Paying for work at a dealer - Am I being unreasonable...
Discussion
Long story short, booked the car (Clio mk3. World Series 1.2 - 2009) in to a local Renault dealer at the end of Christmas for rattling when setting off and brakes squealing (brakes were fine for the last few months until it developed). They identified it as the calipers so applied copper grease and grinded the discs, telling me they would last a while like this as they were in good condition (why grind them?).
Two weeks later I'm back with brakes squealing worse than before and calipers rattling the same as before or worse. I've made it clear it's been in and I've been charged £100 for the above. When I collect it am I being unreasonable to be firm in not repaying for this work? After all, they may as well have not done the work.
Two weeks later I'm back with brakes squealing worse than before and calipers rattling the same as before or worse. I've made it clear it's been in and I've been charged £100 for the above. When I collect it am I being unreasonable to be firm in not repaying for this work? After all, they may as well have not done the work.
edc said:
It would be much easier for you to have that conversation before you gave the go ahead to work on the car. Disputing any paymnt after the work is done is a bit off.
I've told them beforehand and the response was 'we will do our best to get it sorted'. I made it clear I wasn't happy after being told it's sorted. I like the dealer and use them so I'm asking so I don't seem unreasonable. Also, at this point it's just an inspection. They'll phone me for authorisation.
Edited by dlawrence97 on Friday 19th January 10:26
Jaroon said:
Or ask for a test drive to check the standard of the repair, if you're not happy then you have the car and the keys, what happens next?
Good point 
It's not a me vs them thing though really. Just wanted to know what was reasonable as I know it's trial and error. The fact it was fine though for a week suggests it was the solution, it just wasn't done right!
Integroo said:
The indie I went to recently replaced a seized caliper rather than refurbing it, labour cost would apparently outweight caliper cost.
This Renault Clio is a World Series edition which includes World Series branding/calipers. No idea if the calipers are better than standard other than being painted red/with stickers as it's only got a 1.2 engine/74bhp. I'm now concerned that if these do need replacing, I presume there's little to no chance of getting official matching 'new' replacements! 
. It's worth more than that.What I'm trying to get at is the inspection is free and I paid for a fix they said would sort it as the brakes are in good condition as are calipers. Suspension is fine and it passed its service/MOT fine. I'm just a little annoyed I could stump up another £90+ to fix what should've been fixed in the first place. I.e. the customer could drive away with them not having touched it and have to go back for another 'fix'.
The suggestion that the brakes are fine is what gets me. If they were fine and it's calipers moving/vibration causing squeals then I believe their grease fix wasn't done properly as it lasted a grand total of 1 week. Braking hard and trying to clear whatever crap may be stuck in them does nothing as well.
I just don't think this comes down to trial and error. They know what's causing it but did a bad job fixing it.
I guess they've 'tried' but if it was done properly (and the hourly Renault rate isn't cheap) maybe I wouldn't be in this position. That's the only reason I'm asking, as I have never been in this position really.
The suggestion that the brakes are fine is what gets me. If they were fine and it's calipers moving/vibration causing squeals then I believe their grease fix wasn't done properly as it lasted a grand total of 1 week. Braking hard and trying to clear whatever crap may be stuck in them does nothing as well.
I just don't think this comes down to trial and error. They know what's causing it but did a bad job fixing it.
I guess they've 'tried' but if it was done properly (and the hourly Renault rate isn't cheap) maybe I wouldn't be in this position. That's the only reason I'm asking, as I have never been in this position really.
tonys said:
The garage have been reasonable. £100 these days buys anything from 0.5 - 1.5 hours labour at a main dealer, depending on who/where.
It's the old-school way of working, ie trying to actually fix something rather than the general default of 'replace with new', sadly now quite rare but often priced-out by labour rates. How old are the discs/pads, mileage, use etc etc. Are they genuine Renault pads etc?
There are numerous variables that could affect an 8-year old car that it could be anything, what they did obviously cured it for a while.
They're potentially in a no-win situation, if they'd simply replaced with new and gave you a bill of c£350 you might have felt aggrieved at that. If the pads fitted aren't genuine it's not unknown for them to be fractions of mm out which can sometimes result in clicking and other odd noises.
There was a post on here recently where someone was lauding the benefits of spraying WD40 on brakes to reduce disc corrosion. Numerous people pointed out that it can affect the composition of the pads. I'm not suggesting it is the case here, but a garage could only cure any resultant problems by renewing the pads. It wouldn't be their fault if they couldn't cure it.
It's a matter for you, but if you deal reasonably with them they might come to a deal with you if you end up having new items fitted as you've already paid them to attempt a cure. Assuming you want them to do it. If not, it's probably just unfortunate that the previoys 'cure' didn't last long.
What's you're driving style? Sometimes a few heavy applications of the brakes (in the right circumstances) will vlear off debrus etc that is causing a noise.
I'm quite a heavy braker, mainly to stop the squeal approaching lights and looking like an idiot. Doesn't do it so much under heavy braking. Not owned it from new so I have no idea if they are genuine brakes. Maybe they're originals seeing as though it's only done 25000 miles. It's the old-school way of working, ie trying to actually fix something rather than the general default of 'replace with new', sadly now quite rare but often priced-out by labour rates. How old are the discs/pads, mileage, use etc etc. Are they genuine Renault pads etc?
There are numerous variables that could affect an 8-year old car that it could be anything, what they did obviously cured it for a while.
They're potentially in a no-win situation, if they'd simply replaced with new and gave you a bill of c£350 you might have felt aggrieved at that. If the pads fitted aren't genuine it's not unknown for them to be fractions of mm out which can sometimes result in clicking and other odd noises.
There was a post on here recently where someone was lauding the benefits of spraying WD40 on brakes to reduce disc corrosion. Numerous people pointed out that it can affect the composition of the pads. I'm not suggesting it is the case here, but a garage could only cure any resultant problems by renewing the pads. It wouldn't be their fault if they couldn't cure it.
It's a matter for you, but if you deal reasonably with them they might come to a deal with you if you end up having new items fitted as you've already paid them to attempt a cure. Assuming you want them to do it. If not, it's probably just unfortunate that the previoys 'cure' didn't last long.
What's you're driving style? Sometimes a few heavy applications of the brakes (in the right circumstances) will vlear off debrus etc that is causing a noise.
Toyoda said:
Surely it's sliders moving too much in the caliper. Is the braking performance affected or is it just the noise? Sliders can be replaced without replacing the whole caliper. You need to find a good old fashioned garage.
No difference in braking it seems since it started. Just the noise. Like I said earlier slamming on hard doesn't result in any noise.HTP99 said:
Someone has painted them after purchasing the car then; the World Series is a boggo Dynamique with a bodykit and rear quarter decals which were both fitted at the import centre in the UK after being shipped over.
I know it's nothing more than a Dynamique with a body kit. What I'm wondering though is would anybody go to the trouble of painting calipers? I need to take a closer look or ask a garage to as I'm wondering if they're after market, hence the rattling. Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff