Post by
PapaSmurf2k3 »
https://forums.nicoclub.com/papasmurf2k3-u3044.html
Fri Apr 09, 2010 3:19 pm
I have actually already done some work- such as changing the oil, reconnecting the major ground wire, and changing out the oil pressure sending unit.
Here is the letter I am sending to my credit card company (the detailed description of the dispute... required as part of the paperwork I send in). They also require the receipts I received from Dobbs, and an estimate for the work from another shop. I'll have to call and get the latter tomorrow:
Details regarding transaction between James Sisson and Dobbs Honda of Memphis
I (James Sisson) first contacted Dobbs Honda on Covington Pike in Memphis, TN in late February, or early March 2010 regarding a quote for some service to be performed on my 1997 Honda Prelude. The parts/work requested included:Timing belt, water pump, accessory belts, front main seal, head gasket, rebuild the head, fuel filter, Vtec manifold gasket, Vtec solenoid gasket and an inspection of all the components while they were disassembled.In order to do the requested repairs, they also had to replace the exhaust manifold gasket, in addition to the intake manifold gasket (not a problem).
I was originally quoted roughly $1750 for the entire job, with a 3 day turn around, so I dropped the car off on March 6th, 2010, expecting to pick it up by the following weekend.
3 days turned into 3 weeks, and when I went to pick up the car on March 27th, I was hit with a $2818.72 service bill… a far cry from the $1750 estimate I had originally received more than 3 weeks earlier. They claimed that there were some problems associated with the work (specifically, that the exhaust manifold studs were rusted into the head and that they had to drill them out, re-tap the head, and replace all the studs), and that is why there was such a large increase in price. Sensing something fishy going on, I paid with my Citi card so I could retract my payment in the event that I find something wrong with the car after I perform a thorough inspection.
Roughly 20 miles from the dealership (while driving the car back to my house), the oil pressure light came on. I immediately parked the car and shut off the engine, for fear of damaging the engine. I continued the rest of the way home in another vehicle (which I had to buy due to the excessively long repair times). I immediately called Brady Hutchison, assistant service manager of Dobbs Honda, my point of contact for the repair, and left a voice mail explained the situation.The next day, I returned to the car in the daylight with some tools and extra oil to do an inspection to see if there were any obvious problems as to why the car wasn’t making enough oil pressure (excessive leaks, etc). I didn’t find any, but I did see that the exhaust manifold studs which they said they had to remove, drill, and replace, were in fact the same ones that were on the car when I brought it in. I also noticed major ground wires disconnected and loose in the engine bay, as well as a few coolant leaks and some miss-located bolts. I checked the oil, and it was about 1.5 quarts below the “full” mark. It also smelled like parts cleaner. All this suggested that there was some very sub-par work done to the car, and I had been falsely charged a large sum of money. I thought the oil pressure problem was simply due to low oil, as well as possibly the disconnected ground wire, so I topped off the oil and reconnected the major ground wire. The car started and the oil pressure light didn’t come on for the entire trip home. I DID take pictures of the questionable work done.
The following day (Monday, March 29th), I received a call from Brady Hutchison. I again explained to him the situation, and said that I would be bringing the car back for him to inspect the lack of work done to the car which he claimed was responsible for the excessive repair bill, pending the oil pressure light didn’t come back on after I changed the oil. He agreed with the work I was doing to get the car to a drive-able state. After the oil change, the low pressure light came back on during a test drive, in addition to a check engine light. Again, I stopped the car and shut off the engine for fear of permanent damage. I called Brady Hutchison at Dobbs Honda again the following day, and informed him of the situation. He claimed it was probably just a sensor. I asked which oil pressure sending unit it could be (there are 2 on a 1997 Honda Prelude), so that I could swap it out with a new unit. He didn’t know, but told me that he would get back to me after talking to one of his techs. This is the last time I had talked to Brady Hutchison or anyone else at Dobbs Honda. He never called me back to tell me which sensor was responsible for the low oil light, so I did my own research and changed it out on the morning of April 7th. I also checked the code for the check engine light, and saw that it was due to “Insufficient Exhaust Gas Recirculation Flow”, which, upon further research of my own, is most likely due to a coked up/clogged intake port in one of the manifolds… something the service man should have checked for while the engine was apart (which I had requested he do). The low oil pressure light remained illuminated after changing the sensor, suggesting that there is, in fact, something major wrong with the car. I again called Brady Hutchison of Dobbs Honda and informed him of the situation, and requested he call me back with his response/plan. Seeing as how I still hadn’t heard from him from the previous phone call (and by this point, I was quite upset with the situation), I called Citi Cards and told them not to pay Dobbs Honda. Brady Hutchison and Dobbs Honda claimed they would warranty the work for a full 12 months after receiving the car, and yet they haven’t even attempted to make good on any of the questionable “service” and charges made to me. It has been OVER A MONTH since I brought the car to Dobbs Honda on Covington Pike in Memphis, TN, and the car is in worse shape than when I brought it in. It is not driveable in its current state.
Think there is anything else I should include? Did I leave anything out?
