SheikYerbuti Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 So I bought a booklet of Midas coupons off of Groupon: 3 free oil changes, free tire rotation, etc. There was a coupon for a free AC diagnostic. I'm driving a 2000 Sebring convertible, and while the AC is ok, when the outside temp gets way up there (like over 105), the AC isn't really cutting the mustard. So, I bring it to Midas and ask them to do the AC diagnostic. The guy says "we recommend you change out your entire AC system. . .$1700". I said no thanks, I'll stick with it the way it is. Well, from the second they gave me my car back, the AC is blowing HOT. I went home and wrote a letter to Midas customer service. I told them that one of 2 things happened: either they broke my AC out of incompetence, or they sabotaged the AC to force me into repairs. I don't care which, all I know is I gave them a car with a working AC and they gave it back to me broken. They said they'd forward it to the franchisee and I should hear back from him in 2 days. Meanwhile, I have no AC and it sucks. I'm seriously considering taking it somewhere else, getting it fixed, and taking Midas to small claims for the cost of the repair. Any other suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SEC=UGA Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 So I bought a booklet of Midas coupons off of Groupon: 3 free oil changes, free tire rotation, etc. There was a coupon for a free AC diagnostic. I'm driving a 2000 Sebring convertible, and while the AC is ok, when the outside temp gets way up there (like over 105), the AC isn't really cutting the mustard. So, I bring it to Midas and ask them to do the AC diagnostic. The guy says "we recommend you change out your entire AC system. . .$1700". I said no thanks, I'll stick with it the way it is. Well, from the second they gave me my car back, the AC is blowing HOT. I went home and wrote a letter to Midas customer service. I told them that one of 2 things happened: either they broke my AC out of incompetence, or they sabotaged the AC to force me into repairs. I don't care which, all I know is I gave them a car with a working AC and they gave it back to me broken. They said they'd forward it to the franchisee and I should hear back from him in 2 days. Meanwhile, I have no AC and it sucks. I'm seriously considering taking it somewhere else, getting it fixed, and taking Midas to small claims for the cost of the repair. Any other suggestions? AR-15 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buddahj Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 (edited) Don't write a letter. Just call them & rip them a new a-hole. My , take it back to them (bitch to the mgr) & have them hook the machine back up & see if there's any freon in the system. If it's really low, have them charge the system back up & see it it blows like it did when you originally took it to them. Just remember that your a/c system will only blow about 30 degrees (give or take) below the outside temp. ETA...you have to be certified to work on a/c. You may also want to see if the guy working on it has his MACS certificate. Edited September 7, 2012 by buddahj Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billay Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 Don't put the care and maintenance of your ride in the hands of a national repair chain that accepts coupons from the internet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt770 Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 This would really piss me off. I'd go back at a time when they're busy and get really loud about it. "YOUR MECHANIC OBVIOUSLY SABOTAGED MY AC AND TRIED TO SELL ME $1700 WORTH OF WORK THAT I KNOW THE CAR DOESN'T NEED. DO YOU JUST ASSUME EVERYONE WHO COMES HERE IS A COMPLETE IDIOT?! DO YOU RIP OFF ALL OF YOUR CUSTOMERS LIKE THIS?" These guys give all mechanics a bad name. Man, now I'm pissed off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SEC=UGA Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 Don't write a letter. Just call them & rip them a new a-hole. My , take it back to them (bitch to the mgr) & have them hook the machine back up & see if there's any freon in the system. If it's really low, have them charge the system back up & see it it blows like it did when you originally took it to them. Just remember that your a/c system will only blow about 30 degrees (give or take) below the outside temp. ETA...you have to be certified to work on a/c. You may also want to see if the guy working on it has his MACS certificate. They hung up on me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
General Itals Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 It's possible that if they actually did do a AC diagnostic, they evacuated your R134a and "forgot" to put it back in. Screw Midas, go to an auto parts store, buy an AC recharge kit with a reusable hose for about $30. You can make the purchase in most states and do this yourself. Find the AC low side port and follow instructions on the can. The hose fitting will only fit on the low side port. It's smaller than the high side port where the R134a would be evacuated from. If you can't identify it, ask the parts person to help identify it with you. Fill until full; try not to overfill. Or take it to tbimm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clubfoothead Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 Find the AC low side port and follow instructions on the can. The hose fitting will only fit on the low side port. It's smaller than the high side port where the R134a would be evacuated from. If you can't identify it, ask the parts person to help identify it with you. Fill until full; try not to overfill. After reading this, the first question I had was how much does it cost to have a professional do this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
General Itals Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 Around here, about $40. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clubfoothead Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 Around here, about $40. That would be the route I would go. I've done some $40.00 plumbing repairs that ran a couple of hundred bucks when it was all said and done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbimm Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 First, stay away from national chains for any real work. Second, they probably did hook gauges up to your system and one of 2 things happened, they let the refrigerant out or the schraeder valve started leaking. Very common and something to always check after servicing an AC system. At 105 in a convertible with the top up your system is going to struggle to keep the car cool inside. Your vent temp should still reach into the 40's though if the system if performing flawlessly. My guess is that it's not working flawlessly but as you said it was working OK. Have them double check the service they did and recharge the system. Doing it yourself is not a great idea if the system is empty. There will be air in the system and pumping a charge in on top of that will NOT solve your problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbimm Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 It's possible that if they actually did do a AC diagnostic, they evacuated your R134a and "forgot" to put it back in. Screw Midas, go to an auto parts store, buy an AC recharge kit with a reusable hose for about $30. You can make the purchase in most states and do this yourself. Find the AC low side port and follow instructions on the can. The hose fitting will only fit on the low side port. It's smaller than the high side port where the R134a would be evacuated from. If you can't identify it, ask the parts person to help identify it with you. Fill until full; try not to overfill. Or take it to tbimm. I will not scold you for this advice as in the end you came up with the correct answer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SheikYerbuti Posted September 7, 2012 Author Share Posted September 7, 2012 First, stay away from national chains for any real work. That's one of the reasons I bought the coupons. I thought routine oil changes and a diagnostic or two was safe enough to trust a chain with. . .apparently not. Here's the thing, and I don't know if this is a Vegas thing or an everywhere thing: Yes, places like Midas and Meineke suck. But, the local auto repair places are notorious for being complete crooks. The more prevalent place in town is called Purrfect Auto and they're famous for telling you that you need triple the work you really need, and they use scare tactics. I had my transmission fluid flushed, took my car to them 2 months later for an oil change and they said "if you don't get your transmission flushed immediately, your car will explode any second". And I've tried mom and pop places too. They're just as bad. They charge you $80 just to put your car on the lift and look at it at all. And if you get work done, that $80 doesn't go to the cost of the repair. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt770 Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 My wife is really into coupons too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Country Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 I could have given you Puddy's number and saved you the money and hassle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westvirginia Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 That's one of the reasons I bought the coupons. I thought routine oil changes and a diagnostic or two was safe enough to trust a chain with. . .apparently not. Here's the thing, and I don't know if this is a Vegas thing or an everywhere thing: Yes, places like Midas and Meineke suck. But, the local auto repair places are notorious for being complete crooks. The more prevalent place in town is called Purrfect Auto and they're famous for telling you that you need triple the work you really need, and they use scare tactics. I had my transmission fluid flushed, took my car to them 2 months later for an oil change and they said "if you don't get your transmission flushed immediately, your car will explode any second". And I've tried mom and pop places too. They're just as bad. They charge you $80 just to put your car on the lift and look at it at all. And if you get work done, that $80 doesn't go to the cost of the repair. So everyone in Vegas is a crook? I'm SHOCKED I tell you! SHOCKED! Seriously, tbimm's answer would've been my guess too. And if your system is completely evacuated you'll want to take it to someone with a set of manifold guages to bleed the air out as refrigerant is pumped in - not just the little hose for the over-the-counter cans you can use to top off a system. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Furd Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 Take it to a reputable garage. (I leave it to you to find one.) Tell them your AC abruptly stopping working and ask for an estimate. Ask him for his opinion as to the cause of the problem. Tell him about your suspicions. If he confirms your suspicions in any way, you'll be able to use that in your discussions with Midas. If he debunks your theory, maybe you put the issue to rest. If he can't tell one way or another, proceed as you would have before the estimate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Furd Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 And you may want to oil the fetzer valve. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Footballjoe Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 John's Auto Service in Portsmouth, VA on Portsmouth Blvd. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big John Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 I could have given you Puddy's number and saved you the money and hassle. Because his family members (not ChuckB) are auto mechanics Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westvirginia Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 Because his family members (not ChuckB) are auto mechanics And because puddy can dial the number for AAA like a motherscratcher... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SheikYerbuti Posted September 8, 2012 Author Share Posted September 8, 2012 Put out an SOS on facebook, and got a recommendation for a reputable mechanic. Took it to him, he said there was a freon leak, he patched it and recharged it with dye for $150. Said to come back in a week to see if the dye is leaking anywhere else. So, AC working again for significantly less than $1700. Sweet. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buddahj Posted September 8, 2012 Share Posted September 8, 2012 (edited) First, stay away from national chains for any real work. As someone who runs the service dept @ a Firestone, I take some issue with this. Edited September 8, 2012 by buddahj Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SEC=UGA Posted September 10, 2012 Share Posted September 10, 2012 As someone who runs the service dept @ a Firestone, I take some issue with this. Can you get me some of them tires that deflate while yer driving down the highway? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westvirginia Posted September 10, 2012 Share Posted September 10, 2012 As someone who runs the service dept @ a Firestone, I take some issue with this. Yeah, but yer a Santy-clause booing iggles fan. Admit it - you deserve faaaaaar worse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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