Dear Reader,
Our car, a 1995 Eagle Vision
(same as the Chrysler Concorde and Dodge Intrepid), has experienced
engine trouble landing it in a series of repair facilities for close
to two years. Before going to Butler-Conti Dodge Service center in
Lafayette, it was at the Wayne Stead Jeep Eagle Service Center in
Walnut Creek and then at Kevin Hinkley's Auto Tech in Castro Valley.
Each of these shops spent several months trying to diagnose the problem.
Both Wayne Stead and Kevin Hinkley were unsuccessful in their attempts
to find the problem. However, Mr. Hinkley was able to map the plug
firing sequence to the nanosecond and noticed that the first coil
was dropping out at random instances. Though he had found "What",
he could not figure out "Why". Tracing every ground and replacing
the computer could not raise a cause. To their credit, neither Hinkley
or Stead service centers charged us for the parts they had replaced
or the hours of labor.
While the car was at Kevin
Hinkley's, we contacted Chrysler Motors to attempt to get them involved.
Though, we trusted Mr. Hinkley, Chrysler would not address it unless
the car was in a dealership. In April of 2000, we had it towed to
Butler-Conti Dodge. We informed them of the car's history and told
them that the focus of their repair efforts would be to contact Chrysler
Motors. They gave us an estimate of $170 to diagnose our car's problem.
As they worked to find the trouble, we continually told them that
they should not spend too much time on their own. Weeks at a time
went by without hearing from them. We would call regularly to ask
them to keep us informed. At one point, I asked Don, the service manager,
to give me a weekly updated. I finally had to call them back five
weeks later after not hearing from them. During this time, we called
on Chrysler for help. Their representative was extremely rude and
would not assist us in any way. One particular phone conversation
included his statement, "That's what you get for buying a used car!"
December 2000, eight months
later, they finally found that the flywheel was rubbing the engine
block. Unfortunately, they said, this may or may not explain the electrical
ignition problem. In addition to the hours and parts they had in the
car, they now wanted at least $6,000 to pull the and check it out.
We said we would be interested in the work if they could guarantee
that this would fix the car. They would not. Chrysler Motor Company,
by now, was not going to help so we decided to remove the car from
the shop at Butler-Conti. Around Christmas time, I asked Lenny Nadeau,
our service manager, what it would cost me to get my car out of their
shop. In order to tow the car from Butler-Conti's shop, they wanted
$2,343.48 in labor and parts.
It was at this time that
we submitted a claim to Consumer Affair's Bureau of Automotive Repair.
And, as the dealership was now threatening to charge stowage fees
and place a lien on the vehicle, our representative recommended that
we pay the bill and get it out of there. On January 15, 2001 we paid
their $2,348.48 bill.
Our representative at the
Bureau of Automotive Repair, Dennis Columb, has been extremely helpful.
Anywhere Automotive of Concord was now responsible for attempting
a repair on our car. They first saw the car on Tuesday, January 21st.
On Thursday, February 1, Mr. Columb was able to photograph the car
and again speak at length, with Mike Babcock, the owner of Anywhere
Automotive. Two days earlier, Mike had told me that the Flex Plate
on the flywheel had broken free. The sensor on that flex plate was
sending a miss-timed signal and the car was cutting out. I was amazed
and relieved by their quick diagnoses. This excitement was short lived
as we also discovered the condition that Butler-Conti returned the
car. Both Mike and Dennis have been able to document and photograph
several surprising conditions.
After reviewing available
paper work and interviewing both sides, the Bureau of Automotive Repair
will issue several citations this week to Butler-Conti Dodge of Lafayette.
More than one of these will be for the lack of documentation by the
shop that could possibly justify their bill. The original diagnostic
quote given us was even done incorrectly. A complete investigative
report from Mr. Columb and the Bureau can be subpoenaed in court if
needed.
January 22, a day after
our car arrived at Anywhere Automotive, Mike Babcock's shop noticed
that the oil he added to my car was pouring onto their floor. He put
the car on the hoist and called me in to look at the current condition:
- No oil
- No oil filter
- Two loose bolts holding
on the pan (missing the other 16 bolts and the gasket)
- 2 Motor mounts disconnected
and missing their bolts
- Metal heat shields for
the rubber motor-mount bushings were no longer bolted down
- One half of the crankshaft's
thrust bearing was removed and missing.
- The battery was dead
and bad.
In the end, I am extremely
lucky that the battery was dead, because after charging it for a day,
I was trying to start the car! This would have instantly destroyed
my engine.
Anywhere Automotive has
had to order a new crank thrust bearing set, gaskets and the other
missing engine parts. With labor and parts, including a new battery,
our car is on the road for the first time in nearly two years - two
weeks after leaving Butler-Conti on a tow truck.
Due to our experience with
Butler-Conti Dodge of Lafayette and the findings of the experts mentioned
above, we feel the amount of our bill, $2,343.48, was extremely out
of line. Please do not hesitate to contact us with questions and clarifications
at:
bad_service@butler-conti.com