Technical Give that man a cigar.....

[Sando]

....whoever said that my temparature being ever so slighty higher and whoever said the coolant leak could be due to the head gasket going.

Just called the garage, looks as though its on its way out. He said to change it, skim the head, change the cam belt and all the oil and filters etc... he thinks it will be £250 - £300.

I think Im getting ripped off. Is that a fair price? He is a decent mechanic though and I do trust him to do a good job.

What has it cost other people to do, either DIY or by a garage?

Matt

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54 BHP of pure italian muscle

 

[custard]

its not a hard job if you got the spanners,save a heap o cash[:0]

The Fiat Cinquecento
Fun While It Runs

 

[Advanced Driver]

Originally posted by Sando
....whoever said that my temparature being ever so slighty higher and whoever said the coolant leak could be due to the head gasket going.

Just called the garage, looks as though its on its way out. He said to change it, skim the head, change the cam belt and all the oil and filters etc... he thinks it will be £250 - £300.

I think Im getting ripped off. Is that a fair price? He is a decent mechanic though and I do trust him to do a good job.

What has it cost other people to do, either DIY or by a garage?

Matt

__________________________________________________

54 BHP of pure italian muscle

It probably is a reasonable price especially if it includes the parts. The head gasket takes a long time to do. Never had it done though, I'm just guessing. Get another price and compare them. If you know he's a good mechanic though it's worth paying an extra say £50 so that you get a good job.

 

[Sando]

He says that I could probably get away with leaving it and not doing the work but I would run the risk of it going totally. Whats the damage it gets to a stage where its left for a while and goes totally?

If you know he's a good mechanic though it's worth paying an extra say £50 so that you get a good job

Thats what I thought, Im going to ring Fiat up now and get a quote and also any other local garages out of the yellow pages.

The only problem is I dont want to use any other garage, I know the bloke who's doing it and trust him.

Matt

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54 BHP of pure italian muscle

 

[MrDerv]

£75 for my timing belt if that's any help, but was quoted £105 for head gasket



There's a certain satisfaction you get from driving over a Sleeping Policeman

 

[Sando]

LOL! Fiat want £450 to do it.....but £500+ if the head needs to be skimmed! That quote made me feel a lot better!

Most garages want the same as I had been quoted.

One really rough garage wanted £200 but I had my oil changed there once and I wouldnt go back! There was an oil trail from the oil cap along the engine and all the way down the front bumper. They hadnt put the oil cap back on properly either!

Matt

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54 BHP of pure italian muscle

 

[John H]

How long have you owned the car??

If less than 12 months you should be in luck with the new law relating to faults on cars.

AIUI

The burden of proof has now changed:
it's for the seller to prove the fault wasn't on the car at the point of sale, rather than for you to prove.


I'm sure you can find the relevant bits from CAB, or an internet search.


Regards


John H

P.S. I'll pass on the cigar, if you don't mind

 

[Sando]

I've owned it for about...ummm.er....cant think now....7 months I think. It had 3 months warrenty on it when I bought it though. Its not a brand new car though, a '98 R reg Cinq Sportin'. So you think I should go to CAB and then get a solicitor to write them a letter or something?

Matt

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54 BHP of pure italian muscle

 

[John H]

Oh, bugger!

I think I'm wrong - it looks like 6 months - see

http://www.hmso.gov.uk/si/si2002/20023045.htm

I think the meat of it goes something like this:

The implications are that consumers will now be able to seek repair, replacement,partial or full refund on any goods that were faulty or defective at the time of purchase.
For the first 6 months after purchase, consumers will no longer have to prove that the goods were faulty when purchased.
Instead, the retailer will have to prove that they were of satisfactory quality and fit for their purpose when sold.


If I was you I'd find out quickly how long I'd had the car, and when the garage recognised it was faulty.

 

[Sando]

Its all paid now anyway

Oh well!

Matt

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54 BHP of pure italian muscle