Another CT screwup

[ContourChris]

I would not normally take my car to Canadian Tire but it's the closest mechanic to my house. One of the break lines had a leak! The mechanic I would have gone to was to far to drive on a parking break so I went to CT. The breaks appeared to work fine after so I was ok with it. But I noticed a loud clunk on every bump after. I thought it was the new work related things I started storing in my trunk. But with the warm weather I opened my window and heard a loud rattle outside on every bump. After a good inspection of everything I could think of my father noticed that one caliper was not assembled correctly and the pads were rattling inside. We also noticed that the hand break was not connected to the rear oposite wheel. Those idiots!

I also noticed that the new break lines were not run from the master cylinder but instead the old ones were cut midway and new ones were attached to those. Is it normal for this to be done? I was expecting them to run new lines.

 

[Maverickflyer]

I would not normally take my car to Canadian Tire but it's the closest mechanic to my house. One of the break lines had a leak! The mechanic I would have gone to was to far to drive on a parking break so I went to CT. The breaks appeared to work fine after so I was ok with it. But I noticed a loud clunk on every bump after. I thought it was the new work related things I started storing in my trunk. But with the warm weather I opened my window and heard a loud rattle outside on every bump. After a good inspection of everything I could think of my father noticed that one caliper was not assembled correctly and the pads were rattling inside. We also noticed that the hand break was not connected to the rear oposite wheel. Those idiots!

I also noticed that the new break lines were not run from the master cylinder but instead the old ones were cut midway and new ones were attached to those. Is it normal for this to be done? I was expecting them to run new lines.

You don't have to put in new lines if only one section is bad. If the front half of the lines were fine you can just remove the bad section and replace it. As long as they used the proper fittings I don't see a problem with that.

 

[Phil Rohtla]

On my dad's wagon, they tried to say that it would take two hours to replace a bad section of fuel line leading up to the carb. I challenged them on it, asking how long it takes to bend a piece of metal line and use a flaring tool on it.

I got charged for an hour, which I thought was more fair. Still a rip off, though.

 

[LauraSVT]

It's not uncommon for a shop to cut the existing lines at a point where they're solid and rust free, then weld new lines from there to the caliper. Typically, they'll only go up to the distribution block or master cylinder if all the lines are shot. Obviously, if they replace all the lines, you'll be paying a higher price tag.

 

[ContourChris]

Thanks for the brake line info. It's good to hear it's normal. As for price I think it was almost $500 for 2 brake lines from mid car to rear. It seemed expensive but pretty much what I expected thinking the whole line was replaced.
Still doesn't explain their screw up. But it's not like I can prove anything. A mechanic should know how to assemble the caliper again ... especially since it was done correctly on one side. This is a safety issue and they should be fired if not charged in my opinion. Still ... no way to prove it. Just take it and learn from it.

 

[CKtour98]

Moral of the story: don't go to Canadian Tire for work! My one friend from highschool got hired straight into the CT down here as a mechanic, and he doesnt have a license or anything, just grade 10/11/12 auto class and was starting to be an apprentice in grade 13...

 

[loggerbomb]

Still doesn't explain their screw up. But it's not like I can prove anything. A mechanic should know how to assemble the caliper again ... especially since it was done correctly on one side. This is a safety issue and they should be fired if not charged in my opinion. Still ... no way to prove it. Just take it and learn from it.

Sounds like the 'real' mechanic there was showing a student how to do it on the one side and the student did the other one. I know of a few CT's that only have one or two licensed mechanics and the rest are just students. From what I understand as long as one licensed mech is around they can supervise the students...

@ CKTour98, that store should be reported. They HAVE to have at least ONE licensed mechanic in their shop.

 

[CKtour98]

Sounds like the 'real' mechanic there was showing a student how to do it on the one side and the student did the other one. I know of a few CT's that only have one or two licensed mechanics and the rest are just students. From what I understand as long as one licensed mech is around they can supervise the students...

@ CKTour98, that store should be reported. They HAVE to have at least ONE licensed mechanic in their shop.

Well they probably do, its just like what you said- they "show" the kids how to do it and then let them work away and hope all goes well

 

[hamill]

shouldn't the mechanic HAVE to double check the work? The fact that city bi-laws in some places (like London) are pushing to get liscensed mechanics away from "helping people out" at their house to work on the car, why should CT be allowed to have employees who are non liscensed be allowed to put someones car back together.

 

[over_30k]

[FONT=&quot]Rear lines are PITA to work on in our cars. You have to remove a tank to run it properly. The design of it also makes it rust quicker as moisture collects there. To replace just the lines there is no need to remove callipers or disconnect the cables. Also look at your sub frame and make sure they did not skip the tank removal part and ran the lines along the sub frame. Lines should not be visible as they run above the tank. Also, the original plastic clips are brittle and often snap when you remove the old lines. Often the shops don't have the suitable replacements and fabricate their own to hold the lines. This could cause lines to vibrate and make noise. Anyway just my 5 cents[/FONT]