So I'm driving right when all of a sudden, the "Low on brake fluid alarm comes on!!!!

[backmarkerducati]

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Re: So I'm driving right when all of a sudden, the "Low on brake fluid alarm comes on

Changing tires has nothing to do with the brake lines. Unless you see a hole punched in them (from the guy who changed the tires) it is just wear and tear--well really rust.

This sort thing happens all the time on old cars, took car in for X and now Y does not work. Unless X and Y have a direct relationship or the guy is purposely sabotaging your car it is likely not his fault.

 

[ariesmars]

Re: So I'm driving right when all of a sudden, the "Low on brake fluid alarm comes on

Your brake lines were rusted and having the tires changed was the last bump they needed to open up and spill. It's not his fault, It's yours. Grow up and take responsibility for not maintaining the vehicle.

It's one thing to have it go by itself, it's another to have someone do it. Maybe we'll meet and can give me more pointers on how to act responsibly.

A mechanic damaging your brake lines would more likely end up risking your life than bringing you back for more business. Seems like a HUGE gamble just to get a few more bucks working on your car again when if he really wanted the business, he could have easily not released the car until you get the work done.

I don't think the guy that installed the tire was being malicious. Or even trying to charge more money. I think he simply ****ed up.

I don't know every mech, I'm sure someone knows someone that had this happen to them on purpose IDK, but the guy -who isn't a mech but a guy working at the tire shop- I'm sure wouldn't have done it on purpose. He kept telling me as much when I brought it back and even then I was like "I know... but people do **** up"

A mechanic wouldn't intentionally damage your brake lines, period. Unless you were doggin' his gf or something.. :icon_smile:
And unfortunately, if they do unwanted inspections people either don't want to pay or accuse them of digging for work.

The guy wasn't a mech, he was a tire installer.

Unless the brake lines were crushed by the jack (and what brakes lines are routed anywhere near a jacking point), how could the mechanic changing tires have anything to do with a brake line leak?

Lines leak over time, lines will fail catastrophically over time, usually because of rusting issues, and it seldom ever happens at a convenient time.

Yes they're not right by the lines but people....**** up once in a while.

Not arguing with you, but I think the OP is insinuating the mechanic did it intentionally to make more money.

i'm not.

Granted, but that's a rather bold insinuation without any backing evidence. Besides, replacing a rusted brake line isn't a high dollar repair item so the gain for that supposed sabotage would hardly be with the the bad relations if discovered. OP admitted the car was old. That's the more likely culprit.

I'll post pics of the line when I can.

I don't get what you driving since you were 16 with no accidents have to do with anything?

It surprised the **** outta me. All these years.... nothing like this has ever happened then suddenly....
I didn't know at the time that the car was still drivable but the alarm was freaking out.
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The mech that pointed out that the line were rusted didn't tell me this until I brought the car back to the tire shop that day. That mech and tire guy's shops are close by each other and I guess the mech heard what was going on and let me know about my break line. I asked him the reason he didn't tell me about the them before? He never gave me a response.

I've been taking my car to the mech and the tire guy for years, I mean ****ing going on ten years. I thought we had the kind of relationship AdRath mentioned. This guy has done jobs for me that cost a lot more 150$why couldn't have told me "hey you need to do your lines?" knowing how important being able to stop is. WTF?.... This added to my suspision, it got me think that he was just covering his boy's ***, - they've known each other for a long time-. I was convinced.

I talked to my stepfather's mech up north and he was saying that basically, being responsible for damage to a car -being a mech/shop owner- and having someone drive that car, opens that person/shop up to civil litigation and punishment from the gov.

I was ****** off to think here I've been bring my V to this guy for years and ****ing.... they're gonna treat me like this?............. I guess that goes both way though huh?

I know I made some enemies on this site over because of politics and other stupid arguments -I didn't think it was this much- I may sound arrogant at times even though I don't mean to, but if the tire guy caused the rupture, even if line was rusted... he caused the leak. If someone is terminally ill; has 7 days to live and a mechanic shoots that person, killing him on the sixth day, the shooter would probably be charged some degree of murder. I do bear some responsibility in this situation because I let the lines rust. Yes. But if he caused, like I said he caused, it even though they would have leaked eventually.

And not all mechanics are ****ing angles either, I've been around long enough to find this out first hand.

 

[twinn]

Re: So I'm driving right when all of a sudden, the "Low on brake fluid alarm comes on

classic

you rant on here and want people to take your side, when they dont, you start ranting some more.

Guy, there is no way that a tire change can mess up your brake lines, cant happen. A person cannot mess up or mistake a tire install that will damage your brake lines UNLESS they were so rusted apart that any pothole, bump in the road can cause them to leak.



People like you are the reason I stopped helping out co-workers, friends of friends fixing their cars or doing small jobs etc..

uninformed, dont know anything about cars... people

I remeber back a few years ago, i repaired the power window motor and the blower motor resistor for a co workers buddy. This was on a 9 year old car-- 1 week later, his AC stopped working, guess what, i must have "screwed something up" cause it worked before-- never mind the fact that buddy had a 9 year old car with a broken blower resistor(means that only the 3-4th speed work on blower-- high and super high) for who knows how long-- his AC needed a refill. Ive had guys whose water pump would start to leak 4-5 weeks after replacing an alternator-- tell me i somehow rigged it so i can make more $$. etc....


Now its your mechanics fault for not telling you the brake lines were rusted... news flash........a 10 year old car will almost ALWAYS have some work that could be done too it.

 

[backmarkerducati]

Re: So I'm driving right when all of a sudden, the "Low on brake fluid alarm comes on

classic

you rant on here and want people to take your side, when they dont, you start ranting some more.

Guy, there is no way that a tire change can mess up your brake lines, cant happen. A person cannot mess up or mistake a tire install that will damage your brake lines UNLESS they were so rusted apart that any pothole, bump in the road can cause them to leak.



People like you are the reason I stopped helping out co-workers, friends of friends fixing their cars or doing small jobs etc..

uninformed, dont know anything about cars... people

I remeber back a few years ago, i repaired the power window motor and the blower motor resistor for a co workers buddy. This was on a 9 year old car-- 1 week later, his AC stopped working, guess what, i must have "screwed something up" cause it worked before-- never mind the fact that buddy had a 9 year old car with a broken blower resistor(means that only the 3-4th speed work on blower-- high and super high) for who knows how long-- his AC needed a refill. Ive had guys whose water pump would start to leak 4-5 weeks after replacing an alternator-- tell me i somehow rigged it so i can make more $$. etc....


Now its your mechanics fault for not telling you the brake lines were rusted... news flash........a 10 year old car will almost ALWAYS have some work that could be done too it.

+1

Same reason I also will not work on peoples cars anymore, or their computers (my printer broke a week after you fixed my hard drive)! Brake lines are not in harms way inside the wheel well, very unlikely replacing wheels would have anything to do with them.

 

[ariesmars]

Re: So I'm driving right when all of a sudden, the "Low on brake fluid alarm comes on

classic

you rant on here and want people to take your side, when they dont, you start ranting some more.

Guy, there is no way that a tire change can mess up your brake lines, cant happen. A person cannot mess up or mistake a tire install that will damage your brake lines UNLESS they were so rusted apart that any pothole, bump in the road can cause them to leak.



People like you are the reason I stopped helping out co-workers, friends of friends fixing their cars or doing small jobs etc..

uninformed, dont know anything about cars... people

I remeber back a few years ago, i repaired the power window motor and the blower motor resistor for a co workers buddy. This was on a 9 year old car-- 1 week later, his AC stopped working, guess what, i must have "screwed something up" cause it worked before-- never mind the fact that buddy had a 9 year old car with a broken blower resistor(means that only the 3-4th speed work on blower-- high and super high) for who knows how long-- his AC needed a refill. Ive had guys whose water pump would start to leak 4-5 weeks after replacing an alternator-- tell me i somehow rigged it so i can make more $$. etc....


Now its your mechanics fault for not telling you the brake lines were rusted... news flash........a 10 year old car will almost ALWAYS have some work that could be done too it.

If you look at my OP you'd see that I was asking for advice. Some dudes gave tough bits, some defended the tire guy and some even said if he did do it it's my fault.... cool. We could go back and forth all day with stories about ******* customers and shops -I know I see some on GTAM- all day but it won't help my situation at all

 

[invictus43]

Re: So I'm driving right when all of a sudden, the "Low on brake fluid alarm comes on

I don't think the guy that installed the tire was being malicious. Or even trying to charge more money. I think he simply ****ed up.

I don't know every mech, I'm sure someone knows someone that had this happen to them on purpose IDK, but the guy -who isn't a mech but a guy working at the tire shop- I'm sure wouldn't have done it on purpose. He kept telling me as much when I brought it back and even then I was like "I know... but people do **** up"

I agree he didn't do it on purpose..it might have been done by the guy without knowing it. I feel that if he noticed the lines were that bad, he should certainly have told you so when you picked it up. It's a safety item. Probably shouldn't go back to that guy. Nobody is perfect so try to keep that in mind.

 

[JZ67]

Re: So I'm driving right when all of a sudden, the "Low on brake fluid alarm comes on

Yes they're not right by the lines but people....**** up once in a while.

In this case it was you. It is your responsibility to ensure that your vehicle is safe to operate and maintain. In the future take a look under your vehicle when it is on the hoist in the shop. You don't have to know that much to know that rusted brake lines are problematic. This goes for plenty of other things as well.

...but if the tire guy caused the rupture, even if line was rusted... he caused the leak

That statement will become my new definition of "convoluted". Are you bleedin' serious? Has it not entered your mind that you have been operating a vehicle that, by your own admission, is old and ill maintained and could have been used to cause injury or death to others. But rather you sit in judgement convinced that someone else is to blame. You were told to grow up once already. Now you've been told twice.

 

[invictus43]

Re: So I'm driving right when all of a sudden, the "Low on brake fluid alarm comes on

In this case it was you. It is your responsibility to ensure that your vehicle is safe to operate and maintain. In the future take a look under your vehicle when it is on the hoist in the shop. You don't have to know that much to know that rusted brake lines are problematic. This goes for plenty of other things as well.

Most shops won't let you under the car. And most people aren't qualified to know what's wrong. If you ask for an inspection or a safety, the mechanic will do that for you and will probably charge you and you'll have some peace of mind that a proper inspection has taken place. No offense, but it's kinda like assessing your own heart condition..even doctors go to other doctors.

 

[JZ67]

Re: So I'm driving right when all of a sudden, the "Low on brake fluid alarm comes on

Most shops won't let you under the car. And most people aren't qualified to know what's wrong. If you ask for an inspection or a safety, the mechanic will do that for you and will probably charge you and you'll have some peace of mind that a proper inspection has taken place. No offense, but it's kinda like assessing your own heart condition..even doctors go to other doctors.

I see your point.

Never been in a shop that wouldn't let me have a look if I asked, in fact, I always tell them that I would like to have a look for anything obvious and they help me out. I'm no mechanic either but I am also not afraid to ask a few questions. I take the safety of my family seriously.

 

[invictus43]

Re: So I'm driving right when all of a sudden, the "Low on brake fluid alarm comes on

I see your point.

Never been in a shop that wouldn't let me have a look if I asked, in fact, I always tell them that I would like to have a look for anything obvious and they help me out. I'm no mechanic either but I am also not afraid to ask a few questions. I take the safety of my family seriously.

Some will let you under, some won't. It depends. But really, your mechanic has a MUCH better idea of what's going on with your car. When I see cars in parking lots, I pick stuff up in seconds that most people would never see. They see cars every day. I think we take for granted that cars are indestructible and require no maintenance. There's something to be said for regular inspection and maintenance despite the cost. As you say, your family is riding in that vehicle. It's worth the money to have it inspected regularly. And a good mechanic is worth his weight in gold! Also, having been a mechanic for a bit, most people just don't have the time or interest to know much about their car. I think people ought to know the basics, but really, how much do most people know about installing and OS on their home computer? They can pay and have it done and do other things that are important to them. Like playing ball with the kids.

 

[Flashmonkey]

Re: So I'm driving right when all of a sudden, the "Low on brake fluid alarm comes on

If you look at my OP you'd see that I was asking for advice. Some dudes gave tough bits, some defended the tire guy and some even said if he did do it it's my fault.... cool. We could go back and forth all day with stories about ******* customers and shops -I know I see some on GTAM- all day but it won't help my situation at all

I'm still not sure what you're looking for, though. Get the brake lines fixed. That's all there is to it.

If you're looking to sue someone so that you can get this fixed for free, then good luck with that. As far as I can tell, you have a pretty weak case against the tire shop and the mechanic.

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