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Re: Saab Garage broke my car!! Posted by Ari [Email]  (#2847) [Profile/Gallery]
(more from Ari) on Mon, 17 Nov 2008 07:06:49
In Reply to: Saab Garage broke my car!!, zebthecat, Mon, 17 Nov 2008 05:19:29 Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup |
Unfortunately the list of things they could have done to the car is near endless.
I assume they were warming the car up AFTER they put in the new thermostat - it wouldn't make sense to warm up the car and then work on it. So if it overheated, it could have been due to a few things - a defective thermostat, incorrectly inserted thermostat (upside down so it doesn't bleed), forgetting to add coolant, or a coolant leak.
They said it boiled over, which isn't quite the same as overheating. Boiling over is what the system does if it isn't pressurized. So again, it might be that they didn't put the system back together properly and left it open to the air (e.g. bad thermostat seal, bad hose).
They said there is exhaust gas in the coolant - how do they know? Did they test the gas, or just see bubbles?
If it were my car, I'd ask to speak to the service manager and/or head technician. I'd ask them a few questions-
What exactly happened first? Before or after installing the new thermostat?
Did they use a Saab OEM thermostat?
Did it start spewing fluid (boiling over), and if so, from where?
Was coolant added after the thermostat replacement? Was the system allowed to self bleed?
If that was your car reving, why? If they were trying to warm it up faster, it's a poor way to do it.
How did they determine there was exhaust gas in the coolant? Bubbles in the expansion tank isn't a good test - a self-bleeding system looks the same.
How have they determined the head is OK? Have they removed it already?
I could say that a poorly installed thermostat could cause the engine to boil over but not overheat (system didn't pressurize, so it boils at a lower temperature), and bubbles in the expansion tank, assumed to be exhaust gas, are just the system self-bleeding. Of course the head would be OK. Unfortunately that explaination requires a brace of knucklehead mechanics. But it wouldn't be the first time.
It's important to find out exactly what went wrong, how they troubleshot it, and what they are doing to fix it. The repairs may be covered, but the actions they take will influence the long term viability of the engine. You don't want them making some band-aid repairs that will fail down the road (pun intended.) Don't let them get away with "We'll fix it, don't worry your pretty little head." It's important not to get accusatory, despite the urge to re-arrange their body parts, because you need the information. They probably did screw up and aren't eager to share that. Confrontation will only cause them to clam up. You can always go nuts on them after you get the car properly repaired.
Good luck!
posted by 192.249....
, Mon, 17 Nov 2008 07:06:49 <-- Viewing This Message, Mon, 17 Nov 2008 09:28:32
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