mondeo help

[tom1]

got a 2003 mondeo 2l tdci,

its been fine for the last 3 years. got it serviced, they said it needed tracking, tyre resealing as it keeps slowly going down and a new battery as it is on the verge of failer.

got the tracking done and tyre done,

got the battery tested elsewere and it tested fine.

the tyre was flat in 2 weeks, took it back and they replaced the valve.

few weeks later mot.

failed on corroded rear break pipe, and noted the exhaust hanngers were week. took it to a different garage than the one who serviced it, they said, the whole break pipe needed doing and when the checked the exhaust and the front part was nearly worn through so they replaced the break pipe and exhaust. this was new years eve. new years day drove 125 miles on motor way. day after on way back abs light comes on, and i lost the abs so cant take car for mot retest.

took it to ford diognostic kit showed no faults they said its prob an airlock in the pump take it back to who did your breaks get them to bleed it.

girl friend picked up car and breaks would not work so refused to drive it. the garage who did break pipes picked it up and said apart from no abs breaks are fine. the abs wire on rear has come lose fell on tyre and worn through. so why did ford diognostics not pick up on it, they said they will bleed it for free and replace the abs sensor for

 

[Evans Electric]

Sounds like they C***** up to me ,with the breaks anyway, but you rarely get anywhere with them . You need an honest mechanic, they do exist but its finding one .

Some of these places , if they don't know you , think they can rip you off .

 

[tom1]

the whole car thing is a pain in the ass, the ones who said the battery was as good as dead are a national company, what do they have to gain from ripping people off unless he is not changing the battery just taking it home with him.

prob got furniture made out of car parts.

 

[Apache]

Is it insured for fire, Tom?

 

[Sidewinder]

tom1,

What they get is a cut of the branch profits they make on the battery sale as a bonus at the end of the year!

Also, many of these guys especially in the fast fit type centres are not fully trained, sound familiar?

I know, as I know a few of them, also I have worked on the fringes of the trade for many years now and know quite a few local garage proprieters and many car mechanics & technicians.

Ad & KME will know the company, I suspect, I'm on 1st name terms with the owner of the biggest independent recovery firm in S Wales, they have some big recovery wagons, incl artics, a crane and a wagon capable of pulling up in the road along side a parked car hemmed in front and back and having it on the back of the wagon in less than a minute!

Oh, and for those who know I do mean Ken! I have known him for over 20 years!

 

[Andy™]

its so hard to find a decent mechanic, the trade is full of cowboys.

i think there is a good chance when they did the break pipes they disloged the abs wire onto the tyre, and after a few miles its worn it. i said this but they say the break pipes are not near the wire. dose any one know a bit about cars, do you think its just a coincidence:C

this is why i do everything myself. had a few vehicles to dealer/other for diagnostics, but thats it. all other maintenance is done by me (except tyres. mate does them)

 

[tom1]

the thought had crossed my mind patch, not sure how well it would pay off with premum increas, but its on the list.

i was hoping some one would fire bomb it, i could slip them a few quid wink wink address to follow. i could just go park it in some dodgy area.

yer i can imagin some of these fast fit centres not being fully trained, you just have to take there word for it that they know what they are doing and not doing unnessecery work.

---------- AUTO MERGE Post added at 22:05 ---------- Previous post was at 22:00 ----------

[quote name='Andy

 

[batty]

I always use one man businesses have had three since I have had my van never had many problems with them although the first replaced my heater motor when it was only a connection so he did not get paid. The second had my van for to long so I don't use him anymore. The one I have now seems ok so will use him if anything goes wrong. One many businesses are better because you get the personal touch so I don't think you get ripped of so much. For tyres I always get a local chap to come and change them at the door I would rather do that than have some spotty oik touching them at a fast fit.

 

[PC Electrics]

got a 2003 mondeo 2l tdci, never mind, we all have our crosses to bearits been fine for the last 3 years. got it serviced, they said it needed tracking, tyre resealing as it keeps slowly going down and a new battery as it is on the verge of failer.

got the tracking done and tyre done,

got the battery tested elsewere and it tested fine.

Testing batteries is not an exact science. None of the equipment available to do so is 100% reliable. All the manufacturers have warranty issues with batteries being returned because the dealers equipment thinks they are dud when in fact they are fine and vice versa. It's also true that most batteries fail suddenly, usually in cold weather. you can drive to work ok in the morning and that evening there's not enough strength in it to light the instruments! If you have any doubts about the battery, replace it.

the tyre was flat in 2 weeks, took it back and they replaced the valve. which involved taking the tyre off the rim again! In other words they didn't want to admit not sealing it back on properly, so did it again under the guise of replacing the valve.

few weeks later mot.

failed on corroded rear break pipe, this is one of the problems with 'cut price' servicing. When you go to a main dealer a service also includes inspecting items like this and warning you if there are such issues. Garages that sell on price cut these inspections out of the schedule to cut costs (another item frequently cut is lubricating door locks - as an ex lock engineer that's one of my pet peeves as it usually leads to corrosion and freezing) and noted the exhaust hanngers were week. took it to a different garage than the one who serviced it, they said, the whole break pipe needed doing and when the checked the exhaust and the front part was nearly worn through so they replaced the break pipe and exhaust. this was new years eve. new years day drove 125 miles on motor way. day after on way back abs light comes on, and i lost the abs so cant take car for mot retest.

took it to ford diognostic kit showed no faults they said its prob an airlock in the pump take it back to who did your breaks get them to bleed it.

If you were to ever get an air lock in the ABS module it would need a darn sight more than bleeding!! When an ABS system is first filled on the production line the air is evacuated from the system and the vacuum is held to ensure all moisture is 'boiled' out. Brake fluid is then pumped in under pressure. If you were to get air in the ABS block, this process would need to be replicated at the garage with specialist equipment (which only a few dealers have due to its expense). Bleeding alone would not cure the problem.

girl friend picked up car and breaks would not work what do you mean by this? so refused to drive it. the garage who did break pipes picked it up and said apart from no abs breaks are fine. It is a common misconception that if the ABS fails then the brakes have failed also. This is not so. When th eABS light is on the brakes system reverts to working like a non ABS system - in other words if you lock up you'll need those cadence braking techniques you were taught. the abs wire on rear has come lose fell on tyre and worn through. so why did ford diognostics not pick up on it, sloppy diagnostics. If the wire was worn through the sensor would have been open circuit. this would register in the ABS module memory and be recoverable data. Even if the open circuit was intermittant the data would remain in the memory for 20 engine starts before being cleared automatically. they said they will bleed it for free and replace the abs sensor for

 

[Graham Lister]

A 2003 mondeo and its brake pipes and exhaust hangers are corroded :red card . Sounds like they just wanted a bit of extra money for made up work. If you can find an mot centre that doesnt rely on the work generated from failures eg they repair commercial vehicles but also MOT cars.

I have never had a good experience from a garage which is why I do all the work myself. Its the best way to go and it really isnt hard to change a brake pipe or exhaust hanger. As for the broken wire on the abs sensor being a sparky I would have just crimped it up or used a wagoopcorn

 

[PC Electrics]

A 2003 mondeo and its brake pipes and exhaust hangers are corroded :red card . Sounds like they just wanted a bit of extra money for made up work. If you can find an mot centre that doesnt rely on the work generated from failures eg they repair commercial vehicles but also MOT cars. I have never had a good experience from a garage which is why I do all the work myself. Its the best way to go and it really isnt hard to change a brake pipe or exhaust hanger. As for the broken wire on the abs sensor being a sparky I would have just crimped it up or used a wagoopcorn

 

[Sidewinder]

I have a very good friend who works in a local main dealer, up market cars.

He can fail any battery he gets in by undertaking the test in a particular manner!

 

[PC Electrics]

I have a very good friend who works in a local main dealer, up market cars.He can fail any battery he gets in by undertaking the test in a particular manner!

Exactly. i was just a bit more diplomatic though!

This is how these dealers attempt to scam the manufacturers with warranty repairs, and you by selling you a battery you might not need.

All dealers have fins on their backs. They're scamming you and the manufacturer.

 

[Sidewinder]

Keeps me in batteries for the wifes car!

 

[tom1]

some usefull info there thanks

girlfriend said she put the breaks on, pedal did not go down much and pushed its self back up, and took a long time to stop.

looks like some one is bodging up somewere, i did think about crimping the cable. not got much time at the min though.

yes a lot of cowboys in our trade also, doing unneccessary work and bodging things.

the mot centre is mot only they dont do any work, less chance they will fail you for somethng that does not need doing

 

[Sidewinder]

tom1,

I am in the same boat as PC when it comes to vehicle repairs, except for my lease van, and that was MOT'd today & I arrenged it for the local garage I have used since I was 17 for MOT's, the current owners Dad & Mine were big buddies, he knows I do my own repairs so he don't fail things for the sake of it, also IF I can't do it I have a friend who can!

I am lucky in that aspect, I also have good contacts in the parts supply trade.

BTW I also have a coil of brake pipe a flaring too, pipe nuts & bender on the shelf in my workshop! So I can do my own brake lines, I know that don't help, but htey are not that difficult, time however, is something you can not account for!

Sorry you have had such issues.