car repair liability

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Maryland

I have a car that had a tune up 40k miles ago (2006). Supposedly the spark plugs would last 60-80k miles. Just went to get another tune up along with some sensor repairs from a different place and the spark plugs broke off in the cylinder. Seems they overheated and fused to the cylinder, probably because the spark plugs that came out of the car are not the ones the invoice of the previous tune up place said they put in there, are not even the same brand, same kind (platinum vs regular) and not the correct model for my car. Also, they didn't replace the spark plug wires with this tune up, tho I think that is standard on a tune up. Due to the damage to the cylinder and that two out of four are still partially in the car, a cylinder head replacement is necessary (est $1500 job).

I was hoping my high mileage car would last another year, but with this, the car is undrivable. I bought another car and couldn't even get a trade of any value. The first repair place is dragging its feet getting back to me about how they are going to handle this and saying their insurance adjuster will get with me but so far no action. The car is worth as much as 2k on a trade-in but retail about 4-5 but with the sensors still not done and if they fix it with junk yard parts.. I'd be looking for what's next and would have the hassle of selling it. I think they owe me a check and they can do whatever cause they shouldn't have defrauded me in the first place. Now I have a car payment and they may be able to say my decision, but to go from worth something to worthless to worth who knows.. .. not fair at all. And if they upcharged me for the wrong part they may have done it to others and justice doesn't seem to be served by just fixing the car.

I think the fastest way to a settlement is to sue. I have a signed statement from the 2nd repair shop that the spark plugs are the wrong ones for my car. I've had to pay them 269 for the diagnostics and the hours they spent trying to deal with the spark plugs and the car is in their parking lot now. I have the title. And I have a copy of the invoice from the previous shop's tune up saying what kind and part number of spark plugs they supposedly put in.... no tuneups in between. I have pictures of the spark plugs stuck in the car and the actual spark plugs the two that came out, one stripped, and the one with the threads stuck in the car - only the ceramic part.. and the other is still in the car. The part number is not listed on the list of recommended parts for my car.. from champions website. It is a different part number. and the statement saying it is the wrong fit for my car.

What can I do? Small claims court may not allow punitive damages but I think they should be assessed so what are my options?

First ask the mechanic if he's tried everything to get the broken plugs out ?

http://www.auto-ware.com/autoware-bin/techarchive.pl?noframes;read=2334

If he can't then you have to make a choice of repairing it / selling it , or see if the shop will buy it from you .

I hope they aren't charging storage ?

Thank you for your reply.

First, keep in mind that the shop where the plugs broke is not the same as the shop that put in the bogus plugs.

Second, the damage has already been done... even if they could get out the one that is still stuck in their and the threads of the one that broke, one that came out is partially stripped and the other was normal. So three out of four are bad and my understanding is that with this amount of seizing the cylinder head has to be replaced.

My concern is that the car itself is trade-in value worth about what it would take to fix it. And if the insurance company fixes it they aren't likely to use Saturn parts and the process is complicated enough that even if they get the job done it won't be the same afterwards. I wouldn't trust the car and would want to sell it. Hassles. Cut me a check and I'll walk away from the car. Particularly since it, not running, has no trade in value.

My question, however, is about whether I can get compensated for the fraud. They told me they put expensive parts in my car and put cheap, wrong parts in my car that caused all the damage. That I now have a car payment for the next year and may not have otherwise had they not defrauded from me should be a factor and I need to know how to make that happen.

There are only 3 styles of spark plugs, 14mm straight thread, 14mm tapered thread and 18mm straight thread. Very few cars use the 14mm tapered. It is physically impossible to install the wrong type. The car apparenty ran fine for 2 years, it wouldn't if the wrong type of plugs were installed. If anything the mechanic changing the plug broke it and is blaming the previous mechanic. It is going to be very difficult for you to prove the previous mechanic did anything wrong, especially after 2 years. Good luck, your going to need it.

PS. Changing plug wires is not a normal part of a tune-up if the car was running fine before the tune-up.

thank you but the champion web site lists the model part numbers for the plugs that should go in my car and the champion spark plug they put in is not on that list. Furthermore, after nearly 40k miles, the 30k life spark plugs could well have seized and they may not have been so far off the mark that they wouldn't work, but if overheated and not the proper kind for the car, that could be the cause of them fusing to the cylinder such that they wouldn't come out without stripping.

Both the comparable champion and the wrong champion are 14mm but the one they put in is for a Chrysler PT Cruiser or Dodge Neon not for a Saturn.

Before taking the word of the mechanic that wants to disassemble the head , get a second opinion here .

http://www.batauto.com/Forums/

That doesn't necessarily mean they are the "wrong" plugs - probably just a different heat range. It does sound like shop #1 may have overtightened the plug(s) and/or failed to use a little anti-seize on the threads (do Saturns have aluminum heads?) Were the plugs that came out gapped correctly?

Proving that in court however, may not be as easy as producing a letter from shop #2 (although it might be).