How long is a piece of string?

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My husband took our car to Geddes Automotive in Onehunga for repair (it was misfiring). They replaced a muffler but told him the car was still not running properly and they would need to do tests. He agreed assuming that the charge would be reasonable and that the tests would identify the trouble. We were given a courtesy vehicle and told I would only have to pay fuel and milage if I went over 50 kms per day.

We were charged $360 for tests and told that they thought they had identified the problem but were not sure. (They said the tests showed that the ignition module was weak and could be replaced new for $3700 or second hand for $1150 . . . but this may not be the cause of the problem - if not, more testing would be required - after all, they explained ”repairing a car is like decorating a Christmas tree. You never know which light is the problem”! Apparently we were expected to pay for the tests and repairs as we went along in the hope that they would eventually stumble on the cause of the problem.

When my husband told them that he was not prepared to pay a further amount for a repair that they could not be sure was the cause of the problem and that he would settle the bill for the testing and baffle replacement, he was charged an additional amount to "reassemble" the car and $25 per day for the courtesy vehicle - (the latter charged suddenly because he would not let them carry on with any further work because I was not convinced they would solve the problem within a reasonable rate), $70 for emails they sent to source spares and a courier fee although, he saw them replace the muffler which was on site.

All said and done we had to pay $733.65 for a muffler and some tests. The moral of the story - demand to know the length of the string before you buy it and watch out for those “Christmas lights” in motor workshops - they are very expensive!

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