Am I getting ripped off?

[DSMJake]

My situation:
Im 16 years old and saved my money from all my checks to buy a eclipse i finally got 3 grand and bought a 98 eclipse RS which appeared to be in good condition i know i payed way to much for this car but i was in the moment and excited about buying my first car so i buy the car i pull off the public auto auction lot and go fill her up well 15 minutes down the road my check engine light comes on im thinking yikes this isnt good so i take it easy and drive home i park my car go inside and call a few places to see about a check engine light diagnosis i find a place and pull out half way out of my neighbor hood my mom calls me and says im leaking oil in the driveway. so i immediatly go to the closest car shop. At this point i know the car place ripped me off.

So i tell the shop the situation and drop it off they said they will look at it over night and get back to me the next morning i got stopped in to ask if there was any info on the problems he says hes got bad news and says ive got a bad bad oil leak one of my tie rods is ready to snap and i have coolant spraying out. He tells me to replace the water pump and timeing belt and one other belt it will cost me 780.00 dollars parts and labor. Then he tells me the oil leak can be either one of 2 things a head gasket which will cost me 1500 parts and labor or a "valve cover job" could also fix the oil leak. Do these prices seem high or about what it would cost ive gotton myself in a big big mess.

Sorry if i posted in the wrong forum.

[Boost92awd]

So did you find out why the check engine light is on? If its leaking that much coolant you should beable to tell where its coming from. Also the guys an idiot if he cant tell if its either the head gasket or the valve cover. Personally I would take it to a different shop the guy sounds like he dosent know what hes talking about.

I would also maybe see if someone on here locally to you could take a look at it for you and possibly help you fix the problems.

[DSMJake]

Damn that would be awsome if there was a local on here but the mechanic told me they cant tell where the oil is coming from so instead of paying 1500 for the head gasket and it not fixing the leak spend 260 first to see if it fixes it. I just dont know why i jumped into buying this car i got myself in a messed up position now. thanks for the advice.

EDIT: Also they said all 4 cylinders are mis - fireing i dont know for sure if any of theese things ive said could cause thE check engine light.

[99gst_racer]

Yeah, ask him what code it was throwing to trigger the CEL.

Also, how bad are the leaks? How much fluid does it leak out in a week's time?

[DSMJake]

Well it was a 35 min drive from the dealership the first shop i took it to they were to busy to mess with it but he took a look and said its missing a bout a quart of oil and hte oil pan looks like its bent. then i left there and took it the other shop and i was working on my interior when it was out in there parking lot and they said dont start it it doesnt have any oil. So im geuss they drained so it isnt spilling all over or it leaked all out but they said when they pulled it in the shop they had a medium sized pool of coolant and a big size about hte diameter of a basketball of oil. And when i goto pay for the valve cover job im gonna ask for the code for the CEL.

[99gst_racer]

Your valve cover gasket may need to be replaced, but that's definitely not the cause of your problem. I wouldn't trust that shop that quoted you. Sounds like they're just fishing for easy business.

[DSMJake]

So what do you recommend me doing i dont know if i should take it elsewhere because im scared if i drive it ill mess somthing up even worse.

[DSMJake]

I just called they are doing a valve cover gasket job and seal? and they are gonna let it run for a little bit to see if it stops the oil leak. And he said the CEL is because if it misfireing does that make sense??

[91tizzy]

yes the code could be from the random misfire. As far as the head gasket question...does the car smoke at all? because if it isnt burning oil or coolant then chances are its not the headgasket. You mentioned that the oil pan was bent. Your oil leak could very well be from the pan gasket....or hopefully this isnt the case but it could be one of the front or rear main oil seals...good luck btw the prices he has quoted you are a little high I would shop around for a good reputable shop and have it towed there. Better to pay a tow bill than pay out the ass for shady mechanics work

[thricestrat]

Did you get a chance to see if there was oil pooling up in the spark plug wire wells? If so, that would definetaly cause the CEL. If its throwing any other codes it could be oil dripping down on the flex section of your exhaust. In my old 420a (99 gs) if I got a few drops on the flex it would throw a code lasting ususally only a day or so. Im guessing I had a leak and the oil seeped in causing the rear o2 to throw a code. The seals the mechanic was refering to must have been the spark plug wire "donuts" I call them. They are gaskets that keep oil from leaking out to the spark wells. Best bet... valve cover gasket replacement, new spark plugs, new wires. Good luck man.

[DSMJake]

Thanks guys ill keep you posted on the status later i should get a call if they fixed it thanks for all the advice everyone.

[95greentsi]

The coolant leak should be simple. Tell whatever shop you go to you want them to do a coolant pressure test. Basically they will top off the coolant, hook up a special rad cap adaptor, put a vacuum on it at 15-20 psi, and that should tell them where the leak is coming from. Being a 420a and seeing as you got it at an auction, 420a's are know for bad head gaskets though. As for you oil leak, if you have the car before its at the shop, i'd brakk clean the valve cover, top off with oil, then start it up and see if its leaking. If not, when you take it to a shop, tell them you'd like them to clean the oil pan and whatnot (they should have brakk clean too) then they should fire it up and at least have some idea of where the leak is coming from. I work at a shop and thats what i would do. And trust me, you'll sound a lot better if you walk in a shop and say "i have a coolant leak and would like the system pressure tested for leaks", rather than "i have a coolant leak and have no idea where it's coming from"

[easy]

paying someone more than a 12 pack to work on your car, ouch, say it isn't so...

[chris712vt]

First of all, calm down a little bit. I know it's frustrating, you just spent your savings on a new car and it's having problems. But stop bringing the car from shop to shop for a minute, that game can add up the $$ quick.

Now, start by inspecing a few things yourself. Look on top of the valve cover by where the spark plugs plug in, is there any oil pooled up on top there? Also look along the outside edge of the valve cover, any oil drips? If so, you're valve cover gasket/seal maybe be old and leaking. That's $20 and a half an hour of your time to do swap it yourself. 8 bolts, scrape off the old with a razor, put on the new gasket, a little rtv, you're done. Don't need a shop to charge you hundreds for a valve cover gasket you can do yourself.

Next, inspect your oil. Is it "milky" looking? Could be a sign you have a head gasket problem. Are you dripping oil out from the joint between the head and block? dab a paper towel around to search for for fresh oil. If that ends up being the source, you could fix it yourself but it's much more involved so you may want to just have a shop to do it... but not for $1500.

Get under the car and inspect the oil pan. You said it's dented or bent? Is there also a crack somewhere? If so you'd definitely leak oil there. Check the perimeter of the oil pan where it bolts to the block. Perhaps that seal is worn out if oil is leaking from there. That is also a simple fix you can do yourself. Again, $20 and less than an hour of your time and you can drop your oil pan, replace the gasket, and bolt it back on with a fresh snug seal. I have an extra oil pan gasket laying around that i never even opened actually if you found out that is the solution and you need one. But anyway, if your oil pan is damaged, you can find used ones for sale here or on the 2gnt classifieds from other members for cheap if you need to replace it completely, or just replace the gasket yourself.

And about the check engine light. Bring the car, if you can drive it, up to advance auto or one of those places. Ask for their OBD-II code reader. They'll let you bring it out to your car and scan the computer yourself. You plug it in under the dash below the steering wheel. Easy to do, just follow the directions on it. Then walk back in, they'll print off your list of whatever codes are going wrong, and then you can search this forum (or 2gnt, I know you'll find it there) for a list of what the codes mean. Then you can tell us what codes it's throwing and we can help more.

[rstare]

Originally Posted by thricestrat

Did you get a chance to see if there was oil pooling up in the spark plug wire wells? If so, that would definetaly cause the CEL.

Actually having oil in the spark wells wont have it throw a CEL. I had oil in my 4th and 2nd cylinder spark well for almost a few weeks, but it never threw a CEL.
Thats excellent advice Chris is giving you, I would listen to every word of it. I just changed my valve cover gasket a few weeks back (oil in the spark wells), along with the plugs. Tooks 1 1/2 hours total for everything I would say. That includes cleaning the valve cover, and finding all the right socket sizes in my unorginaized mess of tools.... and eating a bowl of ravioli .

[easy]

might want to check out the lemon laws in your state as well...

[Rabbi]

Originally Posted by DSMJake

My situation:
Then he tells me the oil leak can be either one of 2 things a head gasket which will cost me 1500 parts and labor or a "valve cover job" could also fix the oil leak.
Sorry if i posted in the wrong forum.

If your mechanic cant tell the obvious difference between the valve cover & the head gasket, Sounds like you need to find a new one. That guy obviously should not be touching your car.

Get a new mechanic bro

[Tim Melton]

What state do you live in because i thought you had seventy two hours for a full refund.Also why not make the dealer fix the problems they obviousley had known the car was leaking all the fluids before they sold it to you.

[robleen69]

if u dont know on how to repaire it and u spent that much i would take it back whoever sold it prob knew ### was wrong with it

[DSMJake]

I bought it from a auction club and i signed i accept the car as is but thats bs they were hiding the problems that not fair.

[totaleclipse_05]

Was the CEL blinking or just staying on? If it was blinking, it was a misfire. If it just stays on, it's something else and just take it to an Autozone or similar place and have them (or you) pull up the codes with their machine.

[DSMJake]

Well when i first noticed it i wsa at a stop light it was blinking then it went solid it did this 2 times on my way to the car shop.