My girlfriend recently went for an oil change and was told that she had a leak in her transmission. So she took it into a shop and they told her $950 to fix the leak. She was upset, as we really don’t have that kind of money to be throwing around, but she gave them the go ahead. A few hours later, they called back and said that some of the teeth were missing on her clutch’s pressure plate and that if she took care of it now they wouldn’t charge her for the labor - yay! - but the part was $1,200.
Again she was upset, but again she greenlighted (greenlit?) them. They got it done the next day and we got it back but with two problems:
A) The gears don’t shift properly. Reverse is almost indistinguishable from 1st gear and second gear is incredibly difficult to get into.
B) We’ve searched high and low and can’t find this $1,200 clutch anywhere else for more than $500.
It’s a 2000 VW Jetta TDI with 93k miles on it.
Coincidentally, my car is in the same shop right now getting $2,500 in body work done, so we’re spending close to $5,000 at this shop this week, yet when we asked about the weird gears they more or less said “tough tits.”
As of now we haven’t talked to them since we found out that they very likely overcharged us for the clutch kit. Do we have any ammo in this situation as far as getting the gears fixed, doing anything about the price of the clutch, etc? Should we even bother complaining?
The shop did an expensive repair on your transmission, and you have every right to expect it to shift right when you get it back. If it’s a dealership, you can go to the regional manager on the phone. If it’s an independent shop, you still have some kind of recourse. I’m not a lawyer, but maybe it’s time to find one.
I have no opinion on the apparently overpriced clutch.
When you drop the tranny to replace the clutch, it throws off the alignment in the shift linkage. When the transmision is replaced, it’s usually necessary to realign the shifter. I have the “tool” (a metal template, really) to do it in my 97 Jetta. Haven’t had to use it yet.
A quick online search shows a non-OEM clutch kit for your car for $335. That’s the disc, pressure plate, and throwout bearing. Don’t know about the OEM, but $1200 is almost unthinkable.
Now, if someone said it would cost that much for a clutch job, including labor, I wouldn’t be surprised. But since the tranmission is already out of the car, there’s about 5 minutes of extra labor involved in replacing the clutch.
Someone with a legal opinion will have to weigh in on the price-gouging. Maybe there’s something to be said if you can reveal their markup, when considering the fact that having your car “stuck” without this repair amounts to extortion.
As for the shift alignment, you could argue that the realignment of the linkage is a vital part of the repair procedure for this transmissioon work. Just like replacing the drain plug is a critical part of an oil change. It’s not optional or “nice to do,” so IMO, they didn’t fully do what you paid them to do.
Most shops in this area charge the full labor rate regardless of how far they already have the car apart. I’m not crazy about it, but it’s common around here.
There are some problems here, but it might not be a bad as it sounds.
My girlfriend recently went for an oil change and was told that she had a leak in her transmission. So she took it into a shop and they told her $950 to fix the leak.
I’ll assume she did indeed have a transmission leak. But I wonder how big a leak? It may have been relatively minor, possibly even just seepage, something that could have been lived with for years by regularly checking the fluid level and keeping it topped up. Oil change shop people generally don’t have the mechanical judgment to evaluate such things. Then again, it’s also quite possible it really did need fixing, and the price mentioned is not unreasonable for a tranny leak repair (depending upon exactly where the leak was).
A few hours later, they called back and said that some of the teeth were missing on her clutch’s pressure plate and that if she took care of it now they wouldn’t charge her for the labor - yay! - but the part was $1,200.
This car has an unusual clutch design, with a dual mass flywheel. The ring gear teeth (for the starter) are on the pressure plate, and the flywheel is not resurfaceable. The complete flywheel/clutch mechanism assembly, plus clutch release bearing, add up to about $1200 from VW. It is plausible that the whole package was needed to make a proper repair, and I’m not sure that the whole package is available in the aftermarket (though it likely would cost less if it were).
The gears don’t shift properly. Reverse is almost indistinguishable from 1st gear and second gear is incredibly difficult to get into…yet when we asked about the weird gears they more or less said “tough tits.”
I can’t think of a plausible explanation for this problem other than they screwed up. Their response to the complaint is inappropriate. If somehow it’s not their responsibility, they should be able to explain that to your satisfaction. If it is their responsibility, they should make it right. The questions are, will they make it right without being sued, and can they make it right (a competent shop would not have let the car go in this condition). Complaining forcefully (but politely) is appropriate. If they won’t or can’t rectify the problem, you may need to go elsewhere. If it is just an adjustment that’s needed, it probably won’t cost much. And you could send the bill to the first shop for reimbursement, but don’t hold your breath.
Absolutely complain. Most states have an ‘implicit warranty’ law on repairs such as this (usually 30 days). Talk to the owner, not a flunky, and state the facts simply and without emotion: “The transmission shifted properly when I came in. Now it doesn’t work. You need to make adjustments to make it right.”
You’re SOL on the cost of the repairs. You agreed to the work for a stated price (without checking around first), which is a contract.