Ripped off at local Vette Shop

[1quik6.0]

Hey guys i wanted to ask a few questions about what you feel i should have been charged or what you would have charged me for some Mod Installs i recently did.

First of all i have an 06 Trailblazer SS 2wd with the LS2 in it.

So i take my SS to a local Vette shop because he was local to me and overall seemed like he knew what he was doing, but in the end i felt i got ripped off and thought i would see what you would do if u were in my shoes.

Ok SS had these mods installed...

Kooks 1 3/4 Catted Headers
Stainless Works Catback system
new LS7 throttle body
new rammer CAI that i was told about on another site
GTO efans
Autometer Trans Temp Gauge- installed interior wise obviously
Underdrive Pulley

Ok now b4 u toss some #'s at me i furnished all parts above EXCEPT hardware for efans (relays, etc)

Now throw some numbers at me and i will respond. I do realize im in Calif, but again i got rimmed bigtime in my eyes.

[1quik6.0]

I was billed for 42 hrs on this SUV of mine, what would you do if you were me?
SS was in shop for 3 weeks, go figure.
Im thinking of a few things and they involve the Court system.

[LETHALxLS1]

whats the hourly rate at the shop??

[newtechnova]

seems high to me. did you get a quote on the labor?

[99bluebird]

42 hours? Yea you got ripped hard-whats that a $2500 bill?
The throttle body and CAI you shouldve done by yourself.

The headers/catback-8 hours at absolute most
Underdrive pulley-2 hours?
Trans temp and fans are probably where they "got you," usually anything electrical they can pretty much charge what they want if noones watching.

[Z28venom]

Did they use any vasoline?

[1quik6.0]

yah i got a bottle of kj with it, but on a serious note i got jacked bigtime and learned a huge lesson.

[1quik6.0]

Guys don't use NorthStar Corvettes, big ripoff and they don't know what the fukk their doing! Their located in Mt.View Calif.

[tonyjnjz]

yeah that sounds rediculous!!!!!!!!!!!!! 10-15 hrs sounds about where it should of been....and how hard are those headers on a truck??? has to be easier than on a camaro and thats a 5-6 hr job..catback.1 hr...intake..20 min..tb..20 min....pully i have no clue on those but not much more than an hr........so yeah 10 hrs sounds reasonable..........u should of been quoted before hand bro.....why wernt u??????? i always ask how much BEFORE they start the job..

[blue02Z]

damn! i'd say you got rammed pretty hard. did there work come with a warranty?

[jamessr]

Well its hard to argue after the work has been done. It does sound like alot of hrs though, but I'm not sure theres anything you can do about it. I'm sure you've signed some type of paper authorizing him to work on your car, thats a contract. Next time get a "quote" and I'm not saying it as a flame just advice. Cause if he had quoted your $2500 I'm sure you would have told him to pack sand.
However a header install is costly at any shop, My opinion you over paid by $1500. Hope that makes it a little easier to swallow... oh wait you got it from behind sorry. :yup:

[jimmy77611]

I think you should invest in a labor time guide and add up all of the stuff. It can't be 42 hours. For items like the CAI, which aren't in the labor guide, just be generous and say 2 hours, headers should be no different than exhaust manifold labor, but just add an hour to each side just for kicks. Still wouldn't come up to 42 hours. You should definitely take them to court over this. Prove they ripped you off to a judge by using the labor time guide.

[JEFF01Z]

If you did not sign any quote prior to them starting the work, it should be pretty to fight it through the courts; you won't even need a lawyer.

Most all shops make you sign a work order or something to that nature authorizing them to work on the vehicle. Typically this will have an estimate of the parts and labor. Depending on how it is written they are required to get authorization prior to making further repairs and/or any increase beyond the original amount quoted. Any shop that does not do business this way is really hanging themselves out there on the line.

First step is to read any fine print on anything you may have signed prior to them working on it. If you did not sign anything and can prove it; this is your fight, you did not authorize the work that was done, which would entail a full refund of the cost + court costs.
If you did sign something, it just depends on the wording of the disclaimer.
Your other alternative is like stated in previous posts. Get a labor time standard book. Look up all replacement items that was done, even though aftermarket stuff is not listed. Typically electrical work is done on clock hours, not flag hours. So they should have a time record of some sort for the electrical work. There is no real way to flat-rate electrical work because there is no way to encompass all jobs under one rate.

Have all your ducks in a row when you get to court. Present all documentation to the judge and proof from your sources. Their downfall against the judge will be proving were they came up with that labor amount. If they cannot prove a standard exists you are almost sure to win.

[1quik6.0]

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All this info is from him, i wrote nothing on any of this. First one is his first stement i signed thinking it was my original estimate (hard to read i know) ok 2nd statement is day i went to pick up my SS. Exhibit A&B are where my 42 hrs came from.

Any imput would be greatly appreciated.

[JEFF01Z]

It seems real odd. So I take it you paid the total amount of both invoices or just the second one?

The key things they really killed you on is a no brainer. What I would like to know is where in the world they came up with that amount of time.
I could not read the small print on the invoices, but either way, the dates are different. It appears that the first invoice was for parts. Obviously the headers are a big portion of this. At that time of the invoice they should have had a labor amount on it. I know that somethings they would not have an exact figure for. But it is pretty easy to look up a standard amount for replacing the OEM part. I can see tacking on some time for fabrication, but they went way overboard on this.

9 hours to wire the fans in, come on now. There is no way it took this long, unless the guy doing it was a real moron and had no clue what he was doing.

11 hours to install the fans. How hard could this had been. I don't own a trailblazer, but I just can't fathem it possibly taking this long to install. On top of that they gig you for another 9 hours to wire it.

The amount of labor is very unreasonable. I would do a little research of labor rates of changing the oem parts. Most electrical work is done by clock hours + 1 to 2 hours depending on how long it actually took. Most labor standards are usually are 50-70% more time than it acutally takes to do the job for your average tech. Obviously the more skilled the person is, the more hours they are able to flag.

To sum it up you need to:
Research labor standards for OEM replacement for the items replaced.
put all this in a formal report.
Bring the book with you to court.
Your main complaint is that you did not authorize that amount of labor. Your original estimate was for xxxx and when you pick up the vehicle it was something totally different and a whole new invoice.
The other thing you will have going for you is they will have to provide a something as to where they have came up with the amount of labor charged. Standards we put in place to protect the shop and the customer. If they cannot come up with something to prove their amount, their credibility is greatly reduced with the judge.

[blue02Z]

i work at a dealership and i have never seen anyone-even the heavyline dude-flag that many hours. one time he pulled the engine on a fed-ex truck and the total labor came to 25 hours. as stated above, you need to take them to court and get some money back, including you court fees. that is complete bullshit. it took them 3 hours to do your trans pan? warranty times pay 7-9 hours for a complete trans r&r according to gm.

[1quik6.0]

This case was WON by me today, case closed! :drivin:

I didn't go into Court thinking i would come out a rich person, but i did want to prove to the Judge my side of story and most of all make sure guys/gals in here be careful on who they take their vehicle to. I know i learned my lesson and at same time it was very well worth my Monday morning.

[mrr23]

good deal.

[JEFF01Z]

So what was the final result? Did they refund part of the labor? How prepared was the shop when they showed up, or did they even try to fight it?

[sgt0704]

what lesson did you learn? do the work yourself? a chilton and haynes manual are great. :yup:

[1quik6.0]

So what was the final result? Did they refund part of the labor? How prepared was the shop when they showed up, or did they even try to fight it?

Final result is the Owner of this shop should had had a little bit more Courtesy and not to think he can rim a customer. Bottom line is i won the case and he went away pissed iam sure.

Some of us don't have time or the basic shop to do certain mods. For me i run a business myself and i took my Trailblazer SS to a local Vett shop THINKING they would do a nice job. Little did i learn that i was taken advantage of and i learned a life lesson.

[LETHALxLS1]

Final result is the Owner of this shop should had had a little bit more Courtesy and not to think he can rim a customer. Bottom line is i won the case and he went away pissed iam sure.

Some of us don't have time or the basic shop to do certain mods. For me i run a business myself and i took my Trailblazer SS to a local Vett shop THINKING they would do a nice job. Little did i learn that i was taken advantage of and i learned a life lesson.

*** I am going through a similar situation right now with a local GM service place. I plan on doing whatever ness. to get my money back also. I have back issues and cant do my own work either-seems alot of people look at ya like your an idiot cause you pay to get work done-I know different.
-Glad u won man!!

[greatwhiteZ28]

ccouldnt read really what was the final total cost??

[1quik6.0]

Close to 6k.

[greatwhiteZ28]

you should make add this company as a sposner here pn this site but insteaed of promoteing good service make it soo they are the worst at what they do...??

omg

[greatwhiteZ28]

990$ for a trans temp install????? i would of sold you a install thread/post form this site for $10

[SScott]

Close to 6k. :rl:

thats disgusting

[greatwhiteZ28]

i would take them to court saying that the invoice that i signed included a supercharger and when it came time to pick it up they just didnt add it and would like for some money back.

or just get a group of your freinds with pick it signs to stand out front. ( its not illegel) and scar away there business. just a idea

plus go to like 5 other speed shops and get a esimate fot that job and show that to the BBB or courts

[greatwhiteZ28]

did you get charge for the t STAT twice? one on each invoice

[xinthenight]

This is the exact reason I'm just starting a 3 year process at the college to start my own shop. 1 full year for autobody repair and then my associates degree in automotive tech. I hate people that think they can shit everyone else out of something just because there aren't that many shops around that can actually do the work.

[zggill04]

Wow, I almost shit myself when I read this. I had paid almost 7k for an LT1 long block, then to get it R&R'd along with getting a new clutch and having that installed. But to get charged almost 6k for the work you had done. Ridiculous. I'm glad you won the case.:woo:

[xinthenight]

Wow, I almost shit myself when I read this. I had paid almost 7k for an LT1 long block, then to get it R&R'd along with getting a new clutch and having that installed. But to get charged almost 6k for the work you had done. Ridiculous. I'm glad you won the case.:woo:

That reminds me of when I first got my car and the dealership didn't mention the oil leak in the engine. A shop charged me about $700 to fix that.:rl:

[JEFF01Z]

Final result is the Owner of this shop should had had a little bit more Courtesy and not to think he can rim a customer. Bottom line is i won the case and he went away pissed iam sure.

Some of us don't have time or the basic shop to do certain mods. For me i run a business myself and i took my Trailblazer SS to a local Vett shop THINKING they would do a nice job. Little did i learn that i was taken advantage of and i learned a life lesson.

At least you took the time to take it to this level. Just think, you are probably not the first person that got the shaft, but probably the first to give it back to them. Regardless of what you got out of it; it is always satisfying to give it back in the form of a little stress and taking their time. I am sure they learned a lesson too.

[Smkn_TA]

Wow, and I thought tire/oil change shops ripped off people.

[greatwhiteZ28]

read on post you won the case , soo you won the court case????????

[AZRAEL1951]

Hey guys i wanted to ask a few questions about what you feel i should have been charged or what you would have charged me for some Mod Installs i recently did.

First of all i have an 06 Trailblazer SS 2wd with the LS2 in it.

So i take my SS to a local Vette shop because he was local to me and overall seemed like he knew what he was doing, but in the end i felt i got ripped off and thought i would see what you would do if u were in my shoes.

Ok SS had these mods installed...

Kooks 1 3/4 Catted Headers
Stainless Works Catback system
new LS7 throttle body
new rammer CAI that i was told about on another site
GTO efans
Autometer Trans Temp Gauge- installed interior wise obviously
Underdrive Pulley

Ok now b4 u toss some #'s at me i furnished all parts above EXCEPT hardware for efans (relays, etc)

Now throw some numbers at me and i will respond. I do realize im in Calif, but again i got rimmed bigtime in my eyes. There is MORE to this than 1quick6.0 wants you to know. This is a fact. I took the time to research this whole thing due to the fact I have been dealing with Northstar Corvettes for years and can honestly tell you Dave has always treated me great as well as many many others. The fact that a person comes on here and Corvette forum JUST TO BASH a company w/o giving you the facts iMO is just plain slanderous. You all can believe what you want and it seems that you have which is sad. But unless you took the time to research than you dont the know the whole story. As far as winning! hardly! Just as for proof! Copies of this post as well as the one in Corvette Forum which by the way was deleted by the moderaters have been sent back to Northstar. I can tell you 1quick6.0 has not heard the last of this slander!

[b.lee]

He won a court case so .... what should we know?
Sounds like the typical stealership prices to me.

[gspfunk]

There is MORE to this than 1quick6.0 wants you to know. This is a fact. I took the time to research this whole thing due to the fact I have been dealing with Northstar Corvettes for years and can honestly tell you Dave has always treated me great as well as many many others. The fact that a person comes on here and Corvette forum JUST TO BASH a company w/o giving you the facts iMO is just plain slanderous. You all can believe what you want and it seems that you have which is sad. But unless you took the time to research than you dont the know the whole story. As far as winning! hardly! Just as for proof! Copies of this post as well as the one in Corvette Forum which by the way was deleted by the moderaters have been sent back to Northstar. I can tell you 1quick6.0 has not heard the last of this slander!
What else is there to know? And slander?... He's trying to prevent anyone else from getting prison sexed. The bottom line is that a retarded kid could do those mods in less than 42 charged hours of labor. Luckily, here in Dallas, there are several very good shops that are actually reasonable and do incredible work.

EDIT: I could definitely be wrong, but I find it hard to believe that anything justifies that much labor on those mods, which are regularly performed in a day in someone's driveway/garage. If he was standing there knocking the tools out of the mechanic's hand while he was trying to work on it, that would be a little different.

[AZRAEL1951]

What else is there to know? And slander?... He's trying to prevent anyone else from getting prison sexed. The bottom line is that a retarded kid could do those mods in less than 42 charged hours of labor. Luckily, here in Dallas, there are several very good shops that are actually reasonable and do incredible work.

EDIT: I could definitely be wrong, but I find it hard to believe that anything justifies that much labor on those mods, which are regularly performed in a day in someone's driveway/garage. If he was standing there knocking the tools out of the mechanic's hand while he was trying to work on it, that would be a little different.

The owner of the shop is going to be responding very soon, I came on this thread to give my opinion of the situation. It is not for me to prove to anyone anything, thats the owners job. And believe me he will be doing so. I can understand how all of you feel about this based on the info the customer provided. Most people know there are two sides of the story. He infact suceeded in making everyone believe his story, that is all but the good people who know Northstar and have no problems with them. So expect the owners side of the story to be out soon and the results will be played outside of the forum.

[mrr23]

then let the shop owner come in and say his piece.

[LETHALxLS1]

^ I agree fully. And how can you make alligations of slander without even giving any evidence and acting like whoever believes this guy is a moron? I mean look at the work order and amount of labor charged. I wish more people would go to court like this guy did because then shops that take advantage of people would be a little more hesitant.

[greatwhiteZ28]

There is MORE to this than 1quick6.0 wants you to know. This is a fact. I took the time to research this whole thing due to the fact I have been dealing with Northstar Corvettes for years and can honestly tell you Dave has always treated me great as well as many many others. The fact that a person comes on here and Corvette forum JUST TO BASH a company w/o giving you the facts iMO is just plain slanderous. You all can believe what you want and it seems that you have which is sad. But unless you took the time to research than you dont the know the whole story. As far as winning! hardly! Just as for proof! Copies of this post as well as the one in Corvette Forum which by the way was deleted by the moderaters have been sent back to Northstar. I can tell you 1quick6.0 has not heard the last of this slander!

"slandering with out giving facts"""

what was the invoice? fact, or in the court room would be evidence #1.

]There is MORE to this than 1quick6.0 wants you to know. This is a fact.]


soo what else is there, did he get his tires rotated for $140?

[LETHALxLS1]

^ no way! Tire rotation is 6hrs. labor at 80 per hour.

[greatwhiteZ28]

stop low balling the number, im talking about a FULL service rotation ( topping off inflation on each tire)

[greatwhiteZ28]

Lololol

[LETHALxLS1]

stop low balling the number, im talking about a FULL service rotation ( topping off inflation on each tire)

LOL your right! that is a low estimate.

[zggill04]

I really can't wait for the shop owner to come on and try to cover his a$$... But will he really come by to face the jury?!?! I'm not sure how you can cover the fact that there is a bill that was shown on this thread for a ridiculous labor times. But hey, we could be wrong. So till then... I"M WAITING!! :nilly:

[greatwhiteZ28]

honestly that could really screw his buisness bad in his area.. not that im sorry for him, but like any shop who tries to screw someone, theres always that chance that it will back fire.

[xinthenight]

The owner of the shop is going to be responding very soon, I came on this thread to give my opinion of the situation. It is not for me to prove to anyone anything, thats the owners job. And believe me he will be doing so. I can understand how all of you feel about this based on the info the customer provided. Most people know there are two sides of the story. He infact suceeded in making everyone believe his story, that is all but the good people who know Northstar and have no problems with them. So expect the owners side of the story to be out soon and the results will be played outside of the forum.

And what is/can he going to say? He over-charged like crazy and the guy is warning people about the shop. That is legal my friend, as I can almost guarantee you that every time someone has used a shop of some sort, they have told people about how good/bad they did. Just because it's online doesn't make it illegal. If a place does a shitty job on something, in this case the price, people should be warned about it. Deal with it.

The only way this could go lean in his way is if he can prove that he actually won the case and didn't have to give the money back, but the fact that he over-charged by that much is still able to be posted as a warning for everyone else so they don't get scammed as well.

[greatwhiteZ28]

Quote:
Originally Posted by AZRAEL1951
The owner of the shop is going to be responding very soon, I came on this thread to give my opinion of the situation. It is not for me to prove to anyone anything, thats the owners job. And believe me he will be doing so. I can understand how all of you feel about this based on the info the customer provided. Most people know there are two sides of the story. He infact suceeded in making everyone believe his story, that is all but the good people who know Northstar and have no problems with them. So expect the owners side of the story to be out soon and the results will be played outside of the forum.

look at the bold, looks like a threat that hes getting a ass whooping off the forums. sounds like a threat

[greatwhiteZ28]

The only way this could go lean in his way is if he can prove that he actually won the case and didn't have to give the money back, but the fact that he over-charged by that much is still able to be posted as a warning for everyone else so they don't get scammed as well.[/QUOTE]

not to disagree but the law is really messed up, depending on old cases, jurres, judge, defence, and codes. posting or maybe disgerishing buisness (advertising) can be on corvette shops side. highly unlikly but ...

[310stanger]

well, honestly its normally the customers fault if they dont like the bill because you have to give the ok before most any shop does any work. i've never heard of a shop that gives a huge surprise at the end? the shop didnt call you and let you know what the progress is or give you an estimate before any work was done? I work at a dealer and at dealers no repairs are done without approval for reasons jus like this. Now as far as them overcharging you thats one thing, but them not knowing what they are doing.... did they mess anything up too? you seem to be the uneducated one my friend. but i hope it turns out for the best.

[0rion]

I think this thread has went about as far as it'll go. I'll leave it open in case the shop owner wants to contribute to the thread and defend himself but I'll ask all others not involved to please stop posting in the thread.

[1quik6.0]

The owner of the shop is going to be responding very soon, I came on this thread to give my opinion of the situation. It is not for me to prove to anyone anything, thats the owners job. And believe me he will be doing so. I can understand how all of you feel about this based on the info the customer provided. Most people know there are two sides of the story. He infact suceeded in making everyone believe his story, that is all but the good people who know Northstar and have no problems with them. So expect the owners side of the story to be out soon and the results will be played outside of the forum.

You know nothing about went on so why even talk chit??? Your probably just hearing what he has to tell you due to the fact you take your ride there, i learned the hard way.

bottom line is 42 hrs were charged and 3 weeks in his shop, tell me whos smoking crack??


Dave brought up Slander to the Judge and was laughed at. Slander is when you give false accusations of a particular business. I gave you pure facts and most of all to warn others about who you take your shop to.

Bottom line is i came out with the Victory, case closed! I won't be replying anymore cause its really not worth it in my eyes.

[greatwhiteZ28]

you didnt tell the outcome of the court case thoe . what did you get or reinbursed?