Can I get auto shop to pay?

[goodstarr]

In short, our car's battery light came on Saturday. Eventually died-called AAA-got jumped and drove home. Bought new battery. Battery light kept coming on-took to dealer auto shop and told them to check alternator (sp). They checked car (even did minor service) but found nothing wrong. Hubby drove to Md and car died on the way back in Delaware. Live in NJ and have to have AAA tow to auto shop. Only have basic AAA plan-so have to pay $3/mile for tow ($150 probably) to shop. Can I have shop pay for tow since they didn't fix the problem? Need to know now-will present this dilemma to auto shop in morning.

 

[goodstarr]

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[Serena]

It wouldn't hurt to try.

Although, if they did what you asked, then I don't see it happening.
What did the AAA guy say it was? Did you have the AAA guy try to get it to start, or just had them tow it?

 

[goodstarr]

The auto shop said they couldn't find anything wrong with the car, then it broke down the same day! AAA jumped it on Saturday (enough to get me home), but today, they're towing hubby right now. The car died at a rest stop (thank God), so he didn't want to risk getting a jump and then the car dying on the DM Bridge.

 

[Serena]

I hope you get it.

 

[mudnuri]

If they could not duplicate the problem, they're clear. If they tested the alt and it tested okay, there's nothing more..however if they WROTE on the work order that "they tested alt and it was fine" and then tomorrow they tell you "its a bad alt"...well, then yes you have minor recourse.

I doubt they will cover the cost of towing, even if it is a bad alt. Electrical problems which this sounds like can come and go etc..

Good luck

Brandy

 

[PamOKW]

I had something similar. The seat belt light would flash on and off while driving. I took it into the dealer and they looked it over and said "it must be a package on the seat". I told them there wasn't anything on the seat. (I suspected something was funky with the electrical system.) They said they couldn't find anything and not to worry about it.

3 days later -- car is dead in a parking lot 1 1/2 hours from home. I ended up having it fixed there but they had to keep it a day and a half so I also ended up renting a car to get back and forth. Mine was also a bad alternator. The dealer took no responsiblity. Didn't even say they were sorry.

Maybe you'll have better luck.

 

[DocRafiki]

I'm no mechanic, but I'm going to assume that a mechanic can't see EVERY problem in a car without running a boatload of tests and possibly even having to do a great deal of disassembly. I'm even more certain that they can't see things that are ABOUT to happen.

I know cars are much more simple than living beings (duh), but you can easily get a clean bill of health from a Dr one day and drop dead the next.

 

[we3luvdisney]

Originally posted by DocRafiki
I know cars are much more simple than living beings (duh), but you can easily get a clean bill of health from a Dr one day and drop dead the next.

Note to self ...... don't go to DocRafiki for a check-up

 

[goodstarr]

Thanks everyone. Update-Auto shop said SURPRISE-it was the alternator (sp). I understand that an auto shop can't always find a problem without running every test there is, but when we say "the battery light keeps coming on even after we bought a new battery-please check the alternator", I expect that there are certain tests that do just that. In short, they tried to get out of paying, but eventually they ended up taking about $100 off the price . (They said that we could have had it towed to someplace locally in DE-but it was 9pm by the time the tow truck came so nothing was open. He would have had to spend the night-then we would have wanted them to pay the hotel bill. Plus, if we had anyone else fix it besides them, I think we would have had a harder time getting any financial retribution, whether it be for towing or hotel stay.) And DocRafiki, I understand what you're saying. But, if I go to my doc and say that I'm having chest pains all the time and she runs numerous heart studies and says that everything is fine and that she sees no problem. If I drop dead the next day of a heart attack, I would think that I was misdiagnosed.