Affordable Muffler Scam Game
Today we're discussing:
Affordable Muffler Inc
13130 Lorain Ave
Cleveland, OH 44111
Two years ago, we had a bad catalytic converter in the '99 CRV and had it replaced with an aftermarket piece. Peace of mind? The owner's signature under the handwritten words "5 year warranty."
A while back we had a rattle and soon after a check light and had it checked out: catalytic converter failure (the rattle was a piece of the converter dancing around in the tailpipe). Since we can't just drop everything and drive into Cleveland at a moment's notice, it took some time to get up there. Three weeks ago I took it back to Affordable Muffler with the original, hand-signed receipt. Mr. Owner's response? The converter has melted down and his warranty does not cover meltdown. It's running too rich; take it to a dealership and get the engine fixed, but no free converter either way.
So we took it to a Honda dealership with all the pomp and circumstance that that entails and they said exactly what we knew: the converter sucks, is falling apart, and there is absolutely nothing else wrong with the engine - no rich, no lean, no problem.
Then we returned to Cleveland with this dealership-endorsed revelation and the man in charge at Affordable Muffler was stone-faced: It's melted down; my warranty does not cover meltdown. Seeing as the warranty was a signature on a piece of paper, how were we to know? "I'm telling you right now," he stated rather gruffly.
If there's nothing wrong with the engine, then the failure of the catalytic converter is the cause in and of itself of any further fall-apart or meltdown, since a check engine light switches up the programming and dumps extra fuel which could cause extra heat. But the converter is and was the only thing wrong. Besides that, a catalytic converter should certainly not fail in only two years.
Affordable Muffler, you win a Bad Business Award for providing
poor quality parts, shady service, and a warranty on whatever terms you decide at the time. For shame.
Affordable Muffler Inc
13130 Lorain Ave
Cleveland, OH 44111
Two years ago, we had a bad catalytic converter in the '99 CRV and had it replaced with an aftermarket piece. Peace of mind? The owner's signature under the handwritten words "5 year warranty."
A while back we had a rattle and soon after a check light and had it checked out: catalytic converter failure (the rattle was a piece of the converter dancing around in the tailpipe). Since we can't just drop everything and drive into Cleveland at a moment's notice, it took some time to get up there. Three weeks ago I took it back to Affordable Muffler with the original, hand-signed receipt. Mr. Owner's response? The converter has melted down and his warranty does not cover meltdown. It's running too rich; take it to a dealership and get the engine fixed, but no free converter either way.
So we took it to a Honda dealership with all the pomp and circumstance that that entails and they said exactly what we knew: the converter sucks, is falling apart, and there is absolutely nothing else wrong with the engine - no rich, no lean, no problem.
Then we returned to Cleveland with this dealership-endorsed revelation and the man in charge at Affordable Muffler was stone-faced: It's melted down; my warranty does not cover meltdown. Seeing as the warranty was a signature on a piece of paper, how were we to know? "I'm telling you right now," he stated rather gruffly.
If there's nothing wrong with the engine, then the failure of the catalytic converter is the cause in and of itself of any further fall-apart or meltdown, since a check engine light switches up the programming and dumps extra fuel which could cause extra heat. But the converter is and was the only thing wrong. Besides that, a catalytic converter should certainly not fail in only two years.
Affordable Muffler, you win a Bad Business Award for providing
poor quality parts, shady service, and a warranty on whatever terms you decide at the time. For shame.
Labels: Affordable Muffler, auto-erotica, bad business, warranty warning
posted by Ricky Shambles @ 2:04 AM
8 Comments:
At 1:22 PM,
FOREX RAJPUT said…
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
At 7:43 AM,
Anonymous said…
Interesting blog. It would be great if you can provide more details about it. Thanks you.
At 7:44 AM,
Catalytic Converters said…
Interesting blog. It would be great if you can provide more details about it. Thanks you.
At 3:03 PM,
Ricky Shambles said…
I'd be happy to provide more information if you could specify exactly what you're looking for. Thanks!
At 3:13 AM,
prolix said…
I actually enjoyed reading through this posting. Many thanks.
interesting blog. It would be great if you can provide more details about it.
Mufflers
At 6:05 AM,
Anonymous said…
And how much did you pay for the part? Exactly! You get what you pay for. Im a mechanic and used to do my own exhaust work untill finding affordable muffler. The do the work for less than I pay for the parts, and they do the work fast. I don't expect the cat to last forever, if I did I would get a oem part from the dealer. The engine was running properly when the dealer scaned the imformation from the car but there is no way of telling if it ran rich before it showed up at the dealer. The cat is a sensitve part to begin with and the cheaper the part the more the sensitive. All it would take is one bad tank of gas and a trip on the freeway to cause catastrofic damage to the cheap cat. To conclude, before you try to drag a business's name thru the dirt you should evaluate all of the factors involved. Price, quality, and hand signed warrantys. When money is tight I go to affordible muffler and they take care of me. Untill im rich, that is where I will be taking my vehicles.
At 3:38 PM,
Ricky Shambles said…
Anon: online media reputation management doesn't work if you don't read the post.
I agree with everything you said, except for a few bits of confusion you throw in there. There was a 5 year warranty that didn't mention meltdown - until they did. Also: the dealership proved to us there was nothing wrong with the engine.
I'm sure AM does some fine work, but in my case they mislead, lied to, and screwed us and I readily take them through the mud for their bullshittery.
At 9:58 AM,
Anonymous said…
Looking at your profile, you seem to have problems with everyone you encounter, You should look in the mirror,
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