alignment went horribly wrong

[Muswagon]

Went for an alignment on friday... things were going great. Updates, got the caster that was way out of whack on drivers side corrected, camber was set near zero...blah blah.

Then it was time for them to take it off machine. They forgot about something on the pass side that they called a header.. blew the tire, nicked the rim and damaged the fender.. still kinda seems like it didn't happen lol

 

[71mach1lady]

Sorry, I hope they didn't forget about a thing called insurance

 

[73mach1UK]

That's very sloppy of them!! I Sure hope they fix that and give some some credit if you ever go there again!

 

[Mikes73]

Ouch, that's not good!

 

[jeremycfr]

And where will the funerals be held?

 

[nailpounder]

it seems that there is less and less pride in the business world .owners are less involved in the company and there employes. its just about the money. we as the consumer are the loosers. sorry to here it happned

 

[c9zx]

I hope you get more than an apology. Something like fix the damage and free alignments for life, at another shop. Sorry this happened. Chuck

 

[mpbsr]

Man, this would really piss me off.

 

[cudak888]

Sorry to hear about it. Could be worse though - fenders are easier than quarters to replace. I once heard of a local Midas shop that let a '56 Nomad drop straight off a lift, onto it's butt. Shop insurance had to cover close to $50k in repairs, IIRC.

I'm still not quite sure what happened here though - Did the header catch onto the frame of the lift and cause the car to drop? How did the tire to get slashed?

-Kurt

 

[rocket366]

Totally Sucks!

+10 on the shop insurance

That is the S I'm afraid of and When I needed to do an alignment I schooled myself

on the scary alignment voodoo... bought a Longacre camber/caster gauge and did it at home.

Too many weird things have happened to my cars in the hands of others!

Regards

Paul

 

[jpaz]

That bites!

 

[Muswagon]

They are putting new tires on today and I will take it home. They were trying to say they owed me one tire but couldnt get the brand I have, to which I replied you owe me two tires then right?

Shop owner is back Wednesday. We will have a nice long chat..

I did not actually get mad... Was more shocked that anyone could be that dumb

 

[Mister 4x4]

Wow - I can't even imagine what happened to cause that.

They wouldn't have been using a 2-post lift, by any chance would they? (seriously - that's the only thing I can think of)

 

[Paul of MO]

Having run many a dealership service department plus other standalone shops I will bet you will be happy with how they take care of you.

Your shocked because this has happened to you - they are simply just dealing with something that happens a few times each year. They have crap like this built into their budget.

Saw a Crown Vic fall sideways between the legs of a lift and get torn in half while trying to get it unstuck. It was in for its very first oil change. Customer got another brand new car.

Dealt with a Boss 351 that was brought in for a clutch upgrade and was returned with 200 extra miles and rear wheel wells full of rubber from the clients brand new tires. Big checks were cut and people got fired over that one.

On my way to work I drove past my lot porter standing by a customers Mustang GT - both by a Florida Highway Patrolman - the GT was on its roof. I did not even stop.

Had to charge the porter with theft to get the insurance to cover it. Had to plead to the court not to put the kid in jail for being young and stupid.

Had to cover the damage caused by salespeople from the competing dealership that was right next door to us driving golf balls into my service parking area. They claimed it was hail damage - we had them on video. One that got fired actually came over to our dealer and applied for a job.

Back before there were a billion plus key codes we gave a customer his keys for his new little red Comet. He left. Later - Gave a lady her keys for her new little red Comet - she came back and said the keys worked but it was not her car as it was a absolute mess inside. Took us 3 weeks to track down the dude and get the right car to the right person. He had taken it out of state. He commented that he just thought we had done a great job cleaning his car before we gave it back to him.

Be fair with them and they will be fair with you.

- Paul

 

[Muswagon]

Paul, I really appreciate the note. I will take your advice!

The story gets worse actually, got in it, drove it for 2 mins and realized omg, this thing is a death trap. It was rush hour so I white knuckled it home as there was no way I could turn around.

Hard to describe what is happening but its left/right repeat reallllly quick then yank over to one side then track straight for a bit then massive fade. I wish I was exaggerating. In the back of my mind I know that some of this has to be a pre-existing condition...maybe the settings were out of whack to make it drivable before??

Now the really weird part, I felt something 'move' when I let out the clutch and parked in my garage. It was on the same side as the damage.

I phoned and asked;

- why didnt anyone take it for a test drive? No real answer

- could something suspension related taken a hit from the damage to the tire/rim/fender? Answer was no.... Follow up question, did you check? Answer was no! Wow

I did not get mad at all through this process, or the phone call. It is so undrivable I cannot even bring it back to the shop unless i get it towed, which is not convienent for me at all

I will let you know what happens when the owner gets back from extended weekend on Wednesday

 

[Paul of MO]

Wait for the owner - the people you are working with are justifiably in fear of getting fired.

Have him arrange and pay for the tow back to their shop or better yet have him arrange and pay for the tow to another shop that you trust to get a full estimate of the damage.

You are entitled to a rental car until your car is repaired to your satisfaction.

Stay nice - be nice - it will turn out nice.

Also:

You understand that accidents do happen - Let him know that once everything is put back as it should be you will give them proper respect on line as you are an active member on one of the largest Mustang web groups in the world.

They will understand what you are actually saying.

- Paul

 

[Jim and Jutta]

Paul, I really appreciate the note. I will take your advice!

The story gets worse actually, got in it, drove it for 2 mins and realized omg, this thing is a death trap. It was rush hour so I white knuckled it home as there was no way I could turn around.

Hard to describe what is happening but its left/right repeat reallllly quick then yank over to one side then track straight for a bit then massive fade. I wish I was exaggerating. In the back of my mind I know that some of this has to be a pre-existing condition...maybe the settings were out of whack to make it drivable before??

Now the really weird part, I felt something 'move' when I let out the clutch and parked in my garage. It was on the same side as the damage.

I phoned and asked;

- why didnt anyone take it for a test drive? No real answer

- could something suspension related taken a hit from the damage to the tire/rim/fender? Answer was no.... Follow up question, did you check? Answer was no! Wow

I did not get mad at all through this process, or the phone call. It is so undrivable I cannot even bring it back to the shop unless i get it towed, which is not convienent for me at all

I will let you know what happens when the owner gets back from extended weekend on Wednesday

To blow a tire, the impact had to be pretty hard, hope they do right by you.

 

[jeremycfr]

If it happened to my truck I would've upset but it would be a controlled anger. My Mustang would require a barn (shop) burning.

Everyone please keep in mind I'm speaking figuratively.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Muswagon]

K so spoke to the owner. He was not a dick, but has major potential to be one (you just get that impression from people), He didn't apologize once and insisted that he does any mechanical repairs and his 'trusted' body shop would do the body work. I did not say what was on my mind, which was that I do not trust him or any of his people to go anywhere near my car.

He clearly doesnt understand that this isnt a 99 corolla when he suggested that just leave the keys and the car for the tow truck driver if he comes while you are at work, and I will 'try' and meet him when the car gets here. I was thinking....ummmm... NO

Anyway, we agreed that I would get estmates on the alignment issue and if there is any mechanical damage causing it, and that I would get estimates on the body repairs. From there we can 'discuss'

He is adamant that he does not want me to go through insurance. In my province, we have public insurance (one provider, government agency), so all shops are signed on and it really hurts them if a claim comes against them. So at very least I have that ace in my pocket if this gets ugly. The damage isnt really that bad if you consider I was going to replace my tires anyway, repaint the car in spring of 16, and change the front rims to matching weld rims. Worst case I fix it myself and threaten small claims lol. The easiest for me is go through insurance and they pay 100% of parts and materials and 50% of shop rate per hour that the job was spec'd out at by the estimator