Deathtrap Servicing - what recourse?
Discussion
As a proud owner of an Alfa 147 I decided that on the expiry of the official 3 year warranty I would get the car serviced at an Alfa Specialist rather than main dealer. Couple of weeks ago I took the car to a well known Alfa expert in Bedfordshire for a full service.
The service took place and included the changing of a couple of tyres.
Having reported a couple of minor faults - cruise control not working and a blown bulb, on collecting the car and paid close to £500 for the work I then found out that the bulb hadnt been replaced, nor the cruise control sorted. An hour waiting and an additional £65 and off I went only to find that the washer bottle was empty. Hardly what I would call good and consciencious servicing, what else was missed?
Today driving on the M25 the car started to vibrate from the front left corner to the point where it was becoming undrivable so I decided to pull over and have a look. As I crossed into the slow lane there was a bang and the car dropped at the corner. First thoughts were a suspension collapse. Having safely stopped I looked and to my amazement found that the front wheel had actually come off, only the wing had stopped the wheel going all together. A closer inspection revealed 2 sheared bolts - the other 3 were missing altogether.
I managed to get one of the sheared bolts out, and used the spares from the locking wheelnuts box to get mobile again with 4 bolts, but on closer inspection around all 4 corners the wheel nuts on the other 3 wheels were only finger tight at best.
I feel totally amazed at how lucky I am, the wheel could have gone any time and conceivably gone not oncoming traffic and killed someone. The service manager was totally dismissive and promised to ring me back having spoken to the mechanic but some 5 hours later nothing.
Any advice on recourse....this cannot go unpunished.
The service took place and included the changing of a couple of tyres.
Having reported a couple of minor faults - cruise control not working and a blown bulb, on collecting the car and paid close to £500 for the work I then found out that the bulb hadnt been replaced, nor the cruise control sorted. An hour waiting and an additional £65 and off I went only to find that the washer bottle was empty. Hardly what I would call good and consciencious servicing, what else was missed?
Today driving on the M25 the car started to vibrate from the front left corner to the point where it was becoming undrivable so I decided to pull over and have a look. As I crossed into the slow lane there was a bang and the car dropped at the corner. First thoughts were a suspension collapse. Having safely stopped I looked and to my amazement found that the front wheel had actually come off, only the wing had stopped the wheel going all together. A closer inspection revealed 2 sheared bolts - the other 3 were missing altogether.
I managed to get one of the sheared bolts out, and used the spares from the locking wheelnuts box to get mobile again with 4 bolts, but on closer inspection around all 4 corners the wheel nuts on the other 3 wheels were only finger tight at best.
I feel totally amazed at how lucky I am, the wheel could have gone any time and conceivably gone not oncoming traffic and killed someone. The service manager was totally dismissive and promised to ring me back having spoken to the mechanic but some 5 hours later nothing.
Any advice on recourse....this cannot go unpunished.
That is appalling and I can guess the company you are talking about. They admittedly normally have a very good reputation and seems they have definitely let the ball drop in this case.
I think you need to give them a chance to offer a resolution but I would be looking for a chunky discount or a free service next year (if you can trust them again).
I think you need to give them a chance to offer a resolution but I would be looking for a chunky discount or a free service next year (if you can trust them again).
Edited by V6Alfisti on Thursday 1st April 14:54
musclecarmad said:
we used to have an alfa 166 in the family.
after it's service it was being driven home and smoke started coming from under the bonnet. then infront of my own eyes the bonnet started melting like something you would see in terminator. within about 2 minutes the car was a burnt out wreck on the side of the motorway - completely and utterly burnt out just a charred chassis and bodywork remained.
from that day on i never want anything italian again. alfa genuinely do NOT know what they are doing when it comes to servicing their cars.
at least a porsche/audi/merc will start in a morning!
What was the cause of the fire in the end?after it's service it was being driven home and smoke started coming from under the bonnet. then infront of my own eyes the bonnet started melting like something you would see in terminator. within about 2 minutes the car was a burnt out wreck on the side of the motorway - completely and utterly burnt out just a charred chassis and bodywork remained.
from that day on i never want anything italian again. alfa genuinely do NOT know what they are doing when it comes to servicing their cars.
at least a porsche/audi/merc will start in a morning!
Don't bet on a Porsche/Audi/Merc
Audi:
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=200902...
Mercedes:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59INJ6mXVaI
Porsche:
http://www.elrania.com/porschefire/
http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/dc_law_firm...
Edited by V6Alfisti on Thursday 1st April 15:24
John MacK said:
Did you check the wheel nuts were tight?
I have been advised to do this after a few miles by every garage I have ever been to that has had my wheels of for any reason.
All the tyre places usually have a disclaimer to this affect, however i can say i have NEVER had a loose wheel nut/bolt after doing anything myself if they are torqued up correctly. This could have ended MUCH worse for the OP, not good.I have been advised to do this after a few miles by every garage I have ever been to that has had my wheels of for any reason.
John MacK said:
Did you check the wheel nuts were tight?
I have been advised to do this after a few miles by every garage I have ever been to that has had my wheels of for any reason.
I've used dozens of garages over the years and I can't recall ever being advised that, or even seeing it in writing on an invoice etc. It's always puzzled me as it's standard practice to be told in tyre places.I have been advised to do this after a few miles by every garage I have ever been to that has had my wheels of for any reason.
OP: You could contact the local trading standards dept.
Edited by Deva Link on Thursday 1st April 15:31
I had the same thing happen, on my Mercedes. It was with an independent Merc specialist to have the fuel lines done to try and fix a cold start problem.
£500 worse off (it had a service as well) , driving home and one of the rear wheels fell off.
They sent out a nice chap to put it back on.
Next day, car still wouldn't start, so for £500 I had a near death experience on the A34 and a lump of useless metal on the drive.
Happily the garage picked it up and fixed it properly the next day, no troubles with the car since.
The next day my son was born so I forgot all about being angry, but I often wonder what other people would expect as compensation in this situation (especially with the garage admitting responsibility).
£500 worse off (it had a service as well) , driving home and one of the rear wheels fell off.
They sent out a nice chap to put it back on.
Next day, car still wouldn't start, so for £500 I had a near death experience on the A34 and a lump of useless metal on the drive.
Happily the garage picked it up and fixed it properly the next day, no troubles with the car since.
The next day my son was born so I forgot all about being angry, but I often wonder what other people would expect as compensation in this situation (especially with the garage admitting responsibility).
I would threaten them with some sort of legal action and maybe the local or even national papers unless they refund you 100% of what the so called service cost you, plus rectify any damaged caused by the wheel coming off.
Also tell them you are a member of the Alfa owners club & that you are going to tell every club member that you know about their appalling service.
Whatever you do, do not give up on these useless b
ds!!
Also tell them you are a member of the Alfa owners club & that you are going to tell every club member that you know about their appalling service.
Whatever you do, do not give up on these useless b
ds!!scoobster999 said:
As a proud owner of an Alfa 147 I decided that on the expiry of the official 3 year warranty I would get the car serviced at an Alfa Specialist rather than main dealer. Couple of weeks ago I took the car to a well known Alfa expert in Bedfordshire for a full service.
The service took place and included the changing of a couple of tyres.
Having reported a couple of minor faults - cruise control not working and a blown bulb, on collecting the car and paid close to £500 for the work I then found out that the bulb hadnt been replaced, nor the cruise control sorted. An hour waiting and an additional £65 and off I went only to find that the washer bottle was empty. Hardly what I would call good and consciencious servicing, what else was missed?
Today driving on the M25 the car started to vibrate from the front left corner to the point where it was becoming undrivable so I decided to pull over and have a look. As I crossed into the slow lane there was a bang and the car dropped at the corner. First thoughts were a suspension collapse. Having safely stopped I looked and to my amazement found that the front wheel had actually come off, only the wing had stopped the wheel going all together. A closer inspection revealed 2 sheared bolts - the other 3 were missing altogether.
I managed to get one of the sheared bolts out, and used the spares from the locking wheelnuts box to get mobile again with 4 bolts, but on closer inspection around all 4 corners the wheel nuts on the other 3 wheels were only finger tight at best.
I feel totally amazed at how lucky I am, the wheel could have gone any time and conceivably gone not oncoming traffic and killed someone. The service manager was totally dismissive and promised to ring me back having spoken to the mechanic but some 5 hours later nothing.
Any advice on recourse....this cannot go unpunished.
I had a similar thing happen last year when I had my rear brakes replaced by my local BMW Indie - received the car back saying the job was completed and test driven - on my way home (with my two children in the car) I noticed a knocking noise coming from the back of the car - when I checked the wheel bolts every one on the rear was finger tight - needless to say I hit the roof!The service took place and included the changing of a couple of tyres.
Having reported a couple of minor faults - cruise control not working and a blown bulb, on collecting the car and paid close to £500 for the work I then found out that the bulb hadnt been replaced, nor the cruise control sorted. An hour waiting and an additional £65 and off I went only to find that the washer bottle was empty. Hardly what I would call good and consciencious servicing, what else was missed?
Today driving on the M25 the car started to vibrate from the front left corner to the point where it was becoming undrivable so I decided to pull over and have a look. As I crossed into the slow lane there was a bang and the car dropped at the corner. First thoughts were a suspension collapse. Having safely stopped I looked and to my amazement found that the front wheel had actually come off, only the wing had stopped the wheel going all together. A closer inspection revealed 2 sheared bolts - the other 3 were missing altogether.
I managed to get one of the sheared bolts out, and used the spares from the locking wheelnuts box to get mobile again with 4 bolts, but on closer inspection around all 4 corners the wheel nuts on the other 3 wheels were only finger tight at best.
I feel totally amazed at how lucky I am, the wheel could have gone any time and conceivably gone not oncoming traffic and killed someone. The service manager was totally dismissive and promised to ring me back having spoken to the mechanic but some 5 hours later nothing.
Any advice on recourse....this cannot go unpunished.
When I contacted the workshop owner he was very apologetic, and said he would sort it out - I had a call a few days later to say that the guy who had worked on my car was now unemployed - needless to say I didn't I believe that.
The outcome from this little mistake is I now no longer trust the the indie to do any work, and I now place the service work elsewhere, a dealer that I trust.
As for compo, in my case I simply didn't push for it, other than to ask for their procedures to be modified, so that "safety critical" work is checked by another technician - in your case you have suffered "material loss" so I would be pursuing this to recompense any loss or expense you have suffered as a result of their negligence.
TriumphVitesse said:
I would threaten them with some sort of legal action and maybe the local or even national papers unless they refund you 100% of what the so called service cost you, plus rectify any damaged caused by the wheel coming off.
Also tell them you are a member of the Alfa owners club & that you are going to tell every club member that you know about their appalling service.
Do the second one after the first one. Once you've told everyone then that's hardly going to encourage the garage to sort it out.Also tell them you are a member of the Alfa owners club & that you are going to tell every club member that you know about their appalling service.
I had my Alfa 156 serviced, clutch replaced, cambelt and aux belt done by an Alfa indy in Northamptonshire. Seemed like good blokes, didn't overly mind when they took over a week to do it as I still had my old car and thought I was getting a good deal.
Final bill wasa round £150 more than quoted - apparently to cover a replaced boost pipe. Expensive pipe. I let it slide. They hadn't put in the new battery I asked for. I went and got one and they put it in. Wasn't overly impressed with their guy using a lighter to get enough light to see the cell health indicator in the dark!
Engine made a bit of a scratching noise from cold - took it back - they couldn't find anything wrong and suggested they all sounded like that, probably turbo noise, blah blah. Noticed a minor leak of clean oil - they looked, said they couldn't find anything leaking. By now I was pretty wary of letting them touch it again, so when the brake pads and discs needed replacing a few weeks later, I took it to my local garage instead. They discovered my intermittent ABS warning light was because the well respected Alfa indy had disconnected the sensor on one wheel and left it hung over the CV joint instead of putting it back in place. The wire had wrapped round the CV joint, destroying the boot over the course of the thousand or so miles I'd driven since then. The oil leak is a gearbox seal, minor but it wasn't there before. The scratching noise is two idlers on the aux belt which need replacing - and I had asked the indy outfit to renew *everything* in that area. They'd only done the belt itself and the auto tensioner. Needless to say I won't be going back to them. I honestly don't get the point of doing shoddy work like this, is repeat business of such little interest that they don't want it?
I had wondered about the possible benefits of using an Alfa 'specialist' but frankly now I think it's all nonsense and if you have found yourself a trustworthy competent garage, stick with them and don't bother with any supposed 'specialist' who is just as likely to be a an incompetent cowboy as any other garage you may randomly select.
Final bill wasa round £150 more than quoted - apparently to cover a replaced boost pipe. Expensive pipe. I let it slide. They hadn't put in the new battery I asked for. I went and got one and they put it in. Wasn't overly impressed with their guy using a lighter to get enough light to see the cell health indicator in the dark!
Engine made a bit of a scratching noise from cold - took it back - they couldn't find anything wrong and suggested they all sounded like that, probably turbo noise, blah blah. Noticed a minor leak of clean oil - they looked, said they couldn't find anything leaking. By now I was pretty wary of letting them touch it again, so when the brake pads and discs needed replacing a few weeks later, I took it to my local garage instead. They discovered my intermittent ABS warning light was because the well respected Alfa indy had disconnected the sensor on one wheel and left it hung over the CV joint instead of putting it back in place. The wire had wrapped round the CV joint, destroying the boot over the course of the thousand or so miles I'd driven since then. The oil leak is a gearbox seal, minor but it wasn't there before. The scratching noise is two idlers on the aux belt which need replacing - and I had asked the indy outfit to renew *everything* in that area. They'd only done the belt itself and the auto tensioner. Needless to say I won't be going back to them. I honestly don't get the point of doing shoddy work like this, is repeat business of such little interest that they don't want it?
I had wondered about the possible benefits of using an Alfa 'specialist' but frankly now I think it's all nonsense and if you have found yourself a trustworthy competent garage, stick with them and don't bother with any supposed 'specialist' who is just as likely to be a an incompetent cowboy as any other garage you may randomly select.
wobert said:
As for compo, in my case I simply didn't push for it, other than to ask for their procedures to be modified, so that "safety critical" work is checked by another technician - in your case you have suffered "material loss" so I would be pursuing this to recompense any loss or expense you have suffered as a result of their negligence.
Good man. I am glad I am not the only one on this forum who thinks like this.
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