Define incompetence: Joburg City Auto

On 29 August, the start motor on my BMW stopped working. I had the car towed to Joburg City Auto on 4th September for repairs. They replaced the starter, then called to inform me that the engine was misfiring. They then recommended the replacement of the ignition coils (all 6 of them), which I agreed to. Two weeks later, the vehicle was ready for collection. I paid R23 000 for the repair work.

Upon collecting the vehicle, it had no power, was shuddering and stalling (very uncommon for an automatic transmission). I immediately reported these issues to the service advisor, who recommended another diagnostic test to determine the cause of the issue. I hesitated to take the car back, but finally did on 3rd October. I got a call from the services advisor and was given a list of items that required replacement as they had all stopped working. The list filled an entire A4 page! No reasons were provided for why they'd stopped working. The bill? R51 500 (parts and labour included). Defeated, I rejected the quotation and went to the dealership to fetch my car.

For a second opinion, I booked the car with a repairer in Bez Valley (non BMW dealer). On Monday 8th October, I dropped the car off for diagnosis. I got a call informing me that the wiring on the car was wrong. They offered to rewire the car, and I got the car back at 15:30. The bill? R2 450.

I now doubt if the starter really needed replacing. I also wonder if there was a problem with the ignition coils. I do know however that I will never ever take my car to Joburg City Auto, not even for a quick wash. That was an eye opener.