My car was having periodic starting issues so I brought it to a local mechanic who diagnosed the problem as the starter, which they replaced. Within a week or so the problem was back (not sure it ever really went away, or if I just didn't drive in the specific manner that caused the issue, which only happened periodically), and eventually got worse than ever. Brought the car back in and they diagnosed it as the battery, which they then replaced.
I don't yet know if the problem is now fixed but, even if it is, do I have any recourse in that (presumably) the problem wasn't the starter in the first place? Or technically since there's no true proof that it wasn't, I'm just out of luck?
Mechanic (obviously) charged me for the starter at the initial repair, and now charged me for the battery as well (not even offering to do it at cost of parts given that, I believe, they did the wrong repair the first time).
I'm guessing that with electronic issues like this perhaps it's tricky to diagnose but, on the flip side, I feel like they should have started with the battery (I don't think they even tested it the first time) to see if that fixed the problem, and then move on to the starter if I didn't.
On a related note, immediately after the starter repair (but before the problem reoccured), I took car to dealer for a different issue, and as part of their courtesy checks they said the battery was failing a load test. This is another reason I now believe that the battery was always the issue and again, seems like the other mechanic never checked the battery or they would have seen it fail, replaced it, and possibly problem solved (w/o having to touch the starter).
Thanks for any thoughts/suggestions as to whether I have any recourse with the mechanic.
I don't yet know if the problem is now fixed but, even if it is, do I have any recourse in that (presumably) the problem wasn't the starter in the first place? Or technically since there's no true proof that it wasn't, I'm just out of luck?
Mechanic (obviously) charged me for the starter at the initial repair, and now charged me for the battery as well (not even offering to do it at cost of parts given that, I believe, they did the wrong repair the first time).
I'm guessing that with electronic issues like this perhaps it's tricky to diagnose but, on the flip side, I feel like they should have started with the battery (I don't think they even tested it the first time) to see if that fixed the problem, and then move on to the starter if I didn't.
On a related note, immediately after the starter repair (but before the problem reoccured), I took car to dealer for a different issue, and as part of their courtesy checks they said the battery was failing a load test. This is another reason I now believe that the battery was always the issue and again, seems like the other mechanic never checked the battery or they would have seen it fail, replaced it, and possibly problem solved (w/o having to touch the starter).
Thanks for any thoughts/suggestions as to whether I have any recourse with the mechanic.
Statistics: Posted by newbie003 — Thu Sep 05, 2024 7:58 am — Replies 16 — Views 762