The German Car Shoppe

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 6, 2015/06/16) */
I am sorry to hear that *** *** was displeased with our services*** *** did bring her car to us on 2/10/stating that it had not been driven much at all in several years and they would like to start using it as a spare car but they
did not want to spend a lotUpon inspection of the vehicle it was our opinion that brakes where the most important, as these were completely worn out and the brake fluid was nearly black with contaminationThe power steering was completely out of fluid and the pump leaked terriblyThe rear differential had a lot of old grease on it and the exhaust hangers were cracked and rotted with the possibility of the exhaust falling down and being damagedWe explained that these were the most important things we see at this time*** *** approved the brake repair and flush, repair of the power steering pump, replace all exhaust hangers and cleaning of the rear axle differential with the understanding that they would have to return for re-inspection*** *** picked up her car on 3/15/
*** *** returned on 4/22/for re-inspection and said she was noticing oil drips and also having a starter problemWe did not have any problems with the starter at all but did notice that when warm the car did have to crank an extended amount of time to startWe also did notice that there were some new leaks appearing since she has started driving the car moreAs for the extended cranking time, we advised her that testing would be necessary to determine the reasonAt this time she became very agitated and said this should all have been caught before and e-mailed *** "I am appalled by the new list of what is now found to be wrong with the car now." At this time our service advisor ** decided to get me involved and said he would have me call her
When I called *** *** she told me that she thought we were a bunch of crooks, just like all the other shops that have previously worked on the carI asked who they were and she told me, I stated to her that I know those shops and they are competent and reputable shops with experience on these carsI also tried to explain to her that it not uncommon for a car that has not been driven in a long time to develop leaks when you start driving it againI also restated to her that that I feel that her starter problem may be a fuel problem and that it is losing fuel pressure after being shut offShe asked me what I thought that might beI told her without testing the fuel system I don't know for sure, but it could be the fuel accumulator, or a leaking fuel distributor, maybe even the injectors leaking downShe again expressed her expense concerns; I also told her that each one of those items could be near a thousand dollars or moreShe said that is more than the car is worth and she was not spending any more money on it and she was coming to get itWe performed no work on the vehicle at this time, nor did she incur any charge
When *** And *** *** arrived to pick up her car I personally walked her to the car and explained if the starting problem was fuel related, cycling the key several times would build up fuel pressure and it might start easierShe did this and the car started right up, but she and I both agreed that it usually does and that the hard start is intermittentThe car was the pulled up by the front door of the store where they were now waitingShe thanked me and drove off in the car
*** *** called me within minutes of leaving and said she was at *** and *** the car was smoking terribly and she thought it was burning upWhen I got there the fire department had already arrived and the car was smoldering under the hood, and they were trying to get the hood open but could not because the secondary latch was broken and *** *** had just tied a piece of electrical wire to it as a releaseHe tried to yell this to the fireman but they were already prying the hood off of the car to spray an extinguisher under itThey did finally hear *** *** and opened the hood I saw no fire but lots of smokeI was standing right beside *** *** this whole time when *** *** ran up to me calling me vulgar names and screaming that this is all my fault*** *** tried to calm her down and told her "they did not do anything"*** *** continued to scream at me and *** *** turned to me and said "the car is insured, it will be Ok"I told him if there was anything he needed or that I could do, call meI then left and returned to the shop
I was contacted several days later by an agent of *** insurance and she asked me for a statement of events because *** *** was blaming me for everything that has happenedI told her everything I knew that had happened, and that we had performed no work on the car because *** *** would not authorize any repairs, and at that time offered her all of the e-mails and repair orders I have of this vehicleShe said "well you can't make people fix their car"I then gave her my e-mail address and told her if there was anything else I could do to let me know
I don't know what the outcome was but after watching the fire department pry the front of the car open I imagine that the vehicle was totaled by the insurance companyI have also been told that it is practice if a recent investment has been made in a vehicle and something happens to that vehicle to deem it a total loss, the insured is reimbursed for those costs or they are considered in the evaluation of the vehicle valueI'm sure *** *** was reimbursed more than fairly, as I have found that every time we work with *** insurance here they make sure their client is satisfiedI don't think that it is fair or even logical that *** *** thinks she should be reimbursed twice for a single loss, especially when she would not authorize any of the repairs
I have included copies of the work orders and e-mail correspondenceI also found several comparable replacement vehicles for them on line
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (4200, 34, 2015/07/23) */
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 48, 2015/08/01) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
Since the resolution has not bee established as yet\, I must decline acceptance until a final proposal is received by *** ***
*** *** *** representative was here on Friday,(7/30/15) therefore, a report from *** *** will be forthcoming but we do not know their timeline as yet for a final report to be issued
*** ***
08-01-
Final Business Response /* (4000, 52, 2015/08/05) */
I understand that *** has been in contact with *** and a decision will be made todayAny further Correspondence should be made directly to ***