Never pretend you know what you’re talking about if you do not.
A surefire way of managing to ruin your relationship with any mechanic is to have them look at your car and then pretend like you know a lot of technical parts of the car.
Believe me, all mechanics can tell if a person has a lot of knowledge and a good grasp of mechanics; they may end up doing the job themselves, especially if it is not that complicated.
No one is going to have someone else look at their car and pay to fix something that they could have done themselves if they were that knowledgeable about cars.
Most mechanics end up being put off if someone tries to pretend like they know everything to do with mechanics and cars. It can go to extreme lengths since you can never know what kind of previous experiences the person you are talking with has had.
I have heard about a mechanic in the past who was really bothered by customers who pretended to know everything he was doing and breathed down his neck too.
It got to the point that this mechanic ended up creating certain issues with the car that the person would have to admit they know nothing about and then fix for them after they brought the car back with their tails between their legs.
11 Responses
I go by the mechanics pray I do stuff that alot of people aren’t trained for buy putting a person in a vehicle after you have just done a brake job on it.
This was truly a wonderful article and very well needed. My experience in finding a good auto mechanic was that I asked a friend of mine who was a mechanic (not professionally practicing) who did he go to? (My thinking… “If a mechanic couldn’t repair on their own cars, i.e. illness, hospitalization, travel, etc., then who would a mechanic trust or use?) When he told me who he uses and recommended him to me, I went and used him. He’s been my (and my family & friends) auto mechanic for 30 years now.
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I recently paid a “technician” 160.00 per hour to install a water pump. He also replaced a serpentine belt and belt tensioner. I called the shop to inquire about the hefty rate and was told that it is standard.
Who governs the rates that shops can charge for auto repairs in my city? I live in Tucson, Arizona
No one can fix my ’07 Kia Amanti. 3 shops everyone has a different evaluation. From battery strain, starter, auto start to wiring or Powertrain Control Module. No answers, no parts, still sitting, not running. Need help or advice.
In other words, never trust a mechanic I have learned !! And in my own surveys they abuse women!!
Government should be in controll and that’s a statement I hate to say
This article contains good information, but also grammatical errors that detract from its value. Needs proofreading. ChatGPT can even do basic proofreading for you.
Humorous sign in garage
Car repairs $50/hr
If you watch me $60
If you talk to me $70
If you give advice $80
If you try to help me $90
If you worked on it yourself $100
The book you recommend–“How Cars Work”–was published in 1999!! Quite a bit has changed in the past 26 years (I hope)–do you have a more recent publication to recommend?
Spot on and absolutely correct!
I was an auto/truck ,mechanic for 40+years and “all of the above” do apply, and then some, The one single irritant that always got me was the customer who told me what “the problem was and how to fix it!” Followed by the next best one, “I can tell you thats not it”, when given the diagnosis of the problem! I also NEVER told a customer over the phone what the problem MIGHT BE! IF the customer could talk to the Tech fixing the car, and explain to them the symptoms, and when the problems occurred, they usually got it right the first time! Time is money, and fixing your car, is best left to the professional
I never found the 4 things because of all the fucking add!