Day by day journal log of what has been going on:
7/16/06
A friend of a friend recommended Willie's Welding & Radiator Service to fix my car. I own a 1998 Saturn SL. My air conditioner was not working and was blowing warm air and my car was overheating. I took it in for a free estimate. The main guy there, and only one that could speak English, was Paul. I left my car with them so they could figure out what needed to be done to fix it. When I picked up my car, Paul told me that all that my car needed was a new radiator cap which would cost $8, and Freon which would cost around $40. He said I could bring my car in the next day at 8am.
7/17/06
I brought my car back in to Willies in the morning, and told them that I wanted the radiator cap and the Freon for my car. I hadn't heard anything from them all day about the progress of my car, so I called them at 3:00pm. There was no answer. I continued calling about every half hour until 5:00pm and there was still no answer. I had somebody drive me to Willies around 6:00pm, and my car was in their shop with a gate around it, enclosing it in locked up. Nobody was there.
7/18/06
I called Willies at 8:00am and there was no answer. I called again at 9:00am and finally somebody picked up. I asked them why nobody had called me the day before about my car and told them that I had wanted to pick it up yesterday. They told me You're car is not ready, because we are still waiting for some parts to come in. I said Wait a minute. Some parts? You told me all that my car needed was a radiator cap and some Freon. He said It turns out that your car needs a lot more work than we thought. It needs a new thermostat and some other things. I said Aren't you supposed to notify me about this? Aren't you supposed to ask for my permission to continue with extra work and extra parts? Nobody called me and told me what was going on. You can't do that. He said I'm sorry nobody told you, but this work does need to be done in order for your vehicle to have air conditioner and to not overheat. I asked him how much it was going to cost now, and he said around $233. I told him I don't have that kind of money right now. I had enough money for the radiator cap and Freon but not for this. How do you expect me to pay for this? You have to ask me my permission before going to work on my car on other things He said I can take the parts out of your car if you can't pay for them. I was so frustrated at this point. What? Are you kidding? Just leave them in. I just need my car fixed. I had to get an advance on my paycheck from my boss, to pay the bill. I took my boss to Willies Radiator Shop with me thinking that he could yell at them for me and bring the price of the bill down. The total price was $233.10. My boss got it down to $200 even.
Later that night I was driving my car home, didn't have the air conditioning on, and my car overheated.
7/19/06
The receipt I have from yesterday states 6 month warranty, so I called Willies in the morning to let them know that my car overheated, after they fixed it the day before. They told me to bring it in. I brought it in, in the morning and then picked it up at 5:00pm. Paul told me that the sensor wasn't hooked up right, and they somehow had it so that when I had the air conditioning on, my car wouldn't overheat, and when I didn't have it on, it would. He said that they fixed it, and that I shouldn't have any more problems.
7/29/06
Today I noticed that my air conditioning doesn't work and is blowing warm air. The needle for the temperature gage went all the way to hot and white smoke started coming out from underneath the hood of my car. I made it home, parked it, and put coolant in it hours later once it had cooled down.
8/09/06
Between work, the floods of El Paso, and just being really, super frustrated with Willie's, it took me some time before I made an appointment to bring my car back in. I didn't drive my car in this time frame because I live at the place of my work, and there was no need for me to use it.
I took my car to Willies again to have it fixed. I told Paul that the air conditioning was warm, and that it was overheating again. I dropped my car off at 9:00am and picked it up at 6:00pm. I explained to him over the phone that after all the problems I have encountered with them, I wanted this to be the last time I had to bring my car in. I wanted it fixed, and if they couldn't do it, to let me know. He said not to worry and that they had everything under control. At 6:00pm when I picked it up, Paul was not there, and no English speaking associate was there either. One of the guys that worked there turned on my car for me, showed me that the air was cool again, and through sign language and use of our own languages I understood that the overheating wouldn't be a problem anymore either.
8/9/06
I drove my car about 10 miles, air conditioning worked fine.
8/10/06
I drove my car about 3 miles, air conditioning worked fine.
8/12/06
I drove my car about 15 miles, didn't use air conditioning.
8/15/06
I drove my car to the bank (around 2 miles away) and turned my air on. The air conditioner was blowing warm air. I'm so frustrated at this point, I just want my money back so I can take it to another place to have it fixed. I feel like if I continue taking it to Willie's the same problem is going to keep occurring.
8/21/06
I called and made an appointment to bring my car in tomorrow.
8/22/06
I brought my car in to Willie's at 11am and brought my friend David. I talked to the main guy, Paul, and told him that there must be a leak somewhere if every time they put freon in, it leaks out, leaving my air conditioning warm. He said that they have a dye that detects where the leaks are at, and that he'd check it out. He said to call him at 2:00pm and he'd let me know what the status is on it. David explained to Paul that I really need my car to be fixed for good, and that I'm taking a trip to Phoenix this weekend and if he could fix it, that I would really appreciate it. I called at 2:35 pm and there was no answer. Called again at 2:50pm and no answer. I called again at 3:15pm no answer. Called again at 3:30pm and finally somebody answered. They said that they replaced o ring and think that that was the problem, and to come pick it up at 4:30pm. When I picked it up David came with me, and Paul wasn't there. David talked to one of the mechanics for me since I don't know Spanish, and the mechanic told David that the reason why the Freon was leaking out was because the O-ring was old and needed to be replaced. They replaced the O-ring and said that the air conditioning should work just fine now. When I drove my car home the air conditioning was working well.
8/23/06
I drove my car today for about 5 miles and the air conditioner worked great.
8/24/06
I drove my car today and turned on the air conditioner and warm air is blowing again. The air conditioner is not working once again.
8/28/06
I made an appointment with University Auto Center to get a free estimate on my air conditioning. They were very nice, spoke English, and even called me when my they found out what was wrong with my car. They told me that I would need a new compressor and with parts and labor it would cost $550. They said that there is no point to continue putting Freon in because there is a leak and it will leak out quickly.
Sam at University Auto Center popped my hood and explained how I need a new compressor and X valve. He also said that it looked like some parts had been put installed wrong.
I called small claims court to see what the process is to take somebody to court and they said it would take 2 to 4 months and cost me $67 to file a claim. I don't even know if it's worth it at this point.
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