ALL Seasons Enterprises & Services

Review: Stopped at business on 1/5/2014 with letter detailing problem with their repairs compared to estimate I was given for my [redacted] 50 tractor. Was told by [redacted] that the owner was nor there but he would look over the problem and see what he could do and would contact me. Told me that [redacted] who did the work and estimate no longer worked for the company. [redacted] never contacted me like he said he would so on 2/1/2014, I wrote a letter to the owner and president of the business [redacted] asking for his help to rectify my problem with his company. As of this date 3/7/2014, I have not been contacted by him or his employee about the extra work that his employee did without contacting me. I do not have my tractor back and have not had use of it for 10 months.

Letter 1 -

[redacted] 50 repair

10/17/12 – [redacted] picked up [redacted] to check for grey smoke from exhaust and fan shaft/bearing noise. [redacted] returned with [redacted] later that day, I was told the grey smoke was from bad rings, the cost to fix would be about $1800, but the tractor could possibly run with the grey smoke for a few years before the rings would fail. The whirling noise of the fan shaft/bearing ( which was repaired by [redacted] 12/2006) would probably be fine for years, could last 10 years before it would be a problem.

Nov 2012 – Used tractor for the first time to take pine needles to field to spread, after about 15 min. oil sprayed out exhaust drenching my hair, face & clothing. I drove it to the barn quickly and shut it off. I knew I would not be using the tractor again until spring so I waited to call [redacted].

Early March 2013 – I called [redacted] to get an estimate for fixing my ** 50, was told they would call back.

Late March 2013 – [redacted] called me back with estimate and stated it would be about $2000, because the labor rate had increased since Oct 2012. I told them to pick up the tractor for repair. [redacted] came and picked up tractor to have it repaired, I told him that since they will be tearing down the engine that they should check the fan shaft bearing.

Middle April 2013 – Stopped by [redacted] to see how the repair on my tractor was proceeding. Talked to [redacted] and he said he had not started on it yet but would be starting in a week or two. I reminded [redacted] since he would be the person doing the work about the fan shaft/bearing noise.

Early May 2013 – Stopped at [redacted] to see if tractor was going to be done soon so I would have it to plow, [redacted] said he had just started to tear it apart, would be done in a few weeks.

Early June 2013 – Stopped at [redacted] to see if tractor was about done and when I would get it back. [redacted] said that there was a problem with the head and it had to go to the machine shop for repair, would call me when it is done.

Middle July 2013 – Stopped at [redacted] for an update, [redacted] told me they had not gotten the head back from the machine shop yet.

Aug 9, 2013 – Called [redacted] to tell them I would be away on vacation for 3 weeks, and if it was fixed during that time they should leave a message so I could pay them and get my tractor. I was told that if it was done while on vacation they would deliver the tractor and put in in the barn.

Aug 30, 2013 – Got home from vacation, looked in barn still no tractor.

1st Week Sept 2013 – Stopped at [redacted], [redacted] told me that they had not gotten the head back from the machine shop, and the machine shop told him that they have to put a sleeve in it.

Late Sept 2013 - Called and talked to [redacted], was told he was still waiting for the machine shop to finnish.

Late Oct 2013 – Stopped at [redacted] on Wed, talked to [redacted] he told me he just got the head back and had painted it that day, would start putting the tractor back together on Thur and would probably have it done Fri. He would call me when it was ready to be delivered. Told me that the cost for repairing the tractor would be $2800, because the machine shop charged more because of the sleeve they put in. I said understood that since they were charged more by the machine shop.

Mid Nov 2013 – [redacted] called, said he had the tractor out driving it around and it sounded and was working great, but he heard the fan shaft/bearing noise, and he decided to tear the tractor apart again to check the noise, he told me he replaced some parts and put it back together, but the cost at that point would now be $4700, but after putting it back together again now there was a radiator leak and the core was too thin to repair and that would add another $700 to the repair for a cost of $5400. I told him I did not think that the tractor was worth putting that much into it, but he said it would be like having a new tractor. I said it would not because the one rear wheel is extremely rusted with a bad looking tire and that repair would probably be costly, so it is not like having a new tractor. I told him that there was never a problem with the leaking radiator until he tore it apart several times, how much is it leaking and could it be used if it was just a drip? I told him I would have to get back to him, that there was no longer a rush to fix it because I would not be using it again till April 2014.

Notes:

Previous repair 12/2006 made by [redacted] was $3001.94 when the fan shaft & bearing housing were replaced with other repair to the engine and clutch.

[redacted] should not have taken it on his own to tear the tractor apart a second time without calling and getting approval for that which I would not have approved since I was previously told that it could run for another 10 years with the whirling noise, and I told him to check that while the tractor and engine were already torn apart. At that point the repair bill was $2800 which I was fine with.

A new aftermarket radiator core can be purchased on EBay for $216.99 including shipping, but why did it only start to leak after it was put back together the second time?

My Name – Repair Shop

[redacted] Sales & Service [redacted], PA [redacted]

Letter 2 - Mailed to [redacted], [redacted], PA [redacted] - home is adjacent to business

[redacted], PA [redacted]

Dear [redacted]:

On Jan 5, 2014 at 12:15 PM, I stopped at your business and talked to [redacted] and gave him a letter detailing my experience dealing with [redacted]. I wanted to talk to you and give you my letter but [redacted] said he would look it over and see what he could do about the estimate and [redacted] doing more work without asking for approval. [redacted] said he would get back to me because the [redacted] was taking up real estate in the shop and he wanted to get rid of it. As of today I have not heard back from [redacted], and I don’t know if he discussed this with you or [redacted]. The estimate started at $2000 and [redacted] told me in Oct. that the cost was going to be $2800 due to the machine shop charge, and I agreed with that, but after he had it together and said it was running really good, he decided on his own to tear it apart again without contacting me. Please look this letter over, and see what you can do to rectify this problem. Thank You..

Sincerely,

[redacted]Desired Settlement: When I was told that the cost would be $2000, I deceided to have it repaired because several years ago I paid them $3000 for repairs, and I thought that the tractor may be worth repairing. I would not have had the tractor picked up and repaired if the cost would have been more than $2000. I would have sold it with the bad rings to someone else and purchased another used tractor.

After [redacted] told me in Oct 2013 that the total was going to be $2800 due to the machine shop charging more, I said OK and was told he would have it done within a week. Since I told [redacted] that I would pay the $2800 even though I did not think the tractor was worth putting that much money into it. I would be willing to pay the $2800 and get my tractor back in working condition. [redacted] had the tractor running great and did not have approval to tear the engine apart the second time for the noise he fan shaft noise he heard. After he tore the engine apart and had it together he then noticed a radiator leak that had not been there until he put the tractor back together for the second time.

I was told $2000, then $2800 that I agreed to, in Nov 2013 [redacted] called me and said the new total to fix it would be $5400 with a new radiator core installed.

I would agree to the $2800 cost and receive my tractor back ion good working condition