should I sue?

Recently, the local dealership replaced my Jetta's fuel pump under warranty. Soon after the repairs I noticed the smell of gas as I drove to work in the next county. I was unsure of the cause of the smell and worried that the problem was serious so I decided to drop the car at the nearest mechanic and phone the dealership that had done the repairs to see if the smell was a result of their recent work. The dealership believed the problem was unrelated so I decided to have the local mechanic perform a diagnosis rather than risk driving it back to the dealership and pay the higher costs involved.


The local mechanic determined that the dealership had installed a cracked fuel pump and charged $340 for raising the car and dropping the tank. I decided to return the car to the dealership for repairs which they performed at no charge and offered to reimburse $100 to cover the costs of a reasonable diagnosis. I'm seeking a full reimbursement from the of the bill for $340.


My question: Was it reasonable for the local mechanic to charge $340 to diagnose the problem by raising the car and dropping the tank? The dealership and local mechanic disagree over the claim that the amount is excessive and that a reasonable mechanic would have simply checked the fuel pump first and only charged around $100. I'm not knowledgeable enough to know what a reasonable mechanic would have done so I'm hoping an expert on the forum might offer an opinion on who is responsible and should I sue for reimbursement.



Thanks,
Confused girl

IMHO the independant mechanic charged you entirely too much to diagnose your problem.
Also, the dealer should have offered to pick your vehicle up (tow) or directed you to a dealer near your location to have the car checked out.
A charge of $100 to diagnose a problem is fair and reasonable.
I would get some estimates on diagnosing the same problem, then go back to the mechanic and request a refund.

I hope I understand this correctly. If your car needed a fuel pump and they installed one that was defective, they should re-install another one for free. As far as refunding your money, you paid for a needed repair but a defective part was installed. You still needed a repair so why why do you want your money back? As for the diagnosis expense at another location I would push for the refund of it. If the new part was truely defective the warranty from the factory on that part possibly covers this expense in unusual conditions.

On some of those cars, the rear axle assembly must be dropped prior to dropping the tank. If that is the case on yours, the $340 was probably reasonable, however, they should have called you for approval before they went past the first hour of diagnosing. I don't know if there is a law that says they must call for approval, but IMO it's dishonest not to. At the same time, if there is a fuel leak above the tank, it's safe to assume that the pump and/or lines are the only possible source. In that case, they would have been able to give you a rough cost without even dropping the tank.

If I were you, I would threaten to sue if they don't reimburse you for most of it. I think it would be reasonable to charge $100 for diagnosing it, and since the dealer offered to pay $100 for the diagnosis, you may as well give them something for their work. It should also be easier to get them to refund a portion than all of it.

In most states there are laws in reference to preathorization of work before the work is performed.
Usually these laws have an "implied" dollar amount (usually less then $100) that work can be performed without an authorization beyond the fact that you signed the repair order and was told there would be a cost involved.
Anything above that amount or repair cost over 10% of the original estimate require the customer to OK the additional costs. If not, the customer does not have to pay the additional expense.

That is why I always over estimate my jobs and the customers are alway happy when they find out the job actually cost less then the original estimate.
If they question it, I tell them I gave them a discount.