Why does a new engine part break right after expensive dealership repairs?
Major engine repairs can leave underlying issues undetected, leading to secondary component failures shortly after pickup. Dealerships often treat these breakdowns as separate problems and quote additional thousands, leaving car owners stuck paying for cascading failures or fighting to prove shop negligence.
What the numbers show
Counted from the threads quoted below. How we count
- The most recent one is from October 2026.
- This comes up 11.6× more often in r/AskMechanics than across the site as a whole.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1taking the vehicle elsewhereDid this help you?
- 2paying the dealer's labor rateDid this help you?
- 3pressing them on whether pulling the head disturbed oil or coolant linesDid this help you?
- 4swapping camshaft position sensorsDid this help you?
- 5tightening oil galley plugsDid this help you?
- 6performing a cam relearnDid this help you?
- 7planning to swap VVT phaser actuatorsDid this help you?
- 8Attaching a heavy-duty magnet to the bottom of the oil panDid this help you?
- 9Using a magnetic drain plugDid this help you?
- 10Relying on standard oil filters to trap metal flakesDid this help you?
- 11Getting in touch with another HVAC contractor for a second opinionDid this help you?
- 12Calling the company every few weeks asking for helpDid this help you?
- 13Clearing the trouble codeDid this help you?
- 14Checking for disturbed vacuum or boost hoses, clamps, and connectorsDid this help you?
- 15Refusing the costly engine replacementDid this help you?
- 16Reviewing repair documentation and shop warrantiesDid this help you?
- 17Seeking legal advice and community insight on rights and proofDid this help you?
- 18Replacing spark plugsDid this help you?
- 19Checking if the timing is offDid this help you?
- 20Looking for a vacuum leak or loose hoseDid this help you?
- 21Hammering on the original shop to recheck their work and take responsibilityDid this help you?
- 22Taking the car to a different shop for a second opinionDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“700 miles later and the engine is knocking, different shop recommends new engine. The shop that did the timing work denies any culpability and quoted 11k for a new engine. The check engine light did not clear after the repairs. Shop said it wasn’t an issue.”source ↗
“So I've got a 5.7 Hemi with danger glitter but I can't get it in just yet.”source ↗
“My oil analysis was coming through clean, I only know it's coming because I cut my last filter apart and it had dead engine dandruff.”source ↗
“So I got this ingenious idea to buy a 150lb magnet and slap it to the bottom of the oil pan to keep the fine stuff from circulating.”source ↗
“Well now in September, a few months later, the engine failed.”source ↗
“Did we really just throw away $13,000 and still need a family vehicle.”source ↗
“Still getting the P0017.”source ↗
“Runs and idles fine, but starts to struggle when going uphill or under extra load.”source ↗
“I struggled with this on my 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee a few years back”source ↗
“Got head replaced by Honda Dealer charger like $3k, one week later the turbo charger goes out and they are trying to charge another $4k. Anything I can say to them to lower the price or get it free? I am thinking negligence that they did not see this while working on the head for 2 weeks?”source ↗
“However, the car feels underpowered around 20–25 mph, while it feels normal at freeway speeds.”source ↗
“Id really like some advice cause im devastated, thanks!”source ↗
“Man that sucks after spending all that money on engine restoration. My brother had similar thing with his old Hyundai, mechanic messed up the timing belt installation and it ran like crap for months before we figured it out.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
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