Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Houston

mini viper

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Hi everyone,

I think I posted on the forum a few weeks ago about having someone look at a Viper for me near Oakland, CA. Well I have bought the vehicle (99 Black/Silver Stripe GTS ACR) and am enjoying it tremendously. It really is the car of my dreams and exactly as I imagined it. Absolutely drop dead gorgeous on the outside and a dangerous unrefined beast on the inside. Anyhow, back to my story...I need to register my car in Texas and in order to do that I need to get a Vehicle Inspection. Well, I decided that the Shell station close to my house did inspections and I assumed it to be an easy and relatively straightforward process. Boy was I wrong!

I drove up yesterday afternoon after coming home early from work (I just so happen to work for Shell) and I decided to stop by to see if they could inspect the car then. The mechanic came out big-eyed and looked excited to see the car but informed me that they would open on Saturday at 10am. I let him know that I would be back then and he looked rather pleased that I would be showing up again (maybe I was reading to much into his expressions). Suffice it to say, I woke up this morning and drove over there at 10:40am. Sadly the inspector was not there yet and was estimated to come in in around 45 mins or so. I decided it was a beatiful day to just go cruise around and so I had a great time just driving around listening to the exhaust rumble, and the occasional music coming from the surprisingly great Alpine audio system.

Thus I show up around 11:30 ready for my inspection to begin so that I can finally go pay the sales tax (oh joy). The gas station manager checks on me and abruptly says that it'll be about 30 mins. Meh, whatever, I park and play around on my phone when 15 mins later a mechanic by the name of Mark comes out to get my insurance and start the process. I wearily let him drive the car in the garage and stand in the door like a hawk to make sure they don't do anything stupid with my brand new toy that essentially cost my life savings up till this point.

Now the fun begins...the guy gets out of the car and leans over in the driver's side footwell messing with something. He keeps messing with it for like 5 mins and I finally walk in the garage to see what the hell he is doing. I glance in the passenger side and see he is messing with the foot pedal knob and I'm like *** is he messing with that for. The manager sees me and shoos me out saying that he is beginning my inspection and that I need to wait outside. Ok, so I wait another minute while he fiddles around, while thinking to myself that maybe he needs to reach the pedals better. All of a sudden he pops up out the footwell with damn know IN HIS HAND :mad: and I say, "hey, did you just break something off of my car." He grumbles and mutters some cursewords under his breath while holding the damn knob and putting it back on. He manages to put it on and it isn't broken (THANK GOD) and I let him know that if he would like help opening the hood I will do that for him. He was trying to open the damn hood with the footpedal adjustment knob!!?! I try and remain calm and start to show how to open the hood and he just flips out, yelling "I ain't working on this m....f....'s car, I can't stand this s..." on and on and on. He motions to his coworker, "you deal with this m....f...." I'm like, ok, if there is a problem here I'll take my car somewhere else, that's no problem. Mark curses some more at me and my poor Viper that seemed to cause all this and gets one of the other mechanics to back the car out. I hop in the car and drive off...

Breath break...

While driving away I realize that I'm not just going to take that verbal abuse from a mechanic who had absolutely no right to say anything like that to me. I never once raised my voice nor said anything threatening. Thus I drive back (luckily I did because I had left my insurance there) and decide to talk to the manager. The manager had already treated me in a rather curt manner before and I wasn't expecting him to be completely open to my complaint. I explain to him the details of what happened and he stares blankly at me showing no emotion whatsoever and no indication that he is going to take care of the situation. He halfheartedly informs me that he will "talk" to his mechanic about his actions and quickly walks off after I aks his name (Dino) and the name of his mechanic. He doesn't give last names (and I won't post them here) but I had received his card yesterday from his other mechanic with his last name. So, I stand there for another few minutes typing some details into my phone about the event and he walks back out asking if I needed anything else. I let him know that I'm just documenting the situation and he responds with "document all you want, buddy" and walks off again. Maybe if I was 45 he might not have called me "buddy" but I'm a responsible 24 year old with a hotshot car (I'm pretty sure my age didn't help any of the situation).

Long story short I've called in an official complaint to my own company :rolleyes: (albeit a completely different division) and tracked down the sales rep that deals with this gentlemen. We'll see what happens next. At least I know I can get a Shell gas card from the experience, although I let the CSR know that I would rather have resolution, not money.

This brings me to my question...does anyone have a good vehicle inspector in Houston that they use to do this work? I would rather not have to worry about some bumbling mechanic ripping off my pedal knob again.
 
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mini viper

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

Pic of my car (my truck in background, kinda). And yes, the guy trying to look all cool is me.

IMG_3432_compressed.jpg
 

Ratical2

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

Beautiful Car! Welcome to the world of Vipers. Jealousy, envy or intimidation can make people do strange things. Enjoy your new toy.

I am sure some Houston people with chime in with a friendly inspection station.

I am going to beat Venomiss to the punch and say PM the moderators with VIN # and they can update your status. She will also say something like this, "Why not join the Greatest Car Club in the world?"
 

99 R/T 10

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

I will bet the station is independently owned and operated, hence he doesn't care what anybody thinks. Good luck on the complaint, I would be curious to see what the outcome is.
 

Red Snake

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

Congrats on the car. Looks great.:2tu:
 

MTGTS

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

Can your local dealership with a Viper Tech do the Inspection?
 
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mini viper

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

That's who I'm planning to call Monday to see if I can get one of the Dodge dealers around to do the inspection. I'll need to see which ones have Viper Techs. Guess I should have thought about that up front, but never imagined that they wouldn't be able to open up the hood (he could have asked me). Guess I'm used to the inspections in Lousiana where they hop in the car, honk the horn, check the lights, see if it runs, possibly check if the car can actually brake properly, and thats it.

Its funny, in one week of having the car in my possession I'm already amassing some crazy stories of experiences with the car. Guess Ratical2 is right that Vipers can make people do strange things. I wouldn't give it up for the world, however, this car is just too badass. Every new situation will just be a great learning experience as I come to truly understand what owning a Viper really means.
 

AZTVR

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

never imagined that they wouldn't be able to open up the hood

Well, I would say that the method for opening or closing the hood is not very obvious. No reason for the guy to be an @$$ about the situation.

I would not recommend letting someone who hasn't dealt with Vipers open or close your hood. I'm sure that you are aware of how to properly and safely close your hood; but, the wrong moves could certainly damage it.
 
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Venomiss

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

Welcome!
Sorry you had such a horrible experience. Good thing you didn't leave the car alone...

Here is the VCA of Houston.
The website may have some contacts for you. There are other VCA Houston members who frequent this site.

Page 1

Make sure and PM one of the moderators here with your information-kcobean, CitySnake, or Lee00blackandsilverGTS. Only they can see it. They can upgrade you to Viper Owner status here.

Info on how to join the VCA is in the new owners section-online, fax, or mail.
Right now there is a $55 dollar discount per person(2 people) towards the Viper Owners Invitational(VOI) in August for VCA members. Imagine 700-800 Vipers all in one place!
Almost pays for the membership from that.
Get you all kinds of vendor discounts, perks for this site, and Viper magazine.
We'd love to have you join us!
 

CitySnake

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

Never let them drive your car, NEVER! Never let them "shoo" you out of the inspection bay, NEVER.

If they won't let you drive your car into the station, stop and find another inspection station. You're too easily intimidated....and that's understandable at 24. They're not doing you a favor. You're employing them to do work for you and if they won't accommodate, then move on. Remember this for the rest of your days of ownership. There's no exceptions. Whenever you get the "well I just allow it this once time...." thought, slap yourself!

All that being stated, do as others have suggested and speak with your local VCA members to find a reputable dealer or tuner that does inspections.

And join the VCA :2tu:.
 

RikRok

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

They HAVE to drive the car to check the brakes. No way around that I know of. Also, I assume your OBD port is under the dash, they have never opened my hood. I have a nice little shop in Sugar Land that I use for mine. I would just stay away from the gas stations and use a regular repair shop. They all do and charge the same.
 
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RTTTTed

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

There's good mechanics and bad ones. With a Viper, get a reference. The post above is your best bet.

My inspections were done at Canadian Tire (similar to a US Walmart). No choice on where to go - Federal Gov. required. Before I even got the car I made contact with the Service manager and he loved my cars. I had him do 3 car inspections. At the managers request I took him for a ride in my car, not the mechanic.

Although insurance requires NO CUSTOMERS in the shop, I drove the car into the shop, opened the hood and set the lift pads myself. The Federal inspection required only Daytime Running Lights and reading the "child restraint system in the owners manual. Provincial insoection required % of brake pads left and complete safety inspection (mechanical).

The manager and the mechanic made the inspections a pleasure and no problem. If the mechanic doesn't feel priveledged to do an inspection on a Viper ... find a different one. I refuse to allow anyone to drive my car for any reason, expecially a stranger. If there's a requirement for the car to be driven - I do the driving, not the mechanic. If they have a problem with that, explain the cost of the car and insist that you do the driving. I always write on my invoice before anyone touches the car, "No driving of car except by owner." 'Normal garage/shop invoices give your permission to do whatever they feel is necessary, while YOU retain ALL responsibility for any damages."

I don't trust anyone that much.

Ted
 
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mini viper

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

Thanks for all the responses...

A quick update, I was called by the sales rep who deals with the gas station leasee and she let it be known that she did not regularly get into the middle of things. She assured me she talked to the owner and the mechanic was reprimanded that if he pulled a stunt like that again, he would be fired. I've dropped the matter with this even though I still don't feel full resolution (not sure what else I was expecting, however).

As for the inspection, I'm going to Northwest Dodge, which apparently has a Viper tech on staff. I'll watch it like a hawk again and insist that I watch the process (not that it helped much last time). I assume Viper techs have some sort of certificate...is this something I should ask to see? RikRok, what was the name of the place you use in Sugar Land, I'll keep them in mind next time (or maybe even this time if things don't work out). Owning this car is a trip...
 

RTTTTed

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

Viper Techs are specially trained. They know how to open the hood! If it's a Viper tech you already know that he can actually drive a stock (at least) Viper with No crashes. They're the kind of mechanic that is trained to respect your car and drive it properly.

You shouldn't even need to be in the shop while he's doing the inspection. If we can't trust a Viper tech to do his job ... what kind of world would it be?

Ted
 

RikRok

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

You are safe with Northwest, great people. But other than that, keep in mind, the Viper Techs are not the ones doing the inspections
 
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mini viper

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

Realized I wanted to post a quick reply and revive this thread one last time...

I took my car to Northwest Dodge in Houston and the Viper Tech did do my inspection :D . He was very friendly and seemed knowledgable. After explaining the b.s. I went through they even let me drive the car into the garage and wait around inside next to my car while Hector was completing the inspection. Also got to take a look at one of the 08's they had gotten in 3 days earlier. Suffice it to say the car is registered and has been a blast since I bought it. Buying detailing products has been draining my wallet...lol.
 

SSG CHIC

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

Sorry you had a problem so soon into your new adventure but I'm glad it is resolved now. The guys and gals in the VCA are a great bunch and a tremendous source of knowledge.

You've got a beautiful car and I think it's safe to say that everyone looks cool in a Viper.:D
 

dave6666

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

You should have filed your complaint with the state. Texas licenses businesses to do the inspections. They can take those licenses away.

Now I don't know if "stupid mechanic couldn't open my hood" and "they treated me like crap" would get their license revoked, but ***. Just do it. File a complaint with the state.
 

alpine7822

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

I am the same way with my Viper. That's why I call my salesperson whenever I need something done (inspection, oil change, etc.) so that I know I can trust the person. Also remember that not all Viper Techs are created equally...it may just mean they've been at the dealership the longest and were picked to be certified. Sometimes a longer drive equals better service.
 

hou99gts

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

I'm glad your encounter with NW Dodge was better than mine. I took mine there last year for my inspection and will never go back. I've had other problems with NW on other Dodges I have owned and the Viper inspection was my last dealings with them. I will try Tomball Dodge next time I need an inspection (next month). I would use dealerships only for inspections.
 

Dom426h

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

i believe one of the top 10 rules of owning a viper is to never let anyone attempt to open your hood without your assistance unless you know they have worked on vipers and know it takes 2 people. Your hood is most likely worth more than that mechanics car.

You'll give the wrong vibe if you say to him: "Do you know how to open a Vipers hood." Even though this is a legitimate question most mechanics would take it as an insult that you are questioning if they know how to open the hood of a car.

instead say: "excuse me, i'd like to make sure my hood is opened properly, would you mind if i helped since it is a 2-person process?"
if No, then move on to the next mechanic

o yea, nice ACR dude!!!
 

AFL in NJ

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

Great Looking car!!

When I get my car inspected in Jersey, I cringe every time!

Regards,
Aaron
 

Flexx91

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

That's who I'm planning to call Monday to see if I can get one of the Dodge dealers around to do the inspection. I'll need to see which ones have Viper Techs. Guess I should have thought about that up front, but never imagined that they wouldn't be able to open up the hood (he could have asked me). Guess I'm used to the inspections in Lousiana where they hop in the car, honk the horn, check the lights, see if it runs, possibly check if the car can actually brake properly, and thats it.

Its funny, in one week of having the car in my possession I'm already amassing some crazy stories of experiences with the car. Guess Ratical2 is right that Vipers can make people do strange things. I wouldn't give it up for the world, however, this car is just too badass. Every new situation will just be a great learning experience as I come to truly understand what owning a Viper really means.

Shoot me an email if you ever need any assistance with any Viper-related issue. I'm in the Houston area.

[email protected]
 
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mini viper

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

I'm glad your encounter with NW Dodge was better than mine. I took mine there last year for my inspection and will never go back. I've had other problems with NW on other Dodges I have owned and the Viper inspection was my last dealings with them. I will try Tomball Dodge next time I need an inspection (next month). I would use dealerships only for inspections.

Tomball is a longer drive for me, care to explain what issues you had with NW Dodge? They had a Gen 3 B/W on a lift next to mine.
 
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mini viper

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

You should have filed your complaint with the state. Texas licenses businesses to do the inspections. They can take those licenses away.

Now I don't know if "stupid mechanic couldn't open my hood" and "they treated me like crap" would get their license revoked, but ***. Just do it. File a complaint with the state.


You happen to know who to file the complaint with. I'll do a search if I have time, although complaining to a governing body may be frivolous.
 

ViperTony

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

You happen to know who to file the complaint with. I'll do a search if I have time, although complaining to a governing body may be frivolous.

Maybe but in this rough economy where states are looking at budget cuts and shutting down services you may get a bureaucrats' attention. Probably makes sense to file it with the depart of motor vehicles to start.
 

DJ'sviper

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

Nice car. I have a 93 and love it. Reread what citysnake said and take it to heart. The best thing was that you left in time. I used to let people drive mine and then I almost srecked it. Even after you think you can handle it you have to be careful. I'm the only one who drives it now. The red, black, blue, yellow, grey, and green (did I miss any)are my favorite vipers.
 

hou99gts

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

Tomball is a longer drive for me, care to explain what issues you had with NW Dodge? They had a Gen 3 B/W on a lift next to mine.

I live 5 minutes from NW Dodge, so Tomball is much farther for me as well. The inspection part of the deal went fine, but they ****** me around multiple times while I was waiting for the inspection (I had made an appointment beforehand and ended up missing an appointment because of the time I was there).
 

Big Medicine

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

I no longer bother to have my vehicle inspected. Nor do I affix my registration sticker to the front windshield. I refuse to hang a front plate, even though I carry the clip on in the rear hatch.

Pulled over?

1. "Sorry officer, first time out of the garage in 6 months. Headed to get that inspection today as a matter of fact. I will put my sticker on today too."
2. "I just washed it too. The plate is in the trunk. I will put it on at the next safe place I can find to pull out of traffic and replace it."
3. OR, just tell them I refuse to participate in such silly activities for a vehicle that spends so little time on the road. Just gimme a ticket, I'd rather pay it than play by the rules.
 
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mini viper

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Re: Vehicle Inspection Frustration (warning: long but possibly entertaining read):Hou

Not that rebellious. I'll stick with not having a front plate (not even in the back of the car). Other than that I don't want to give the police any excuses for pulling me over. Those stripes just scream, please officer, pull me over...
 

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