A J's Auto Repair Inc

[redacted] Please See Attached Documents [redacted]
Included is a letter we sent to [redacted] in response for his request for a refund. I willalso try to make this situation more understandable to your department. [redacted]'s statementthat the vehicle came to us with a rotational noise coming from the left...

rear of the vehicle iscorrect. The fact that his vehicle left our shop with the same noise is also correct. I will explain.To determine the nature of a mechanical problem with any given wheel the process alwaysstarts by raising the car and rotating the wheels by hand and checking for either noise,resistance, or excessive bearing play. Three ofthe wheels on the vehicle spun freely, andshowed little sign of wheel bearing wear, however, the left rear wheel was mechanicallycompromised and very difficult to rotate. We removed the wheel and tire on that side as wellas part# 2 being the brake rotor and part #l being the caliper and bracket assembly so that wecould tell if the wheel bearing itself was the reason why the axle was so hard to rotate. By thenwe knew the wheel bearing was damaged so we told Mr. [redacted] and gave him a price toreplace the wheel bearing which was the same price that we gave him when he originally calledand asked for a phone quote. Upon his authorization we removed the axle and bearing and justas all suspected the bearing was partially locked up and so tight it could not be spun by hand sowe replaced it and began to assemble the vehicle. Upon assembling part #7 to the axle housingitself we found that it would not fit properly and asked Mr. [redacted] for additional time to setup and measure to determine the source of the misalignment. We knew then that somethingwas bent and that whatever was bent was the most logical cause for the wheel bearing to lockup in the first place. None the less we completely reassembled the vehicle and as we againsuspected the axle and bearing assembly was again very difficult to rotate by hand. Since wework daily with collision shops and deal with this sort of damage often, we told Mr. [redacted]that the damage was most likely the result of an accident that involved an impact to thevehicle's left rear wheel and tire and that in many cases the entire rear axle housing itself has tobe replaced. Those sorts of cast steel parts are certainly not parts that one would attempt tobend back in place. He said that he did not believe that was the case and told us that he wasgoing to pick up the vehicle, which he did. I also received a phone call from [redacted]'s mechanicaladvisor telling me that we should give [redacted]'s money back prior to [redacted] asking for a refund. Isuspect that [redacted] is an honest person with according to himself, little to no mechanicalknowledge and is being ill-advised by a friend. All else aside he asked us to install a new wheel
bearing and we installed a new wheel bearing. He can't possibly believe that we are responsible
for damage beyond that. We have a great deal of time into telling and showing him what'swrong with his vehicle. I believe we have gone over and above our commitment to deliver thebest possible customer service.

Complaint: [redacted]I am rejecting this response because:
 This shop has given many excuses as to why they missed this problem. I wrote a letter in response to the letter they mailed to me, he failed to respond or return my phone calls while "considering my request for a refund". This is what led to a complaint through the Revdex.com.
 I do not believe that my wheel was diagnosed in the manner he describes, as the form of diagnosis stated on my invoice from this shop is "test driven". This is the first I have heard from him that they physically examined my wheel prior to working on it, I suspect that this is because I questioned this in a prior letter to the shop. Furthermore, if they did physically examine my wheel, it was not done properly. It would not be required to remove the brake caliber and rotor in order to diagnose a bad wheel bearing. This would only be counterproductive in diagnosing the cause of the grinding, as you are removing a potential cause prior to examination. I have spoken to multiple certified mechanics that support this to be true. I will have statements prepared as physical proof of this. It is ridiculous, you expect me to believe that the parts causing the grinding sound had to removed in order for you to examine the bearing. Not true. Also, you would've noticed the groove worn in rotor, this should've alerted you that this part is rubbing and causing the grinding sound. I have a picture of these grooves, taken by the mechanic that fixed my car, directly following the mishaps at your shop.
 I should add that the price I was charged at your shop was more than I was quoted on the phone, contradictory to a statement that you previously made. This is clearly stated on the invoice from your shop. I will upload a copy of my invoice if needed, but this shop has this information already, so they know this to be true.
 I did not have them install the bearing until they told me that is was the problem. 
This shop admits my car came to them with a noise coming from the wheel, and that it left with the same noise. Yet I'm still being charged full price for a job that didn't fix my vehicle. I'm paying a shop 100+ dollars and hour for a certified mechanic to fix my vehicle. I do not expect to be charged if the mechanic fixes the wrong thing. And I certainly don't intend to pay for mistakes made, be them honest or not. 
 This situation has been well documented. I am confident in presenting my case to a judge, if this is needed in order to resolve the situation. 
Sincerely,[redacted]