Is "honest auto repair shop" an oxymoron? A lot of folks seem think so. Choosing a mechanic is a task most consumers approach with all the enthusiasm of a root canal, sans Novocain. But while there are many bad apples in the auto-repair barrel, there are plenty of good ones, too, shops that want your business and will do everything in their power to keep it. Finding one of these good repair shops doesn't have to be a crap shoot. All you need is a little common sense, some homework, and your own good instincts.
Get word-of-mouth recommendations
Start by asking your family, friends, and coworkers where they have their cars serviced. Does the shop usually get the job done right the first time? Do they always provide a written estimate (and do they stick to it)? If additional work is needed, does the shop call and explain the problem in layperson's language?
Your local auto-parts store may be another good source for recommendations. The salespeople can often tell a good mechanic from a bad one by the mechanic's shopping habits. If a mechanic walks in and buys all the ignition parts for a car at once, chances are he or she isn't doing an accurate diagnostic work-up on the vehicle. Instead, they're "throwing parts at the car." Eventually they may get it right, but guess who pays for all those extra parts? Another good person to ask is your auto insurance agent. And if you're a member of an automobile club, such as the American Automobile Association (AAA), they can provide you with a list of auto-repair facilities that meet their standards of honesty, competency, and consistency.
Check out the shop's community standing
Once you've received a good referral, call the Better Business Bureau in your area or the consumer complaint division of your attorney general's office. Ask if the repair shop has a large number of unresolved complaints. Keep in mind that any shop that's been in business for a while will have some complaints, but an excessive number should send up a red flag.
Don't procrastinate
You should get cozy with a good mechanic well before your transmission is refusing to shift, your muffler is hanging by a thread, or your engine is blowing nasty gobs of blue smoke. Try out a new shop for a small job first, such as an oil change or tire rotation. While you're there, look around the garage. Is it orderly and clean? Don't expect to be able to eat off the floor (although I've been in some shops where you could!), but the garage should not look like Beavis and Butthead live there.
Ask the owner how long they've been in business at that location. A dishonest shop will often move from one location to another so its lousy reputation doesn't have a chance to catch up. Ask if they take credit cards, and be suspicious if they don't. Credit cards are a good defense if you're not happy with the work, because you can file a complaint with your credit card company.
Ask to see the shop's computerized diagnostic equipment. A garage doesn't have to look like the back end of the Hubble Telescope, but the mechanics should be wielding more than large hammers and rusty screwdrivers. If you're driving a reasonably new car, it may have forty or more computers on board. The mechanics must have modern, computerized engine-analysis equipment and up-to-date manuals if they're going to get the job done efficiently.
Good mechanics should also be willing to show you how the equipment works, and to answer any questions you have. Evaluate their responses carefully. Do the mechanics speak "car talk," or do they speak in layperson's language that you can easily understand? If the mechanics aren't patient, polite, and respectful, give them a look at your taillights, not your wallet.
Check the shop's credentials
A mechanic can have the best equipment in the world, but if he did his first oil change only an hour ago, he's probably not the person you want working on your car. There is no substitute for good training and experience. In the U.S., oversight of mechanics' competency and honesty is handled at the state level--if at all. A few states, such as Michigan, Hawaii, and parts of Florida, actually certify and license mechanics. Elsewhere, certification is done on a voluntary basis.
The National Institute for Auto Service Excellence is the organization that certifies mechanics who apply through a series of written tests in eight categories: engines, transmissions, drive trains, brakes, suspension & steering, electrical, heating & air conditioning, and engine performance. In order to get ASE certification, a mechanic must have worked hands-on in the industry for at least two years. Certification is no guarantee of competence or honesty, of course, but it is an indication of professionalism--and that's better than nothing at all.
You can identify shops that employ certified mechanics by the blue and white ASE signs or uniform badges. Keep in mind, though, that it is the mechanic, not the shop, who is certified. A shop may display the ASE sign, but that doesn't necessarily mean that all of the mechanics who work there are certified. Always ask about training credentials and be sure that a certified mechanic works on your vehicle.
As a rule, each automaker sponsors its own training programs for its dealership technicians. Ideally, you'll want to find a Volvo-certified mechanic for your Volvo, a Toyota-certified mechanic for your Toyota, and so forth. The easiest way to find a mechanic with this kind of specialized training is to head for a dealership, but you can also find these mechanics at independent repair shops. Check the display ads in your Yellow Pages for garages that specialize in the type of car you own.
A good repair shop must also be able to access Technical Service Bulletins. TSBs are automaker-issued remedies for problems that are particularly difficult to diagnose. Thousands of these bulletins are issued annually. Without them, your mechanic is more likely to spend too much time--and too much of your money--diagnosing and fixing mechanical problems particular to your car. Ask the mechanic if they have access to TSBs. (By the way, you can get these bulletins yourself by contacting the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. For about $25, they'll send you a complete list of available bulletins, and you can request the ones you need for ten cents a page.)
Choose a shop that guarantees its work
Many shops guarantee their parts for ninety days or longer. The guarantee should appear on the invoice. It's your best protection against jobs that aren't done right the first time. However, even with such guarantees, you usually have to pay labor charges after ninety days.
Don't rely on convenience alone
We'd all like to find a repair shop that's close to our home or business, but proximity should never be the only factor you consider when deciding on a repair shop. If the garage around the corner can fix your problem in a week, but the shop across town can do it in a day (and for half the price), which is more convenient?
Trust your gut
When you plunk down that $450, you should feel good about it (or at least as good as one can feel under the circumstances). You should be confident that you purchased only what your car needed, at a fair price. You should feel you were treated with respect, patience, and friendliness. If your gut feeling is no good, don't go back to that shop. And rest assured that somewhere out there, a competent, trustworthy mechanic is just waiting for your business.
Showing posts with label Mechanic. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mechanic. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
The Ageless Mechanic
My neighbor, Jacque Foreman, is graphic artist who enjoys working on cars in her spare time. These days, that’s not so unusual--more than one-third of all women car owners engage in some form of do-it-yourself car maintenance or repair. What is unusual is that Jacque is over 60 years old, and she’s been working on her own cars since the 1960s, an era when far fewer women ventured under the hood.
Jacque is the kind of gal who knows her way around a junkyard. Look in the trunk of her car and you’ll find spare parts, tape, a 2-gallon supply of water for radiator emergencies. Look in her purse and you’ll find tools. (Her most recent purchase, a tiny ratchet, has proven especially handy for the tight confines of her 1986 Toyota Tercel’s engine.) She is, according to her mother-in-law, the kind of woman who considers tools a fine birthday gift.
"You Drive It, You Fix It"
Jacque hasn’t always been a do-it-your-selfer, though. Once upon a time, she used to ask her boyfriend, Bruce, for help whenever something went wrong with her car. "He got tired of that," Jacque says, "so rather than just fixing my car, he started teaching me to fix it myself. His approach was, ‘you drive it, you fix it.’"
Was she annoyed by Bruce’s tough-love attitude? "No, not really," Foreman says. The only thing that bothered her was Bruce’s knack for diagnosing car problems so quickly. "The troublesome part wiggles at him and he finds the answer in minutes," she says. "With me, it just takes longer."
Jacque soon developed a curiosity for cars that has served her well. She recalls one night when Bruce had the engine of his Fiat 600 scattered in pieces on the living-room floor. (This was the early 1960s, shortly after they’d met, and they both drove Fiats.) As long as he was rebuilding the engine, Jacque insisted that he show her how it was done.
Bruce and Jacque have been married for more than 30 years now, and in that time, Jacque has become quite a mechanic in her own right. She still loves small cars, too, though these days, she’s partial to Toyotas, rather that Fiats and MGs.
Sometimes You Win, Sometimes You Lose
Car repair is a science of trial-and-error, and even good mechanics sometimes have bad days. Recently, Jacque found herself stranded on the side of the road.
"It never occurred to me," she says, "that after removing the thermostat, I wouldn't be able to get the radiator working. Tightening the gasket didn't help, and it wouldn't stop leaking--on me, and on the ground."
She ended up hiking to the nearest garage, which was very busy that day. "I politely asked the mechanic if he could tell me where the thermostat on my model was located, since it hadn't been on top as I'd suspected."
In the end, she still wasn’t able to get the car running. "To make matters worse, I was on my way to a Rotary Club meeting. That was one day I broke down and called a towing service."
Jacque, who pens the local Rotary's newsletter, later wrote a piece explaining why she didn't show up for that day's meeting. "I had expected to run in at the last minute telling them how I fixed it," she says. "It didn't turn out that way."
The Two Secrets to Auto Repair
It’s not often, however, that Jacque finds herself stranded. After 30 years of fixing her own cars, she’s learned the two secrets of auto repair--conducting regular maintenance and always being prepared.
These lessons were hammered home by an MG 1100 Jacque used to drive. When the car developed electrical problems, she and Bruce replaced all of the usual suspects--spark plugs, points, distributor cap. Still the problem persisted.
It wasn’t until they removed the distributor cap again and looked very closely that they discovered a tiny fraying on one of the ignition wires.
"Now I replace electrical wires every two years, whether they need it or not," Jacque says. "And I always keep the old wires with me in the back of the car, because sometimes the new parts you buy can be defective."
Jacque is the kind of gal who knows her way around a junkyard. Look in the trunk of her car and you’ll find spare parts, tape, a 2-gallon supply of water for radiator emergencies. Look in her purse and you’ll find tools. (Her most recent purchase, a tiny ratchet, has proven especially handy for the tight confines of her 1986 Toyota Tercel’s engine.) She is, according to her mother-in-law, the kind of woman who considers tools a fine birthday gift.
"You Drive It, You Fix It"
Jacque hasn’t always been a do-it-your-selfer, though. Once upon a time, she used to ask her boyfriend, Bruce, for help whenever something went wrong with her car. "He got tired of that," Jacque says, "so rather than just fixing my car, he started teaching me to fix it myself. His approach was, ‘you drive it, you fix it.’"
Was she annoyed by Bruce’s tough-love attitude? "No, not really," Foreman says. The only thing that bothered her was Bruce’s knack for diagnosing car problems so quickly. "The troublesome part wiggles at him and he finds the answer in minutes," she says. "With me, it just takes longer."
Jacque soon developed a curiosity for cars that has served her well. She recalls one night when Bruce had the engine of his Fiat 600 scattered in pieces on the living-room floor. (This was the early 1960s, shortly after they’d met, and they both drove Fiats.) As long as he was rebuilding the engine, Jacque insisted that he show her how it was done.
Bruce and Jacque have been married for more than 30 years now, and in that time, Jacque has become quite a mechanic in her own right. She still loves small cars, too, though these days, she’s partial to Toyotas, rather that Fiats and MGs.
Sometimes You Win, Sometimes You Lose
Car repair is a science of trial-and-error, and even good mechanics sometimes have bad days. Recently, Jacque found herself stranded on the side of the road.
"It never occurred to me," she says, "that after removing the thermostat, I wouldn't be able to get the radiator working. Tightening the gasket didn't help, and it wouldn't stop leaking--on me, and on the ground."
She ended up hiking to the nearest garage, which was very busy that day. "I politely asked the mechanic if he could tell me where the thermostat on my model was located, since it hadn't been on top as I'd suspected."
In the end, she still wasn’t able to get the car running. "To make matters worse, I was on my way to a Rotary Club meeting. That was one day I broke down and called a towing service."
Jacque, who pens the local Rotary's newsletter, later wrote a piece explaining why she didn't show up for that day's meeting. "I had expected to run in at the last minute telling them how I fixed it," she says. "It didn't turn out that way."
The Two Secrets to Auto Repair
It’s not often, however, that Jacque finds herself stranded. After 30 years of fixing her own cars, she’s learned the two secrets of auto repair--conducting regular maintenance and always being prepared.
These lessons were hammered home by an MG 1100 Jacque used to drive. When the car developed electrical problems, she and Bruce replaced all of the usual suspects--spark plugs, points, distributor cap. Still the problem persisted.
It wasn’t until they removed the distributor cap again and looked very closely that they discovered a tiny fraying on one of the ignition wires.
"Now I replace electrical wires every two years, whether they need it or not," Jacque says. "And I always keep the old wires with me in the back of the car, because sometimes the new parts you buy can be defective."
A Tale of Two Mechanics
I may not know about all cars, but I know mycar. I know the low grumble it makes when the air conditioning has been on too long. I know the sulfur-like smell that comes from acclerating too quickly before my engine is warm. And I know when something is wrong with my car--even if I don't know what that something is.
Still, it can be hard convincing a mechanic that I have a problem, especially with my limited garage vocabulary: "Well, it growls for a while, and then there's a little ping."
That's what I said to my mechanic in Liberty, Missouri. Almost immediately, I felt a dislike for him--the way he raised his eyebrows, the sarcasm in his voice as he repeated "little ping" and grabbed my keys. Before he even got into my car, I could tell he thought I was dingy. Which is probably why he drove around the block only once before he determined the car was fine. "I don't hear nothing," he said.
I don't like feeling unsure of myself. As I drove away, I played with all of the buttons on my dashboard, trying to see if the noise was just the air-conditioning or a bad stereo connection. By the time I got home, I'd let that guy convince me that I was, in fact, hearing things.
Of course, the ping got louder over the next few days, so I took my car back to the shop, only to get a repeat performance of our prior meeting: "Nope," the mechanic said. "I don't hear nothing."
Eventually, the ping got so loud I could hardly hear the rumble. I knew I was going to regret it, but I took my car back to the mechanic once again. After another five-minute drive around the block, he had the nerve to tell me, "Look, there's no ping. There's no noise. There's nothing wrong with your car. Stop coming here."
That was a Wednesday.
On Sunday, my car broke down while I was taking a friend to the airport. I barely made it to a service station. I spent more than $400 on a problem that my new, really great mechanic said could have been diagnosed "by any idiot."
You better believe I never gave that first mechanic any more business, but I did stop by to show him my new engine parts and my expensive receipt. I was steamed and I let him know it. I made sure none of my friends went to him, either. Since that incident, I've come up with a set of guidelines for choosing my mechanics.
1. I must be taken seriously.
How could that mechanic not take me seriously when I was spending more than an hour each day in my car? Now, when I say words like "hiss" and "gurgle," the mechanic better say, "Where's this hiss coming from?" or "How loud is the gurgle?" If they laugh or joke about my description in any way, I have no problem walking out the door. And if I hear anyone back in the garage using words like "bitch" or "blonde," well, that's all the more reason to leave.
2. The shop should be independently owned, not part of a chain.
Okay, so this requirement has more to do with my politics than my ability to detect a woman-friendly mechanic. Nevertheless, it's no secret that independently owned businesses live and die by their reputations. If an independent shop owner wants to survive, he has to treat all his customers respectfully. Plus, I've found that mechanics at independent garages are sometimes so grateful that I didn't go to the Jiffy Lube down the street, they'll throw in little bonuses--like filling up my fluids for free.
3. The mechanic must be honest.
Above all, my mechanic must be honest and never try to take advantage of me. I look for the following traits when trying to determine whether I'm dealing with a trustworthy repair shop or a gang of sleaze-balls:
There are great mechanics out there. It's true--I've got one here in Cincinnati. He doesn't talk much and he's pretty greasy, but he knows my name. And most importantly, he knows that I know my car.
Still, it can be hard convincing a mechanic that I have a problem, especially with my limited garage vocabulary: "Well, it growls for a while, and then there's a little ping."
That's what I said to my mechanic in Liberty, Missouri. Almost immediately, I felt a dislike for him--the way he raised his eyebrows, the sarcasm in his voice as he repeated "little ping" and grabbed my keys. Before he even got into my car, I could tell he thought I was dingy. Which is probably why he drove around the block only once before he determined the car was fine. "I don't hear nothing," he said.
I don't like feeling unsure of myself. As I drove away, I played with all of the buttons on my dashboard, trying to see if the noise was just the air-conditioning or a bad stereo connection. By the time I got home, I'd let that guy convince me that I was, in fact, hearing things.
Of course, the ping got louder over the next few days, so I took my car back to the shop, only to get a repeat performance of our prior meeting: "Nope," the mechanic said. "I don't hear nothing."
Eventually, the ping got so loud I could hardly hear the rumble. I knew I was going to regret it, but I took my car back to the mechanic once again. After another five-minute drive around the block, he had the nerve to tell me, "Look, there's no ping. There's no noise. There's nothing wrong with your car. Stop coming here."
That was a Wednesday.
On Sunday, my car broke down while I was taking a friend to the airport. I barely made it to a service station. I spent more than $400 on a problem that my new, really great mechanic said could have been diagnosed "by any idiot."
You better believe I never gave that first mechanic any more business, but I did stop by to show him my new engine parts and my expensive receipt. I was steamed and I let him know it. I made sure none of my friends went to him, either. Since that incident, I've come up with a set of guidelines for choosing my mechanics.
1. I must be taken seriously.
How could that mechanic not take me seriously when I was spending more than an hour each day in my car? Now, when I say words like "hiss" and "gurgle," the mechanic better say, "Where's this hiss coming from?" or "How loud is the gurgle?" If they laugh or joke about my description in any way, I have no problem walking out the door. And if I hear anyone back in the garage using words like "bitch" or "blonde," well, that's all the more reason to leave.
2. The shop should be independently owned, not part of a chain.
Okay, so this requirement has more to do with my politics than my ability to detect a woman-friendly mechanic. Nevertheless, it's no secret that independently owned businesses live and die by their reputations. If an independent shop owner wants to survive, he has to treat all his customers respectfully. Plus, I've found that mechanics at independent garages are sometimes so grateful that I didn't go to the Jiffy Lube down the street, they'll throw in little bonuses--like filling up my fluids for free.
3. The mechanic must be honest.
Above all, my mechanic must be honest and never try to take advantage of me. I look for the following traits when trying to determine whether I'm dealing with a trustworthy repair shop or a gang of sleaze-balls:
- They ask my permission before fixing any problem.
When I go in for routine maintenance, they don't try to sell me any additional, unnecessary services. - If they do find additional problems with my car, they let me know how long I can expect to safely drive the car instead of urging me to get the problems fixed immediately.
- Other women get their cars serviced by the same mechanic.
There are great mechanics out there. It's true--I've got one here in Cincinnati. He doesn't talk much and he's pretty greasy, but he knows my name. And most importantly, he knows that I know my car.
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