Head gasket repair done. Am I wrong to be unhappy?

[duramaxnate]

Glad you took it back to them. If everything is better than perfect than it sounds like it worked out.

But if your paying that much $$$ for a job like that it better look like it was never touched. What really bugs me is when shops/individuals rush and butcher little things, like engine harness routing, not replacing destroyed loom, being rough with old plugs and break them etc. (there are other things but waay to much to type)

You have to be careful with the wiring harnesses on these trucks, as they get older they get very brittle. The past couple of Head gasket jobs I did I ended replacing the engine harness with a brand new one from GM just because I wasn't comfortable with the condition.
I am very picky when it comes to any job. If I can't do it correctly, I won't do it. I hate half ass repairs or band aids. I am one of few Duramax guys in SoCal that cares about how he works on these things. We have plenty of Diesel shops out here but most are butcher shops.


But hope it turns out good for you and I feel bad you had to go through that process.

 

[citadel]

Got the truck back yesterday, everything seemed good. Took it out for a drive this morning, and she won't go into reverse. Did a quick forum search and it looks like the trans needs around 12 volts. I'm running 12 at the highest, mostly lower. Checked and found one loose battery connection that I fixed in the parking lot. Battery voltage went up, and reverse came back. Alternator connection was a little loose as well, so I fixed that when I got home. Found out the alternator wasn't installed properly, only one of the bolts was actually holding it in. Those PITA inserts had slid in and wouldn't let the alternator slide into its cradle. Got em slid back out, installed correctly, everything tight. Now voltage is high 13's. No serious faults with the truck, just a bunch of little things. I've learned my lesson, not all shops are equal.

 

[ParagonBuilder]

Glad you got it mostly sorted. I’ve been there. Sucks...

 

[Chevy1925]

Got the truck back yesterday, everything seemed good. Took it out for a drive this morning, and she won't go into reverse. Did a quick forum search and it looks like the trans needs around 12 volts. I'm running 12 at the highest, mostly lower. Checked and found one loose battery connection that I fixed in the parking lot. Battery voltage went up, and reverse came back. Alternator connection was a little loose as well, so I fixed that when I got home. Found out the alternator wasn't installed properly, only one of the bolts was actually holding it in. Those PITA inserts had slid in and wouldn't let the alternator slide into its cradle. Got em slid back out, installed correctly, everything tight. Now voltage is high 13's. No serious faults with the truck, just a bunch of little things. I've learned my lesson, not all shops are equal.

my god..... sorry to hear all this crap. them boys owe you and truely hope they didnt just f-up your coolant system by only draining part of the coolant and putting dexcool in....

 

[Snowbound98]

I see this and hear similar stories and I am so glad that I’m able to do my own work. The $4500 isn’t the scary part, although that should have included gaskets and studs IMHO, it’s the little things that you noticed that would scare me. If a tech misses the details it would make me wonder if they cleaned the deck good if at all, were the bolt holes chased and cleaned, did they clean the cylinder ridge and pistons, did they even clean any coolant from the cylinders that got in during head removal, I’m so picky about the details that even setting the heads is treated as a surgical move. For me doing a HG job myself would probably cost that much because you always see things that you know you can’t just overlook and put back together in good conscience. This is why I couldn’t own my own shop or do this kind of work for people. Your not doing your customer any do diligence by at least letting them decide on what you find and if they want to spend the extra while your in there. And if it were me I’d document that this is what I found but the customer said not to make the repair. Being thorough is what sets shops apart.
I hope everything works out for you and there’s no other issues. It’s hard finding shops with good techs anymore. Good work isn’t cheap and everyone is all about saving a buck. Most don’t realize that cheap work isn’t good either. It’s a balancing act for sure.


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[hetzler_l33]

Damn, still more stuff...glad you’ve got it mostly sorted though