HELP, i'm getting rorted by my mechanic!

[vq~gangsta]

Hi all,

was hoping for some help / advice on just what my legal position is in this particular dilemma.

I got my transmission (Turbo 700) rebuild at a place called in St Agnes in Nov 04. I had some trouble with it hanging in low gears (not changing up) which i took it back there a few times for, and eventually got the throttle pressure valve changed.

A few months later a similar problem reoccured, only much worse- it wouldn't change up gears until it basically hit red line, and then it would SLAM into gear with a big chirpey... only it wasn't a good chirpy, it was more the sort of chirpey that brought images of shearing diff-gear teeth to mind.

I took it back to the trans place again, this was 11 months after the rebuild. They took it out and found it was totally F**KED. The manager accused me of doing reverse to firsts at full throttle, saying there's no way my car could have blown that trans unless it was seriously abused.

Reluctantly, he ended up doing another full rebuild, main gears and all, but only because it was covered under the 12 month warranty.

After that rebuild there was something wrong with the kick-down cable. It was too tight to allow full throttle, unless you loosened it so much that it rushed through the gears way too quickly- 3 1/2 grand changes at full throttle, it was really gay.

I took it back there AGAIN and he said there was nothing that could be done, and he didn't know why it was doing it. He said i should just have the kick down cable as tight as i can without restricting the throttle and when i want it to rev out i should just change gears myself... which basically negates the purpose of having a shift kit, or an automatic transmission for that matter.

I put up with it for a while, and then got sick of it, and cut the kick down cable and attached a little spring so that the cable worked normally until it got so tight that it would have restricted full throttle, then the spring would stretch a little bit to allow the throttle to open all the way. Problem solved and it appeared to work beautifully.

A few months ago i took it in for the scheduled service and got them to check that everything was still OK and they as far as they told me it was fine, nothing wrong with it, and they quite happily serviced it, took my money, and sent me on my merry little way.

A few weeks ago it started having problems again with changing up gears, only this time it was different. When it was given 1/2 throttle or more when it went to change gears it just revved out, as if it was in neutral basically, and didn't go into gear until i backed off the throttle.

I took it to another transmission place and they said that there was definately something seriously wrong with the trans and that it appeared to be something to do with the dodgey kick down cable.

I then booked it in again and told them the problem it was having, and they booked me in for the next week. Before that week came the trans completely f**ked itself, while i was putting through back-streets around the corner from my house it was basically like it went into neutral permentantly, it had no drive at all.

I then got it towed and they have the car for 3 days without ringing me. I then call them up Monday of this week and they say that it's totally rooted. Apparently the front has snapped off of the pump and the torque converter snout was broken where it goes into the pump.

This is 10 months after they gave it a full rebuild, and again, the trans is rooted. The transmission place say they won't cover it under warranty because they only give a 12 month warranty from the date of purchase- actually, he said he would have covered it if it was just bands or clutches, but because it's something bigger than that he's not going to cover it.

I want to know if it's as unreasonable as it seems to me that a transmission is ****ting itself 10 months after a full rebuild???

Does anyone know how such damage could be caused to a rebuilt transmission, or what the arse-monkeys could have done wrong to cause such a failure?

They have told me that for $750 they'll fix it, but the trans still won't have any warranty on it. I've since spoken to the other transmission place and they say that fixing the torque converter and pump isn't going to fix the problem with the gear changes and the kick down cable.

As far as i'm concerned the transmission has been a lemon since day 1, and despite taking it back there half a dozen times to have it fixed they've still let it get to the point where it's **** itself, and they're just saying that it's too bad and not their problem.

I have absolutely no intention of letting them do any more work to my car, they've had ample opportunity and have only proven themselvs to be completely incompetent. I'm now going to have to take the car somewhere else and get it rebuilt AGAIN, but this time i'm gonna take it somewhere that gives a 3 year warranty- SA Race in Modbury.

Does anyone have any experience with getting your money back for this sort of dodgey mechanical work in the small claims court?

I've been on the phone to Consumer Affairs and Legal Services and i'm told that i have a fairly good case, but there are never any guarantees.

They say that if i took it back to tell them something was wrong and they didn't fix it, and it ended up ****ting itself then i'll have an excellent chance of getting my money back. Also, if i can show that they did something wrong to the trans that made it blow, i'll have an excellent chance of getting my money back.

The problem is however that if they can show that there was something wrong with the trans but there's nothing that they could do to tell, or it wasn't their fault because a part was supplied to them as faulty, then i proberbly wouldn't get my money back.

The trans cost over $2000, and going to small claims court will cost me $100.

What are your opinions, what should I do???

Oh, and if anyone wants to learn from my mistake..... SA Race was recomended to me in the first place, but I went to save about $300-$400 on the rebuild. Obviously, i'm now wishing i wasn't such a tight arse!

[JD]

well the only problem i see u having is that will probabley claim u f*cked the trans up and depending on how good their lawyers are and how well u can prove that they were in the wrong hopefull u will win.

I think this may also be a lesson to all of us not to be tight arses! pay the and get the job done right the first time.

[minux]

The problem i see is it isnt the transmssion, its the torque converter, which unfortunatly usually isnt covered by warranty.

If i were you i'd buy a second hand auto, there is obviously something else wrong internally for it to keep playing up, then send it to RVO in melbourne. Thats only if you want the strongest trans money can buy

[spice weasel (BAM)]

I had an issue a few years back, totally unrelated to cars and i was going to take them to minor civil claims. the insurance company who acted on behalf of the guy i was going to sue said i couldn't do it.

I spoke with my lawer and they said i can object to them having lawyers there and if i object they can have only the person i am putting the claim against in there on the day.

This gives you the opportunity to get the guy in court for the day, without worrying about having lawyers in there with all their jargon, just you and him.

Even if you don't win you will have cost him alot of time and therefore might be worth it just for that purpose, even if you lose. Just thought you may be interested to know.

[sixshooter]

Well if it only costs $100 to go to small claims then what have you got to lose ?

[Hairy Eater]

i would say spend $100 and go for it.... remember to say about the dodgy kickdown cable but DONT say you put a spring on it..... that might go against you... i'd say the convertor snapped off because of the rev out chirping gear changes.... but it was their fault...

[broderikb]

A decent lawyer will cost u more than a decent transmission, trust me.....

[Christina]

get a good lawyer, and sue the **** out of em, i hate mechanics, my dad was rorted for thousands off this one, turns out he never did one thing he claimed.

[Hairy Eater]

can you try those lawyers who advertise "NO WIN, NO PAY".... if you dont win your case then you dont have to pay them even 1 dollar..

[vq~gangsta]

Thanks for the advice crew.

I've got a written mechanics report from SA race showing everything that's wrong with the trans. I've also attached a pic so you can see the handy work for yourselfs.

Note the torque converter, in practically brand spanking new condition (ten months after rebuild, 20 months from brand new), with a large chunk of metal that's snapped off from the torque converter snout - which is by com[anies own admission my problem, not theirs. I would highly recommend them to your boss or any other unlucky person whome you happen to hate.

First i'm going to send them a letter, which i drafted today, stating my case and what i want in terms of reconsiliation. Then depending upon their response to that i'll be taking them to small claims court.

thanks again,

-Dill

[Boonz]

i got legal advice about my dodgy transmission rebuild but in the letter they gave me with the docket it did actually have terms of agreement which i didnt even bother to read so i got no compo....

i did over 40,000 km's with the dodgy trans which is when their warranty runs out and even the solicitor said dont even bother cos i wont get jack sh*t back from them...

my planetary gear set was knackered and the guy who rebuilt it this time said it has been rooted for quite a while, 3rd gear clutch pack was completely cooked and one of the ball bearings was jammed in one of the holes in the shift plate...

nice $2300 rebuild i got

[Dan355]

Seriously thats farked. Hope it all goes well. Would be worth parting with the $100 thats for sure. Whats this trans behind?

[THE STATESMAN]

thats some really bad luck with the trans mate. S.A Race do a great job did mine 2 years ago and not one little problem

[wes_v8]

aw not good 2 hear mate, hope it all works out good for u

[Stupa]

And if he skips town, never forget. Airfares are cheap.

[Jo3_Blo]

Pff, what a scumbag.


My dad's got done by his mechanic. Went in for $700 work on the ute, come out with $3000 worth of work that didn't need or want to be done. And the stuff that needed to be done, wasn't done or wasn't done properly. And everything they did was rubbish.

My dad specificly asked for the ute to be kept on the premises, not to be taken anywhere. a week or so when we get it back later, he tels us he took it to a carby specialist.

[Spyper]

jacool92, that's $2300 worth of work for free. Why you complaining? "$3000 worth of work that didn't need or want to be done" implies that he was never asked, and he never told them to do it. Anything other than what was agreed upon is just a nice extra they have supplied out of the goodness of their hearts.

At least, that's what you tell the small claims court when they summon you to appear because you haven't settled on the outstanding $2700 =P

[Jo3_Blo]

XD!

But no, it wasn't all for $700 either.....................But none of the work they did was good. Bunch of useless shatheads.

[SVZ]

f*** that id go in there and say fine well i'll just take everything worth up to 2000 grand if they say anything tell them to talk to the manager and that u will return the gearbox in the car to them

[cxcxcxvcvcvc]

well the good news is regardless of what there waranty is according to department of fair trading they or any shop for that matter (except 2nd hand shops) have to make sure that what they sell you is working for a reasonable amount of time regardless of what the shop warranty is. If you have receipts for your gear box parts and labour then next get it sussed by a reputable mechanic who will be able to do a report for the judge and finaly go to legal aid as im sure they can help and sorry to hear about the probs mate i always have the same fears when i send my car to have work done on it which is why i now go throught a reputable mechanic i know it costs more but the cost in the long run can be far greater

[vq~gangsta]

I've heard from the company by mail, and they're apparently taking the matter seriously, and he's forwarded my complaint to his insurance company and lawyers. I should be hearing from them before too long.

[WILD VR CLUBBY]

think of it this way you spend 100bucks but he loses more as hes not able to work for the day so its deffently worth it and drag it on for as long as possible. then if you do lose walk up to him and say did i realy lose coz your the one who missed out on blah blah blah amount of work haha then walk off

[stylin_vr2]

wow.. im scared of mechanics now... does anyone know if any of the mechanics in hoppers are any good?
or should i become a mechanic and do it properly?? haha

[TheIceman]

SA Race was recomended to me in the first place

yep, they the people, i been with them for many years, you wont get much better, they have done all my past tranny's and will do any future ones i have.

[vq~gangsta]

After 7 long months of correspondence, my court hearing has finally arrived, i'm going to court in two weeks. My main argument is that the transmission was never in correct working order, and was not repaired despite being given numerous opportunities to do so. Their defence is that they fulfilled their responsibilities in an honest, professional and ethical matter.

Lawyers are not allowed in small claims court to prevent legal expences from surpassing the value of the claim. They are however allowed to be represented by someone from their insurance company, which i think really sucks because he's proberbly going to have some kind of legal education anyway, and thus i'm going to be at a disadvantage.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

-Cheers