Help - a garage has had my car for nearly 4 months...
Discussion
Mods - this is not a name & shame - I really need advice. I've tried to hide identifying details as best I can
At the start of the year, I bought what was (for me) a dream car. I got it for a very good price, knowing that there were a few problems to be sorted. As it’s a relatively specialist car, there are very few places in the UK who have the experience to work on it.
One of these places proved poor early on, so after a few months of driving it, I booked it in to the other obvious place for work. They had a good reputation from what I could make out, advertised specialism with my car, and certainly had an impressive roster of cars outside their unit.
The work was:
My plan was to get these sorted, run the car to Le Mans, and then in July (when the MOT was up) SORN it, stick it in my garage, and sort out a few other things I knew would need doing (mainly balljoints) myself, as it would be significantly cheaper than having a garage buy and fit new parts.
I’m now nearing the end of my tether. I’ve paid out significant sums of money but have absolutely nothing to show for it: I’ve lost use of my new dream car for Le Mans and then over the whole of the summer... and now moving into the autumn. While some of the delays really aren’t their fault, a lot of them are: they’ve been pretty slack the whole time, needed regular nudges to get things done. They’ve also added significant time to things by simply being incompetent.
I’ve now been without my car for nearly four months – in insurance payments over this time alone, this is irritatingly expensive. In addition, due to the time they took the first time they had it, my initial plan of getting the car home and doing the balljoints myself was impossible – thus adding significantly to the cost.
I’m feeling stuck: I can’t take the car off them, as I have almost no other options to do the work, and they ‘owe’ me to get the work done. Taking the car elsewhere would just incur yet further expense. I’ve tried (and largely succeeded) in being calm and understanding the whole time, but I’m really now finding this difficult.
What are my options? Complain? Trading standards? A garage scheme? Is there any legal route I can take?
Please don't turn this into a name & shame, and get the thread locked - I really do need help & advice on this. I also need to maintain a half-way-decent relationship with the garage, until this is resolved one way or the other.
At the start of the year, I bought what was (for me) a dream car. I got it for a very good price, knowing that there were a few problems to be sorted. As it’s a relatively specialist car, there are very few places in the UK who have the experience to work on it.
One of these places proved poor early on, so after a few months of driving it, I booked it in to the other obvious place for work. They had a good reputation from what I could make out, advertised specialism with my car, and certainly had an impressive roster of cars outside their unit.
The work was:
- A major (cambelt) service
- A new clutch
- Diagnosis and fixing of a recurrent noise from the rear left wheel
My plan was to get these sorted, run the car to Le Mans, and then in July (when the MOT was up) SORN it, stick it in my garage, and sort out a few other things I knew would need doing (mainly balljoints) myself, as it would be significantly cheaper than having a garage buy and fit new parts.
| Beginning of May | Booked the car in, to be delivered on the 15th. |
| 15th May | Dropped the car off at the garage. Demonstrated the ‘noise’ to the manager, who came out in the car with me, then ran along-side it as I drove, to get an idea of what might be going on. I explained that the car had to be hot for it to appear. We agreed that I needed the car back to drive to Le Mans in June. |
| A week later | Phoned to check on progress; owner admitted they’d been busy and car hadn’t been in workshop yet. Promised action. |
| A week later | Phoned again. Clutch had been ordered. Reminded them of the Le Mans deadline. This stoked some action, especially as they’d not realised I needed the car to drive to Le Mans, rather than just for that very weekend. Agreed on Tuesday 6th as a firm delivery date, as I would be driving down on the 7th. |
| 6th June | Spoke to them during the day... car was being put back together. The time for delivery slipped and slipped. First there was a flat battery, and then I was told the car had developed a ‘misfire’. Finally, at 10pm, drove to the garage with a mate. Found a sorry car, which was massively overfuelling, and clearly not ready. Tried to help fix it until 1am (including me phoning people who are experts with this car, for advice) when we gave up. |
| Le Mans | Passengered down, with my mate. |
| Weeks following Le Mans | Problem diagnosed as a faulty fuel pump regulator, after which a couple of weeks were spent waiting for a replacement part to be delivered. This turned out to not be the problem – eventually diagnosed as a faulty relay, and fixed. |
| Friday 9th July | The car was trailered back to my house. Immediately apparent that there was new paintwork damage where the mechanics had been working. Owner accepted this and agreed to rectify. |
| Saturday 10th July | Took it out for a gentle test-drive. Became quickly apparent that the clutch was not right (unpleasantly jerky and juddery) and the noise hadn’t been fixed! |
| 12th July | Wrote to garage, detailing problems. |
| 14th July | Car picked up again. It turned out that the noise hadn’t been fixed because they’d been trying to diagnose the wrong side (despite the ample demonstration when I dropped it off!) and they’d ignored or forgotten that the car needed to be warmed up to display the noise |
| A week or two later | Turned out that the noise, once properly diagnosed, would require various replacement parts to rectify. |
| 29th July | Discussed range of parts required to exact a proper fix. Rather expensive. Did some research myself, finding far cheaper alternatives available from the US; shared information with garage, who agree to order them from a well-known dealer in the US (who they’d dealt with before). |
| 18th August | Spoke to the garage manager. Despite the parts having been discussed, they’d not yet been paid for or shipped. He asked for payment to the garage, so they could pay for the parts. I paid. |
| 31st August | Spoke to the garage owner. Told parts arriving from US “today”. Asked me to call back tomorrow once they’ve had a chance to open the box. Stated that once the parts are all present, it would take “no longer than five days” to fit them, MOT the car, and get it back to me. Stated that it was “number one priority”. Offered 10th September as a date for car to be returned to me. |
| 3rd September | Spoke to garage manager. Told me that ‘most of’ the parts had arrived, but the foreign dealer was having trouble sourcing some of them. All parts needed, so further wait necessary, as even once foreign dealer had sourced them, there would still be the (apparent) one-two week shipping time, then further time to fit them and MOT the car. |
I’m now nearing the end of my tether. I’ve paid out significant sums of money but have absolutely nothing to show for it: I’ve lost use of my new dream car for Le Mans and then over the whole of the summer... and now moving into the autumn. While some of the delays really aren’t their fault, a lot of them are: they’ve been pretty slack the whole time, needed regular nudges to get things done. They’ve also added significant time to things by simply being incompetent.
I’ve now been without my car for nearly four months – in insurance payments over this time alone, this is irritatingly expensive. In addition, due to the time they took the first time they had it, my initial plan of getting the car home and doing the balljoints myself was impossible – thus adding significantly to the cost.
I’m feeling stuck: I can’t take the car off them, as I have almost no other options to do the work, and they ‘owe’ me to get the work done. Taking the car elsewhere would just incur yet further expense. I’ve tried (and largely succeeded) in being calm and understanding the whole time, but I’m really now finding this difficult.
What are my options? Complain? Trading standards? A garage scheme? Is there any legal route I can take?
Please don't turn this into a name & shame, and get the thread locked - I really do need help & advice on this. I also need to maintain a half-way-decent relationship with the garage, until this is resolved one way or the other.
they are taking the mickey none of that should add up to more than a couple of weeks.
get the car out of there and take it to a decent garage.
once you have got it safely out of there name and shame them so some other mug does not end up being treated like you (not saying you are a mug of course, its just that they are treating you like one and they know they can get away with it they probably do it all the time).
get the car out of there and take it to a decent garage.
once you have got it safely out of there name and shame them so some other mug does not end up being treated like you (not saying you are a mug of course, its just that they are treating you like one and they know they can get away with it they probably do it all the time).
I daresay 'dream car' equates to reasonably rare car. You can't expect the same workshop durations as you would when you stick a Fiesta in for a service and MOT.
I'd be calmly looking for some 'goodwill' for their role in the schedule having slipped, but unless you have alternative local sources of support for whatever marque the car is, I'd say preserve an on-going relationship, i.e. not just to clear this issue.
I'd be calmly looking for some 'goodwill' for their role in the schedule having slipped, but unless you have alternative local sources of support for whatever marque the car is, I'd say preserve an on-going relationship, i.e. not just to clear this issue.
The Crack Fox said:
ETA - There are plenty of good Lotus Indy's around y'know 
It's not the Elise Sinclaire's take care of the fantastically well. 
Fittster said:
Just how rare and unusual is this car? Are we talking about something like a pre-war Lagonda or something more mainstream.
Not quite that rare, but as soon as I give the car away, you'll figure out the garage, which I want to avoid if possible. It's foreign, comparatively rare, and I (and the owners' club) only know of two recognised garages that profess to have significant experience with them.In hindsight, of course taking it to another garage might have been a better idea. But that's what I thought I was doing - taking it a reputable place that regularly dealt with a wide range of relatively exotic cars to a high standard, and also offered experience of the car.
mft said:
The Crack Fox said:
ETA - There are plenty of good Lotus Indy's around y'know
It's not the Elise Sinclaire's take care of the fantastically well. Fittster said:
Just how rare and unusual is this car? Are we talking about something like a pre-war Lagonda or something more mainstream.
Not quite that rare, but as soon as I give the car away, you'll figure out the garage, which I want to avoid if possible. It's foreign, comparatively rare, and I (and the owners' club) only know of two recognised garages that profess to have significant experience with them.In hindsight, of course taking it to another garage might have been a better idea. But that's what I thought I was doing - taking it a reputable place that regularly dealt with a wide range of relatively exotic cars to a high standard, and also offered experience of the car.
Take it elsewhere. IMO
Edited by Uhura fighter on Friday 3rd September 12:38
Speaking to the mechanic at my local garage a month or so ago he was saying some manufacturers and suppliers aren't holding stock of parts. So if the car is a very new model then they may not have spares yet as the bits are going onto cars. Alternatively if it was built by a manufacturer who has been looking shakey then I doubt any 3rd party part suppliers will want too much stock in case the manufacturer goes bump. Without knowing the car and the part the speculation is just that, hell in the current climate the part manufacturer or one of their suppliers could be on dodgy ground financially.
Engineer1 said:
Speaking to the mechanic at my local garage a month or so ago he was saying some manufacturers and suppliers aren't holding stock of parts. So if the car is a very new model then they may not have spares yet as the bits are going onto cars. Alternatively if it was built by a manufacturer who has been looking shakey then I doubt any 3rd party part suppliers will want too much stock in case the manufacturer goes bump. Without knowing the car and the part the speculation is just that, hell in the current climate the part manufacturer or one of their suppliers could be on dodgy ground financially.
It's not this; it's just a rareish old car, and the parts are just quite hard to get hold of.Uhura fighter said:
Take it elsewhere. IMO
If I choose to do this, would I have a legal case to allow me to claim back the money I've already paid them in labour? Considering it would then cost me a fair whack to get everything rectified?mft said:
Not quite that rare, but as soon as I give the car away, you'll figure out the garage, which I want to avoid if possible.
Come on - whats the car? Telling us the car is not naming and shaming, and if any member on here then decides they want to make up their own mind on the matter, then that it not the problem of PH and cannot reasonably get them into any trouble.My point being - yes it sounds like something very rare and intriguing - but you underestimate the power of PH - there may well be somebody who can help, if we know your plight.
My suggestion would be to organise a meeting with the gaffer, in his office, away from the car - arrange this by letter and call up to confirm.
Lay out your concerns out to him, like you have to us, then simply ask him what they are going to do.
We've all heard of garages fobbing people off but theres just as much chance that the garage owner is rather embarassed about the situation and probably wants it resolving as much as you do.
mft said:
Uhura fighter said:
Take it elsewhere. IMO
If I choose to do this, would I have a legal case to allow me to claim back the money I've already paid them in labour? Considering it would then cost me a fair whack to get everything rectified?If it is the car you bought in March then I feel for you. Always wanted one and you must be hurting pretty bad not being able to drive it.
First thing I would do is speak to trading standards and find out what you can do. You'll then have a better idea as to how to proceed.
trading standards site
OP - a quick look through your post history would give a clue as to what car you have.
Would it not be prudent to speak to the manufacturer and see if they are aware of any other places that might be able to sort your issues?
If it's what I think it is, are there really only 2 places that can handle this car? Is there not an owners club to contact either?
It sounds like you need to get it away from this garage if you're not happy with them. Your decision is to let them carry on and potentially screw more things up or cut your losses and try someone else....
Would it not be prudent to speak to the manufacturer and see if they are aware of any other places that might be able to sort your issues?
If it's what I think it is, are there really only 2 places that can handle this car? Is there not an owners club to contact either?
It sounds like you need to get it away from this garage if you're not happy with them. Your decision is to let them carry on and potentially screw more things up or cut your losses and try someone else....
Thanks - trading standards is a good call.
Muzzer: you're probably on the right lines. There are three recognised places in the UK that I'm aware of: a main dealer with apparent experience, an amazingly good guy who deals with them in his spare time, and the place the car is at.
I tried the dealer first, and they were poor, hence my second choice. I'd have gone to the specialist guy, but he's so good he's crazy busy, so didn't fit the timeline I had in mind (although that's completely blown away now, of course!)
Muzzer: you're probably on the right lines. There are three recognised places in the UK that I'm aware of: a main dealer with apparent experience, an amazingly good guy who deals with them in his spare time, and the place the car is at.
I tried the dealer first, and they were poor, hence my second choice. I'd have gone to the specialist guy, but he's so good he's crazy busy, so didn't fit the timeline I had in mind (although that's completely blown away now, of course!)
Bear in mind that many specialist cars have problems that are designed in - for example a certain high performance two door mid engined car that uses a twin plate cerametallic clutch has a clutch judder problem. No amount of changing them fixes it. It's a characteristic. They all do it, sir.
Expecting 'dream cars' to behave like a new BMW 5 series isn't realistic and asking fixers of vehicles to re-engineer vehicles is often asking too much.
Also right now the supply base is going through major upheaval and getting spares on volume vehicles is a nightmare, let alone anything specialist.
But adjust your expectations or sell the car. What you are going through is not unusual.
Expecting 'dream cars' to behave like a new BMW 5 series isn't realistic and asking fixers of vehicles to re-engineer vehicles is often asking too much.
Also right now the supply base is going through major upheaval and getting spares on volume vehicles is a nightmare, let alone anything specialist.
But adjust your expectations or sell the car. What you are going through is not unusual.
GavinPearson said:
Expecting 'dream cars' to behave like a new BMW 5 series isn't realistic and asking fixers of vehicles to re-engineer vehicles is often asking too much.
If said car is what someone has speculated above then I'd be mightily pissed off if it weren't significantly better behaved and engineered than a 5-series and a good deal more comfortable and pleasant to drive. Mine was. I went through a similar situation in NZ with a motorbike. Had an ex-demo Aprilia for two months, and the main bearing shattered in the engine. Cue tank slapper as the rear tyre locked up at 70 mph!
Anyway, the dealer I bought the bike off naturally offered to fix it free of charge, as required. But they took over three months to do it. I was mightily miffed and sent a couple of letters of complaint. The last letter I sent set out exactly what I wanted - either 2 grand in cash (which I calculated based on the cost of hiring a replacement for the period, had I done so) and a new unlimited mileage warranty, or they had to take the bike back. This letter was accompanied by the forms showing an application to the Disputes Tribunal.
I got an immediate call, and they agreed to go with whichever of my options I wanted. It's frustrating that you have to go to these lengths, i.e. actually instigating court action to get a result, but it did get a result.
mtf, I would set out very clearly in a letter all of the issues and the compensation you want. If nothing comes of this, consider sending a final letter and taking them to the equivalent of the Disputes Tribunal here (not sure what it is). If it's anything like NZ, the cost is minimal, and the impact strong.
P.S. If your car is what I think it is (from the land of sushi and kimonos), that's bloody worrying! I am seriously considering replacing my current car with one, as I wanted something much less costly to run...
Anyway, the dealer I bought the bike off naturally offered to fix it free of charge, as required. But they took over three months to do it. I was mightily miffed and sent a couple of letters of complaint. The last letter I sent set out exactly what I wanted - either 2 grand in cash (which I calculated based on the cost of hiring a replacement for the period, had I done so) and a new unlimited mileage warranty, or they had to take the bike back. This letter was accompanied by the forms showing an application to the Disputes Tribunal.
I got an immediate call, and they agreed to go with whichever of my options I wanted. It's frustrating that you have to go to these lengths, i.e. actually instigating court action to get a result, but it did get a result.
mtf, I would set out very clearly in a letter all of the issues and the compensation you want. If nothing comes of this, consider sending a final letter and taking them to the equivalent of the Disputes Tribunal here (not sure what it is). If it's anything like NZ, the cost is minimal, and the impact strong.
P.S. If your car is what I think it is (from the land of sushi and kimonos), that's bloody worrying! I am seriously considering replacing my current car with one, as I wanted something much less costly to run...
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