2003 CR-V broke down 2 days after mechanic “fixed” it — is their explanation reasonable?
Hi all, unfortunately I have a potential dispute with a local mechanic and I’m hoping to get some advice on what’s going on.
My car is a 2003 Honda CR-V, which I bought about a year ago. Last week it wouldn’t start, so I took it to one of the local mechanics. I live in a small town, so my options are limited.
When the car was returned, the mechanic’s report said the intake pipe was broken and a vacuum valve was disconnected. They claimed to have repaired the intake pipe and reconnected the vacuum pipe. I was also verbally told the car was capable of long-distance driving.
Two days later, I had to drive for around 3 hours to run an errand. After about 2.5 hours, the car broke down on the highway. Luckily, I was able to coast it into a safe spot.
A RAC roadside mechanic then inspected it and found that the intake pipe was not working properly, along with some missing screws deeper inside the engine bay near the intake manifold. They made some temporary repairs that allowed me to drive home safely, but unfortunately did not provide a written report.
We then emailed the mechanic asking for an explanation. I understand that it’s an old car and that new issues can arise after a service, but I’m struggling to understand how the same issue could reappear so soon after the repair.
The mechanic replied that the intake pipe had been repaired using clamps fitted to the ends of the pipe. They suggested there may also be an additional pressure-related issue that caused the pipe to come loose, which might require complete replacement of the intake pipe. They said they don’t normally keep this pipe in stock.
They also maintain that the car should have been able to operate normally when it left their workshop.
I’m pretty ignorant about cars, so I’m hoping to get some advice from people who know more than I do. Does the mechanic’s explanation sound reasonable? Could a repair like this realistically fail after only a couple of days and a few hours of driving? And what would you recommend I do next?
Pics show a piece that was broken from the intake pipe (provided by the town mechanic, which they claimed to have found during their initial inspection) and the blue tape applied by the roadside assistance mechanic. Also the town mechanic’s email reply to our request for explanation re the sudden breakdown.