Thread: How bad can tradesmen get?

Originally Posted by UncleHo

Brian Hjelm and I must know the same Brisbane dealership being spares and service I can clearly remember seeing vehicles dabbed with grease, the oil filter wiped clean the paper aircleaner element blown out and refitted all by the apprentice and charged out at tradesman's rates with sometimes the odd,brake adjust,pad or lining replacement thrown in, but mostly just the minimum and a vacuum out and fresh paper floor mat

And that was at a well known Rover and Volkswagen dealer in Brisbane now gone.

Mine was a different one, Kev. Name is still in use but owned by others now. Their service dept. used to be in Lamington St. New Farm if that gives you a clue.

G'day Brian

Yeah! think I know who, I was at A&T at the time, now it is just a big hole in the ground,transfered up when marriage went pear shaped,to sort out custody of son,got it too,home state and gainfully employed no single fathers pension very hard for a father to get custody in those days cost me a bomb for private care while I was at work,history now,he turned 50 last Monday GAWD! it makes me feel old!

cheers

This bit amazed even me:


"He had done this by connecting the brake controller, under the dash to the cranking battery, via a 30 amp auto resetting circuit breaker.

So far sounds OK, but not so.

He has run a length of 5mm AUTO twin from the controller to the circuit breaker fitted near the battery.

This would normally be a length of 6mm AUTO cable, which is 4.5mm2 but as the twin 5mm AUTO means the combined cable size is 5mm2, so that's fine.

But what is anything but fine is that the “EXPERT” has then used a short length of 1mm2 WIRE to connect the circuit breaker to the cranking battery."


I don't know much about this stuff, but even I know a 1mm wire is going to burn long before it sets off a 30am circuit breaker. Wouldn't a 10 amp circuit breaker and at least 6mm wire have been the way to go?

Hi Mick and the problem is worse because the 1mm2 WIRE is before the circuit breaker so the 1mm2 has no protection at all.

I feel really sorry for that D4 owner because the incompetent auto electrician has not only made the D4 owners vehicle a fire hazard, but most reputable auto electricians will not want to touch the mess as they would then be responsible for the vehicle from then on and if they don’t find all the negligent work, they may well be in trouble if the D4 suffers from any faulty work that is missed.

Yes, you have to wonder.
I thought 6mm dual core wire with the negative to an earth and the positive to a 10amp circuit breaker, with a 6mm single core to the battery positive was pretty standard practice. At least, that's the little bit of information I was able to pinpoint as being generally reliable.

Sent from my D1 using overweight hamsters.

Some incompetence referred to in this thread can be understood on the basis that you don't always get the sharpest knife in the draw, however some of this stuff is just outright fraud. Sounds like the automotive servicing industry has it fair share of rogues, although the fraud is not necessarily instigated by the trades you would have to accept they were complicit.

as seen today at work...

1 propshaft bolt missing? 1 inch long weld joining the flanges on the circumference over the missing bolts section.

Originally Posted by Blknight.aus

as seen today at work...

1 propshaft bolt missing? 1 inch long weld joining the flanges on the circumference over the missing bolts section.

I'm not sure I want that Perentie!