Mister Smith's Garage

Response to 8BB complaint ID # ***
Mr *** brought his Trailblazer to my garage to have checked for state inspection & to have
a check engine light condition diagnosedHis vehicle was checked for inspection & the check
engine
light was coded for a Pcode & diagnosedHe was rejected for state inspfor a bad
lower ball joint & outer tie rod end as well as a couple of light bulbsUsing an industry standard
maint& repair site I determined that the two most common fixes the code that was causing his
check engine light to come on were the MAP sensor & the throttle bodyI dismissed replacing
the MAP sensor which Mr.*** had already replaced himself prior to coming to me with no
succes and moved onto the second most common fix for this code which was the throttle body
I diagnosed the throttle body & determined it was the cause of the problem
I sat down at that time & made Mr*** an estimate for repair of both the state inspection
items & for replacement of the throttle body & called him to discuss what I had found & the
cost of repairAt that time Mr*** informed me that he could not afford the repair estimate of
$& asked if he could take the vehicle & make the repairs himselfI told him he could &
that his only charge was for checking it for inspection which was $for both State &
emissions inspI did not charge him for scanning his computer or my diagnosis time, only for
inspectionHe showed up a short time later paid for his inspection & left with his vehicle
A few days later Mr*** called & asked if there was any cheaper way we could repair his car
He asked if a used part was an option to repair the throttle bodyI told him it was but that we
may be “buying what we already had” meaning that we may get a bad oneI told him if we did
the junk yard would give him another one if that happened but would not give him his money
backAlso, if it was bad I would charge him again to install it since most junk yards dont pay
labor to replace defective partsHe was ok with that and scheduled an appointment to bring his
car back for repairWhen he returned he left me a note telling me all the repairs he had made &
authorizing me to make all the rest of the repairs for inspection & for the throttle body as well
Later that day his vehicle was brought into my shop & the repairs were madeWhen the vehicle
was done Mr *** was called and told it was done & was given the cost of the repairs at that
time which were $730.00, which was $cheaper than my orginal estimateHe arrived a short
time later & picked up the vehicle & paid his billHe then left to drive the vehicle to set the
“Drive cycles” which are needed any time a check engine light is repaired so that it will test out
for emissionsAfter driving it the required distance he returned and was checked for emissions
inspectionHe passed since the check engine light was not on & was issued state inspection &
emissions inspection stickers at that timeAfter that he left with his vehicle
Sometime later I was again called by Mr*** and was informed that his check engine light was
on againI told him to bring it back up to me and we would see what was up with itI told him if
it was something that had to do with his previous problem I would stand behind my work &
make it rightHe returned & I coded his computer which was showing a PEVAP system
code for large vaccuum leak or more commonly known as a loose gas capI informed him of this
and even showed him the code on my scannerAt that time he became beligerant and told me
it was because I had not fixed his problem & he wanted his old part on and his money backI
reminded him of our prior conversation regarding using used parts, they were not refundable
only for exchange, and labor would not be coveredI explained that replacing it again was not
going to fix his check engine light problem, since they were not interconnectedHe continued to
be belligerant towards me and continued to yellAt that time he was asked to leave my place of
business
In closing I feel I was more that upfront & honest with Mr ***I personally called Mr*** &
discussed my findings and the costs, I coded & diagnosed his check engine light problem & did
not charge him unlike most other garages, I did not re inspect & recharge him when He
returned his vehicle to me for repair as I am allowed to do by state inspection code, I explained
to him the way used parts work as far as replacement & labor before we did any repairs and
even after that I told him I would stand behind my work if it was defectiveHe gave me a note
with written consent to make repairs to.his vehicle which I didWhen he returned I again coded
his vehicle and found another code & did not charge himAs far as lam concerned Mr*** was
treated more than fairly, he had full knowledge of the repairs & consented to them & the costI
will not be refunding him the disputed amount
Thank you,
*** ***