Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site umcp-cs.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxj!ihnp4!zehntel!hplabs!hao!seismo!umcp-cs!prophet From: prophet@umcp-cs.UUCP (Dennis Gibbs) Newsgroups: net.auto Subject: Re: Sears batteries revisited, and my personal experience w/Sears Message-ID: <56@umcp-cs.UUCP> Date: Fri, 21-Sep-84 16:07:49 EDT Article-I.D.: umcp-cs.56 Posted: Fri Sep 21 16:07:49 1984 Date-Received: Wed, 26-Sep-84 02:17:06 EDT Distribution: net Organization: U of Maryland, Computer Science Dept., College Park, MD Lines: 58 <> A few months ago, Sears had a sale on their new 60-month battery (NOT Die-Hard) and so I decided to go ahead and replace the battery in my 1979 Datsun 310GX. The battery in my Datsun that I was replacing was the original equipment battery (over five years old). This original equipment battery was a GREAT battery, it had survived a couple of winters where the temperature would dip as low as -10 degrees Fahrenheit. The battery was still working fine, since the weather was warm, but I was afraid that it would not survive a sixth winter of below zero termperature. Since Sears was having a sale, I decided to go for it. Anyway, I took the car to Sears, and bought the battery. They pulled the car into the service facility, where I tried to watch the mechanic from the lounge as best I could. (Sears will not allow customers to enter the sevice areas). I saw the mechanic put in my battery, and then he proceded to test the electrical system. I knew something was wrong when I saw him start the engine, take a reading from the meter, and then, stopping the engine, he proceded to tighten the alternator drive belt. Then, after starting the engine again and taking another reading, he called in the service manager. At this point, the service manager began heading for the customer lounge, and I thought, oh no, they're going to try to hit me for a new alternator. Sure enough, the manager came in, and said, " Your alternator is not putting out enough current, you're going to have to replace it." Being a former mechanic myself, and taking careful care of my car, I knew the service manager was wrong. Besides, the manager's phrase "not putting out enough current" is erroneous, because an alternator's competence is measured by its output in volts, which is not current (amps). I told the manager this, and he said that most cars put out about 20 amps, whereas mine was putting out only 10. This is ridiculous, because the current in the circuit depends almost entirely upon the state of charge of the battery. I told the manager to just finish installing the batt- ery and I would be on my way. When I got home, I ran a thorough check of the electrical system, and found nothing wrong. Three months later, the car is running fine, and the battery is holding its charge perfectly. On a separate incident, my brother took his 1974 Capri into Sears to have a new water pump installed. Naturally, to put on the pump, they had to remove t he hoses from the pump, thus draining the radiator. When my brother's wife came to pick up the car, she paid the bill, and then drove off. After a couple of blocks, the car overheated! It turns out they "forgot" to replace the fluid in the radiator!!! My brother raised so much hell with Sears that they gave him a free 24 month, 24000 mile warranty on the engine in case anything went wrong as a result of their mistake. My conclusion? I'm not going near a Sears "mechanic" except as an absolute lastresort. Dennis -- Call-Me: Dennis Gibbs, Univ. of Md. Comp. Sci. Center. UUCP: {seismo,allegra,brl-bmd}!umcp-cs!prophet CSNet: prophet@umcp-cs BITNET: GIBBS@UMDB ARPA: prophet@Maryland