Nicoletta

What to do

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2 hours ago, Mojo121 said:

Can we start a pot up? Everyone with less than 50 posts who needs advice adds to the £50 advice jar and we all go on the slosh at Xmas?

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4 hours ago, Mikey360 said:

If you didn't break the dipstick how can they blame you?

It's happened to a mate of mine on an old Passat, the orange plastic fell to bits when he checked the oil and the metal dipstick went down the tube, difference here is he didn't start the engine and called me for help!

If he broke the dipstick and then started the engine isn't that negligence?

That’s my opinion. He should be holding the garage responsible, but I’m not all that sure what damage the dipstick being in the engine could do....

Anyone familiar? Odviously the timing chain guides are next to it and it wasn’t noisy before. Say they pulled with force and engine running either during or after?

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5 minutes ago, Nicoletta said:

That’s my opinion. He should be holding the garage responsible, but I’m not all that sure what damage the dipstick being in the engine could do....

Anyone familiar? Odviously the timing chain guides are next to it and it wasn’t noisy before. Say they pulled with force and engine running either during or after?

Dipstick in the engine could be fatal if it got caught in the crankshaft, sounds like they're trying to shift the blame to you

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2 minutes ago, C B said:

Which part of the dipstick has come off? If it's the plastic loop at the top you pull it with, this would not render the car a non runner. If bottom has fell off it could either be stuck in the oil pick up pipe which would give running issues or maybe they're just being precautions by not wanting to start it?

Not sure, definitely not even starting. Told us it couldn’t even be jump started as we assumed battery had run flat. The dipstick is in the engine, that was all that was said. Wouldn’t elaborate further as we are not their customer. Exact words 

Didn’t put on their estimate that they broke it, customer informed us of that. 

Estimate says ‘when dipstick removed it could not be replaced.
The dipstick goes through the timing chain guides so most likely the plastic
guide has broken up internally’

 

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7 minutes ago, C B said:

Tell your man the deal is off as the car is not as he told you it was. 

You agreed to buy the car for £xxxx on the basis its done x amount of miles and has a hesitation/lack or power- that's it. 

It transpires that it's quite a bit more fucked than that. You're not going to lose his business, he's proved that by buying his daughter a replacement from elsewhere. 

Dear Mr xyz

Unfortunately do to the discrepancies in the vehicles actual condition compared to what we were lead to believe/further damage caused by Fuck Wits Garage Ltd we no longer have any interest in buying the car. 

Sorry we couldn't be of any further assistance on this occasion. 

Kind regards,

Nicoletta.

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1 hour ago, C B said:

Tell your man the deal is off as the car is not as he told you it was. 

You agreed to buy the car for £xxxx on the basis its done x amount of miles and has a hesitation/lack or power- that's it. 

It transpires that it's quite a bit more fucked than that. You're not going to lose his business, he's proved that by buying his daughter a replacement from elsewhere. 

Dear Mr xyz

Unfortunately do to the discrepancies in the vehicles actual condition compared to what we were lead to believe/further damage caused by Fuck Wits Garage Ltd we no longer have any interest in buying the car. 

Sorry we couldn't be of any further assistance on this occasion. 

Kind regards,

Nicoletta.

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Dipstick goes through Chain Guides WTF ????

Can any of our MINI guys confirm or refute this ????

I am not familiar with these as in have not had one in bits that far down, but this sounds like utter bollocks to me ...................

Think about it, if it actually passed through a guide the Chain would bust it in half first time it cranked over !! :rolleyes:

I still think that garage is at it, unless this can be confirmed.

13 hours ago, C B said:

Tell your man the deal is off as the car is not as he told you it was. 

You agreed to buy the car for £xxxx on the basis its done x amount of miles and has a hesitation/lack or power- that's it. 

It transpires that it's quite a bit more fucked than that. You're not going to lose his business, he's proved that by buying his daughter a replacement from elsewhere. 

Dear Mr xyz

Unfortunately do to the discrepancies in the vehicles actual condition compared to what we were lead to believe/further damage caused by Fuck Wits Garage Ltd we no longer have any interest in buying the car. 

Sorry we couldn't be of any further assistance on this occasion. 

Kind regards,

Nicoletta.

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1 minute ago, tradex said:

Dave, I was thinking the same. It can't possbily thread it's way past timing chain and gear unshrouded. And if the dipstick does go timing case on (external to block) that's a first for me, but modern cars...

Anyway, so what, I mean nearly every PSA from the late 90's/00's used to suffer a broken dipstick, where will did it go? Just laying on the bottom of the sump...

There's something wrong with this story somewhere?

Exactly what I was thinking and I'm not at all technical.  Dipstick measures depth of oil in the sump, which is where it would be if it snapped off surely, probably stuck in part to the magnet inside the sump.

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20 minutes ago, tradex said:

I think it's a eureka moment.

the timing chain guide...the dipstick does in fact slide into it......I think?

So If the plastic guide fails (and they do), the dipstick can't pass thru the guide if it misaligns....FFS what a crap design!

 

420655_x600.jpg

420659_x600.jpg

I think it inserts into the hole that is shown in picture 2 and out the bottom?

So now we have a possible oppotunity for the dipstick to indeed ram itselfs into the timing gear assembly...

So it was a case of modern cars then...

A quick google shows that the dipsticks break very often, so maybe there are two issues here. Broken dipstick (common) and broken valve timing assembly?

And to think there was a man in the pub cursing his POS Scenic because he has to remove his n/s headlight to change a bulb:D....you don't in fact but he was frothing at the mouth to point this out.

Thanks for the clarification.

 

This is my whole issue though, customer drove the car to this mechanic for diagnostic on low power. Diagnostic done, dipstick snapped in process , now timing issue and noise that wasn’t there before and it’s a nonrunner. Customer states he has checked the oil weekly so has removed the dipstick 26 times since the pos. No chain noise just lack of power in lower gears before it went into the garage, it was driving though and now it’s not. 

15 hours ago, Mikey360 said:

Dipstick in the engine could be fatal if it got caught in the crankshaft, sounds like they're trying to shift the blame to you

Do you know what damage it would do if it got caught?

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If the dipstick broke when the garage was doing diagnosis that is fair enough. It happens. To then start the car knowing the dipstick is broken is negligent.

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Just now, tradex said:

Maybe the dipstick was the only thing holding the tensioner in place s'why dipstick couldn't be replaced, tensioner had dropped. Then engine started and valves kissing pistons? 

I'm confused though, is the dipstick broken or just can't be inserted. Have you seen the car? Sorry, if you have mentioned but be nice for clarification. 

Garage would not let us look, wouldn’t even allow us to open the bonnet. 

Garage says removed and cant be replaced. Customer says broken. 

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Got it in writing dipstick was fine for 26 checks?

Got it in writing a third party garage you have had no dealings with broke it upon the customers choice to carry out work on their car they wish to sell?

 

I would not waste a second more on it.

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27 minutes ago, Rory RSC said:

Got it in writing dipstick was fine for 26 checks?

Got it in writing a third party garage you have had no dealings with broke it upon the customers choice to carry out work on their car they wish to sell?

 

I would not waste a second more on it.

I'm with Rory and the others on this one, OK looking at the pics perhaps they are right, it could pass through the guide.

I'd go with the above letter, no deal, goalpost have been moved by 3rd party !!

1 hour ago, Nicoletta said:

I think it's a eureka moment.

I'm not running down the road naked, there's 6" of snow outside :o

ESP works fine on the SLK as I found out at 7am this morning taking Mel to work, black ice, half asleep, Car nicely sideways and sorted itself out before I had reacted :D

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52 minutes ago, Rory RSC said:

Got it in writing dipstick was fine for 26 checks?

Got it in writing a third party garage you have had no dealings with broke it upon the customers choice to carry out work on their car they wish to sell?

 

I would not waste a second more on it.

If they've already told you in writing that prior to taking it to the garege it starts and runs, but bad rattle from chain, and that they've fucked the dipstick, I'd ask the owner to fix the dipstick, as it was clearly fine at point of purchase, so you can start the damn thing to find out what the actual problem is, for all you know there might be fuck all wrong with it, why wont the garage let you start it or take it away!

then in a worst case scenario just bloody have the thing back, minus fair use, 3k miles, 50p a mile, £1500. so you'd be buying it back for £1900, sort new chain and guide, MOT & oil change (dipstick in sump!?) and still make money on it.  thats just me, I can't be arsed with hassle any more so just want them out of my life as quickly as possible, but I'd definitely be getting the car back/want it diagnosed first.

 

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To be fair, the dipsticks are extremely common to snap on this engine. As long as the garage carried out their work carefully, then they are not to blame.

 

I said it already, its whereabouts it breaks that's the key, you can sometimes remove the filler tube and remove the broken piece.

  358797_x800.jpg

 

However the power problem will still need to be sorted.

The phaser solenoids are very common too on these.

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3 minutes ago, Stalker said:

The phaser solenoids are very common too on these.

Nah, "point the Phasers at the Di-Lithium Crystals, BAM, power restored" ....................................

Well that shit worked last week :D

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1 hour ago, Rory RSC said:

Got it in writing dipstick was fine for 26 checks?

Got it in writing a third party garage you have had no dealings with broke it upon the customers choice to carry out work on their car they wish to sell?

 

I would not waste a second more on it.

 

In writing oil was checked weekly after pos. 26 weeks passed.

In writing that customer took for diagnostic not repair (independent inspection as is their right under CRA) at third party garage and that car was driven in. In writing from customer that garage broke the dipstick, verbally from garage that they broke it, in writing from garage that when removed it could not be replaced. In writing from garage that it is a non runner. In writing from customer that it is perfectly drivable as he drove it in. 

24 minutes ago, justlooking said:

If they've already told you in writing that prior to taking it to the garege it starts and runs, but bad rattle from chain, and that they've fucked the dipstick, I'd ask the owner to fix the dipstick, as it was clearly fine at point of purchase, so you can start the damn thing to find out what the actual problem is, for all you know there might be fuck all wrong with it, why wont the garage let you start it or take it away!

then in a worst case scenario just bloody have the thing back, minus fair use, 3k miles, 50p a mile, £1500. so you'd be buying it back for £1900, sort new chain and guide, MOT & oil change (dipstick in sump!?) and still make money on it.  thats just me, I can't be arsed with hassle any more so just want them out of my life as quickly as possible, but I'd definitely be getting the car back/want it diagnosed first.

 

Never mentioned any rattle. Someone who checks the oil once a week I would argue they would notice a rattle. 

Rattle refered to on estimate from garage after this with the dipstick and it now being a nonrunner. 

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Pass to lawgistics, these chancers soon change their tune when they get a properly worded letter from a law firm. 

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3 minutes ago, James01 said:

Pass to lawgistics, these chancers soon change their tune when they get a properly worded letter from a law firm. 

This is it, he doesn’t want to take us to court, he’s not doing that first off apparently - threatening a social media campaign against the company and its directors. 

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33 minutes ago, tradex said:

That is very much in your favour. Buy an hour with a solicitor, get him to draft and send a cease and desist letter. Will cost you one months Lawgistics membership. 

im a little confused with your wording

are you agreeing use lawgistics

the reason i ask is having in the past used common solicitors it would appear that when it comes to motor vehicles they lack the necessary skills in your favour

lawgistics specialise

to put it into otherwords i am currently dealing with an ex fully ticked up member of this profession and i wouldn't let therm make me a cup of tea never mind write meaningful wordy bits

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1 hour ago, C B said:

I could be wrong and I'm probably lining myself up for  forum beating but I'm 99.999% certain the dipstick does not pass through the timing chain guide. If it does it would be the first time I've ever seen a setup like it.

I've actually taken my mini out of storage today to redo the photos and I had a look at where the dipstick goes, I think it does go through the guide!

If I remember i'll take a photo tommorow

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1 hour ago, Dave2302 said:

What a fuckin stoooopid piece of design that was :lol:

come on be fair

ones is supposed to take them back to the dealer and not let the great unwashed repair them

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