A car dealer can cancel a sale at a negative comment?
The association Protection Automotive, CTV W5 and our consumer specialist Lea Williams-Doherty put the car repair shops to the test.
They made a secret investigation to see if 19 garages could properly diagnose and repair a simple problem.
The problem should have been easy to detect and cheap to fix.
APA a loose battery cable on both cars in perfect condition otherwise and has taken to repair shops at random.
A secret shopper told garages that sometimes the cars just wouldn t start.
Of the 19 garages, only six have passed the test by finding and shaking it loose cable.
The only better outcome in the national APA survey came from a southeast Calgary garage.
Delta Auto Care and Repair, mechanic property Yadong Sun found and solved the problem for only 30.
He Macleod Trail diagnosed it in the shortest time a garage in just 30 seconds $ 134 bill included a full inspection, while Fountain Tire on Northland Drive 157 dollars charged.
Midas on 32nd Street N E has also passed the test and the bill was only 89.
The APA says that jibes with past experience, since Midas has generally been the cheapest chains in previous surveys.
Also earn a passing grade was the Minit Tune and brake Crowfoot Gate N W.
The bill it was 180, including an oil change and tire rotation.
Canadian Tire on Shawville Way also found and fixed the problem for a total of 213.
But these are only six garages of 19 who correctly diagnose and loose cable.
The other 13 either couldn t figure out, or worse, performed and billed for unnecessary repairs.
Four t Couldn find the problem, but didn t do unnecessary work.
Of the nine, three recommended unnecessary work and six actually performed and billed for unnecessary repairs.
Canadian Tire 3516 8 Ave NE loaded 507 to replace a battery perfectly and two perfectly good candles.
When the secret shopper asked the garage to return its original sheets, the store gave her a different car plugs.
The spark plugs of the APA were 1,000 km old ones they have given were candles that were about 80000 km old says George Iny of the APA.
Canadian Tire in Country Hills recorded the second worst result.
The mechanic first indicated the battery was satisfactory on the inspection form, but someone went through it later and marked unsatisfactory.
So we have the sense that there is no technical work on your car that makes the person of the final decision in the store can decide hey you know, you should put some coins on for one reason or another, said Iny.
To comment on these two default results, we were referred to a Vice President at Canadian Tire.
She provided a response emailed In it, she claims that Canadian Tire is committed to acting with integrity At no time mystery shopper said the recommended work was needed when he wasn t Canadian Tire is fully responsible for our customers and in all cases where a customer has questions about the work done on their vehicle, we will be transparent and responsive.
Kal Tire on Edmonton Trail and found the tight loose battery cable.
The problem is, he also replaced the ignition switch for a total of 355.
When contacted, Kal Tire has maintained that the core of the ignition switch is loose, and because the battery problems donation t usually cause no problem starting, intermittent described it was reasonable to replace light switch.
The Kal Tire on 42nd Avenue was also wrong to replace the battery of the car to 171.
Kal Tire is at this too, stating that because the battery was no label, its technology must guess the number of reference for a passing grade to test the battery and defective battery based on the figures used.
The Fountain Tire on 40th Avenue also failed unnecessarily replace the battery in the car.
The owner, Rick Ball The store has full responsibility and offered a refund.
The buck stops here I'm not the guy who is responsible and we have done wrong.
The ball said it was either human error or equipment and replaced its test equipment to the battery to prevent future errors.
The owner Midas Calgary also took responsibility for the failure 16th Ave NW This unnecessarily store the car replacement battery 187, according to the results of tests inaccurate.
In a written statement, he said the technician pressed the electronic test tool for the results of the battery of tests and missed the loose battery terminal connection The battery terminal was verified that we have since replaced during the test tool.
He stressed that, unlike some garages Midas does not pay its employees on commission pieces sold to eradicate all incitement to oversell.
Consumers should look at themselves to avoid paying for unnecessary work.
I would start with the manual for my owner So it is said that I should do things mileage that s when I do them, not when someone says your fluid is dark, you have to change, Iny said.
It also recommends a second opinion before authorizing costly repairs that you weren t expecting.
Delta Auto and repair of cars 206, 255 28th Street NE.
CTV News Calgary auto repair ripoff, auto repair, calgary results, battery test.