Date: Tue, 25 May 1999 08:33:15 -0400
Reply-To: Bulley <gmbulley@BULLEY-HEWLETT.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Bulley <gmbulley@BULLEY-HEWLETT.COM>
Subject: Re: tranny mount responsibility?
Your question, David, is a variant of the classic "Well you tuned up the
car last week, how come my alternator is broken now???!!!???"It is a matter
of unrealistic expectations, in my opinion.
Yes, a diligent, and smart mechanic will eyeball systems B, C, D, E, and F
while he works on system A, and THIS is the type of mechanic that is
increasingly hard to find. The agreement between the customer and the
mechanic in this case appears to be for a motor rebuild, and that is all he
is responsible for.
That bolt could have been loose for weeks prior to the rebuild...you can't
expect the mechanic to check, tighten, lube, and verify a variety of
systems on each visit. That is why "jiffy Lube" places so much emphasis on
their 49-point service check, because THEY know that YOU know that no one
else is checking that stuff.
This calls into mind why I think this list is so important. While (as you
know) I think Do-It-Yourself repairs are a very costly alternative to
professional preventive maintenance...professional PM must be accompanied
by a knowledgeable consumer who crawls around under the van from time to
time, and inspects the quality of repairs with an educated eye.
G. Matthew Bulley
Bulley-Hewlett & Associates
www.bulley-hewlett.com
Cary, NC USA
888.468.4880 tollfree
-----Original Message-----
From: ncdragonfly [SMTP:ncdragonfly@COMPUSERVE.COM]
Sent: Tuesday, May 25, 1999 7:46 AM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: tranny mount responsibility?
Let me preface this inquiry with this statement: I am not a mechanic nor do
I play one on TV. I have been able to maintain my vehicles over the years,
that is to say I am not completely devoid of mechanical knowledge or
aptitude. With that said let me relay the following story: This past
weekend we were camping on our land where we are building a log home. A
good friend of ours and his two young sons were on their way to camp with
us. Last week our friend got his 85 Westfalia back from a shop near his
home after 5 months of having the engine rebuilt. He traveled around town
last week and felt relatively confident in the vehicle. On their way to our
place last Saturday the transmission came loose from the front mount and
the engine/tranny dropped to the pavement! Yes, fell out on the road. Very
fortunately he was down shifting at an intersection and traveling at a very
slow rate of speed as I am afraid if he had been traveling at highway
speeds he and the kids would be dead and a beautiful '85 would be scrap
metal. When I got to him and we crawled underneath the vehicle we saw that
the +/- 4 inch bolt that holds the front tranny mount to the frame was
simply not there. No sign of the bolt shearing, the bolt was not found on
the road thus we were unable to inspect it. My question is this, is the
mechanic responsible? Please don't misunderstand this is not a litigious
situation so much as it is a quest to find a reliable VW shop for my
friend. My feeling is that at the very least the mechanic was negligent in
not checking all mounts to the frame after dropping the engine and
remounting it. The mechanics response was that he did not service the
transmission just the engine and therefore had no reason to adjust this
bolt. What do my fellow listees think? How about you professional's out
there? Thank you very much for your opinions.
David Higginbotham
82 Westfalia
Raleigh, NC
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