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Consumer Reports says it's clear the auto repair industry needs to do a better job.
No one likes to take their car to the repair shop. It’s costly and inconvenient. But a new survey by Consumer Reports finds that many customers have some other serious gripes.
The magazine contacted 5,400 subscribers to learn what upsets them. About three-quarters said they were “completely satisfied” or “very satisfied” with the repair work on their vehicle.
Of those who were not happy, 38 percent cited high prices. This was a more common complaint for dealerships than for independent shops.
Consumer Reports calls it "troubling" that more than a quarter (28 percent) of the unsatisfied group said their car's problem was not properly fixed. And for this one, it didn't matter where the repair was done. The gripe was reported at the same rate for dealers and independent shops.
Jim Travers, an associate editor with Consumer Reports Autos, says it’s important to check the car before you drive away.
“Make an issue of it right there,” he advises. “Don’t leave before you’re comfortable that you’ve been taken care of properly. If you leave, you start to diminish any chance that you’re going to get recourse.”
Other top gripes
Twenty-one percent of those who were less than satisfied said they were not happy that it took longer than expected to complete the work. Eighteen percent said they had to bring the car back because the repair did not “hold up.” For both of these gripes dealers and independents shared the blame almost evenly.
Consumer Reports says it’s clear the auto repair industry needs to do a better job.
“They’ve got some pretty dissatisfied customers out there,” Travers says.
And unhappy customers often take their business elsewhere. Almost a quarter of customers contacted by Consumer Reports said they’d switched shops in the past five years because of service problems. Almost half of that group said the negative experience was at a dealership, a third said it was an independent shop, and a fifth named a franchise chain similar to Midas or Sears.
Repair shops might also want to pay special attention to how they treat their female customers. Thirty percent of the women who switched to another shop said they felt the staff tried to take advantage of them because of their gender.
“If you do find a mechanic that you’re comfortable with hang on to them,” Travers says, “because you’ve got a real find there.”
Consumer Reports tips for getting a repair performed properly:
- Describe the problem fully. Give the shop as much information as possible. Write down the symptoms and when they occur. If possible, talk directly to the mechanic who will be working on your car.
- Don’t offer a diagnosis. Avoid saying what you think is causing the problem. You may be on the hook for any repairs the shop makes at your suggestion, even if they don’t solve the problem.
- Request a test drive. If the problem occurs only when the car is moving, ask the mechanic to accompany you on a test drive.
- Ask for an estimate. And have them contact you for approval if the repair will cost more than the estimate.
- Ask for evidence. If you’re not comfortable with the diagnosis, ask the shop to show you the problem parts. Worn brake pads or rusted exhaust pipes are easy to see. Don’t let the mechanic refuse your request by saying that his insurance company doesn’t allow customers into the work area.
More information: High prices and poor repairs lead top car service gripes
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Two years ago I brought my sons Hyundai to the dealer for a recall issue. The entire front end of the car needed to be replaced. All suspension parts were replaced at no cost, GREAT, until I drove away. The front end was so far out of alignment that it was hard to drive without constant pressure on the steering wheel. Once home I called the dealership, I was then told that the recall did not include a re-alignment of the front end! My response, "how can you pull apart the entire front end of a car, replace all the parts and expect it to be in perfect alignment"? I was left to take it upon myself to have the front end aligned. Job half done and a car that was in no condition to drive!
I would never have let them get away with something like that. My guess is that you were fed a line of BS by the dealer and that a letter or e-mail to Hyundai's corporate offices would have taken care of the issue. The dealer was probably upset that they were not getting enough money from corporate for doing the recall repair work and were taking it out on their customers by not finishing the job and doing the alignment. There is absolutely no justification for the dealership not returning your car with the alignment completed and had you gotten into an accident because of it they would have had a major liability problem. Not doing the alignment would be like saying that a recall to replace brake calipers did not include refilling the brake fluid and bleeding the lines, it is absurd.
I have found that many dealership repair departments will try and build you a huge bill with other recommended items that have nothing to do with the problem you brought the car in for. One of the ones they try and pull all the time is telling people that their belt is cracking and needs to be replaced. I have had dealerships tell me that the belt on my car needs to be replaced and was going to break for over five years and the belt is still intact and working fine. Others of these frequent bill padding items include radiator flushes, transmission or brake fluid flush and fill, etc. With the transmission/brake fluid one they will sometimes show you a white card with a drop of dirty transmission/brake fluid on it. The only thing is the dirt came from the outside of the engine, not the fluid itself. Another thing they seem to always try and sell you is a new air filter.
One thing I have found is that the truly reputable mechanics I have dealt with have always offered to return any worn parts they replaced. This is a good sign that they are not trying to screw you.
I can't recall the number of times dealerships have pulled a fast one on me. The first one was on a used car that had a warrenty. It was my girlfriends. First day she had it it left a huge oil spill underneath. We brought it back to the dealership and were told the parts would cost her but the labor would be covered. She picked the car up and parked it. The next day there was a huge puddle of oil again. I was working at a service station at the time and pulled the parts to check. None of the gaskets they said they replaced were touched. I also recall women telling me they just had a brakejob done on their cars and the lowest figure I heard was $800. These were cars that were no older than 3 years and from their receipts indicated that all the dealer did was change pads. From what I've seen and heard dealerships love it when women come in for repairs. They can tell them anything and charge them an arm and a leg because they aren't usually mechanically inclined. I really don't know how these dealership garage managers can sleep at night.
I hope you reported them to the BBB, got the mechanic's name and reported him to the dealership manager and then contacted the manufacturer!
I was all set to pay about $500 fro what I thought was wrong with my 12 year dodge stratus. I had never had a problem with the car before and it still does not eak a drop of anything. I took it to a local guy in our little town and I was starting to get a little worried as he had it for about 3 hours. The bill came to $50!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The extra time he spent on my car was just checking it out to make sure that everything else was A-OK!
I never need auto repair...I have two Toyotas!
@ JS
The Number one killer of Transmissions is heat it destroys the fluid. This fluid should be replaced as PER the manufacture (some times more often). Brake fluid should be replaced every two to three years because it is hygroscopic they brake system is mostly sealed but not perfectlyand will slowly be saturated with water. Coolant does fall apart due to heat and time an will eat you engine and radiator. Some times they get contaminated and start to clot or in GM just plain be crappy.
As someone who used to be a mechanic. The problem is how most shops bill repairs. The problem stems from billing jobs by way of a estimate guide called the Flat rate. Mechanics are basically paid x dollars for a certain job based on this estimate. Its supposed to make everybody basically pay the same for a certain job. The Flat rate hour can range from $50 to over $100 depending on many things. Mechanics do not get this, they get a percentage of that flat rate per hour billing. Obviously for a mechanic the more jobs you do the more you make. Hence this is the problem with sloppy work ethic. Mechanics basically have an incentive to work faster to get more work done and make more money. A good mechanic can typically do 70 flat rate hours in a week in a busy shop. It may have only taken him 35 actually hours. This is what many people complain about. How come I was billed 2 hours flat rate when the mechanic only worked 45 minutes? That's the argument with flat rate time. But if it took him 2 1/2 hours you would still have been billed for 2 hours. I think if I was going to get my car fixed I would find a shop that pays by the job done not by the flat rate hour. Even if occasionally I paid more, I know the mechanic was not rushing the job.
That's part of the problem, but the other part is that the labor is too expensive. Yes, the shop might have a special ("brakes installed for $x"), but in general, they charge a minimum of $85/hour for labor, and that's the lowest price I've seen.
And dealers are unscrupulous. I was at my Honda dealer listening to some poor woman hear the litany of what was "recommended" for her car. Brake fluid flush: $119.
tom , brake fluid should be flushed on a regular schedule , it is hygroscopic (absorb water) moisture can damage the internal components of a brake system
If shops use flat rate repair rates, they must be entirely messed up. I needed the blower on my car heater replaced. Dealer price: part $389, labor $465. Price from another long-established independent mechanic $115. Total. The part was $96 and the labor $19. It took the kid less than 15 minutes to do the entire job. That means that besides the 400% markup on the part, the dealership charges $1,860 per hour. Good thing I only got an estimate and wasn't stupid enough to actually go to the dealership!
I HAVE been told that new cars are made so that customers are forced to go to the dealership for repairs and that, because of the 'special' accessories, newer cars are essentially guaranteed to break down more regularly. Naturally, I wasn't told this by a new car salesman...
I've had the dealership on numerous occasions try to sell me on various flushes and fluid changes that were way beyond what was recommended by the manufacturer. Amazingly enough I get my various fluids changed according to the manufacturers scheduled maintenance guidelines and I get well over 100K miles out of my cars.
usa 1: Yes the fluid is hygroscopic, but the brake system is a sealed system except for the master cylinder cap/lid. How often is that opened, especially in newer cars with the fluid level visible from the outside?
It would be more than enough to have the brake fluid changed/flushed when the brake pads are replaced.
flat rate is "by the job" your make and model call for 2hs at $80 therefore your job cost $160. the "hour" is based on the time for an average mechanic to complete the job so if you are good you do make more money- no different for the slow or fast plumber. My husband was a mechanic for 24 years. There is incentive to be fast but accurate. you don't get paid for "come backs" as my husband calls them and you don't get a good reputation-and that is what keeps great mechanics in business and making good money.
As a 27 year veteran dealership technician, I'd like to put my 2 cents in. I honestly believe that there are 10 honest repair facilities for every dishonest one, likewise for technicians.
Cars have changed, unfortunately people have not. There will always be thieves out there. Ask friends, family and associates where they take their vehicle. When you find a facility that values you as a customer and a person you will know it. Be loyal to them and they will be loyal to you. It's a two way street.
It's no secret that the modern automobile is a very complicated piece of machinery. I spend a least a 100 hours every year in ongoing training as do other technicians of my caliber. We gladly do so because our customer's satisfaction and trust is of utmost importance to us.
I have a fantasy that just once, there will be an article written about all the good people in this business. Believe me they are out there.
mike it depends on a lotof factors , humidity, temperature ,it should be tested with a refractometer or you can measure voltage thru the fluid (it tells the content of moisture in the fluid). abs control valves dont like even small amounts of moisture.. cheap insurance if you keep your vehicle any length of time.you would be surprised how much accumulates in a brake system, try this test pour some brake fluid in a jar leave the top off for one week take it to a reputable shop let them test it an compare it to new fluid from a closed container
Dart.. Yes there are good mechanics out there. Sadly most are judged based on the bad ones. I'd probably say from my experience there are 3-5 bad out of every 10. I usually find a good one to only find that a year later a new service manager comes in and the quality of service is ruined.
The first clue is usually after initial inspection they come back with a list of various "recommended" services that costs $1500 plus when all you want is an oil change. It's like, those struts are worn on your vehicle with 50K miles so all 4 should be replaced for $800 and your 50K engine is running a bit rough so lets replace plugs, wires, in tank fuel filter, etc etc all for $900. Then tell you that if you don't do it, you or your wife will likely end up stranded beside the road at night. I'd swear that they teach how to make the customer terrified in mechanic school because I've heard the same line numerous times.
I would like to add there are a lot of stupid customers. I have seen cars that run lean ind when you replace the MAF the car now runs rich because the MAF and the Front O2 sensor is bad also. I have seen a lot of weird stuff. the Fun one is ants. They will mess up relays like you wouldn't believe. Lightning does a good number also. people don't understand that you must fix shat is broken then retest it because it can 1 mask hidden issues.2 more than one thing can be wrong. I had a car with a bad Evap pump it would stop working after the first second. It also had a bad evap purge valve that would allow the fuel tank to go into a vacuum. also the fuel tank had a bad roll over valve that caused a small evap leak.
I have had Q7 customers complain about the price of brakes there is nothing we can do to parts are Brimbo and are the same on a Porsche. They buy some aftermarket ones for 100 and think were riping them off when we cant even get brakes for less than $700-$600. Or the CV boot we sell for $40 and they go to the Zone and buy an Axle for $60 We cant even buy an Axle for less than $300-$400.
dartatak......You are wrong, the ratio is far higher than 10 to one, but it only takes that one to tar the rest. The vast majority of shops and techs do a great job and have many thousands invested in tools and training. Cars are complicated equipment with thousands of different designs that change yearly. Keeping up with latest technology takes up a huge amount of time and money, the only way that investment is justified is in the hourly rate. Mechanics are not just charging for their time, they are charging for their ability and knowledge.
They are more complicated but are easier then ever before. It does not take that much time to keep up with things 30-60 minutes a day is more than enough
Mechanics don't have the time or desire to drive your car with you, that is why most facilities have service advisors. A good service advisor will ask the appropriate questions, drive the car with the client and verify the issue that is the clients concern and condense it down to what the tech needs to know to get the car repaired correctly.
Here's a tip: if you want your car repaired quickly and the first visit try and be able to explain what the problem is with your vehicle that you want repaired. Somethings are easy to expalin: fluid leaks, check engine lights etc. But, when you come in and say my car makes a noise twice a month on start up and you cant describe the noise that's not helpful. Give as many details as possible for the concern you want repaired.
Also, I wonder how many of these cars that are not getting fixed is becuase there is nothing actually wrong with the car? Many times what a client perceives is a issue with their vehicle is just the way it operates. A tech cannot fix what isn't actually "broken."
"Many times what a client perceives is a issue with their vehicle is just the way it operates."
Oh, of course, like the time I took my new car to the dealer because the AC wasn't working, right? But they "fixed" it FOUR times, with me returning the next day sweating heavily and my face fiery red. The guy would shove a thermometer into the vent and say, "It's working fine." The last time I was told I was having hot flashes.
Only when I'm in the car?
After a major explosion on my part and a call to the company's area rep from that dealer's waiting room -- after the service manager had threatened to call the police on me -- the area rep arranged for me to take the car across town to another dealer. They quickly ferreted out a loose fitting and consequent loss of coolant and returned my car to me in THIRTY MINUTES.
(With my previous experience, I left that shop skeptical, but the AC never gave me another problem.)
Yeah, just my imagination and hot flashes. Riiiight.
RJW1966
I think the issue is people are being charged for repairs with no resolution.
If there is nothing to fix then why are they being charged for parts and labor?
If there is nothing wrong with my car charge me a fee for the diagnosis and explain to me what is going on.
However, if there is really nothing wrong with my car and you say you spent x on parts and x on labor I am going to demand results.
excellent point cunningliguist! i have been a master tech for 22 years now and it amazes me constantly how someones car has been making a noise or had a certain operating characteristic for the last 5 years and they bring it in for a "quick oil change" and now all of a sudden they hear the noise..........AND it wasnt there before the oil change dont ya know. some customers in our business are so untrusting of techs that they invent things that happened to their car while it was in the shop. i had a lady last week that refused diagnostics on her electronic controlled transmission and just wanted us to put another one in it. after much discouragment presented to her we did what she asked for..........guess what, it still didnt shift and we had to diagnose electrical system afterwards and repair it. by refusing $88.71 in diagnostics she ended up spending $1,200 for no reason and now wants to sue us because she claims we didnt diagnose it for her. well no @!$%#! you didnt want it diagnosed.......you knew way more than we did.................DUH!!!!
my husband who is a master tech also for 24 years complains about this the most or he fixes the problem noise he hears(and really fixes the problem) but the customer complains about a normal rattle that a car has with 150000 miles that is not a problem and they are pissed!!!!!! the second complaint is all of the people who don't want to pay the DIAGNOSTIC-just put on the part then loose it when it doesn't "fix" the car. he tells them u didn't want it fixed, u wanted the part u brought replaced (oh yeah the part came from auto zone after a free diagnostic code)
I had a customer say his AC was blowing warm. It was blowing 42 degrees on a 105 degree day In Georgia.
We always find the time to Road test with the customer. You would be surprised how many times it is a CD case or a penny that is causing the noise. I had one customer have a gallon Ziploc full of coins in the glove box and refuse to accept it is a problem. I have also had floor mats on gas pedals cause issues with acceleration and customers would say so.
tc-776660..........Often the real problem is a loose nut behind the steering wheel...................................
They should have a recall to fix that problem.
I think the biggest issue in the car repair business is the state inspection process. It has become a license to steal. Some, if not many, local chains as well as independents require you to do repairs that are unnecessary. And some of these chains pay their service people a commission for sales of tires and parts. Guess what that leads to!
The key is to not get your car inspected anywhere that does repairs! Of course, I know one place that is real ripoff in this area - they take about two minutes to 'inspect' your car on the last day of the month. On the other hand, they don't find problems and your car is registered!
My advice for anyone is to take your car to a place like Jiffy Lube for inspection. They do not do repairs and do not work off commission. They have no motive to sell you an unnecessary repair.
I used to take my cars to a chain mechanic for state inspection and without fail there was something wrong with my car that would fail inspection.
The last straw came when they tried to charge me $110 to change the hangers for my exhaust system. I was told they were dry rotted and must be changed before car would pass.
What they did not know was that I replaced them myself less than 90 days prior. I still had the receipt for the parts. I explained this and asked for the defective parts because there was a warranty for the hangers. The tune changed and I was told they made a mistake and confused my car with another. It rolled out five minutes later with my inspection stickers.
The average RO for Jiffy is $70+
i think if you pay between 20 and 30 grand for a car you should get excellent service anytime, thats too much money for you not to be satisfied.
From a repair cost standpoint, the front wheel drive, cram everything in less than adequate space craze, has escalated repair costs beyond reason.
What previously was mundane maintenance, today is a costly nightmare!
Automotive design engineering has failed miserably in this regard, lets hope and expect this trend to reverse, thereby reducing the cost of ownership of an overly expensive vehicle to start with.
Never buy a car, where you can not change the oil, filters, spark plugs, yourself. This should be a hint, that it is a mechanics car, not your to maintain.
1) The quality of new cars has gone down
2) There is so much more useless junk on them to go wrong
3) People drive more aggressively and most roads are in terrible condition
4) More people are stretching their used cars to further than they would have 10 years ago, hence more repairs and cost
Is'nt that the truth. My livingroom has less perks than my car.
HAHA it is so true. Try and get a car without all the perks and they have to special order it.
Not really it has gone up a lot. 200K is the new 100K. My outback has gone almost 100K and has only needed tires and brakes and normal maintains.
It is what sells.
auto , your subaru will last that and more , but the vws and audis you work on wont no matter how much pm you do to them the 100 dollar a4 oil change at the dealer does not bod well with many customers, a buddy of mine worked at a local audi dealership in atl , they were constantly pushed to up sell unneeded service,ie. intake cleaning at 30k and other needless stuff at very low mileages. it is not the techs most time it is management that pushes for the almighty dollar and the service writer is the one that takes it on the chin when the customer gets pissed , then gives them a bad csi rating, because they are pushed to sell, sell, sell regardless of actual need
Our dealer it is 40-60 for an oil change (with a coupon) and that is with synthetic. We don't do that many flushes only when they are needed by time our out side influence. The last vw dealer had two labor rates 65 an hour for maintenance and 102.50 for repairers. diagnosis labor time was 95 an hour. and the last three dealers have gone 100% by All Data time for customer pay.
My biggest problem is when a mechanic does a crappy job and rips me off. There are so many shops that are great for a while then a new manager takes over and they go to crap trying to make every fast penny possible.
I've had break pads replaced and the rotors were turned so unevenly the whole car would shake. Then the mechanic tried to insist that the rotors with 45K miles were severely warped to begin with when it was his mistake and the car never vibrated before just the pads were worn. Then he claims the new brake pads were ruined by the bad rotors when the car was driven maybe 5 miles away from the shop, so wanted to charge for new rotors and again pads. The next mechanic said that it was just the guy before didn't know what he was doing and ruined the rotors.
That or at another place an a/c line was leaking so they supposedly replaced the line but just replaced the foam insulation on the outside and glued it then when I took it back they argued that the line was new when it obviously was not.
That or a dealer that replaced my transmission with a rebuilt one then refused to warranty it when it went out 2 months later because they did a crappy job rebuilding it. Then claimed that they don't warranty rebuilt products after telling me it had a 1yr warranty.
The attitude of too many both independent and dealer shops is that they could care less, so if you don't like the work spend the $500 to take us to small claims court.
Mike..... hope you documented everything. You can win in small claims court.
Maddog.. I probably could but it's just not worth the time I'd lose filing a claim and fighting it in court. They know that which is why they cheat people. However, I do have a list of places I'll never take my vehicle again.
I have taken my Ford product to at least 6 different dealers for different problems and the answer every time is "the computer does not say there is anything wrong so we can"t fix it".
I use to be a mechanic so I know that it has problems but FORD just does not appear to want to honor the warranty.
NO the problem with manufacture warranty with many car makers is they don't pay for diagnoses so the techs don't care. VW and Audi pay for diagnoses so We care very much if it is fixed right the first time.
My truck had a cylinder misfire code that would show up and then go away. Took forever and about 4 different mechanics to actually find the problem. Every diagnostic they ran came up with nothing. Sometimes it's just a subtle problem that's really hard to find. It turned out to be a hairline crack in the head but it wasn't enough to lose enough compression to show up on the test. At least I now know the electrical system is good for at least another 100K. We replaced practically everything solving it by trial and error; plugs, wires, coil packs, fuel injectors, sensors, and even the engine computer itself.
Solution - find a great backyard mechanic. Honest, fair-priced, and really wants your business. We found an excellent one, albeit he's 45 minutes away, it's worth it! He has saved us thousands, compared to dealerships.
Make sure he has the equipment for the repair you need, and most of them don't take credit cards. Our guy does give us a detailed estimate, and upon completion, gives us a detail of the work done. We are blessed to have found him! We have NEVER had to go back for the same problem. Once, a problem came up that we thought was going to be expensive, however he found the problem which was minor and charged us accordingly. Wow!
So what you're really saying is this: "I don't know the first thing about cars, what to expect from a mechanic, and typical pricing, so when I get things that I don't expect I'm happy, and although I am clueless about pricing I know that I'm being charged less than a dealer."
Sounds like you are the problem. Take a few moments to learn about how your car works.
boom!: Wow, lighten up Francis! You are too judgmental with so little information to go on. All too common on the interwebs.
I just love it when people go to the Butchers and then come to the dealer and ask if we can fix it.
Oh really? I have a shade tree mechanic, he's cheap, nice, and on time. Not to mention having him build my 400 ci sbc for my 67 firebird was a bonus.
Not every backyard mechanic is good, not all are bad.
The same can be said of dealers, it's about finding the right person/place. Everytime I take my 67 by the "dealer" (not for repairs) they just gawk and admit it's better then the @!$%# they sell every day.
WOW that is realy hard(sarcasim).
You jelly bro? I think you jelly. =/
Never go to TIRE WORKS!!!! They will just rip u off, trust me, I know.
This article doesn't even cover the fact that chain repair shops rip people off as a matter of practice. They have bottles of various fluids on their tool carts - they show you new "leaks" that your car has.
.
Dealers aren't much better!
.
Find an independent shop - get to know them.
Better yet, look under your car for leaks prior to arriving at any shop.
Got that right 50_Pascals. Even some independents are unsrupulous. My girlfriend brought her car in to a QuickyLube for an oil change....... cost $63. And it wasn't even synthetic, just plain old pennsoil. Talk about a ripoff.
mechanical repairs on vehicles is a giant rip-off that the oil companies and past short sighted governements, by removing public transport, have forced us to endure and yet have little to know oversight or standard costs. This is capitalism people.
Or you could live in a place that has great public transit. It's your choice.
I agree @leave; In order to live the suburban life that many of us choose to you have to own at least two cars and if you are a home owner one of those should be a pick up truck. The fact that many professional jobs require the people living in the suburbs to commute to the city leads us to rely heavily on our vehicles. Keeping them in running order and road worthy is not optional and the repair industry knows this. I also agree that because no investment has been made, (at least not in my state) to extend public transportation to the states outlying areas, the auto repair industry should be held way more accountable than they are now. No matter what your experiences are or how great a deal you think you are getting; any time your car gets repaired you lose. Public transportation to and from the suburbs would definitely cut down on the need for repairs and stem the flow of vehicles going in for repair. Public transportation would make repair costs more competitive because the consumer would have more leverage by having the ability to leave the car at the facility longer for a more thourough repair or go longer without the repair. I recently went through car repair hell and if you feel you have been ripped off and cannot get results, trust me when I tell you CALL THE BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU!!! especially with the big dealerships, I guarantee they will pay attention, The BBB will get result
leave afghans: Everything is the fault of the oil companies, even rip off car repair shops? I am sad at the mental state of some people here. I'm specifically looking at you, leave afghans.
I have a Mercedes S 550. Every time I took the car to the dealer I would get the dreaded phone call about 10:30 AM with all the other things wrong with the car. I am convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Tech and Service Manager get a commission for work above and beyond for what the car was brought in for. The last straw was the drivers side front strut $700.00. I took the car to two other garages within the week, put on lift and both garages said they found nothing wrong. So, guess what ? I will never take the car back to this dealer or buy a car from this dealer again. When you couldn't sell new cars you make it up with service charges. Let everyone be forewarned.
Repair today cost or start at $100 hour and UP - Make then show you the broken parts - parts replaced - Do not pay and just drive off! tell them your not rich and you can't go over the amount on estaments given! I do this and it works.
Other problems is you go on with one problem and they call to say NOW you have to replace two other parts and if you do not say go with it some shops will say then we can't fix it come and get the car - Why do they do this to raise the amount of money up and up to cover lost time and money on other jobs!
Never pay upfront for parts or for the job they will be doing = rip off - Never tell them who worked on your car the last time = they will run him down and say that is your problem -
Go on the internet and get prices for work to be done and read what others are saying about your shop or car that is acting up - like blowen head gasket chevy Impala - read what others say what happen cost $800 - 7 hour job - what ever you need to know or wont to know is here on the internet good or bad READ about your dealer - your shop - it's all there to learn by and be in the know first!
You should do the same when you use a doctor or lawyer. Make them show you the bad parts and get the best price on the internet.
I brought my car to VIP Auto Repair shop in Bath Road Maine for just a simple change oil, and other things, when I drive my car home, the next day I was about to drive back to my office in the morning I found out that my driver side door knobs juggling like an ear ring.
I complained to VIP auto repair shop, ask me to fill up a form of complain, after a week of follow up the answer is WE CANNOT AVOID THAT PROBLEM BECAUSE MY CAR IS ALREADY OLD and they offered to fixed it but still I have to pay for it.♦
It all boils down to our tax system.
It's Obama's fault!
No it is Bushes fault and San Francisco
Don't blame your tech, he is no better than what he/she has to work with. Most vehicles made today are cheap crap. Suck it up. NEVER, under estimate corprate greed in America.
truth be told,i used to be a mechanic,and it was usually the service advisors or managers forceing the upselling on the techs and thier customers.This was usually because corporate or higher management would fire them within a month if thier dollars were not increaseing month over month or year over year.Its just never enough,greed runs downhill just like @%&*>.
Knowing about the mechanical build of your car will help you deal with a repair shop much better. There's a lot of information online that will help you brush up on what the repair might entail.
A senior citizen widow friend of mine took her 1998 Toyota to the dealer who had serviced it since it was new, for an oil change. She called me while the car was still in the shop to ask my opinion about her needing a new oil pan. It seems the threads in the drain plug hole were stripped. The service technician told her that it was just warn out. I spoke with him and told him that I had been servicing my own cars for at least 50 years and I had never heard of such a claim. I also informed him that the Toyota had never been serviced anywhere other than in his shop. He wouldn't budge, so I told my friend to allow the repairs and I assured her I would get her money back. After she got the car back I made a copy of the bill and sent it along with a very clearly worded letter stating her intention to make this farce pubic knowledge through every social media available and ultimately take it to small claims court if necessary. Two weeks later she got a full refund of the entire service bill along with a credit in the full amount of the bill towards future service work. Without the revenue from the service departments, the new car dealers couldn't stay in business, so if you aren't satisfied with the service you are getting let the dealers know that you intend to make your complaints public if they don't make things right.
You've never seen or heard of a worn out drain plug, or the threads in the pan worn out? Simple. you've never worked as a mechanic anywhere for any length of time. It's common. It does happen more to some cars than others, some may never have this problem, and some may have it more than once. Lots of times, you can retap the hole, and put in a size or half size bigger plug. You guys who think all mechanics are rip offs, just because you dont like something they tell you, or you've never heard of it, well, thats just because you dont know it all, any more than I do. But trust me, do what you did, most of the time you will get your way. They simply dont have time nor reason to mess with you, much easier to just give you your money back and make a mental or actual note never to mess with you again.
I've always changed the oil on cars that I've owned so I've done hundreds of oil changes. On an old Ford LTD the drain plug hole threads did strip out after many oil changes; the car had close to 200,00 miles on it. I believe one of the contributing factors was that when I tightened the drain plug I never tightened it to the specified torque in my repair manual. Like many guys I probably overtightened the bolt to make sure there would be no leaks. This is what I believe leads to thread failure. I don't know if the Jiffy Lubes and dealers take this extra step of using a torque wrench. Now with my Honda Civic I always use the torque wrench and have found that the aluminum crush washer lasted over 12 changes before it had to be replaced.
That is why we use a crush washer. they do wear out and some are over tightened. Some pans are steel some are aluminum some are steal with aluminum threads.
toyotas use a fiber drain plug washer and it should be changed every time
my main problem is i know about cars and how to fix them, but dont have hte energy any longer, so when i take my car into the shop and they rty to tell me that it is something else than what i know it is? i get upset, i did find a good shop and they only repair whati want repaired for a fair price, but i did have a fight with a shop about them forgetting to put oil inthe rear end of a hot rod pickup i was spending a lot of moneyon, drove it a few miles and the rearend went out fough thtem for about a month,finally had to turn them in to the bureau of automotive repair, i no longer use thier shop, for anything,
I have found that the dealership I have gone to seems to know exactly how much money is in my checking account before they do the work. Several times over they have nailed me for nearly every single penny in my account on every occassion. If I take it in for service and have $1732.63 the bill comes up to 1732.61 or 1732.62. Just enough to leave my account open. I swear they have a contact at the bank that tells them what is in my account. They have come within 1 or 2 cents of my exact balance not once, but 9 out of nine times. THe tenth time I had 51 bucks in my account and they said 49.50 for services rendered. So 9 out of 10 times they nailed it and that one time I guess the 1.50 wasn't worth the time to write it up! One of the nine times they said they had to wait to give me a quote because they were unsure of how much the costs would be, it was one day until payday, the next day after my check was deposited they called within 15 minutes of me depositing my check and told me it was 1 cent short of one half of what I just deposited. I know that is because the bank only allows half of a check to be available until the check is validated. Later that day when the bank had cleared the total of the check and made the full sum available the dealership called me again and said they found one of my ball joints was going bad and reccommended me to get them all replaced along with my Idler arm (steering) and they then quoted me the complete price which came out to within 2 cents of the entire check deposit. I also wonder all the time with this "oil change for 50.00" thing. Every time I go in I say 50 dollar oil change please, when it is all done with it is typically 75 to 95 dollars. They always come out and add extras on top of the oil change. If you say no, just a oil change, they say "well if you don't get it done then we don't take responsibility when it goes bad even if your vehicle is on warranty. We told you it needs this and you refused it and now you will pay double the next time you bring it in, and triple if it fails."
It could be possible that you signed something authorizing access to your accounts if you financed through the dealership. I walked away from a dealership once because they wanted me to fill out tons of paperwork very quickly without reading it through. I asked them to give me some time to read everything, and the guy got all shirty with me. I told him that I would finance through my own bank because I didn't feel comfortable giving a used car dealer my social security number, mother's maiden name, birthdate, and other bits of information that could be used in identity theft. He was very Jerry Lundegaard about it, so I told him that I'd get back to him and then bought elsewhere.
Your situation sounds like they're using lending privileges to "check your credit" or get access illegally. I would recommend opening a new checking account at a different bank, even if it means going through the hassle of changing your automatic payment schedules you might have set up with your employer, cable company, and so on. But first, contact your bank and ask if there have been any requests to view your accounts, or if it's even a possibility that someone could know how much money you have.
I took my car in for an oil change at Grease Monkey last year. When I drove away, about 10 miles later the check engine light came on.
I took it to be looked at at our local (honest) mechanic since he had to diagnose it with his special electronic equipment. (I needed this cause I had to get it inspected in a week and it'll fail with the light on "N.J.")
Turns out, when they replaced my air filter with the oil change, they didn't clip the air filter cover on correctly foe a tight sea and my mass air flow sensor was working overtime to continue trying to correct the problem. I was charged $65.00 for the diagnosis and turn off the engine light.
Took the receipt back to Grease Monkey and showed them they incorrectly put the air filter cover on incorrectly causing the problem. They said, you have no proof it was us and you could have "checked" the air filter afterwards (which I didn't) They basically told me to go to hell in a nice way.
It took all I had to turn my cheek when I wanted to rip the punks throat out.
flat rate is the estimated rate for a job, that means x amount for the job . people dont like the idea of flat rate because they think the mechanic will speed thru the job and do a poor repair ,that is not usually the case because if the job comes back he has to work on it for free. mechanics on salary tend to work slower with no incentive to hurry or care about the quality , they get paid either way most sarlary mechanics are just making eight. new cars are very complex (too much high tech junk that people dont need) they change the technology so fast it is hard for a mechanic to keep up (even at the dealer level , they just keep throwing parts at them until one or more fix the problem) the problem is with the manufacturers they dont want there product to last more than the payment book, instead of building the best product they build a high tech piece of recyclable junk (like computers)find a good repair shop and stickwith it there are lots of very good independent repair shops out there
Just beware of the service managers who want to keep thier jobs,or get bonuses for doing nothing.But this is only thrust upon them by corporate greed and shareholder profits,hey thats us?Maybe it is all of our faults.
People, don't get mad at the automotive technician, get mad at the dealership OWNERS who are trying to milk every penny from you and their employees. They aren't as rich as they used to be and the customer AND the employee is paying for it.
My husband is honest and hardworking and would never try to cheat someone, more often than not, he is more generous than he should be and will do many things for free (not that the customer will ever know this) or spend extra time at work to get something done for someone before the weekend so that customer can go off on their joy ride (and less time with his own family - another thing the customer will never know). And the pay is crap, no health insurance, and physical issues like carpel tunnel and it wears your body down more quickly! But he does the job because that is what he loves to do, he doesn't want to be a paper pusher. Our society needs people who are willing to do the dirty work.
It's the chain of command that is the problem. Of course consumer reports finds more of these issues with dealerships than independents! Independent shops are typically run by automotive technicians who got fed up with the crap from dealership owners and directors!