Radiator damage; should I let this go?

[TallGuy]

I recently had my AC Condenser replaced at a Brakes Plus down the road from me. I don't like messing with refrigerant so I'd rather have the professionals handle it. After paying my $700 bill, my air was still not cold. Just cool. So naturally I opened the hood to do my own troubleshooting. I wanted to check the status of the compressor relay and clutch. Anyway, when I opened the hood I noticed the condenser was a tad crooked so I got the flashlight and saw that my radiator fins were damaged where the technician got the condenser in.





Not only were the fins damaged on the front facing rad side but also there was damage from where the fan clutch had pressed into the back of the rad.





My radiator is newer and I just pulled it a week ago. There was absolutely zero damage before this AC Condenser repair.

Any opinions on what to do? Should I let this go or do I have a solid dispute for some money back off the labor? Will this affect my rads cooling performance?

 

[Hackyman]

Yea this sucks when it happens, but won't impact performance. You can sit there with a tiny flathead or the specialized radiator comb and fix it. Up to you how much you want to complain

 

[TallGuy]

Yea this sucks when it happens, but won't impact performance. You can sit there with a tiny flathead or the specialized radiator comb and fix it. Up to you how much you want to complain

Ok gotcha, thanks. Hopefully I can readjust the fins a bit.

 

[TallGuy]

Wow on inspection in daylight, I noticed they damaged my hood up. I was going to swallow the radiator fins damaged but I don't think I'll let this go. I can only guess the had the hood up while on their lift and it smashed into the ceiling beam.

 

[TJ Jim]

Why in the devil would they put it on a lift? All the work can be done on the ground? Here’s a comb.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BYS3HBT4?tag=wranglerorg-20

 

[Moglocker]

Wow on inspection in daylight, I noticed they damaged my hood up. I was going to swallow the radiator fins damaged but I don't think I'll let this go. I can only guess the had the hood up while on their lift and it smashed into the ceiling beam.

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Looks like it chips easy also looks like easy touch up.

 

[mrblaine]

Why in the devil would they put it on a lift? All the work can be done on the ground? Here’s a comb.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BYS3HBT4?tag=wranglerorg-20

If it was kept overnight, it is pretty common to raise a vehicle high enough to park another one under it. Or at least it was at the auto/body shop I worked at.

 

[TallGuy]

Very frustrating because they just let me pay my bill and walk out. The hood hinge is damaged underneath. I'm trying to figure how the hell that could happen.

Looks like it chips easy also looks like easy touch up.

I have touch up so that's not an issue. Principal is they dented it and damaged the paint and radiator. Lucky for me I have experience fixing dents.

I'm trying to figure how to price this damage for them to reimburse me for.

Inspect your Jeep before and after a visit to a repair shop.

 

[TJ Jim]

I take the wife’s car to the dealer for most everything. They not only inspect it they take pictures of it to keep customers from burning them on dents or damage. Guess I’ll start doing the same thing now.

 

[Moglocker]

Very frustrating because they just let me pay my bill and walk out. The hood hinge is damaged underneath. I'm trying to figure how the hell that could happen.



I have touch up so that's not an issue. Principal is they dented it and damaged the paint and radiator. Lucky for me I have experience fixing dents.

I'm trying to figure how to price this damage for them to reimburse me for.

Inspect your Jeep before and after a visit to a repair shop.

I owned an auto glass co. For 36 years,I never hired anyone,I try to not pay anyone to do things,because of fears like this.

 

[TallGuy]

Talked to the GM of the Brakes Plus today. He's going to pull the camera footage of the bay that the technician was using while working on the condenser. He seemed interested to know what had happened. I also pointed out the damaged radiator fins. I'm still baffled how the damage occurred to the hood. There are no beams above their lifts and the ceiling has to be 25-30ft. Since it's a holiday weekend I may not have any word until Tuesday.

A small part of me wonders if the footage will somehow disappear or not. It's my regular shop and I've been taking my other vehicles there for years - thousands of dollars of repairs helping to keep their lights on. Hahaha Chevy and Honda.

I got a repair quote from an auto body shop today just to point my expectations in a direction. $1300. (Which honestly sounds high to me)

What a weekend so far.

 

[Moglocker]

Talked to the GM of the Brakes Plus today. He's going to pull the camera footage of the bay that the technician was using while working on the condenser. He seemed interested to know what had happened. I also pointed out the damaged radiator fins. I'm still baffled how the damage occurred to the hood. There are no beams above their lifts and the ceiling has to be 25-30ft. Since it's a holiday weekend I may not have any word until Tuesday.

A small part of me wonders if the footage will somehow disappear or not. It's my regular shop and I've been taking my other vehicles there for years - thousands of dollars of repairs helping to keep their lights on. Hahaha Chevy and Honda.

I got a repair quote from an auto body shop today just to point my expectations in a direction. $1300. (Which honestly sounds high to me)

What a weekend so far.

I wouldn’t see how they needed a lift to do ac work?unless like @mrblaine said they parked a car under it?

 

[mrblaine]

Talked to the GM of the Brakes Plus today. He's going to pull the camera footage of the bay that the technician was using while working on the condenser. He seemed interested to know what had happened. I also pointed out the damaged radiator fins. I'm still baffled how the damage occurred to the hood. There are no beams above their lifts and the ceiling has to be 25-30ft. Since it's a holiday weekend I may not have any word until Tuesday.

The tech could have moved the rig with the hood up on the prop rod and bumped into the arms on the lift or the bumper of a vehicle on the lift.

 

[Moglocker]

Wow on inspection in daylight, I noticed they damaged my hood up. I was going to swallow the radiator fins damaged but I don't think I'll let this go. I can only guess the had the hood up while on their lift and it smashed into the ceiling beam.

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Whatever they hit was red.

 

[TallGuy]

The GM reviewed the footage and they are definitely covering the damages. The tech had it on the lift and the hood hit the bump stop which bent it to one side. Hood closed on some kind of tool or something which damaged the hinge. They are also comping the ac condenser and the radiator.

Since my hood is painted with bed liner, I may need to do the touch-up. All in all I'm glad they're being honest and taking care of it.

 

[CJ with a TJ]

The GM reviewed the footage and they are definitely covering the damages. The tech had it on the lift and the hood hit the bump stop which bent it to one side. Hood closed on some kind of tool or something which damaged the hinge. They are also comping the ac condenser and the radiator.

Since my hood is painted with bed liner, I may need to do the touch-up. All in all I'm glad they're being honest and taking care of it.

I thought for sure that you were going to get a... Nothing to see here.