AUTO MECHANIC PROBLEMS (AGAIN)

[sistersue]

sistersue

Could you tell us the Make, Model and year of the vehicle ?

Obie,
It's a 2015 Honda CR-V with 116,000 miles.

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.5 at Lex Brodies would be about $150.00 based on hourly rates, shop charges, tax and parts etc .

I would stick with the original repair and ask the original mechanic why he did it !

Damn, no doubt you're right.  Living in the past here, I figured it'd be $50 labor plus a relatively cheap plastic part. 

We need to hear from Sue.  She mentioned Lex Brodie's by name but not the original mechanic's shop.

Is he too affiliated with a repair business or perhaps a shade tree clan member?

I appreciate all these comments.  It helps when you give your opinions, and when this is all over I'll let you know what happens.  I don't want to mention our mechanic's name unless he lets us down. We'll know by later today after she talks to him.
"Running terribly" means the car still loses power and acts like it's going to stop running after the new alternator was put in.

You mean loses power like electrical power, or loses power like the car doesn't have much oomph?  The latter could be just about anything other than the alternator.  A clogged catalytic converter can do that.

It loses electrical power and "oomph".

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It loses both electrical power and "oomph".

[leilanidude]

It's a 2015 Honda CR-V with 116,000 miles
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Doubtful that a clogged CAT would be on this. Honda's rarely have any CAT issues until way over 200k miles, if ever, during the life of the vehicle.

[Obie]

The connector is available on EBAY and can easily be spliced on.

Rebuilt alternators are about $400.00 to $600.00 so the mechanics charge sounds fair.

The New Genuine Alternator Connector Pigtail For 2012-2019 Honda CR-V
OEM PIGTAILS

US $13.99

[terracore]

So while we're at it...

2008 Impala with 29k miles (not a misprint) and vehicle weight certified by a weigh station, running rough or misfiring both at idle and while running. Seems to be worse when its warmed up. No check engine light and no codes showing up on scanner.

A quick internet search doesn't narrow anything down for me.

[HiloJulie]

@terracore:

A consistent misfire or sporadic?

My 2001 Ford Escape (just under 68,000 miles) developed a misfire - but only once in a while under a load - it was one of the coils on the spark plug. Most new cars have a separate coil on each spark plug - or a thing they call a "coil pack" which has a separate coil for each spark plug on one big container.

And that condition never tripped a warning light or code.

[terracore]

"A consistent misfire or sporadic?" Consistent once it starts, apparently when its at operating temp. I quit driving it when it started so I'm not 100% sure on the temp thing but it seems to be the case.

Crazy that wouldn't trigger something on the computer.

When I've had problems like this before I usually start by replacing the spark plugs and wires but I've never heard of coil packs before. I know 2008 is an older vehicle but it's the latest model vehicle I've owned.

[HiloJulie]

2008 with only 29K? Sounds rather sweet! Like was it grandma's car only used to go to church on Sunday in Palm Springs, CA type 29,000 miles???

Is it a V6 or V8?

If I'm not mistaken, the Chevy V6's of that era use the "coil packs" and the V8 uses individual coils on each spark plug.

The coil packs still use a distributor type ignition wire to go to the spark plug.

Downside is if it's the coil pack type - it might be a $300.00 plus part - plus another $75 or so for new wires.

[Durian Fiend]

"A consistent misfire or sporadic?"  Consistent once it starts, apparently when its at operating temp.  I quit driving it when it started so I'm not 100% sure on the temp thing but it seems to be the case.

Crazy that wouldn't trigger something on the computer.

When I've had problems like this before I usually start by replacing the spark plugs and wires but I've never heard of coil packs before.  I know 2008 is an older vehicle but it's the latest model vehicle I've owned.

You could start with checking condition of the plugs. Coil packs and injectors are also good guesses.  With a Chevy, I wish you good luck!

Me, I'd take it to a trusted pro mechanic if you have one.

[sistersue]

The connector is available on EBAY and can easily be spliced on.

Rebuilt alternators are about $400.00 to $600.00 so the mechanics charge sounds fair.

The New Genuine Alternator Connector Pigtail For 2012-2019 Honda CR-V
OEM PIGTAILS

US $13.99

I have a hypothetical question:
You take your car to your mechanic and he "repairs" it and you pay him and go home.  The next day, the car is barely running so you take it back and he "repairs" it again.  The next day the car won't even make it down the street, so you call him again and he says "Bring it back on Monday".  If, after the 3rd try, he still can't fix the car, does he just get to keep the money?  What would you do?  Thank you for any opinions, beside the fact that we will be searching for a new mechanic when this is over.

[HereOnThePrimalEdge]

Thank you for any opinions

When someone does a bad job, or overcharges me, I ask myself two questions:
1) Does he know where I live, or can he easily find me?
2) Can he make my situation worse if he has time on his hands?

If the answer to both questions is yes, I assume it’s cheaper in the long run to just walk away.