Just a quick question, we had a blower motor installed in our vehicle and it went bad. The original place refused to fix it so we took it to Chrysler who found when it was originally installed the safety connectors were cut off the wires and the wires just twisted back together (they didn’t even have tape or anything on them) We are taking the original place to small claims court and Chrysler said cutting off the connectors is illegal. Does anyone know if this is true or not? I’m trying to find something on the internet about it but can’t so I don’t know if it’s true or not.
I believe you mean the quick disconnects. For any shop to cut wires and leave bare wires exposed as a finished job should be sued out of existence. Bare exposed wires are a shock hazard, and a shock may cause a fire hazard. The legality of it depends on the State it happened, and can be answered by a local attorney. If the shop was an ASE certified shop, or certified in some manor, be sure to contact the agency and file a report. This shop should not be in operation doing dangerous stuff like this.
No it’s not illegal.
Assembling it correctly is the issue. Splicing the wires end to end is just fine if done right,
– but nobody leaves exposed splices in a proper installation. –
The connectors serve the assembly line most so a harness can be plugged quickly and not mistake which plug is which.
During service, connections can be un-plugged and re-plugged but many times getting them to unplug is a chore since their initial intent is to be plugged easily.
So ( correctly ) splicing the repair remains an option. ( solder and shrink tube or a crimp splice )
It slows things down a bit yet can yield a stronger connection not prone to corrosion.
It may not be illegal, but you I would think have to prove the twisted together uninsulated connections caused damage for a claim.
I believe waterboy has it correct, and any lawyer can confirm. You cannot sue for damages if you did not suffer a loss. The most you can claim is a replacement blower motor but only if the shop did not honor its warranty. If parts and service are out of warranty, you have no case at all.
We are not sueing for damages but for replacing a defective motor that was only on for 6 months. They refused to fix it without us paying for it. Which was over $100 more then we paid the first time (we also had the heater core replaced the first time). We didn’t actually know anything about the exposed wires until it was replaced by Chrysler.
There is usually little to be gained from litigation against an incompetent shop. But jousting with wind mills can be quite satisfying at times. Such shops need a good slamming. They make all shops look sleezy. I wish you luck.
It’s not illegal to cut off a wie connector but you may not get far with any lawsuit.
You’re suing them for a blower motor that went bad after 6 months? How long a warranty, if any, does the shop provide as to time or mileage?
If the motor failed after 6 months that’s certainly not the shop’s fault.
I’m not defending the Two-Wire Twist method of connection but I will add this. Sometimes aftermarket parts require adapting and in the case of blower motors they often come out of the box with bare wire ends and no connectors at all.
I replaced the blower in one of my Lincolns a few years back and that new blower came out of the box with no connector on it at all. Just the way it is.
We’re all left to make assumptions here because of the lack of specific information in the post. Exactly what are the “safety connectors”? Are these just the harness connectors? Where do the twisted-together wires go to? Did the Chrysler shop find these twisted wires to be germaine to the second blower motor failure? Were the twisted wires “live”?
By the way, how old is the car? What model? How many miles? Are you the original owner?
I don’t subscribe to cutting connectors off and hard wiring new installations, but there are times when it’s appropriate. And the twisted-together wires could be a “dead loop” that was never a part of the installation to begin with. Perhaps those wires would have supported an option that was available on your model car but was not included on your personal options list.
Honestly, I don’t think we have near enough information to be making any judgements. And you haven’t indicated any real damages. If you plan to recover anything in small claims court you’re probably going to need far more detail than you’ve posted.