

simple. never use them again,and ring them and tell them just to rub it in, losing water " i would have done a radiator pressure test before a comp test.
being rude to you " well i would have told them to pack up there gear and ****off

LM22 · 23-09-2009, 01:11 PM

The total cost was $470. This included (just looking at the invoice now) about $145.60 for the coil, $72 for the new leads, $107 for the compression test, $45 call out fee, ummm oh they did replace the spark plugs as well $37...The mechanic also told us that the price would be more than usual because it was raining..WTF? Is that correct? I would've said come back when its not raining then, but my husband didn't tell me til after...They were there about 90mins I would say, after they got the parts (were gone about 30mins) it only took about 40mins and they were done...

I am not usually a massive complainer or anything (my husband HATES stirring the pot over anything) but this just left me feeling uneasy and dissatisfied...Will give HO a call this arvo...Will tell them to get the mechanic to bring my leads back, ha ha ha...

Thanks again guys...

TP351 · 23-09-2009, 01:18 PM

Yes, you have probably been ripped! That "Mobile Mechanic" group is well reknowned for over servicing. A friend of mine went to work for them and lasted 2 weeks because he had a concience and couldn't live with raping people like they made him do. (You wouldn't even believe some of the stories) They train them to be hard-sell salesmen and set them big quota's to meet.

I've been in the trade for 25 years and have never of that line about the coil. They only need replacing when stuffed, visibly cracked, or if the lead has been tracking, etc. An E series with a suspected blown head gasket, having only used a couple of litres of water won't show up anything on a compression test. Nor will it overheat until it runs low on coolant. A major blown head gasket will consume heaps of water and overheat, depending on where its blown, could also cause misfire.

However, that fact that you said it was shuddering and down on power would indicate a miss and therefore warrant a compression test and a go over the ignition system. Although $105 sounds very high for that. Did what they do fix the problem?

A good set of stainless steel core leads should set you back about $80 - $90

My advice, take it to a proper mechanical workshop next time! (Though that can be a bit of a mine field in itself)

sgt_doofey · 23-09-2009, 02:57 PM

$145 for the coil looks a bit pricey as well. I paid less than $100 for mine when it went, and that was from the local auto parts store. Might have been about $75 if my memory serves me correctly.

prydey · 23-09-2009, 07:35 PM

being a 95 falcon i assume by coil, you mean coil pack. i don't know anyone that would recommend changing that every time you change leads.

also with the water loss thing, did you have the cooling system flushed recently? if the system has been recently flushed or had coolant drained and refilled, if the air isn't removed from the system, it can appear full. the air will eventually work its way out. maybe the coolant level was never correct to start with. just a thought.

did the shuddering problem improve?

**ebxr8240** · 23-09-2009, 07:41 PM

They maybe bodgy but at least they are expensive ...

bowershed · 23-09-2009, 09:43 PM

I Think They Both Need To Be Held By The Front Of Their Shirts And Given A Great Big Slapping .did They Check The Leads With An Ohms Meter Did They Pressure Test No *&%$## Them Badly!ring Up Their Boss Demand The Old Parts Ask For A Refund Part There Of If They Say No Say It Is Going To Office Of Fair Trading Or Sit In Front Of Shop And Bag Crap Out Of Them As Any One Enters.

ltd · 24-09-2009, 08:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ebxr8240

They maybe bodgy but at least they are expensive ...

Exactly, atleast they're that, and you need to pay for that kind of treatment.

**ebxr8240** · 24-09-2009, 01:06 PM

Engineering by Bodge mobile.

We may be rough, but at least we're expensive. hahaha

robjh80 · 24-09-2009, 09:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LM22

wondering if we were ripped off
TIA

Firstly .. Welcome to the forums.

Secondly .. Yes, in my opinion you were ripped .. But, we all learn from past experiences otherwise we never know anything.

As others have said, in future take your car to a good reputable local Mechanic who's been around for years and will do a good decent job at a reasonable price.

Where are you located? .. wherever you are in Australia I'm sure there will be plenty of people here on the forums who could steer you towards a decent Mechanic who will look after you and your car.

At the end of the day who really misses out here? ... Personally I reckon it's the idiots who came around and ripped you off along with the dodgy company they work for.

They've lost a decent paying customer not only in yourself but undoubtably plenty of others they treat with complete and utter contempt on their daily rounds ... believe me, people like this don't stay in Business too long.

Ringo · 25-09-2009, 10:30 AM

I used to work with a bloke who was an ex mobile mechanic working for a very well known organisation (slogan is 'they fixed the car!') and he also had a hard time acheiving his targets. His morals used to get in the way.

That said I also had a neighbour who was self employed and did 60-80k per year and used the same mob. They got his cars all to 300k+. Nothing but good things to say about them.

$470 is a high price for what they did no doubt but its not like a decent workshop would have been $150 for that work either. You have probably been overcharged by $100 to $150....it could have been worse.

Find yourself a decent mechanic, ask the forums, ask your neighbours, which workshop looks proffesional AND BUSY plus has been around for years and years. Busy workshops are good as they have lots of returning clientele plus are too busy to have much time to do more than is needed and over service you. Empty workshops need to maximise the charges on each invoice to survive if get my drift.

Don't let this put you off the Ultra Tune and Repco repairers and other known Auto Brands either but understand these are all indepandantly owned and run.

ute83 · 25-09-2009, 03:56 PM

By doing a compression test, obviously needing to take the plugs out, he may have checked the plugs out for excessive water use. Then ruled the head gasket in or out depending on what he found.

25-09-2009, 11:57 PM

Sounds very dodgy to me!

Surely that's not the first thing that mechanics are taught to do when someone says the car is running poorly, run a compression test? Yes, the water may have been low, still not enough justification to run the compression test 1st.

Most probls are electrical, the first thing to do should have been to put the car on the scope? and they would have found the faulty coil/coil pack in seconds?

Not giving the parts back, especially the new leads, that's outrageous.
While it ceases to be common practice in large workshops, smaller outfits will show you the part they replaced and why and at least ask you if you want them back etc.

Im suspecting the problem may not even have been a dud coil, perhaps the lead to one of them was loose etc, wouldnt be the first time a $500 bill has been created by pushing a lead back on properly.

FGII-XR6 · 26-09-2009, 12:22 AM

$107 for a compression test??? complain to the MTA, they have ripped you off big time

DIFFWA · 26-09-2009, 12:44 AM

damn the only time mine has seen the inside of a mechanics workshop was for the RWC, they rang me to tell me my rear shockers where stuffed, and asked if i wanted them replaced as well as my brake switch, they showed me the parts that where replaced and asked if i wanted to take them with me.

Thats is highway robbery, as for mobile mechanics i would be standing outside with them to make sure they are doing the work they want to charge me for.