zappo@hou2e.UUCP (H.LANG) (02/22/85)
To Whom It May Concern:
I 've had an experience with a local automobile electric repair
shop in Red Bank NJ called Red Bank Radiator. I brought my 1981 Pontiac
in for alternator and voltage regulator work. A rebuilt alternator was
installed and the next morning, the battery was dead. I then purchased
a new battery and drove several hundred miles whereupon the battery was
again dead the next morning. This happened twice more in the next three
days. I discovered that when the car was off, the battery was still
draining 4 amps of current. I found that the drain was through the
alternator, and this current drain had damaged the alternator. This
problem required me to disconnect the battery when I left the car so that
I would be able to restart it.
I returned to Red Bank Radiator and they agreed that the alternator
did need to be replaced again, and that they would do the work at no charge.
Upon leaving the car that morning, I had explained the problem. When I
checked in with them at 3:00 that afternoon, the mechanic working on
the car still did not fully understand the problem, and so was not able
to fix the problem by closing time.
The next day, they had promised to work on the car first thing in
the morning. At 4:00 pm (1 1/2 days later) they assured me that the
work would be done in the next hour, and that they had solved the problem.
With this assurance, I obtained a ride back to the shop only to discover on
their own admission, that the same current drain still existed.
They claimed that the drain was caused by some other source. I had to
drive to NY, and the next morning I again verified that there was
no "other source".
I took the car to another repair shop, where they were able to
correct the problem in less than one hour. It turned out that the
current drain was caused by FAULTY INSTALLATION of the alternator twice
by Red Bank Radiator. This caused me the loss of the use of my car for
two days, the repair bill from the other shop, perhaps a battery, and much
inconvenience for myself and my friends who drove me around.
If you are considering having work done at Red Bank Radiator, please
consider my experience with them first.
Bill Grise