Euro Motorworks, Inc.

Dear Revdex.com,The client is welcome to set an appointment with us next week, at his convenience, so that we may inspect the car to verify the noise in question has been resolved. Terry H***, ASE Master Technician and Co-Owner of Euro Motorworks, would like to be present. He will not be in the office Monday. He will be available Tuesday - Friday. It is preferable to the client and to Euro Motorworks the client be present for the duration of the inspection. If the inspection shows our diagnosis was incorrect we will consider this incident a valuable lesson and happily bring the matter to a resolution. The client may schedule the appointment by calling or by completing our online appointment request at www.euromotorworks.com.Kind Regards,Gloria H***

Comments: I just submitted a complai***- the refund amount I submitted I left off the $so the total amount would be $+ $816=$1513.97.Also I did notify Euro Motorworks but I did decline their then second attempt to fix what was initially not fixed

The Client had his BMW 330i
Sport towed to us on 1/28/and asked us to take a look at issues: 1.) Look for a coolant leak because the engine had overheated. We were told the vehicle had been sitting idle for at least months. The Client stated that any time he would start the car, the engine would overheat. He also told us there was no coolant in the vehicle.2.) Diagnose why the blower motor would cut out sometimes and was noisy when it operated.3.) Diagnose a vibration when braking.The initial time spent by the technician diagnosing these issues was hours, for which The Client was charged $243.10. It seems the only portion of our service The Client is questioning is item #1, the coolant leak issue. In the interest of brevity, I will only discuss that issue. Details for the other service we performed can be seen on attached Invoice #***.As stated, the car was void of coolant when brought to us. We partially filled the system and ran through our procedure to test it for leaks. It was determined the problem was a broken coolant cap for which The Client was charged $+ tax. The important thing to note is that once the broken coolant cap was replaced the system could now maintain pressure.We continued on with the other repairs on the vehicle. During this time a coolant leak presented itself coming from a plastic coolant pipe. This leak was not detected earlier because the system was not under full pressure due to the cracked coolant cap. We received authorization from The Client to remove the intake manifold, replace the plastic coolant pipe, re-install the manifold and fill and bleed the cooling system. He was charged $for this service.It was explained to The Client before, during and after the service that this may not be the only issue with the coolant system. Many key components of BMW cooling systems are made of plastic and are notoriously problematic. Because the car had likely been overheated at some point, an already delicate and aging system had been further stressed. Based on years of experience servicing BMWs, we did not feel it was a matter of “if” but of “when” additional issues would present themselves. This was verbally communicated to The Client multiple times. It was also stated directly on Invoice #***.“NOTE: Vehicles that have experienced engine overheating are likely to exhibit other failures of the cooling system which are presently undetectable. It is impossible to predict when or if these failures will appear. As a result we do not warranty future cooling system failures resulting from the overheating.” The car was finished on 2/9/16. The Client retrieved the car on 2/16/16. He returned with the car a month later on 3/16/reporting a coolant leak. The technician spent an hour diagnosing the new leak, for which The Client was not charged. It was determined the leak was originating from the water pump area. The Client declined further work to the car. He picked the car up that day and drove it away. A very detailed note was written on Invoice #*** further explaining the nature of the coolant system and what might be expected in the future. We also issued a strong warning on Invoice #*** about driving the car with an active coolant leak.“NOTE:When an engine overheats, the entire cooling system and all components related to the cooling system undergo thermal shockThe full degree of stress this shock causes is most often impossible to determineThere is not a "black box" like in an air plane that gives us detail about the overheat event. There are many levels of overheat severity, ranging from mild overheating which can result in the gauge running up to the high end, with no boiling over and no damage done to any of the other components, up to the ultimate over heating in which the engine actually seizes and a complete engine replacement is needed. Often there is damage done to head gaskets, radiators, heater cores, heater valves, hoses, thermostats, etcwhich will not show up until sometime after the engine is running again. A component can be stressed during the event but still be functioning adequately, but actually be on the verge of failing due to the thermal shock of the overheating event.”Apparently, he then took the car to *** *** where they replaced the radiator, thermostat and expansion tank. Today I spoke with Scott, the Service Manager at ***. He remembered the repair well. When asked about his conversation with The Client regarding Euro Motorworks not replacing parts they had charged The Client for replacing, he denied making that statement. He did remember telling The Client the parts he replaced (radiator, thermostat, expansion tank) had not been replaced recently as they were all three looking old. Scott further stated to me he had never seen a copy of the Euro Motorworks invoice so he did not know what we had actually replaced.As with most he said/she said scenarios there is likely some truth to each version of the story. Perhaps The Client indicated to Scott the entire cooling system had been replaced. Perhaps Scott then told The Client the radiator, thermostat and expansion tank were not new and had not been replaced, which of course, was completely true. There is no way of knowing, just speculating what could have happened to cause the misunderstanding.In closing, I do not know what more we could have done? We correctly diagnosed the initial problem. We correctly performed the authorized service using new OEM parts. All the way through the process we kept The Client informed of possible future issues presenting themselves. When an additional issue did present, we diagnosed that and did not charge him. If I thought we had been negligent in any way I would not hesitate to reimburse The Client. After reviewing his complaint thoroughly, I do not see justification for reimbursement.Sincerely,Terry ***Owner

The Client brought his Saab 9-Turbo in for service on July 20th, and met with our ServiceManager, Josh(See attached Invoice #***) He expressed two concerns he wanted us to check into:1.) He was hearing a "humming/whirring" noise beginning at about mph and becoming
mostprominent at around mph2.) He was hearing a belt squeal at start up and idle when the engine wascold and also on acceleration after the engine had warmed upThe second issue was diagnosed asbelt/pulley squeal originating at the belt tensioner as well as the idler pulleyThis diagnosis is not inquestion and won’t be addressed in this response.The diagnosis was assigned to MarkMark has been with us for yearsHe is an ASE Master CertifiedTechnician with additional certifications in Advanced Engine Performance and has been servicingEuropean vehicles for the last years.Mark first took the vehicle for a test driveHis first inclination, after only test driving the car, was to leantoward diagnosing the noise as coming from the front wheel bearingsHe then brought the car into theshop and loaded it on a lift for further inspectionAfter running the car while on the lift and positioninghimself undern*** the car, where he could more clearly hear the noise, he determined the noise wascoming from something other than a wheel bearingA wheel bearing has a very particular noise itmakes when it is going badUsing a stethoscope placed directly on the wheel bearing housing Markdetected a very minor amount of noiseThe noise was so minor he could not be sure it wasn’t beingtransferred from other components and not actually coming from the wheel bearings themselves.Nevertheless, even this minor noise was noted on the Invoice.It was Mark’s opinion that the vast majority of the very loud whirring/rubbing/scraping noise wascoming from the passenger side drive axle support bearingAdditionally, he noted internal noise comingfrom the automatic transmissionMark placed the stethoscope directly on the axle shaft bearinghousingIn his words, “the noise about blew my ears off.” Mark didn’t stop thereHe called anothertechnician over to listen, being careful not to tell him his diagnosis because he didn’t want to bias theother tech’s opinionThe other technician listened to the noise and was of the same opinion.Additionally, Terry H***, Co-Owner of Euro Motorworks, happened to be working in the adjoining bayand also heard the noiseHis opinion was also in line with Mark’sFinally, Service Manager Josh wasasked to come under the car and listen to the noiseThe tech wanted to make sure Josh had a fullunderstanding of the noise and its sourceIt was finally determined that 70% of the noise was comingfrom the axle shaft bearing and the other 30% was coming from the transmission.The Client was called and informed of the tech’s diagnosisIt was then the Client informed Josh thetransmission had been replaced months earlier at another shopNaturally, he was distressed thetransmission could be contributing to the noiseHe decided he would collect the car from us and take itback to the shop that had done the transmission workWe charged him for one hour of diagnosis timeat $per hour.Apparently, the other shop did not agree with our diagnosisI do not know the qualifications orexperience level of the tech at the other shopI do know three very well qualified and extremelyexperienced tech’s at my shop all shared the same opinion the vast majority of the noise was comingfrom the passenger side drive axle support bearing.Regarding the “terribly wobbling right front tire with a bent rim” the other shop pointed out to theClient we had previously noted on Invoice #*** from April 20th, (see attached) “Tires arecupped and producing noise.” This was noted as part of a Free Bumper-to-Bumper inspection weperformed on the carAgain, I can’t be sure what degree of wobbling “terribly wobbling” means to theClientMark did note the bent rim and some wobblingHe did not classify it as “terrible”In any case,we were not being asked to do a full inspection of the carWe were tasked with determining the sourceof the noise, which we didWhatever degree of wobbling there was, it was not a factor in the noise theclient asked us to find and was, therefore, of no particular interest toMark at that time.I happened to be in Josh’s office when the Client called back to accuse us of not diagnosing the noiseproperly and demanded his diagnosis fee be returnedThe conversation was long and arduousJoshdid his best to explain the situation to the ClientWhile I was only hearing one side of the conversation,it was apparent to me the Client did not want to consider the possibility our diagnosis was correctOnthe other end of the spectrum, Josh was so certain of our diagnosis he told the client if he were to havethe wheel bearing replaced and doing so made all the noise go away, thus proving our diagnosis of thetransmission and axle shaft support bearing was wrong, we would refund his diagnosis fee.As I see it, we did our due diligence in performing the diagnosis and informing the client of our findings.We did exactly what he paid us to doHe doesn’t agree with us based on the opinion of another shop.The other shop may have a good reason to draw his attention to a wheel bearing noise, in so doing theydraw his attention away from a possible problem with the transmission they replaced months ago.On the other hand, we have absolutely no reason or motive to lie to this ClientI cannot fathom why hethinks we would do so.If I thought we had dropped the ball in any way I would not hesitate to refund this Client’s diagnosis fee.It would not matter to me if it was $or $1,We stand behind our workIn this case, I feel wewent above and beyond to form a correct diagnosis and I respectfully decline his request for a refund.Sincerely,Gloria H***Co-Owner

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and have determined that the response would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below
[Provide details of why you are not satisfied with this resolution.]Firstly, as much as I appreciate Euro Motorworks explaining their depth of experience, I do not think it is their place to question another shops experience (as inferred in their response) when they do not even know the other shop I intentionally did not mention the name of the second shop as I wanted to keep them out of this mess.I need to point out the fact that Josh who claimed to be under the car, minutes earlier in our phone conversation could not even remember if the car was up on the lift and therefore had to check the file.I am not a mechanic, yet know my car quite well, and have worked on it myself, replacing the engine mounts I must return to what precipitated this situation, the noise undern*** the car With all due respect, this noise was not prevalent on one side of the car more than the other I have driven this car with this problem for a month, and can guarantee you that I would have been aware if the noise was more isolated to one side Additionally, were that the case I would have reported that upon dropping it off I therefore refute the claim that it was possible to isolate the noise while driving it.However, the following day when I was asked to see the car up on the lift, it was incredibly obvious where the noise was coming from, and you would not even need a stethoscope to isolate its location The noise was very prevalent from the right front passenger tire It appears to me that fellow mechanics in the shop at Euro Motroworks are backing each other up to cover the rushed misdiagnosis that occurred I know what I hear with my own ears and there was simply no way to miss the noise coming from the front right passenger wheel I did ask to listen to the main bearing that was said to need replacing, and yet it was hard to hear over the noise coming from the right front wheelAdditionally, I do not know how one could miss visually the excessive wobbling of the front right wheel One would need to intentionally avoid looking at it, in order to miss how bad it was I simply do not know how Euro Motorworks could have gotten this so wrong Since having the rims fixed, and the bearings replaced the noise is gone, and so I rest my case on this I even offered in an email two days ago, as suggested by Josh and noted in Euro Motorworks response, to bring the car back around to Euro Motorworks for them to listen to (in front of me), and yet they have not responded.Concerning the transmission, it was quite obvious as I was undern*** the car in the second shop that the Harmonic Balancer was wobbling excessive causing the problem of the squealing noise Again, I am surprised that this was missed visually when they were examining the transmission with the stethoscope Either the mechanics were so fixed on what they wanted the problem to be, or they simply missed what was so obvious It is quite interesting that the second shop insisted on me seeing the problems myself making the entire process quite transparent, and quite different then at Euro Motorworks.As far as MsH***'s comment about going above and beyond, this is the furthest from the truth and I reesnt this gross inaccuracy In the end it is better to prove something with action not exaggerated comments The second shop has returned my car without the noise, and with a diagnosis that actually followed what was visually and audibly wrong with the car.By the way, Josh at Euro Motorworks did not even know the correct headlamp bulb for my car and was trying to convince me that I was wrong, even though I had already changed the bulbs Things are simply not as Euro Motorworks would like you to believe, even though they give off a nice appearance
Regards,*** ***