Customer contacted that repair facility, via telephone, to price the labor only(customer stated that the part held a lifetime warranty with autozone) for installing a new clutch kit. Customer setup an appointment to bring the vehicle into the repair facility. Upon arrival to the repair facility the customer first informed the technician the customer, himself, had installed a different engine into the vehicle that made the vehicle carbureted instead of throttle body injected and the brakes did not work very well. Also, customer stated that the vehicle made a rattling noise while letting go of the accelerator(clutch related problem), the brakes need to be checked, the rear main seal needed to be checked, oil leaks needed to be checked, and the battery would die every evening while sitting.
Technician found that the catalytic convertor was clogged, there were two exhaust donuts leaking, the exhaust was resting on the transmission cross-member due to the mounts being broken(customer stated this was present due to engine being changed with carburetor by customer), the intake manifold gasket is leaking, the oil pressure sender needs to be replaced, the u joints were worn, the rear wheel cylinders were leaking, the rear brake shoes were worn, the rear brake drums were severely worn, the rear brake hardware kit was recommended with the other brake repairs, the axle seal was leaking, the master cylinder was not operating properly(valve was bypassing internally causing the brake pedal to go directly to the floor). After hearing of all the problems, the customer came to the repair facility to discuss with the technician and owner all of the found problems. Upon leaving the facility the customer agreed to repairing the catalytic convertor, repairing the exhaust leaks, replacing the battery with the correct battery(which was the cause of the drain, so customer took battery with him as he had a warranty with autozone), and declined all other repairs, including the clutch problem. Customer returned to the repair facility on the following morning and dropped off the new battery and an Air Check Texas/HGAC voucher to cover up to $600 towards emission repairs for the cause of a failed state inspection.
After the repairs were completed the technician performed a state inspection. However, the vehicle did not pass the safety portion of the state inspection due to the master cylinder, the rear brakes, a wiper blade was missing, and the horn did not work. Customer was very upset that the vehicle would not pass and that the voucher did not cover those items. In order to help the customer understand that we could not do any illegal actions to pass the vehicle or replace non-emission parts, the State representative was contacted(Diane Domagas) and informed of customer complaint. The State representative then spoke with customer and informed customer of the rules and regulations that the repair facility must abide by. Customer was also informed by the state that the safety items did not need to be repaired at this facility, but the inspection sticker would not be placed on the vehicle. A resolution was reached at that time with the customer, that the customer would supply the parts and pay the repair facility to install, re-inspect the vehicle, the vehicle would then pass the state inspection, and a sticker would then be able to be placed on the vehicle. Also, customer was given exact cost of repairs, asked to sign an itemized bill(included tax and all) agreeing to the repairs, and the customer signed and agreed to the terms.