The "Ever Since" Effect

It happens.  We all have to take the car in for service at the dealer or an independent shop at some point in our lives.  Being an automotive technician working out of my garage at times, I have had to take cars to the dealer for computer reprogramming, to the exhaust shop to have custom pipes bent, or to have an alignment done at the local Firestone.

Sometimes, after taking your vehicle in for service, you come home to find that something else is broken.  This is what we call in the business, the "Ever Since."  Here, I will outline some common scenarios that can be mistaken as an "Ever Since" and some that are actually issues caused by negligent repairs.

1.  Ever since you changed my oil my brakes have been bad.
     This one is, quite simply, nonsense.  Changing the oil in a vehicle has absolutely nothing to do with the brakes.  The only way the brakes could even possibly be affected by an oil change is by topping up the brake fluid with something other than brake fluid.  The friction material of the brakes is in no way affected by changing engine oil.

2.  Ever since you replaced my radiator my air conditioning doesn't work
     This one is plausible.  Replacing the radiator in a vehicle requires work to be done in the vicinity of the air conditioning condenser and often times requires the cooling fans to be disconnected and removed.  If the condenser is damaged in the process of removing the radiator, the Freon will leak out and the air conditioner will be inoperative.  Sometimes, the leak can be so small that it is not detected at the time of service.  If this is the case, bring it back to the place it was serviced and have it checked out.  Almost every shop will not charge a dime to look at it, especially if a recent service was performed.  If the cooling fan is disconnected, the air conditioner will not work as efficiently as it was before but the vehicle will not overheat.  Look to see if there are any wires unplugged in the vicinity of the fans and if there are, plug them back in and everything will be fine.

3.  Ever since you performed a wheel alignment my tires have been wearing out faster.
     Although hard to prove because a long time and many miles have to pass to notice erratic tire wear, this one is totally possible.  Many cars today only have adjustments for toe.  A failed attempt at toe adjustment will result in premature wear of the tires.  In this case, bring it back to the shop that aligned it with the paperwork from the alignment and show them the tire wear.  Any reputable shop will admit a mistake and correct it.

4.  Ever since you aligned my vehicle my CV joint went bad.
     Plausible as well.  Often times to align a vehicle, the tie rods must be heated with a torch to break rusty nuts free.  Mistakes happen, and when a slip of the torch happens, sometimes the boot of the CV joint can be burned and rupture.  The grease will leak out and the joint will subsequently be run dry.  This will cause joint failure-the clicking and popping sound when at a full turn.  Inspect the CV joints for burning or melting.  If they are burned or melted, the damage will be on the peak of the bellows.  If it is normal wear, the split will be at the valley of the bellows and will usually be split all the way around.  If it shows signs of damage at the peak, then it was likely burned during the alignment process.  This rule applies to all work performed on the front end of the car, including ball joints, tie rod ends, stabilizer links, and hubs.

5.  Ever since you installed my stereo my heat doesn't get warm.
     This one could be either way.  Usually when installing a stereo, the dashboard of the car doesn't have to come apart too much.  The technician installing the stereo generally never has to get deep enough in to the dashboard to harm the heater core.  If your heat doesn't work following any electrical service, then it likely has nothing to do with that service.  Something else probably went wrong.

Choosing a reputable mechanic to service your investment is a hard decision.  Take the advice of family and friends, check out Google for reviews, and take the car for simple service and see how they perform.  First impressions are everything and usually tell a lot about a shop.  If the people are friendly, clean, and professional, you can be assured that they will do clean, professional, and friendly service.  If the technicians are dirty, the shop is dirty, and all you hear about when you walk in the door is about parts of women's anatomy, then run for the hills.  You have a choice, and this is where you spend your money.  You need to be comfortable that the job will be done right the first time, with no "Ever Since."

For any questions about repairs and related domino effects from repairs, feel free to email me at DIYfixyourcar@gmail.com