Hi,
New to this and i need to no if anybody can tell me whats going on with my WH staesman!
Last few days on the dash while im driving ABS, tration off, air bag, engine and oil lights come on. They go off after a while but then my power steering also goes? I dont want to be ripped off so i want to no what it might be and what cost i could be looking at and where in Adelaide is reasonable to go to.
Thanks Deb

thanks for that! and because last time i had my car serviced i ended up paying a hell of a lot so this is why im on this forum to go somewhere other then holdens, and maybe because im not mechanicly minded i just thought i could get a bit of info into what i need to say! not saying that everyone is out to ripp off just need a good place to go!

Thanks a bunch Dr Terry! im located in the North East i will give Carlec a buzz tomorrow!!

Because you can easily get shafted. The plastic joiner on my M20 gear box in my wb broke a few years ago, stranding me in Cambletown in Sydney. The shift rod was hanging down but I had no tools to fix it, so NRMA towed it to the nearest repairer. I went to a mates place and rang the next day to see what the go was. I was informed I needed a fully reco gearbox...... when I suggested all I needed was a $5 part and perhaps they should have another look they suddenly decided the rebuilt gearbox was not needed. How many other people have they ripped off I wonder?

There are 2 similar but very different topics here: overservicing & overcharging.

Overservicing is rife in today's motor industry, because of the high overheads, especially at the new car dealership level. I'm not just referring to Holden dealers, it's much worse at import car dealerships especially those of the European variety.

It is in the dealer's interest to overservice the car, rather than be accused of underservicing or neglecting some items. For example, rather than risk brake pads going metal to metal it is safer & more profitable to replace them now, while the car is in for service. They may well last another 10,000 km until the next service, but you would be the worst mechanic in the world if they did not. So you can't win really, you either get accused of overservicing or being neglectful, there is no middle ground. An independent workshop, where there is a more 'personal' client relationship would perhaps approach this differently. He could suggest that to save money at this service, you fit a set of pads midway between services & spread the expense out over time & not risk it until the next scheduled service.

When you take your car to a dealership for service, you sign a job authority, that most people have never read. You are basically asking the dealership to service the car as per the book & carry out whatever work is considered 'necessary'. One of the biggest issues is lack of communication between the owner & the workshop, if or when major work is required. The other problem is that many owners don't know what actually constitutes a 'service'.

The next problem is overcharging. This, unlike overservicing, is basically fraud. They are often just charging for work that is not carried out at all. Things like washing the outside of a carburettor & charging for a full overhaul, or charging for an oil change or coolant change & leaving the old fluids in the engine. These are the ones that give any industry a bad name. The problem is very much in the minority, but the effect rubs off on everybody in the motor trade.

The case mentioned above about the gear linkage breaking off & quoting for a full overhaul is very interesting & almost falls in between these two categories. It could be said that the mechanic did not know that it was only a linkage failure & legitimately thought that the internals of the box were at fault. That could be called 'lack of knowledge' or just stupidity. It could equally be said that he was quiet at the time & thought why not just overhaul the old thing & that will fix any problems it had. That could be called overservicing. Lastly it could be that he was going to just repair the linkage, not touch the gearbox itself & charge for a full overhaul. That would be overcharging or fraud.

Dr Terry

i guess im lucky in that i have a couple of great mechanics that i deal with and have not had any dramas in getting my cars serviced in saying that there are mechanics and dealers out there that take advantage of people with less knowledge about cars . i did however have 1 experience with a local car dealer in campbelltown who tried to pull the wool over my eyes on a number of times after the 3rd time i sorted him out and the dealership out as well after i told them that i was in the trade and if they didnt cut their crap out i would take it further .