you have a case. you breaking the law is not what's on trial, but him doing a shotty job is. at least in pa you would have a case. i took crim classes for a few years. he was wrong for making your decision on his own which shows negligence. it doesn't matter if you were right or wrong by wanting an illeagal item on your car, you're not on trial he is for the work he preformed
but since he wanted the illegal part put on, thats an invalid contract and since no contract exists there can be no warranty of merchantability, and therefore no case..right?
but since he wanted the illegal part put on, thats an invalid contract and since no contract exists there can be no warranty of merchantability, and therefore no case..right?
Don't get me wrong guys, i'm not defending the shop in any way whatsoever. I think what they did is compete stupidity, and yes they should have talked to the owner before hacking everything apart.
But what I'm saying, is that in the eyes of the law, the owner may have no case. This is because the act the owner wanted the mech. to perfrom is illegal. You can't enter into a legally binding contract, when the terms of that contract are illegal. So, the court may find that the mechanic could reasonably assume that the customer wanted to hack it all up to high heaven so that he can get the X in there and still have cats ( which would be the only "legal" way of "installing" the X). Also, compare it to what nickthegenius said about the guy trying to sue hydroponics retailer for wrecking his weed stash.
Again, I'm not saying the mechanic was right, he wasn't, he should have talked to the owner first. Im just saying the owner might not win a court battle because of all the legalities that have to be considered. You have to remember, the law is not common sense, it is a very tricky subject, and courts often make rulings that would defy common sense because of some legality or technicality.
I just left my 02 stock H at the muffler shop a few days ago...damn!
I never left the shop while they were installing my (catted) H. In fact, I stood behind the car the entire time. The guy did a great job and I made small talk with him, as to not make him feel that I was 'supervising' his work.
OK, here's what I think you should have done - knowing that these are illegal, you should have asked if they had any issues with installing it before you left. With this communication, it seems to me this whole scenario could have been avoided.
Now, what I'd do - I'd approach then asking for compansation to replace the pipe, and then take your business elsewhere. If they don't want to work with you, and feel that their butcher job is what you expected, then I'd head to the court house.
What was discussed prior to this install? I mean, when I had mine installed, the guy came out to my car and checked out the pipe and hardware...we had an understanding of what was to be done.
Sorry to hear this bullsh-t. I never had a good experience at a muffler shop. Their main concern is get the job done(half ass) & charge big time. Take them to court. I've been using my Ford dealer for most mods. I pay a little more & never had an issue with their work.
What the mechanic did was illegal anyway. It is illegal to remove a perfectly functioning/working cat. I dont know about a case but just have them re-cut and weld it all back together and sign an aggrement that it is for an offroad vehicle and they have no responsibility if you are caught.
My experience at the local muffler shop was great - the installer wanted to get everything just right on my new MRT catted H pipe. While underneath the car, he spotted a 1 inch gap where the muffler didn't get welded to the exhaust pipe and he fixed this. The catback was installed by a very reputable Mustang Performance Shop...nice job, a$$holes.