1. Home
  2. Car Maintenance
  3. Am I being ripped off? ... Continued ...

Am I being ripped off? ... Continued ...

To remind you ... I am querying whether the first time my van went in for repair then the garage should have spotted that more work needed to be done to avoid it breaking down again and providing me with more hassle and another bill.

All comments welcome Anna

First bill: Diagnose and remove and refit starter motor £45 Starter motor £158.95

Second bill: Remove starter and carry out repair £45 Recovery of vehicle £20 Contact part £22.82 Starter solinoid £25 Starter armature £55 Sundries £2.50

All prices plus VAT

Follow up letter after my complaint: When your vehicle first broke down the fault was diagnosed as starter motor which we supplied and fitted. On the second occasion you called us out it was the contact switch which is a sealed unit that shorted out causing the starter motor to engage while being driven. As the starter motor was new to keep the cost down we had it repaired for you. This is quite a common fault with Vauxhalls and if you would like to verify it with a main dealer you can do so. If you wish to discuss this matter further with me I shall be happy to speak to you. We still have the damaged parts in stock if you wish to inspect them.

-- ~~ Anna Kettle, Suffolk, England |""""| ~ Pargeting, decorative and traditional / ^^ \// lime plasterwork |______|

formatting link
07976 649862

Reply to
Anna Kettle
Loading thread data ...

Interesting that they carefully use the phrase ' was diagnosed ' as opposed to the more committed ' was faulty ! ' As always in these situations, it is virtually impossible to prove incompetence. That's why you must always attempt to use someone you implicitly trust.

Andy

Reply to
Andy Pandy

is it the 1.7 D engine?

Reply to
Tom Burton

Seems odd to me that they effected a repair on the motor the second time by fitting a new armature and solenoid, but not the first time, and that the labour charge was the same for what must have been more work.

Did the motor actually engage with the engine running as they said? I'd have thought this would have caused more damage.

Reply to
Dave Plowman

Erm, if the starter motor was new, surely it would be guaranteed. Therefore if the motor was faulty, it should have been replaced in entirety and you should only have been charged, if anything, the £45.

The contact part, armature etc. are parts of the starter, the solenoid probably is. They should come as a unit.

Sundries?

Hmmmm...

Richard

Reply to
Richard Kilpatrick

If the starter cable allowed so much voltage drop with the starter running continuously to melt itself, I doubt it would deliver enough current to start a cold engine in the winter.

Overuse of a starter causes the motor to burn out, not the cable.

Reply to
Dave Plowman

I think you misunderstood. The starter operates continuously till the motor burns out or seizes up, the cabling is now supplying a dead short and fries the wiring.

MrCheerful

Reply to
MrCheerful

No - I've I've understood it. The common thing is the motor burns out - and therefore goes open circuit - although they do sometimes get shorted turns and draw more current than they should. But at the end of the day, the windings are of much smaller gauge than the cable feeding them, so will burn out first - like a fuse - and remove the load.

I suppose it's possible that the insulation on the starter cable could melt and allow a short to chassis on a poorly routed cable, but then the fusible link to the battery should blow.

The story sounds like one of those that embellishes the facts for whatever reason. They're pretty common with cars.

Reply to
Dave Plowman

Thanks for comments. My plan is now that I shall pay the bill, but not go back to that garage again.

Replies to a couple of questions ...

I didn't notice anything while driving. Both times the problem was that the vehicle failed to start.

Yes, or more precisely a 1.7D 775 but I think the 775 refers to the souped up suspension.

Anna

-- ~~ Anna Kettle, Suffolk, England |""""| ~ Pargeting, decorative and traditional / ^^ \// lime plasterwork |______|

formatting link
07976 649862

Reply to
Anna Kettle

MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.