Text 3028, 49 rader
Skriven 2010-01-11 21:13:00 av Lee Lofaso (3:800/432.0)
   Kommentar till text 2985 av Roy Witt (1:387/22)
Ärende: Misconceptions
======================
Hello Roy,

>LL>What a scam.  If the owner of the car has no idea as to what is wrong
>LL>with the car, any auto mechanic can easily scam the owner. I tested
>LL>this theory on a reputable maintenance shop.  And sure enough, the
>LL>mechanic tried to scam me.  The mechanic did the computer hook-up
>LL>thing (or so he said) and told me what repairs were needed.  I told
>LL>the mechanic to go take a hike, and drove away, without paying a
>LL>cent.  But how many others would have gladly handed over their
>LL>hard-earned money, or known they were getting fleeced?

>LL>Okay.  How did I know the mechanic was lying when he told me he
>LL>had done that computer hook-up thing?  Because the car I brought
>LL>in was pre-1996.  I knew he could not legally force me to pay
>LL>the fee for the computer hook-up, given the fact that it was
>LL>a pre-1996 car, meaning it was impossible for the mechanic to
>LL>have done as he had claimed.

RW>FYI, pre-96 vehicles had ALDL computer connectors, just like they do today
RW>only the diagnostic ports had different shapes. OBD1 (On Board
RW>Diagnostics, version 1) vehicles were manufactured beginning in 1982 thru
RW>1993 with a 12 pin ALDL connector, which was changed to the 16 pin ALDL
RW>OBD2 connector in 1994. Even though the 1994 and 1995 vehicles had the
RW>OBD2 connector, they were connected to OBD1 computers.

RW>Unless your car was pre-1982, you submitted a vehicle that any mechanic
RW>can scan.

The whole thing was a joke when I brought the car in.  It was
a 1990 Ford Thunderbird with a busted radiator.  No need for a
hook-up of any kind to tell a mechanic what was wrong with the
car.  The mechanic insisted on the computer hook-up, claiming
it was shop policy.  I was not going to argue with an idiot.
When he returned (with his computer diagnosis in hand) he told
me a complete engine overhaul was needed, citing an exhorbant
cost estimate, without saying a word about the radiator.  I
refused to pay for the computer diagnostic and drove the car
elsewhere - to a service station, which then gladly replaced
the radiator.  The shop manager and other mechanics found
the incident to be hilarious, probably due to the smoke that
was coming out of the front end of my car as I drove off.

--Lee


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