Freeborn Of Godalming - A Cautionary Experience

[punkieys17]

My son's C2's clutch failed. After checking prices we were pleasantly surpised to find Freeborn of Godalming to have the best price. We were told a fixed price. Given the timing belt needed to be changed as well we thought it sensible to use a main dealer. Apart from trying to upsell a coolant change (in August!) all appeared well. In the week before I had changed the sparkplugs and one had dropped into the under-engine protective plate - you will understand why i mention this later. 

 

At this point you should understand my son is not allowed a car in his first year at uni, so my wife used it. It was parked on a private drive behing gates and used only to go to the stables. In other words it never left our care or sight for long, indeed the longest periods would be at the stables - where there was always somone around..

 

A few weeks after getting the car back from Freeborn I noticed the front of the inner nearside wheel well was lose and dragging on the tire. I innocently asumed a clip/screw has come undone. When i bought the car the front bumper had been moved so, as usual, I had gone throught the new car in the family and corrected the front bumper fault.

 

On rolling under the car I found the froint dam/wheel well on both sides of the car undone and folded up out of the way - just like a lazy mechanic would do to gain access to the ends of the engine/gearbox assembly.

 

I was even more amazed when I noticed a row of screw holes on the underside of the bumber - and realised the under engine pan was missing. All screws/clips missing -  nothing torn - it had been removed.

 

I'm extremly busy so contacted Freeborn by email - three times from different computers - with no response at all. All I was asking was the pan be replaced - basically giving the car back in its entirety as it was sent in.  

 

In frustration I used Company House records to identify the overall owner of the Freeborn Group and sent a registered letter to the address - guess what - no reply.

 

Unfortunately three weeks later my son came back, used it twice and it was written of by a Volvo driver!

 

While I cannot state categorically who removed the pan, tucked the wheelwell liner/dams out of the way I will let you draw your own conclusions.

 

To my mind what is worse is that no one at Freeborn or its parent company even bothered to reply to a complaint.

 

I never trust garages and prefer to do my own maintenance/repairs whenever possible, Certainly I will never use Freeborn again.        

  

[paul.h]

Does not sound good, as you mention, removing the undertray and wheel arch liners are all needed to do the jobs you mention. It is as though the job has not been finished off since these things would be the last bits to be put back.