AA Ying Yang

[Scorpion]

My wife works for the AA (and no she isn't a breakdown truck driver, which would be handy at times). She works as a call handler for the breakdown section. Sometimes when the AA are really busy, like at the moment due to the bad weather, they have to outsource to various garages. There are only so many garages per area that they use and consequencely if they are busy the backlog of work soon piles up.

Of course there is no excuse for saying we will be there in the next hour if they know it will take longer. The thing is when my wife tells people the truth, ie 'sorry but due to high demand it may take up to 3 hours', she normally gets a mouthfull of abuse or the old, 'I'm travelling alone so I should be top priority', line.

Unfortunately those backlogs are sometimes unavoidable, but that isn't any comfort to someone sitting in a broken down car with their family for hours on end.

To put it in a nutshell, "Sh1t happens"!

[Snorkel]

I'm no expert on a diesel engine (or any for that matter), but I reply as my head gasket went on my vectra last Sept., and I was trailing a ton of smoke out the back till I realised and pulled over. Surely you should check your oil level? mine was almost bone dry, I think I burnt about 2-3L in a mile.

[madcampbell]

Broke down on M4 in rush hour 6.30pm Last night with my young son in the truck.Got out of the truck wrapped us both up warm (always carry spare clothes and jacket for this ) the wind was howling and very cold.

I called the AA gave them the details and location.."be with you within the hour"

AA cal back in order to be there within the hour they are dispatching another company to help out they will still be there by 7.30

7.20 the other company call "where are you sir" explain location and find out that they are on the other side of motorway then he asks the type of car I am driving, I explain that it a 4x4 Hilux surf "err sorry sir the van on the way to you cannot pick you up we need to send a flat bed it will be another hour"

7.25 I called Tony N (thanks mate) for some advice on being towed

8.30 Hiways agencey stop, they call aa, aa say 20 minutes....

9.30 Flat bed turns up loads us and drops s home

Now I was happy to be home having been out in the cold for 3 hours with my son. But at no point had anyone looked at the problem

This morning I called the aa complaints line...They sent out a AA driver within 20 minutes of my call and he has spent 1.5hours trying to help. I called the aa Thank you line because I felt the AA man that turned up went the extra mile, very nice chap

Now the problem was a loud bang smoke or steam coming through the air vent and coolant water all over the screen, turns out to be a blown hose but may be head gasket small leak, aa man did a test for exhust fumes on the cooling system but no conclusive....so I am back up and running, for the moment

The AA man is suspicious the head gasket has gone but could not prove it.

1 Any thoughts

2 Any one else had problems with aa out sourcing to other companies as I have always found the AA to be good.

Again thanks Tony for the advice

Cheers
Mark