(Pictures Included) Am I getting ripped off by the dealership for a repair?

[evomike]

Originally Posted by stevesnj

$100 pre diagnosis to the actual diagnosis? Head for zee hills!!

call another dealer or a mechanic that knows these cars.

so youll put a car on a lift do a complete diagnosis of damage for free only to lose the job? its $100 diag if he doesnt have the repairs performed there i see nothing wrong with this.

[stevesnj]

Originally Posted by evomike

so youll put a car on a lift do a complete diagnosis of damage for free only to lose the job? its $100 diag if he doesnt have the repairs performed there i see nothing wrong with this.

I see an issue to pay $100 to pay for a pre-diagnosis before the actual diagnosis. How much will the actual diagnoses cost? Legitimate shops only need to do 1 diagnosis. $100 is steep, $25 is fine but 2 diagnosis fee's are just stupid.

[evomike]

Originally Posted by stevesnj

I see an issue to pay $100 to pay for a pre-diagnosis before the actual diagnosis. How much will the actual diagnoses cost? Legitimate shops only need to do 1 diagnosis. $100 is steep, $25 is fine but 2 diagnosis fee's are just stupid.

did you read the post? it is a $100 diagnostic fee IF he pulls the car from the shop to be repaired elsewhere, the only people who have any issue with this have never run a shop.

[ZionsWrath]

Originally Posted by stevesnj

I see an issue to pay $100 to pay for a pre-diagnosis before the actual diagnosis. How much will the actual diagnoses cost? Legitimate shops only need to do 1 diagnosis. $100 is steep, $25 is fine but 2 diagnosis fee's are just stupid.

What is the issue?

First, most DEALER shops will tell you it is 1 hour labor time to even look at the car. And by letting them look at it you are agreeing to that.

Second, all shops will drop that "diagnosis fee" if you allow them to fix the car.

Third, why is it wrong for them to charge for their tech and lift time?

If you have bent suspension parts and need time to check if the car is true, it is not unreasonable to expect to pay 1 hour in diagnosis.

When a car is in a wreck is it unreasonable to have a tear down?

[stevesnj]

Well my misunderstanding then, sounded like $100 fee before the actual estimate. My bad

[evomike]

Originally Posted by stevesnj

Well my misunderstanding then, sounded like $100 fee before the actual estimate. My bad

Only if you pull it out of the shop

[Packofcrows]

$100 is pricey but fair.

I'd just do an insurance claim... raise my premium a tad probably but my DD would be DD again.

[lizbrayan]

If the frame isn't as bad as they say it is and its only the lca and maybe the tie rods I'm sure you can get them (oem) from here or even craigslist for dirt cheap or maybe even free. So theres that, the only thing i highly recommend is to get it out of the dealer ASAP. I have a crack in my bumper and they are charging me 1200$ to get a new one so they just want money.

[evomike]

Originally Posted by lizbrayan

If the frame isn't as bad as they say it is and its only the lca and maybe the tie rods I'm sure you can get them (oem) from here or even craigslist for dirt cheap or maybe even free. So theres that, the only thing i highly recommend is to get it out of the dealer ASAP. I have a crack in my bumper and they are charging me 1200$ to get a new one so they just want money.

thats a pretty standard price for a new bumper replacement, dealerships arent some crazy ripoff like people try to make them out to be.

[fumanchu1]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

The initial diagnosis sounded feasible and likely but I lost all faith in the rest as soon as you said the frame was bent. Suppose it is possible but if you hit hard enough to do that then the rest of the damage should have be major and easy for them to spot in the first place.
I would kiss that rather exuberant inspection fee goodbye and haul it someplace else. Even if they are right the fact they didn't catch all that damage in the first place woul make me wonder about their skills.

I assume OP wasn't driving at high speed which leads me to this: I hit a curb doing a 180 at around 50 mph, snapped a ray's wheel(those things are solid trust me), bent lca, suspension, etc. basically for around 5k dmg(in cdn) and I can guarantee you my frame didn't budge, hell it didn't even come close to it as the other parts gave way... what I am getting at is I think the dealer is trying to pull the wool over your eyes on this one.

[fumanchu1]

Originally Posted by Rifle

The real issue is you drove the Saturn and still called yourself a man afterwards.

Biiiiiiitch!!! my old 2001 Saturn SL2 was the shit (last in house design from Saturn), anything after that then yes I agree

[fumanchu1]

Originally Posted by DM7

The front lower control arms have three connections.
The ball joint on the bottom of the wheel upright.
The vertical bolt at the front of the engine bay directly to the chassis.
The horizontal bolt at the rear of the engine bay on the front subframe.

I think what they were trying to tell you, is that the subframe has shifted. This happens on other cars that have subframe designs like these cars do after hitting curbs.

Considering how badly bent that control arm is, a shifted subframe is not unreasonable. Only way to tell for sure is to take some measurements of the subframe with reference to parts of the chassis on both sides of the car.

Now this I could believe but the actual frame no fucking way, but as you stated subframe isn't the hardest thing to bend

[fumanchu1]

Originally Posted by ZionsWrath

Id be reluctant to report an incident like that to insurance. Single vehicle at fault accident will be a huge red flag on your account. How is your driving record otherwise?

I mean unless he lies about the situation but that is not recommended as you know it's fraud

[raven1231]