[sureshshanmugam]

Hi, I am posting this thread on behalf of my friend.
He owns a Chevy Aveo LT 2008 clocked just 40Grand Kms. Last week in Chennai, his AC stopped working(blower works, but no chilling). When taken to the dealership, the service person said that the condensor needs to be replaced and the charges for condensor, AC service labor is Rs.70,000. The car was in warranty until 2011 december and this has happened just 5 months after warranty expired. The dealer person called in person later and said that he can fix it out of the dealership for Rs. 45,000. I am confused what was going on??

Is Aveo so costly in terms of spares and service?
Rs.70,000 for an AC job is like 20% of the cars current value which is very bad.

Is it possible to fix the AC condensor of SuperKing in an Aveo, long back one of my friend fit a Superking AC in an Opel Astra where the OE AC unit of Astra was very expensive.

Can anybody share if there are any such experience / knowledge in fixing this?

Thanks.
Suresh

[swarnava.m]

Highly possible that the dealer is taking your friend for a ride.

More so because first he quotes 70k for repair, which is unlikely to be a repair cost for the AC in a car that has run 40k and not abused (I hope?). And then when it strikes him that such a high cost may force the owner to look elsewhere and search other alternatives, thus threatening to take his business away, he reduces that quote by almost half!!

That itself should tell you something is definitely fishy. If the repair cost was genuine, then what costs 70k cannot cost 45k by any means.

I suggest you take it to a local AC repair and service shop, and show it there. For all you know, there might be something really minor, like no gas or a leakage somewhere, and can be fixed in a jiffy.

Do keep us updated about what happens.

[vigsom]

Please check with an independent

I have heard of one Jagannathan on N-Usman Road . When you come down the bridge from the Loyola college side/MLM Mandapam side ,this shop is on your right

Any condenser can be retrofitted as long as the heat duty matches ; only the inlet and outlet conenctions would need to be matched and so some mods would be required.

[SmartCat]

At a Chevrolet dealer, 1.8 Litre Optra's condensor would cost Rs. 40K to replace, inclusive of labour charges. It's highly unlikely that Aveo's would cost Rs. 75K. Ask your friend to go to some other Chevrolet dealer. If Coimbatore does not have a second dealership, ask your friend to drive down to Bangalore.

The service advisor is an unscrupulous man. He hopes to get it repaired at an independent specialist for Rs. 6k - 10K and pocket the remaining Rs. 35K. Personally, I've had bad experience with independent AC repair specialists. Basically, they couldn't repair it even after a week - mostly because components are not available freely in the open market because of Chevrolet policies.

[StrangeWizard]

I had a similar problem in my Spark (33000 kms at that time). Blower worked but there was no chilling at all. I got it repaired at the authorised service centre for about 3500 bucks. I don't remember exactly what was repaired or replaced, I'm sure it must be mentioned in the service book but right now I'm abroad so can't help with that.

I suggest you visit some other authorised *** or go to a reliable independent mechanic.

[libranof1987]

I recently got the A/c pipes on my Corsa replaced at a Chevy A.S.S.; cost me Rs. 5100 and an additional Rs. 1800 for A/c gas replenishment. This is inclusive labour.

(The reason I got it changed was there was a leak somewhere in the a/c system which was sourced to the a/c pipes). The SA had earlier said that in case the condenser was faulty, that would cost ~Rs. 12000 along with the condenser-blower pipe.

So, all inclusive, you shouldn't be spending more than 20k.

If the compressor is faulty too; I doubt it will cost 50k to justify the 70k quote.

Very clearly, you are being looted. Try another A.S.S.

Also, I'd recommend A.S.S. for this job as there is at least some amount of accountability in case things don't work out later.

[kavu75]

Originally Posted by sureshshanmugam

Can anybody share if there are any such experience / knowledge in fixing this?
Suresh

I got the same problem in my Aveo last year April, compressor works but no cold air was coming. But that was the problem with compressor's pressure valve. This was diagnosed by a good AC repair shop in Cochin, NOT BY CHEVY dealer.
Look at this thread for more details

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...ml#post2332857

My advice is, please take your car to a good auto AC repair center and get their opinion.
Keep us updated.

Ayyappan

[rajeev k]

Similar thing with my colleague's 2007/08 Aveo. Got the fix at above Rs 25K outside of dealerships

[Automaton]

Had a similar experience a few days back. Don't mind getting most parts and service from an official stealer, er I mean dealer.

But after AC conked off, the service advisor quoted 28000 for condenser coil and gas plus labour and taxes after a 2 day investigation.

Later called me in the evening saying that if you call me after work, if can help you. By that time I had figured through Team BHP, that an aftermarket Denso condenser coil would be around 6500 plus labour, gas and taxes.

He called again two days later saying that he can help me off-line.

Got everything done for Rs. 9900 incl labour, taxes.

Unless it is critical (and sometimes it's good to get work done at the dealer) or you have a Concours Spec car, good after market parts are a guilt free way to keep vehicles running.

[GTO]

Taking a highly depreciated car and / or an old make to the authorised dealer is never worth it. As you rightly mentioned, dealership quotes can run disproportionately high to the current value of the car.

Please visit a good independent to sort the issue out. It'll cost a fraction in terms of $$$ and time.

[svsantosh]

Originally Posted by sureshshanmugam

He owns a Chevy Aveo LT 2008 ...
AC service labor is Rs.70,000.
Rs.70,000 for an AC job is like 20% of the cars current value

3.5Lacs for a 08 Aveo is too optimistic, 2.25-2.5Lacs is the MAX (especially after the 3rd aniv gift from the govt), but I am digressing...

Call just dial in chennai and find the best local AC repair person - I am sure they can do the complete repair in under 15K-20K MAX!

[dhanushs]

Whenever going in for a big job, at A.S.S, always ask for a detailed quote and compare it with a neighborhood mechanic.

Weigh the pros, cos, expertise and equipment of both, and take the decision.

In this case, if its just the condenser, then there is NO WAY it should cost you 70k. Infact, some outside mechanics can fix slight leaks in a very efficient way.

Please seek 2nd opinion.

[MAS]

There are three dealers for Chevy in Chennai. Sundaram, KLN &Khivraj motors.

Sundaram are known for their notorious practices. KLN is comparatively better while Khivraj is very new.

For the benefit if the community, please mention the dealer's name from where your friend got this "day-light robbery" quotation.

[rajivanoj]

in coimbatore, i have met an genuine AC mechanic, (my opinion), once my ac gave problem like blower on, but no chilling effect, one previous AC mechanic said, it might be sensor, or gas, clutch so and so, like try it . so I decided not to spend amount without knowing exact problem, so i have got another AC mechanic from an person, and he is in balaji nagar, avarampalayam, in an workshop, his name is pradeep.

when i went to him, for first time, he saw all possibilities, and finally found an loose neutral wire. fixed it, when i gave him Rs.100, he gave back Rs.50, even though i have not asked,

Second time, i went for some problem, he demanded only reasonable cost as labour, i suppose, if it is with other mechanic with dirty mind, though he would have found problem, he wont correct it before us, he will take sometime, and after few hours, when we are not there, they may tell, they have changed that , this, etc. and charge a bomb with labour and spares.

If needed i shall give his number

[svsantosh]

Originally Posted by rajivanoj

when i went to him, for first time, he saw all possibilities, and finally found an loose neutral wire. fixed it, when i gave him Rs.100, he gave back Rs.50, even though i have not asked

Not just this car - but for any AC requirement as long as you are in and around Kovai - he has a customer for LIFE in you. Such people are hard to come by!