In 2011 around August I moved to Auckland which awakened me to a totally different world. Auckland is a vast place, friends are all busy, lifestyle is sort of rough and personal routine had to be tuned in to cope with the more dynamic world of a bigger city. I then decided to get a car.
I aimed for an Asian car which I believed was cheaper and easier to maintain. Then a fellow countryman offered me a so called "good deal" on a European car. He said the car was a good one. As we were "kapwa pinoy" he will take care in maintaining and servicing the car as needed. I solicited some second opinions, had AA made a pre-purchase inspection and got a positive feedback so I ended up buying the car. The seller put in a new battery which was smaller than its holder which can move to and fro as the car moves. When he delivered the car he said, please take good care of the car. He said he was wanting to keep it for a higher price but as he was quick to offer it to me he felt bound to part with it.
One morning after a rainy night I get into the car seeing the passenger side was flooded. I rang the seller and he told me to bring the car to their shop. He confirmed the rubber insulator needed change and he will do the job. He rang again to say that the job cost $350 and for a good deal he will pay half the cost and will only ask me to pay the other half. The job was to take three days.
The third day came and the car was not back. I rang them and my call went to the voice mail. On the fifth day, I came home to see the car already sitting at the port. A receipt was carelessly left inside the seat detailing the work done which actually cost $275. I hid the receipt and denied ever seeing it. To make the matter worst, I started the car with its fuel indicator saying it was empty. It was newly filled when they picked it up. A burger wrapper was stuck in the drink holder.
I felt upset inside but I kept silent. I refilled the car for $130 and kept the receipt. Then my "good dealing friend"rang me for the payment of the insulation. I asked how much? He said, $175 for half the cost. I felt like telling him about the receipt anyway I asked him what happened to my petrol. Without much ado he said he will pay for the petrol. My kiwi friend said, it was not three months since I got the car and I was not supposed to pay for the insulation because by law they were supposed to give the item in good condition unless they were open about the problem and if I decided to take it then it was fair. He said, for them to have used the car while entrusted for repair would freak him out. I decided to pay the balance of $50.
A few weeks later the air conditioning broke down. The seller told me that the air-conditioning had been re-gassed but just the same the nearby shop found it needing more and refilled it. A month later, the system stopped working again so I decided to take it to an independent workshop exclusive for the car brand. They found a leak and did some work. For the whole year of 2012 I had the system rechecked four times and decided to take it to the expert. The evaporator was replaced and lucky the Mechanical Breakdown Insurance refunded the cost. In less than a month, the problem recurred and by then I was frustrated. The only good thing was that The Team was happy to keep on doing the job for free. They were apologetic for the back job and did not charge me any extra cost. Till finally they pulled the compressor out and reconditioned it for free.
One day, I could not open the drawer. I asked the Team if they can open it for me unfortunately the lock was broken. I asked the Team to pull it out and it left me with an ugly, awful space. I googled for a replacement from a recycled shop nearby.
I was the first customer that day and the owner was happy to chat. He said, he will give me a good deal. The item cost $80 and allegedly labour was normally another $80 and he offered to charge $40. I felt like knocking the man's head on his cash machine, he only put in 2 screws to attach the item to my car. Surely it was a good deal for him but robbery on me.
Thinking about it now, hearing the phrase "good deal" freezes me. A few days ago, I lost $34 on an entertainment coupon. The ticket was originally $28 each, I got 2 for $17 on what was supposed to be another good deal. On one side it says … Valid until and including 8 March which made me think it can be used on the 7th. Anyway on the other side was written, this coupon is valid ONLY on the 8th which was my working day. I rang the organiser if I can just use the coupon on the 7th and add some amount to make it a regular deal but NO - they told me to buy another ticket and suggested to give the discounted to one who can make it on the 8th.
Now in stress free moments I reserve second thoughts about "GOOD DEAL".
