Date: Fri, 6 Aug 2010 13:21:41 -0700
Reply-To: Scott Daniel - Turbovans <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Scott Daniel - Turbovans <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Subject: Re: Diesel - too much oil saga
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I have a 'big rule' about 'speculation about a problem before the facts are
known'...
namely 'don't'.
like if someone is freaking out that their engien is blown or whatever ..
and no FACTS are known ..
it is useless and counterproductive to start worrying say, about what a new
engine costs.
it might not be that at all.
maybe I have not seen every word of the whole thread..
but seems to me, first thing is to find out how much oil is actually in the
engine ..
and if it was way too much and that caused a real problem
THEN talk about who might have messed up how.
extra -
here's a 'dipstick story' for you ..
an example of how stupid 'too modern' things can be.
Some BMW's have no engine oil dipstick.
they have a warning light instead ..
one that says something like 'oil level low' ...
here's what happens in the real world when that warning goes off - you add
oil, cause it says it needs some.
if that doesn't make the light go out, you add more oil.
Meanwhile you can never actually know what the oil level is ..since there is
no dipstick.
so, the official way to trouble shoot that is to drain the oil, then put the
correct amount back in and see how it works then.
and if there is still a problem, then you start thinking sensor , or cirucit
etc.
but isn't that frickin' DUMB ..
a warning system that can be faulty ....and the only way to test it is to
drain the oil and refill with proper amount ...
when the good ole dipstick costs 20 cents for the manufacture make, has
worked just fine since god invented cars ..
talk about stupid !!!
anyway..
get the facts first.
how much oil is ACTUALLY in it.
is the dipstick goofy ?
and what is the actual condition of the engine .
and I would have to say, if a driver of an AAZ engine vanagon knows there is
anything strange or odd about thier non-stock engine arrangement..
then they should be very vigilant to make sure people do basic stuff right
on it ..
and .
it just plain is not really safe to have strangers change your oil.
Frankly..it
'should' be child's play easy to do right ..
yet oil changes are screwed up on cars hundreds of times a day across north
america..
betcha !.
Scott
www.turbovans.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "Jim Felder" <jim.felder@GMAIL.COM>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Friday, August 06, 2010 9:48 AM
Subject: Re: Diesel - too much oil saga
Not to argue, but how is it negligent not to know that a previous
owner or shop made a change to a vehicle? Dipstick level is so seldom
altered that it is not likely on the checklist of things to look at
when a car comes into a shop. If shops did check a car over to this
level of detail, they would have been sued for padding the bill with
unnecessary procedures as only one in ten thousand vehicles might have
the problem. If they checked for everything that could possibly be
wrong with a car when it went in, nobody could afford ANY automotive
service.
And, if the owner or previous owner knew about the modified oil level,
the car has been operating this way for some time, and the symptoms
should have shown up already. If the owner or previous owner DID know
about the situation and didn't tell the shop, then they are
responsible.
The law normally looks at a course of action in light of whether a
reasonable person would take it. It seems unreasonable that a shop
would look at marks on a dipstick as anything but accurate, especially
if the car had never exhibited overfilling symptoms before.
Jim
On Fri, Aug 6, 2010 at 11:31 AM, Bob Stevens <mtbiker62@gmail.com> wrote:
> It's the mechanics responsibility to KNOW what they are doing, what they
> are
> working on, how to fix "the problem", while the customer
> has no responsibility or liability for any of that whatsoever. This is
> only
> one example, but there are hundreds if not thousands like it.
> http://ezinearticles.com/?Auto-Mechanics-Liability-For-Damages-Resulting-From-Negligent-Repairs&id=2675550
> State licensed technicians of ANY kind, who are taking $$ in exchange for
> their services, are always held liable for their work.
> It's a very poor precedent to let a paid individual off the hook for their
> "professional services".
> That's why Utah Imports drove 6 1/2 hours each way, to pick up my van in
> Montrose, CO after they installed a cam belt tensioner
> that seized after 600 miles in the fall of 2007 ... they know how this
> works.
> bob
>
> On Fri, Aug 6, 2010 at 10:17 AM, Don Hanson <dhanson928@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> The idea to go to the manual and get the proper capacity from the specs,
>> then fill the engine and mark the dipstick...that will solve the problem
>> of
>> overfilling.
>>
>> Expecting that shop to 'make good' for damage to a motor they filled to
>> "the mark"? That might be difficult and actually a bit unreasonable. They
>> can't be expected to double-check everything to make sure the vehicle
>> they
>> are working on conforms to the specs it is supposed to have. When you get
>> a
>> vehicle to work on you can reasonably expect it to be accurately
>> configured. A miss-marked dipstick is not something any mechanic "must"
>> anticipate in his normal trade.
>> Don Hanson
>>
>>
>>
>>>
>>
>
