I have a Nissan 300ZX that I dropped off with my mechanic on January 5, 2026. The original timeline was 2 weeks. On January 16th we agreed on $3,000 for the full labor and I paid him $1,500 via Cash App that same day as a show of good faith. On top of that I have purchased virtually all of the parts out of pocket — total parts cost is over $3,000, including a brand new wiring harness for close to $1,000 that he identified as faulty after the car was already there. My total out of pocket exposure is over $4,500 with the work still not complete.
We are now 120 days in. Multiple timelines have been missed. The most recent was a phone call the week of April 20th where he told me the car would be ready by April 28th or May 1st at the latest. Both dates passed with no completion and minimal communication.
As of his last message the car is running but he still needs to finish up a few more things
I'm planning to tell him via text tomorrow that I am picking the car up this Friday May 9th at 6pm whether it's finished or not and have asked for a full breakdown of what's been done and what hasn't, and that all uninstalled parts be set aside and ready to go.
My concerns going into Friday are:
He tries to charge me more than the agreed $3,000
He refuses to release the car
I have all text message records documented and a Cash App record of the $1,500 payment. What are my rights and what should be my expectations?
"Hey XXXXX, I'm going to pick up the Z end of day Friday at 6pm whether it's finished or not. We're 120 days in. January 16th we agreed on $3,000 for the service and I paid you $1,500 via Cash App that same day as a show of good faith on top of paying for virtually all the parts out of pocket. The last few timelines have come and gone, including when we spoke on the phone the week of April 20th and you said it would be ready by April 28th or May 1st at the latest. I've done everything I can to keep this moving. I've tried to be patient and understanding throughout all of this and I'd love to leave on good terms. You've done good work for me in the past. But I need my car back. Please have it ready along with a full breakdown of what's been done and if any work hasn't been done so I can figure out next steps if needed. Please have all of my parts that haven't been installed set aside and ready to go with the car."