Problem with Automotive Repair Shop

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

Last Friday, my car died on me so I took it to a repair shop on Saturday morning. They told me that they charge a $88 diagnostic fee and would call me once they knew what needed to be fixed. An hour later, they tell me that the needed repairs will cost about $300. I authorize the repairs and pick my car up that afternoon.

After driving about 10 miles, my car dies again. I take it back to the shop and they tell me that they will take another look at it but to better diagnosis it, they want to ride around with me until it dies. It dies after a couple of minutes and the mechanic tells me that the thermostat or something needs to be repaired for $120 and that they will work on it the following day.

I get a call at somepoint the next day telling me that after they fixed the thermostat, they realized that the head gasket is blown, which will cost an additional $1000. This is a junker car that is worth about $700 so I am not going to make the repairs. However, the owner of the repair shop is saying that I still owe $120 for the repairs that they made prior to realizing the head gasket problem.

This really doesn't seem fair to me considering the fact that I paid them to diagnosis the problem and if they had done so correctly the first time, I would not have authorized ANY repairs. It seems like they played "hit and miss" with my car, replacing various parts until they found the actual cause of the problem and then expect me to pay for their incompetence. Do I have any legal footing here in refusing to pay the $120 or even the $300 for that matter? Please help.

Yes you need to pay for the work that you authorized and was performed. I don't see how you could think that you don't. You authorized the repair on the car knowing it's value. That was your decision. It's not your mechanic's job to determine if it's worth it to fix the car or not.

I understand that but it is the mechanic's job to diagnosis the problem and then allow me to make a decision whether it's worth it to fix it. I'm unable to make a decision whether to fix my car if they tell me inaccurate information as to what was causing my car to overheat and die. No?

CMT256 said:

I understand that but it is the mechanic's job to diagnosis the problem and then allow me to make a decision whether it's worth it to fix it. I'm unable to make a decision whether to fix my car if they tell me inaccurate information as to what was causing my car to overheat and die. No?

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Perhaps your thermostat was defective. That can CAUSE you to blow out the head-gasket. In that case, the thermostat IS part of the problem. It needs to be functioning properly to allow further diagnosis.

Tell me this - what did the shop do the FIRST time?

CMT256 said:

I understand that but it is the mechanic's job to diagnosis the problem and then allow me to make a decision whether it's worth it to fix it. I'm unable to make a decision whether to fix my car if they tell me inaccurate information as to what was causing my car to overheat and die. No?

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I agree that there is a lot of logic in what you say. What you need to do is negotiate this with the owner or manager of the automotive repair shop. At a minimum he should waive the diagnostic fee since obviously his people did not make an accurate diagnosis.

Zigner said:

Perhaps your thermostat was defective. That can CAUSE you to blow out the head-gasket. In that case, the thermostat IS part of the problem. It needs to be functioning properly to allow further diagnosis.

Tell me this - what did the shop do the FIRST time?

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Thank you. This is very helpful to know. I feel better knowing that they might not have been able to realized the blown head gasket until after they fixed the termostat. Obviously, I know nothing about cars.

CMT256 said:

Thank you. This is very helpful to know. I feel better knowing that they might not have been able to realized the blown head gasket until after they fixed the termostat. Obviously, I know nothing about cars.

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What was the original diagnosis & what repairs were performed that cost $300?