All right-

I need your help. On Dec. 22, 2000 I took my car to Steve Cobb's Weidner Motors, in Mansfield, Ohio, (it's a Volvo dealer) for diagnosis of a problem on sharp turns. Although no problem could be located, 2 phone calls and approx. 5 hours later the dealer contacted me to say the radiator had exploded. Now mind you, it had just been winterized, new hoses and belts put on the previous month and the dealer admitted 3 times to me there was no indication of a problem, no leak, no crack, etc. They see their responsibility for this as "nada" but as a "courtesy" have agreed to go halves on the labor, I pay for the parts.

This happened the Friday, 3 days, before Christmas. Since the car would had to wait for parts and a decision on my part about the work, they gave me a free loaner which "died" 3 times while I had it due to a starter problem. This “death by starter malfunction” took place Christmas eve and resulted in 2 AAA tow truck visits at store parking lots to jump start it. Even letting the engine run to re-charge didn't work as it "died" in my driveway the 3rd time it stopped and wouldn’t restart. They towed it the day after Christmas and gave me another loaner car.

Today, New Year's Day, the second loaner car's thermostat just went out on me on the freeway. I had no heat for 18 miles before I could exit and turn around. The engine was also running very cold according to the engine temp. needle until I got it back home when it then went into the hot zone and the temp. warning light came on. There were no gas stations w/ mechanics on duty for me to take the car to. So I missed out on a family event 50 miles from here.

Has anyone ever heard of / had their radiator explode? I believe that it did so due to some negligence on Weidner's part. The fact that they gave me 2 bad loaner cars only reinforces my belief. This is the same dealership which 3-yrs. ago gave me a brake job I did not ask for nor discuss w/ them (when I challenged the service manager about performing unapproved work, he quickly said there would be no charge.) And the same one that billed me for a new electric window motor over a week after the work was supposedly done under warranty.