Have you ever been a victim of Parts-Swapping ?

mithun · 22nd September 2006, 04:42

I've always heard horrible tales about parts-swapping that happens at local garages as well as authorised workshops. I've also seen the parts which are mostly procured from sparingly used vehicles put up for sale at 2nd hand parts dealers.

About a year ago, one of my uncle whose Kinetic Honda which was always serviced at the authorised workshops, fell victim to parts swapping. He came to know about the duping when he went to a local garage for a carb problem. And he was stunned; when the mechanic opened up his scooter and showed some of the 5 year old parts on his 1 year old scooter !!! He is going to fight the case in the court....

So have you or anyone you know; ever been a victim of Parts-Swapping ?

Harrie · 22nd September 2006, 09:54

I know of a garage in cbe where they take a brake master cylinder, service it, paint it silver and put a tiny yellow mark with a brush (the new ones come with this) and put it back on Maruthis. The customer and the garage owner think a new part has been replaced. The new one is never purchased. Instead an old one from the old parts market is got for a few bucks and placed in the car to show that something really was replaced.

Bomi · 22nd September 2006, 10:42

"He is going to fight the case in the court.."
I empathise, but this will be a tough call. You cannot conclusively prove that the authorized garage swapped parts.

"I know of a garage in cbe where they take a brake master cylinder, service it, paint it silver and put a tiny yellow mark with a brush (the new ones come with this) and put it back on Maruthis"
God, this could kill someone

turbofreak · 22nd September 2006, 13:48

yes boss ....it had happened to me as well...in some servicing session ...these service center guys took away my new reserve tyre and replaced it with a very old one...but we found this out months later when there was a tyre puncture...

wolfinstein · 22nd September 2006, 22:02

just one thing is the road block here- Not necessarily that all parts in your car or scooter have to be from the same car manufacturing date or month. However I agree that 5 yrs is too much of a difference.

Ford Rocam · 22nd September 2006, 22:57

Talera Ford pune swapped my good working ECU with a crappy old faulty unit when my crashed ikon was lying there, the matter went up to ford chennai but outcome was nothing since i was scrapping the car i didnt dragged the matter.

parimal_vb · 25th September 2006, 22:13

i am the witness for part swapp, to top it the manager lies to me saying we are checking the part, when it was not on the job card at all.

nispatel · 6th October 2006, 18:44

I've been victim once with a local garage. It seems he had replaced a set of fine as good as new drive shafts of my Maruti 800 with some old but again good looking one though I couldn't conclusively prove that he had done part swapping. That was the last time I went to a local garage..

PS: The same garage guy had openuped engine (yes, cylinder head) in front of me and replaced gaskat for very reasonable rate. Probably that was his game plan as he would recover profit in subsquent visits!

jinojohnt · 24th August 2011, 11:36

When my friend complained because he was not satisfied even with a second consecutive replacement of a faulty part (Indica), he was promised replacement with a part from a new car that came for service. This was at Kulathungal Motors, Trivandrum.

vigsom · 24th August 2011, 12:00

I haven't experienced this myself , but know of a friend's car whose ac receiver drier was replaced,and the "new" drier was actually an old one.

prateekpsingh · 25th August 2011, 01:20

On the contrary, I have been on the beneficiary side of part-swapping and am not gloating about it. It was my first experience with such a thing and a huge lesson learnt. From then on, I have been ever more vigilant and careful about such activities and that they don't happen to me.

This was at a Skoda ***. They drycleaned my car and the water somehow seaped into the rear window buttons, rendering them useless. So they picked another Fabia in the workshop for repairs and swapped the entire switch setup.

Even though i sorta benefited from the entire ordeal, I didn't feel too good about the affair. From then on, I have always gone over my car with a fine tooth comb before and after any service related activities. Not saying I would spot an anomaly everytime, but it certainly helps for peace of mind sake.

Okay, and for the sake of righteous people, that *** Workshop has been closed down for reasons not known.

Sheel · 25th August 2011, 09:16

With little grease, you can exchange your Car's, Bike's old/faulty (not necessarily requiring a change ASAP) with the one in the garage whose owner is absent.

Similarly, a Car lying around for the arrival of parts and or being kept till insurance approval gets raided for parts which are okay. I have seen it happening.

Reason why I never, ever leave my vehicles in garages over-night and I carry my food/drinks inside the garage and have it.

Just once I had to leave my 'zma as its valves were being replaced. I left the garage with the mechanic and was present before they arrive.

It helps to be a paranoid sometimes

mb_jg · 25th August 2011, 15:32

I was duped by a garage at Wanowrie (Car-O-Care), it's situated at the corner of Sacred Heart Town.
I noticed that the rear tail lamp on my Palio was a little fuzzy & scratched, as compared to the one on the right, which was still new. When I looked closer I saw the rubber outline was red in color & the original one had a black rubber outline. Wonder what other parts he had swapped, thankfully it was none of the major parts as my Palio ran trouble free for another 3yrs before I sold it.
This gentleman's crooked nature was confirmed by other garages in the vicinity. I confronted the owner & never went back.

Pri2 · 27th August 2011, 22:23

I have been a victim of parts swapping.
I had given my 6 month old Alto for a regular service and got the car back. After almost a week, I had a tyre puncture. When I opened the car boot to remove the spare tyre, I found a old tyre with a rusted rim instead of a brand new unused tyre and rim. Immediately called the service center up and told them about what had happened. But they refused to accept it and told me that they had done wheel alignment, balancing and a cycle. Went to the SC and had a gave them a piece of my mind.. Asked how come all tyres are new except the spare one! For which they had no answer!! Called up Maruti and complained about what happened. And told them that I will file a case of theft against the service center if I don't get a new tyre.
Guess what happened next. The same service manager came to my place with a brand new spare wheel !!

sumeethaldankar · 1st September 2011, 23:32

My dad' old 84 PP had it's orginal parts swapped with old ones (don't remember which ones).This happened many years ago.It happened when we had sent the car to a different garage instead of the regular ones for repairs.

The dubious garage changed the good parts with old parts and got back to us sayng so and so parts need to be replaced.We found out that we were duped when the car went back to the regular garage(whose owner was very well known to us) who pointed out the parts changed were not needed to be replaced.

22nd September 2006, 04:42	#1
mithun BANNED Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Cochin Posts: 2,195 Thanked: 268 Times	Have you ever been a victim of Parts-Swapping ? I've always heard horrible tales about parts-swapping that happens at local garages as well as authorised workshops. I've also seen the parts which are mostly procured from sparingly used vehicles put up for sale at 2nd hand parts dealers. About a year ago, one of my uncle whose Kinetic Honda which was always serviced at the authorised workshops, fell victim to parts swapping. He came to know about the duping when he went to a local garage for a carb problem. And he was stunned; when the mechanic opened up his scooter and showed some of the 5 year old parts on his 1 year old scooter !!! He is going to fight the case in the court.... So have you or anyone you know; ever been a victim of Parts-Swapping ?
	() Thanks

22nd September 2006, 09:54	#2
Harrie BHPian Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: KA 03, KL 12, TN 38 Posts: 701 Thanked: 36 Times View My Garage	I know of a garage in cbe where they take a brake master cylinder, service it, paint it silver and put a tiny yellow mark with a brush (the new ones come with this) and put it back on Maruthis. The customer and the garage owner think a new part has been replaced. The new one is never purchased. Instead an old one from the old parts market is got for a few bucks and placed in the car to show that something really was replaced.
	() Thanks

22nd September 2006, 10:42	#3
Bomi BHPian Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Mumbai Posts: 286 Thanked: 79 Times	"He is going to fight the case in the court.." I empathise, but this will be a tough call. You cannot conclusively prove that the authorized garage swapped parts. "I know of a garage in cbe where they take a brake master cylinder, service it, paint it silver and put a tiny yellow mark with a brush (the new ones come with this) and put it back on Maruthis" God, this could kill someone
	() Thanks

22nd September 2006, 13:48	#4
turbofreak BHPian Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: mumbai Posts: 112 Thanked: 0 Times	yes boss ....it had happened to me as well...in some servicing session ...these service center guys took away my new reserve tyre and replaced it with a very old one...but we found this out months later when there was a tyre puncture...
	() Thanks

22nd September 2006, 22:02	#5
wolfinstein BHPian Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: New Delhi Posts: 994 Thanked: 20 Times	just one thing is the road block here- Not necessarily that all parts in your car or scooter have to be from the same car manufacturing date or month. However I agree that 5 yrs is too much of a difference.
	() Thanks

22nd September 2006, 22:57	#6
Ford Rocam BHPian Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Mumbai-India Posts: 869 Thanked: 23 Times	Talera Ford pune swapped my good working ECU with a crappy old faulty unit when my crashed ikon was lying there, the matter went up to ford chennai but outcome was nothing since i was scrapping the car i didnt dragged the matter.
	() Thanks

25th September 2006, 22:13	#7
parimal_vb BHPian Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Pune Posts: 32 Thanked: 0 Times View My Garage	i am the witness for part swapp, to top it the manager lies to me saying we are checking the part, when it was not on the job card at all.
	() Thanks

6th October 2006, 18:44	#8
nispatel BHPian Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 97 Thanked: 0 Times View My Garage	I've been victim once with a local garage. It seems he had replaced a set of fine as good as new drive shafts of my Maruti 800 with some old but again good looking one though I couldn't conclusively prove that he had done part swapping. That was the last time I went to a local garage.. PS: The same garage guy had openuped engine (yes, cylinder head) in front of me and replaced gaskat for very reasonable rate. Probably that was his game plan as he would recover profit in subsquent visits!
	() Thanks

24th August 2011, 11:36	#9
jinojohnt Senior - BHPian Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Trivandrum Posts: 1,163 Thanked: 832 Times	Re: Have you ever been a victim of Parts-Swapping ? When my friend complained because he was not satisfied even with a second consecutive replacement of a faulty part (Indica), he was promised replacement with a part from a new car that came for service. This was at Kulathungal Motors, Trivandrum.
	() Thanks

24th August 2011, 12:00	#10
vigsom Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: NSEW Posts: 4,006 Thanked: 29,861 Times	Re: Have you ever been a victim of Parts-Swapping ? I haven't experienced this myself , but know of a friend's car whose ac receiver drier was replaced,and the "new" drier was actually an old one.
	() Thanks

25th August 2011, 01:20	#11
prateekpsingh BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: New Delhi Posts: 47 Thanked: 24 Times	Re: Have you ever been a victim of Parts-Swapping ? On the contrary, I have been on the beneficiary side of part-swapping and am not gloating about it. It was my first experience with such a thing and a huge lesson learnt. From then on, I have been ever more vigilant and careful about such activities and that they don't happen to me. This was at a Skoda *. They drycleaned my car and the water somehow seaped into the rear window buttons, rendering them useless. So they picked another Fabia in the workshop for repairs and swapped the entire switch setup. Even though i sorta benefited from the entire ordeal, I didn't feel too good about the affair. From then on, I have always gone over my car with a fine tooth comb before and after any service related activities. Not saying I would spot an anomaly everytime, but it certainly helps for peace of mind sake. Okay, and for the sake of righteous people, that * Workshop has been closed down for reasons not known.
	() Thanks

25th August 2011, 09:16	#12
Sheel Team-BHP Support Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Purnea (Bihar) Posts: 9,983 Thanked: 15,106 Times View My Garage	Re: Have you ever been a victim of Parts-Swapping ? With little grease, you can exchange your Car's, Bike's old/faulty (not necessarily requiring a change ASAP) with the one in the garage whose owner is absent. Similarly, a Car lying around for the arrival of parts and or being kept till insurance approval gets raided for parts which are okay. I have seen it happening. Reason why I never, ever leave my vehicles in garages over-night and I carry my food/drinks inside the garage and have it. Just once I had to leave my 'zma as its valves were being replaced. I left the garage with the mechanic and was present before they arrive. It helps to be a paranoid sometimes
	() Thanks

25th August 2011, 15:32	#13
mb_jg BHPian Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Pune Posts: 484 Thanked: 126 Times	Re: Have you ever been a victim of Parts-Swapping ? I was duped by a garage at Wanowrie (Car-O-Care), it's situated at the corner of Sacred Heart Town. I noticed that the rear tail lamp on my Palio was a little fuzzy & scratched, as compared to the one on the right, which was still new. When I looked closer I saw the rubber outline was red in color & the original one had a black rubber outline. Wonder what other parts he had swapped, thankfully it was none of the major parts as my Palio ran trouble free for another 3yrs before I sold it. This gentleman's crooked nature was confirmed by other garages in the vicinity. I confronted the owner & never went back. Last edited by mb_jg : 25th August 2011 at 15:34.
	() Thanks

27th August 2011, 22:23	#14
Pri2 BHPian Join Date: May 2009 Location: Bangalore / Mangalore Posts: 217 Thanked: 198 Times View My Garage	Re: Have you ever been a victim of Parts-Swapping ? I have been a victim of parts swapping. I had given my 6 month old Alto for a regular service and got the car back. After almost a week, I had a tyre puncture. When I opened the car boot to remove the spare tyre, I found a old tyre with a rusted rim instead of a brand new unused tyre and rim. Immediately called the service center up and told them about what had happened. But they refused to accept it and told me that they had done wheel alignment, balancing and a cycle. Went to the SC and had a gave them a piece of my mind.. Asked how come all tyres are new except the spare one! For which they had no answer!! Called up Maruti and complained about what happened. And told them that I will file a case of theft against the service center if I don't get a new tyre. Guess what happened next. The same service manager came to my place with a brand new spare wheel !!
	() Thanks

1st September 2011, 23:32	#15
sumeethaldankar Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2007 Location: Mumbai Posts: 4,140 Thanked: 3,661 Times View My Garage	Re: Have you ever been a victim of Parts-Swapping ? My dad' old 84 PP had it's orginal parts swapped with old ones (don't remember which ones).This happened many years ago.It happened when we had sent the car to a different garage instead of the regular ones for repairs. The dubious garage changed the good parts with old parts and got back to us sayng so and so parts need to be replaced.We found out that we were duped when the car went back to the regular garage(whose owner was very well known to us) who pointed out the parts changed were not needed to be replaced.
	() Thanks