Never ask to have the car inspected for free.
Remember back in school when someone ended up having to do all the work for the whole group? It is not a pleasant experience, so why would you try to get someone to do work for free?
Sure, for you it may sound like it is no big deal, since if something is wrong with the car, you will get it repaired there. But for a mechanic, it sounds like about 10 minutes of their time and expertise being given away for a job they may not end up landing.
A lot of customers end up garage shopping in order to find the best price, and there are also people who end up just wanting to know the issue so they can try to fix it themselves.
So you have a really low chance of being given a free inspection, and the garage may also think you are not a trustworthy customer if you keep insisting.
In a lot of places, mechanics end up cutting the diagnostic fee from the total bill if you end up getting your car repaired with them, so you should not worry about it!
The baseline and the best advice I can give you is to find a garage and a mechanic that you trust and with whom there is a good level of respect between you.
Do your due diligence before you call or visit a shop so you know they are trustworthy, and then try to remain loyal to the shop if you like their services.
That way we will recognize you easily, and becoming a valued customer generally comes with perks!
Having been a mechanic for the past couple of decades, I know how to spot a problematic car from a mile away. If you want to know what the best car in my book is and which cars I would never recommend anyone get, check out this article here!
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!