Found this on digg.com

http://www.8thcivic.com/forums/garage/86748-vtecnicals-circuit-city-road-shop-installation.html

The last time (2006) I had an amp + sub install from the grade schoolers of Hackuit City, my SUV was towed to my dealership's service center and stayed there for 30 days...they shorted the s**t of the poor vehicle to the extent that it fried a computer chip..

haha, i think this is pretty hilarious, becuase i work for circuit city, and theres no secret theyre in trouble as a company, now this? i had my d3, amp subs speaks and alarm installed with no problems. but i have heard horror stories so i believe every word of it. guess it all depends which store you go to. kinda crappy you cant trust a big company like this.

What is a Z3?

this post has been up for a few days, I saw it on another forum on monday and it had a lot more info given than there is now. This guy had a receipt for repairs and the handwritting was worse than a 12 yr old. Some of the things listed for repair were completely not related to a radio install. In the last 2 days there have been several replies to this topic on the forum where I saw this post originally. ( I am not naming the forum because I do not know if it is ok with this forum). In fact one of the original installers ( so says the installer) and the service mgr have replied and say that this customer wanted the unit installed even after he was told about needed modifications and that he signed a waiver. The customer even stated that he saw the installer using a heat gun inside the dash before the rasdio waas out of the box and he thought wtf and he continued to let the installer work on the car. By no means am I saying this install is ok at all and yes it is a hack however this customer is clearly trying to do an ins scam and trying to scam CC. NO I am not a CC installer or have anything to do with CC. I really hate it when someone gets what he wants even when warned about the lack of quality that will come from it, signs a waiver then tries to scam everyone. Since this guys original post from this weekend he has deleated a whole lot of it so that it some what seems that CC completely distroyed his car. You would have totally laughed if you had seen the invoice for repair.

bullshit!

the customer i doubt is trying to pull an insurance scam. 12k in damage is more then just modding a dash to make a head unit fit. understand that !!!!

not to mention honda not letting the vehicle be on the road, you (cc employee) aint getting away with saying "oh he signed a waiver and now tryign to jack cc...."

He may very well have known there was modding going on, but it makes no sense that his brand new car would suffer such abuse with or without a waiver. the common sense should be on the side of the installer and manager to say... uh... what your asking is toooo extreme and cant be done, you dont have him sign some waiver that obsolves you of destroying his car. Also, i believe he mentioned z2 not z3, though the relative size is similar there is a difference in model numbers.

Personally, if the hack job was so bad the installers shouldnt of done it, cc employees arent paid on commesion as an installer so money wasnt a motivating factor. Also the customer now sounds a little to laid back for being in that position, something doesnt sound straight there with him.

bullshit!

 

the customer i doubt is trying to pull an insurance scam. 12k in damage is more then just modding a dash to make a head unit fit. understand that !!!!

 

not to mention honda not letting the vehicle be on the road, you (cc employee) aint getting away with saying "oh he signed a waiver and now tryign to jack cc...."

He may very well have known there was modding going on, but it makes no sense that his brand new car would suffer such abuse with or without a waiver. the common sense should be on the side of the installer and manager to say... uh... what your asking is toooo extreme and cant be done, you dont have him sign some waiver that obsolves you of destroying his car. Also, i believe he mentioned z2 not z3, though the relative size is similar there is a difference in model numbers.

 

Personally, if the hack job was so bad the installers shouldnt of done it, cc employees arent paid on commesion as an installer so money wasnt a motivating factor. Also the customer now sounds a little to laid back for being in that position, something doesnt sound straight there with him.

As I mentioned I am not a CC employee, I am an independent installer of over 20 yrs. I am not condoning the work that CC did and YES some things are better off not being done or at least do it with some customizing. Take a look at the receipt written by the dealership, also take note of the total hrs for repair ( 44 +5 =49 not 51) also take a lok at the tax section, tax is due on parts not labor.

http://www.gmfullsize.com/forum/showthread.php?t=113368

Ya, that is why I don't let anyone work on my car, especially if it involves cutting and modifying things. That way if something like that does happen, I have only my self to blame. That and the crack I would have to be one to do that to a car!!

Umm, I believe you do pay tax on labor. Maybe it is state dependent.

xs, i wasnt really directing anything at you. more to the dude whom this all happened to. though he will likely not see it.

also, thats not even a regular honda invoice. thats some side mechanic if anything. Honda has an official invoice that is the same througout their dealerships. not to mention its hand written, honda dealer wont do that.

and if it was me, you damn right id get a new car outa it! regardless of the jacked up inflated bill, regardless if i signed a waiver, regardless. nothing excuses the installer, the manager for doing this job, nothing! we all know the dealer is a rip anyways, so dont be surprised when they are charging for new bolts and cup holders. thats expected since his car is jacked up, cc owns that car and every problem with it since they did the job. I agree the invoice is definitly questionable at the least but if it was me, id of posted the sales invoice for a new car and you can believe it or not but i woulda got it!

http://www.gmfullsize.com/forum/showthread.php?t=113368

since the post on 8thgencivic is being wonky. There's some cut'n'pastes from the original article here. Turns out the kids a tool and actually knew and signed off on most of the modifications. Oh and no way in hell does splicing into the stock RADIO harness constitute a firehazard..... people are dumb.

Interesting, didn't even notice that the first time I looked at. What kind of shop has mechanics certified to repair Hondas and Saabs? And how do they have the right to keep a car from driving out of the shop? I thought that was a stretch even for an actual honda dealership

Maybe the kid is just trying to get the highest estimate possibe to get paid. There is no way it takes $12k to fix that though, even from a legit repair place

also, thats not even a regular honda invoice. thats some side mechanic if anything. Honda has an official invoice that is the same througout their dealerships. not to mention its hand written, honda dealer wont do that.

http://www.gmfullsize.com/forum/showthread.php?t=113368

 

since the post on 8thgencivic is being wonky. There's some cut'n'pastes from the original article here. Turns out the kids a tool and actually knew and signed off on most of the modifications. Oh and no way in hell does splicing into the stock RADIO harness constitute a firehazard..... people are dumb.

yeah, what you said

I think the estimate is inflated, but i think we all, if in a bad situation would expect 'new' equipment. Personally, even if the back of the speedometer was breathed on, id scream for a new one. but thats me. So settling for using the same screws, or letting a nicked up or scratched cup holder be is not my way.

Of course the dealership cant prevent the owner from driving away, but when trying to bulster your case the dealer is a great friend to have on your side as opposed to say ray ray on the corner selling fake folex's.

The kid is probably a wanker but regardless the shop shouldnt of done what they did, with or without a waiver or acknowledgement. they should of turned the job down period.

I believe in NY for example, if your brakes aren't any good, the dealership can force you to have the car towed off the lot if you don't want them to do the work.

I don't doubt that CC did uneccessary hacking on the dudes car...I've seen what they are capable of. Not to mention that their shops are filled with techs that have half tucked in shirts, and pants that won't stay up...ot to mention seeing them kick their feet up on customer's bumpers while BS'in with a co-worker....I can also understand the saftey factor from Honda...cutting into the heater or into the firewall where emissions could get inside....or even shorting, splicing or cutting an important wire that could have something to do with a safety device like airbags etc...who knows...But with most BB or CC installation shops, the shortest route is ALWAYS taken...

BUT....they guy never mentioned his initial complaint about the install...or at least I didn't see it...What was the problem with the installation, that lead for him to investigate it? And having a look through his photobucket account, kinda leaves me with the impression that he was/is in fact trying to milk the cow a bit...

http://s259.photobucket.com/albums/hh301/VTECnical/

I am not sure about the details, which I am sure vary place to place, but a certified mechanic has several powers. For example if you don’t pay for the work done they can have a lean put on the vehicle. Check it out. It would not surprise me if they could prevent you from legally driving the car too. I bet this is especially true in places that have required safety inspections in addition to emissions testing. Actually it makes since. If a mechanic let you drive away with anything messed up that later caused a problem, like a stall on a major highway which lead to pile up, the mechanic could be held liable for not stopping you.

Anyways this looks like a case of two stupid people getting together. The owner never should have had them do the work and CC should have not tried to do the work.

Here is a little more detail

http://www.engadget.com/2008/03/31/man- ... stall-gon/

Looks like they folded.

http://gadgetracker.com/circuit-city-co ... nda-civic/

would seem cc has clearly taken responsibility

would seem cc has clearly taken responsibility

which is taking responsibility.

there is no way cc would pay out 10k + if they were in the right in any shape or form. a couple hundred, maybe even a thousand possibly.

hopefully you dont assume that they were proper and justified throughout the entire transaction. Besides it wouldnt cost them a damn thing if they were right and did everything properly, they could seek damages from the vehicle owner.. and surely they have contemplated the outcome prior to settling and realize the impact settling will have.

Clearly you haven't been involved on the business side of one of these situations. I work for a company that owns and operates gas stations. You wouldn't believe some of the bogus claims for carwash damage that come through our office! But many of them get settled because the cost - not just in dollars but in bad publicity - is less than fighting. Just the legal fees for preparing for a case like this will run $20K. So, $12K (especially when mostly paid by insurance) is a reasonable business decision without any admission of liability.

In this case, I don't know if CC was right or wrong but I suspect that it was a little of both. Perhaps the installers should have refused to do the modifications or done them differently. But the guy signed a waiver for a custom installation, didn't complain for almost a year, and then wants to be reimbursed for scratches to the door panels (and the sunroof?) that he should have been able to see the day he took the car home if they were caused by the installers.

your right it is a little of both, I am totally with you on that.

Working for a large company though also tells you that once you have any part it a situation.... you own that situation, it doesnt matter no more who signed what and blah blah.. fact is they did 'something' along the way that exposed them and made them liable. Their motivation is nothing to me or the public. And actually for all intensive purposes... its binding and acknowledgment they messed up and accept the responsibility. it doesnt matter what their motivation is/was, fact is its publically known they paid the full dollar amount that was demanded.not some partial payment and then forced the customer to prove why he needed new bolts and screws for such and such if they truly felt or knew it was a COMPLETE scam. Thats the cost of business, you better believe the manager/installer/employees involved will have a better sense of what to do/not to do next time if not from the experience itself but id surely bet there was some discussion with management and the people involved.. I use to work for circuit city as a manager of the roadshop, and that whole mess was outside of policy. Those are the urban legends they tell you about.

Man, no kidding...I sure wouldn't want to be that manager or installer.

And you're right, the fact that they probably had the owner sign a release document that stated "in making this settlement, we admit no wrongdoing, etc." doesn't make much difference in the eyes of the public. Once something like this gets out on the internet, everyone assumes the settlement was an admission of liability rather than just a business decision. That's where their biggest mistake was - not settling before it got out of hand.

Ummm, I have done the install my self on the Z1 and I have soldered and shrink wrapped the wires... everything was done super pro, the unit fits perfectly in the Civic as I have the same one as VTECinical. Everything is flush and perfect. I live in Canada and after spending 26+ on an 08 civic I would be really pissed if some accredited ahole tires to install this unit and cuts vents + uses electrical tape which will fall off with heat. If someone screwed my car up like that I would demand a new one as I could not see it the same anymore even if it was repaired. So in conclusion I probably would have taken CC for every penny. I have no sympathy for such garbage work. No one cares anymore about doing a proper job. I'm also part of 8thcivc and I have seen the high res pic, the install is horrendous my 10 year old cousin would have done a better job, better yet a trained monkey on crack would have done a better job.