damn MOT garage - wheel alignment!!!!

hi

QUESTION have bill for 25 quid - do i go give this to MOT garage so they can pay up or give them grief over it?

READ on:

Took 96 disco for MOT (same garage we have used for last 9 years) Asked them to also replace back two exhaust boxes (which they did and have done at a good price) Disco fails MOT needing new track rod end (wife takes phone call and asks them to fix for us)

OK and although i usually do all the work myself, i had just replaced all the brake pipes and done a few other jobs so just wanted to get it sorted and back on the road.

pick up disco and MOT certificate and drive off - notice that the steering wheel is not quite aligned gave it a couple of days and it appeared to be pulling to left

so wife takes disco to said MOT garage and they say 'they don't do tracking and we can take it to garage over the road who they use'.

i then phone said MOT garage and ask if they have arranged for the tracking to be done for free, while talking to guy on phone i hear the manager say 'they are not paying for tracking'

i ask to speak to manager and calmly discuss situation he gives me speel about all cars need their tracking done every year do to condition of our roads hmmmm ok!!!!!!!! also says alls they do is wind the new track rod end to the same position as the old one (ok we have all done that before) and that is that. I state that no matter what method they use it should be aligned and ready to drive off - he says thats our problem not his!!!!!!!!!!!

QUESTION have bill for 25 quid - do i go give this to MOT garage and give them grief over this?

d disgruntalled disco driver!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Reply to
d
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My only experience of this is that the garage take it for the tracking to be done themselves when working on steering components as it invariably puts it out of alignment - however it was so long ago I can't remember if he added it to the bill or not - I don't remember him doing so. All I would say is how much hassle do you want to cause over 25 quid? If you're not happy then don't use him again.

Matt

Reply to
Matthew Maddock

On or around Thu, 28 Jun 2007 06:42:28 +0100, "d" enlightened us thusly:

WTF are they about doing MOTs without a tracking gauge?

BTW, all balljoints are not equal, and that "wind it in to the same spot" is NOT reliable.

Worth a polite word with the manager in the MOT place, take the bill, say "look, your fix resulted in the tracking needing doing, are you gonna opay this?" OWTTE.

25 quid for "check and adjust tracking" is a feckin' rip-off. takes all of about 10 minutes.
Reply to
Austin Shackles

You've clearly found a cowboy garage BUT he is about right on this point, the state of our roads and the number of speed bumps is knocking people's tracking out quite routinely as I found to my cost. I only got about 6k out of a pair of new tyres due to the tracking being knocked well out on my Polo and me not spotting that the inners edges were wearing very fast. Chatting to the bloke at the local quick fit, this has becoming the norm around here in the last few years as the Council have littered the area with badly designed speed bumps and is letting the pot holes get right out of hand. Greg

Reply to
Greg

d wrote:>

As the others say, how much trouble do you want to go to for 25 quid? However, they were commissioned to repair the defect that they found, then they left the vehicle in an unfit state.

You *could* possibly, & "I am not a lawyer", have a case for compensation for the cost of rectifying the defective work & also for the time you spent getting it corrected.

IMHO, if somebody quotes to do a job, they quote for the cost of doing it satisfactorily, & again IMHO, that would include ensuring the vehicle is fit to use afterwards.

Tciao for Now!

John.

Reply to
John Williamson

Quite easy to do at home too, I did four-wheel tracking on my old plastic rocket, just to make sure I had it measured on a proper rig at a reputable place, i.e. not ATS or the other nationwide chains.

Reply to
Ian Rawlings

"Matthew Maddock" wrote in message news:8hIgi.5$ snipped-for-privacy@nntpserver.swip.net...

wow.......so why respond at all ????????????????????/// >

Reply to
jonz

I dont see it as a rip off, rates, rent, insurance etc all has to be paid for. Not just the time spent on a job. If the mechanic hurts himself, and it can happen look at the results. We charge £35 to do a wheel bearing. sometimes it can take 20 mins, sometimes 2 hrs. Think about equipment costs. Within not many months you will NOT be able to take any vehicle to a local garage. They can not afford a multi vehicle diagnosticemachine with the associated software. Beware, servicing is going to cost a LOT more.

Reply to
tomtom

I love my 110 :-D

Lee D

Reply to
Lee_D

"Austin Shackles" wrote..........

If they can't do the tracking then they should have it done, pay the bill, and then add it to your bill as an included item in my opinion. But what sort of a garage can't do tracking?

If they have passed you the bill then I would pay it as at least they have admitted they cannot do it but, more importantly, they have made sure it

*was* actually done.

Martin

Reply to
Oily

Last one I did (300TDi) took 8 hours start to finish, including welding the chassis hole discovered when the crossmember was dropped......

Badger.

Reply to
Badger

Bad form I know but I should learn to read properly (delete the last paragraph). Don't use them again if they can't track it and (what's worse) can't be bothered to tell you they haven't done the tracking.

Martin

Reply to
Oily

I would give him a seriously hard time.

My argument would go along the lines of - tracking doesn't just affect tyre wear it affects the steering of the vehicle it therefore has an effect on the safety of the vehicle. By not tracking the vehicle and not telling you that it had not been tracked they have handed over an unsafe vehicle without warning which is serious negligence on their part. If that doesn't work threaten to inform HSE.

Gerald

Reply to
Idris

Trading standards might be interested, too...

Not to mention VOSA, if the garage offer an MOT service without the ability to check tracking.

Tciao for Now!

John.

Tciao for Now!

John.

Reply to
John Williamson

now I'm completely lost at which point is the tracking checked on the MOT It was't part of the test when I was a tester

Andy

Reply to
Andy.Smalley

I could be wrong, but I remember at one point having a car failed for defective tracking. Maybe the tester just picked up on excessive tyre wear.

Tciao for Now!

John.

Reply to
John Williamson

And it still isn't.

John

Reply to
John Greystrong

so instead of complaining, you should have done it yerself......btw, if you cant do a gearbox swap in 6-8 hrs, give the game away....................

Reply to
jonz

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