jay, May 1, 1998 — North Shore News

The case of the missing fuel pi

Anna Marie D'Angelo

News Reporter
dangelo@nsnews.com

Chris Calland knows a
lot about car engines.

Last week, he learned about
car engine repairs and small
claims court.

Calland, 31, launched a
small claims lawsuit against
Dick Irwin Chevrolet
Oldsmobile over repair work
done almost we years ago on
Calland’s 1987 Pontiac ‘Trans
Am.

North Vancouver provincial
court Judge Bill Rodgers ruled
against Calland on April 23
after several hours of wal. The
judge dismissed Caland’s
claim.

“Its unbelievable. I am in
shock,” said Calland outside
the courtroom after the ruling.

Calland has been working
around engines since he was a
teenager. He used to work ata
service garage helping to re-
build engines. He worked on
engines when he. owned and
operated a log salvage business
and ‘when he was in the truck-
ing business. Calland currently
works for a herbal company
based in Arizona,

In June of 1996, Calland’s

~ car. was running poorly. The
Trans Am’s 305 engine didn’t
have the power it usually had
and needed a tuncup.

Calland took. the car to
Harrison Performance
Engineering in. North Van.

The car was placed on a scope .

to check electrical functioning.
Spark plugs, the rotor and the
distributor cap were then
replaced. At the end of the
‘tuncup, Rob Harrison, a
mechanic for 24 years, noted

_ that there. was a fuel Pressure
problem, The pressure was 29
when it should have been 36
psi (pounds per square inches)
in the car.

“The muscle car was barely
running a couple of days later
and Calland wanted it repaired

. quickly. He decided to take it
to Dick Irwin’s service shop on
a Monday. The shop mechanics
were unable to work on the car
that day. The next day, Calland
said he’ went to Dick Invin ar 3
p.m. and the car was still out-
side, untouched. Three hours
later at 6 pm. Calland

t call to say the car was -

Ne

Calland was billed for a 4.6
hour new. fuel pump job that
the mechanic clocked as raking
one hour and five minutes to

do. Calland was also billed one:

‘hour and 15. minutes to have
“the s spark plug wires changed
and for two. road tests of the
_ ear,
; billed $675. 95 for
Calland did not

believe that the fuel pump was

replaced in that short of time.

He believed that only the fuel

filter was changed. s
Said. Callaad’s lawyer

Stephanie Jackson, “The prob-

lem with the timing is huge.”
7 Jackson. said there was “no
.. evidence - presented. by. Dick

-Arwin staff members at the trial
that. indicated .the fucl pump -

was actually replaced.

Calland stated that while at.
Dick’ Irwin’s, an employ¢e’

cating that to fix
stat housing properly would
cost $502.74.

Calland said he didn’r
authorize the spark plug w
to be replaced at the Dick
Irwin shop, (There was no
authorization notation made
on the bill for the wires, only
for the fuel pump.)

Calland didn’t think there
was anything wrong with the
wires or that problem would
have shown up at Harnson
Performance when the car was
scoped. Calland also took issue
with 7 mm non-GM spark pluy
wires (GM uses AC Delco
brand) being placed on his car
at the dealership when he said
the car had larger 8 mm wires.

Calland promptly puz a stop
payment on his cheque for the
car repairs.

He testified that under the
car at the back where the fuel

“Fe works very
quickly and that
is the reason why
he is not here
today because
something fell on
his head.”
ump work was supposed to
ave been done was no sign of
repair work, There was still dirt
everywhere including on bolts
and no impact marks from a
mechanic’s tool. (The fuel

pump was located in the gas
tank near the rear axle of the

- car.)

Dick Irwin counter sued to

" get their repair bill paid.

Jack Teeple, mechanic shop
supervisor, testified chat the
dirt and bolts under Calland’s
car were undisturbed because
the mechanic undid the gas
tank and fet it swing down
from the top in order to
replace the fuel pump.

Shop supervisor Teeple said
that GM standard issue for the
spark. plug wires on Calland’s
car were 7 mm thick. Non GM
brand wires were used because
Calland was in a hurry and they
were out of their usual brand.

Teeple said that a 4.6 hour
fuel pump job could take an
experienced GM mechanic one
hour to do.

pointed to a prece of metal over |

the thermostat housing und:

the hood. Calland testified that
thar metal was'not there before
he ‘came to the service, shop.
-He said someone had broken a
bolt -near..the” thermostat and
~ attached” a piece of-metal' to

another bolt? The. metal went’

over the. thermostat to hold it
down. in “a makeshift way.

Calland had an estimate indi-"”

The 4.6 hours come out of
a labor estimating guide for
mechanical repairs. Some
mechanic shops, such as Dick
Invin, use the book times for
billing in a “tlat rate” system.

Ina flar rate shop, mechan-
ics are paid by the job based on
the book time. If a mechanic
takes one hour to do a nvo-
hour book time job, he will be
paid for two hours of work. If
he takes three hours to do a
two-hour book time job, he

i paid two hours.

Dick Inwin_ representatives
denied any staff member proke
a bolt on the thermostat hous-
ing, noting that the work done
on the car was nor near the
thermostat housing.

Dick Inwin’s general man-
ager Joe Hutton said that
Calland got value for whar he
was charged. Dick Invin man-
agement stated that a new fuel
pump was put in and thar the
spark plug wires were corroded
and were rightly replaced with
permission from Calland.

The = mechanic who
changed the fuel pump was not
in court. Wayne Sharp was on
Workers Compensation.
Hutton said Sharp spent three
months on Workers
Compensation iast year
because “he ties to go 100
fast.”

“He (Sharp) works very
quickly and that is the reason
why he is not here today
because something fell on his
head,” said Hutton.

© Dick Irwin manager
stated that a flat rare system
resulted in employment. of
experienced, efficient and
quick me sanics. He said the
company nad been in business
for 30 years and had one of the
highest level of customer satis-
faction rates in the 18 Lower
Mainland GM dealerships.

Judge Rodgers dismissed
Calland’s claim saying Calland
had nor proved hts case. Dick
Irwin was awarded its bill of
$675.95 plus interest, $100
court filing fees, a $25. stop-
cheque charge and $100 for
witness fees for three dealership
employees. The judge said that
Calland did not do any test
afterwards that would indicate
whether the fuel pump had
been changed.

The car has not had the
engine problem since it was
worked on in the Dick Irwin
mechanic shop.

KC Spo 7

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; NEWS phota Brad Ledwidge :
NORTH Vancouver resident Chris Calland sued a Marine Drive dealership over -

repair work done on his Trans Am. Calland was disappointed when he lost his
- case in small claims court. ;

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