i got my car inspected today and it failed because of an exhaust leak and because of “bad control arm bushings”
i told the guy i would replace them myself, and he seemed surprised and kept telling me how hard they were to replace and all of this other BS
i replaced them and they wernt even bad… so they basically tried to rip me off and make some money
anyways, i had a free inspection coupon that i got when i purchased the car at the dealership that i used (which is why i think they tried to get money out of me)
i paid for the emissions but not the inspection, and the guy told me that i have to give him another free inspection coupon or pay the full inspection price when i take the car back… is this even right? they are basically trying to get me to “pay” twice… and when i get your guys feedback, im going to have a talk with them…
and second, there is an exhaust leak, i know, i figured they would just pass it, but i guess not, the guy told me that the exhaust HAD to be welded, why cant i just put a shitload of exhaust sealer on the pipes… or can i??
they wanted $75 to weld the exhaust and $350 to replace the control arm bushings, and i really feel like i pissed them off by giving the a coupon for a free inspection and they wanted to make money off of me
$350 for control arm bushings and $75 for a weld… WOW! they were trying to fuck you…
Hell, stop by and I’ll weld the damn thing
and as far as I know when your car fails inspection you have 2 weeks or something like that to fix it and you wont have to pay again. something like that, I cant remember
yeah, and i forgot to mention they told me the intake manifold was leaking and they said my tires passed inspection but they tried to sell me new tires for over 15 minutes
im trying to find somewhere the laws regarding failing pa inspection but im not really finding anything
i have heard three different things:
1 week to take it back or you have to pay again
2 weeks to take it back
30 days to take it back
but im all honesty can they charge me again to get it inspected? i want to get correct info before i talk to them so i dont walk in there spewing a bunch of trash and them thinking im an idiot
i probably will, but i would just like to know what the deal is first
i really dont trust these people, the last car i got inspected there other than this one, the brake lines failed on the way home, they didnt find that, but they sure as hell can find non existent problems on my car
i think the free retest applies to emmissions. you have 30 days for retest. now for inspection i think you will have ot pay again if they are dicks about it. but you would have been charged full price minus the price of sticker since it wasn’t issued
75 bucks for welding up an exhaust is not outrageous. figure thats an hour labor. even if it takes 10 mins to drag shit out, 10 to weld, and 10 to put shit away, you also have to factor in the paperwork aspect of the shit.
also, what type of car and what balljoint? and how did you test it? again, that does not seem outrageous to me for labor and cost of part to r&r a ball joint. how did you fix it? what was the cost of parts and how much time did it take you?
If we fail you and you fix what was wrong we don’t charge you even for the sticker. I don’t know what the law says but we give you 30 days to repair it or pay us to or someone else. Just remember that if you piss off the inspection station THEY have the power to declare your vehicle unsafe for the road and can impound it if they really want to be dicks. Find yourself a mom and pop shop that you trust and eliminate the dealer you will be better off. There seems to be enough guys on this board with their our shops pick one. The local shop are always willing to take care of a loyal customer and the rates are better and you are a face not a piece of paper with a work order on it.
I failed an inspection at a dealer once, and there is a long BS story to go with it… but they told me that as soon as the vehicle left the property, I would have to pay again for the inspection. I raised hell with the Service Manager and the Customer service rep that called to ask how my visit was, and it was inspected again for free. Any reputable shop will give you a window to repair and return for reinspection. If they aren’t willing and seem like dicks… then it’s a no-brainer, go somewhere else and stop wasting time thinking about them…
it is an impala, i didnt do anything with the balljoints, but i fixed it myself by putting new bushings in, total cost of parts was less than $45 which included 2 new bushings and 2 end links for the swaybar
it took me 5 hours in total, 4.5 hours for the driver side, and about 30 min for the passenger side
hm thanks
yeah, i understand… this isnt my car, it is my fathers car, i figured it would be easier to say my car than say his car every other sentence, he took it to that dealer because it is a mile away and convenient to get to
fuck your free re-inspection. regardless of what the shop charges you I’m taking my time for the first state inspection and my time for your next inspection. as soon as you leave the property all bets are off. if i find something i didn’t see the first time or you do something wrong i’ll fail it again at the drop of a hat.
i don’t care if i come off as an asshole but everyone wants to be their own mechanic and bitch about labor/part prices. don’t go to a dealership then