Quality of recovery mechanics.

Last night I went to a friend's house about 20 miles away when I got there I noticed that the headlamps didn't seem as bright as normal.

Since it was a diesel escort van, I knew that the battery wasn't needed to run the engine but a fault would affect all the other systems.

I stopped the engine and tried to restart it but the battery was as flat as a pancake. Since I didn't have tools (invitation to have the van broken into) and my friend is a non-driver is naturally didn't have a batt charger decided to wait until morning before worrying about it (staying over after a few beers). But my initial diagnosis was that the alternator had gone bad and wasn't outputting enough amperage (but enough to turn off dash light)

In morning called recovery firm, who then sent subcontracted local firms low loader an hour later. After describing fault I watched him measure the battery voltage (10v) then he went on the check the oil (just under the min mark) the water and the brake fluid (whilst I'm thinking I've got a flat battery, the fluids have nothing to do with that).

Then he tries one of those small booster packs with the small rechargeable battery in them. He connects it up and tells me to try the ignition straight away - nothing happens.

Plan B: heavier jump leads from recovery truck are connected up, try straight away -nothing

Plan C: heavy leads and booster pack together, try straight away -nothing.

I suggest that we wait a few minutes to transfer a little charge into my batt as I know the immobiliser (which also controls the starter motor) is very intolerant of a low battery voltage.

He then gives me the "I'm the mechanic, you know nothing" look

He the announces that the engine block has seized and wants to take it back to his firms garage for investigation and repair. I argue that the cost of that would be more that the vehicle is worth and since my breakdown recovery is a return to home policy could he take me there where I will rebuild the engine my self.

Reluctantly I am eventually recovered to my home address.

I put the batt on rapid 6 amp charge straight away and busy my self for the next hour, then try to start the engine, fires on first try and using a clamp meter I find that the alternator is only outputting 3 amps.

And hour and forty pounds later I have a reconditioned alternator putting 20 amps at idle into the batt from the "seized" engine.

Has any one else encountered this.

Reply to
Andrew Carr
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Yes just last weekend, returning from trip to airport, stopped off for petrol (90.9p per litre instead of the local 99.9p) when the lady at the pump in front of me says ' is that pool of water from your car ?' which it was. Looked pretty terminal so called out my 'well known' get you home recovery service. Call out was excellent 7 minutes from initial phone call. That's where the excellence ended. Immediate diagnosis was that no hoses were leaking and certain 'that the cylinder head gasket has blown will get a recovery vehicle out for you'. Being completely ignorant on things 'mechanical' particularly on the modern car, I took him at his word and started to think about looking for another 'banger' as the cost of doing it would have been more than the car was worth.

Got it recovered home and youngest son started interrogating me about the symptoms leading up to the coolant loss. His reaction was 'no way had the head gasket blown', topped up the water and took it out straight away, came back, opened the bonnet and pointed out that although the engine had overheated while he was out, the radiator fan had not come on and very quickly identified the radiator fan switch as being the problem. Got me back on the road straight away by bypassing the switch (two pieces of wire) and a week later is still working without any overheating. Picked up a new switch for £6 and waiting for son to fit it, But he hadn't been around I would have had to accept that the recovery mechanic's diagnosis was correct and either scrapped the car or put it in the garage and face a bill of £250-£300. Makes you wonder whether these people are trained properly doesn't it

Geoff

Reply to
GeoffP

I think a lot of them are just drivers and only have a basic understanding of cars. I've even seen aa/rac give wrong diagnosis at the side of the road. They are usually under pressure and it's harder to check stuff out at the side of the road. I'm a mechanic mot tester with a class 2 hgv licence and there's no way I'd do recovery work :O)

Always get a second opinion.

Reply to
jOn

No, I haven't, but I bet it happens a lot. I don't trust any monkey to work on my car!

Reply to
petermcmillan_uk

A metro was relayed across the country to me a few years ago, the diagnosis was that it needed a new carburettor, I fitted a distributor cap and rotor arm and gave it back to the owner.

mrcheerful

Reply to
mrcheerful

As many of you know, I work in a dealership, and yes, this is normal. Recovery drivers are mechanics that didn't make it. I tried to go into that myself, but turned down because I'm too qualified.

We usually discard the report sheets and start again.

What is really annoying is when they find a car with an intermittant fault, and get it going, bring it to us, when we really needed it in the failed state. We then get the grief when we can't locate the cause.

Personally I'd rather they just put the car onto the truck and brought it straight in.

Reply to
Andy Hewitt

They are trained....Trained to extract your money from you :-)

Des

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Reply to
Dez

OOH, yes, I know, the Daewoo brought to a friends garage with 'failed crank sensor'. it had a broken crank !

Reply to
mrcheerful

Wowww...! ...That is a big difference :-)

Des

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Reply to
Dez

Andrew Carr writes

[....]
8-(

I had a flat battery after I parked the car in my garage one day and as I got out I must have knocked the light switch into the 'Parked' position, easily done in the Mondeo.. (I only worked this out afterwards).

I didn't use the car for a couple of days and found a dead flat battery when I needed to go out. Called the XX Homestart out and by the time I had rigged up a power supply to charge the battery he arrived. He checked the battery, including the electrolyte level, before connecting his booster pack, and after a few minutes the car started. He then carried out some tests for leakage current, pointed out that the indicator 'eye' still showed red, and strongly advised that I took the car on the road for half an hour. I said that I would put it on trickle charge overnight and he said "Fine".

A very simple problem, but a thorough fix, IMHO.

Reply to
Gordon

Total and utter bullshit.

That is the job of a roadside mechanic, to get the car going at the roadside, even if it is only a temporary fix. Nearly every motorist would prefer having their car running again, than have to be taken home on the back of a truck.

What you, and what the car owner wants, may be different matters then. (The car owner pays his membership for his benefit, not yours.)

Reply to
SimonJ

same here, nothing worse trying to diagnose a fault that has been " fixed "

Reply to
reg

the car is taken back to the customers home address, they are stuck as they have no home start or they don't want to pay for a recovery to the garage the next day, seen it a few times, also if the fault is " fixed " at the road side be it temporary or not & the customer comes in & says can you fix it & you cant find it, this is where you get grief from the customer as you looking for a " non-existent " fault !

so more helpful to us mechanics/technicians to have a car presented with the fault.

Reply to
reg

[...]

Just that I'm not overly keen on recon alternators. Tried this once on my then Fiat Croma. I was a student, so I tried to save money. The alter included fitting and off I went.

It lasted about a year and failed spectacularly when I was driving up through france and had to reach a ferry the same Sunday evening. The bearing on the alternator failed, the first thing I noticed was severe overheating of the engine, then the alter belt shredded to smithereens. I had to use a recovery service from France, but they did a good job, sourced an brand new alter from a depot (it was still Sunday), it didn't fit, but the resourceful French mechanic produced an extension wheel so that the belt would fit. Lasted years after that no probs. All in all a very good service.

Reply to
Johannes

I quite agree. Get the car home where it's safe, either by itself or on a truck. Then put on the kettle and consider your options.

Reply to
Johannes

Exactly.

Reply to
Andy Hewitt

Don't get me wrong that is somewhat a generalisation, there are some very good break-down guys out there, I do know one or two. However, the enthusiasm to assist at the time can cause longer term grief, and is often something they may not be thinking of, or even perhaps allowed to do.

In an ideal world yes. However, intermittant and inexplicable faults are becoming increasingly common now, mostly linked to the complexity of the systems that are being installed.

I have so often seen a temporary fix that may well have got a customer home, being the cause of a subsequent failure. This can sometimes go on for weeks or months. Had the car been brought straight to a dealer it might have been fixed properly the first time.

What the customer wants is a reliable car (usually). A short term fix may not be in their interest.

As somebody that is dealing with customers face to face, and trying to maintain a long term relationship with them, I tend to have a longer term outlook to problem solving.

How annoying can it be for both parties to have a customer bring a car in for a fault and for that fault not to be apparent. Unless an error code is stored in the ECU (and they all too often get wiped by a friendly road-side mechanic), it can be impossible to locate.

Reply to
Andy Hewitt

Like as everything, you gets what you pay for. A maker's recon, or one from a reputable maker, should be every bit as good as new, and no more likely to fail. But some of the cheaper ones are little more than cleaned secondhand ones.

Reply to
Dave Plowman (News)

Johannes writes

At least that way it doesn't lose the wheels and radio and get the windows smashed in.

Reply to
Gordon

I did pay something like half price, that is what you would expect for a reconditioned. Anything more, and you might as well fit a new one.

PS. I did catch the Calais to Dover ferry later that evening. Really amazing considering stranded in the afternoon in France with a broken alternator. I could perhaps have driven a for while on the accumulator, but I would need driving lights in the evening and surely that would have drained the accumulator. The motorway system in France have gates and steel fences since you pay. However the recovery driver passed through everywhere, either by key to open gates or by a nudge and wink to gate keepers. Quite an experience.

Reply to
Johannes

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