Finding a Reputable Repair Auto Shop

If you think this is a difficult task, you are 100% right. Here just a few things to look for and things to avoid.

"My co-worker recommends shop ABC Auto Repair, he loves it and tells me they have always treated him right."

Even though this sounds like a very solid recommendation, I know plenty of people that have been getting ripped off for years and think the repair shop they use is the greatest. Here just a few examples I've witnessed:

One co-worker knows I'm a car guy, comes in telling me how happy he is that he got his brakes repaired on his wife's Suburban. Only cost him $1600+ ?!?!!?! I look at him with disbelief and inform him that it sounds "pretty high". He informs me that they really did a nice job. He's thrilled so I just leave him alone knowing that the shop took him to the cleaners.

Example two, my wife back when we were still dating had a friend recommend a shop highly. Telling us she used it for years. My wife drops off her car for a minor oil leak. Next thing this hack has the bill up to $1100 and is still going, throwing parts at it left and right.

I find out and put a stop to it, luckily my future wife is pretty smart and had only authorized $500 worth of work putting a halt to the overcharges.

I had it towed to a friends shop that repaired the leak and the other shops mistakes, "Ron" from the bad shop had ruined part of the transmission trying to repair the oil leak in the engine so we had to repair that also. An expensive lesson for her.

Why didn't I fix it? We had just started dating and my future wife didn't want to "inconvenience" me

OK, now that I've told a few horror stories, what do you do to find a good shop? Answer, ask a few questions, listen to the answers and make sure the shop, either the mechanic or Service Mgr. asks these questions and listens to your answers.

If they don't have time, they are distracted, etc. It's time to find another shop. What kind of work do you think they will do if they don't even care about your Car/truck complaints?

1) Tell them a concise list of your problems and when they happen, i.e. morning first thing, after you've been driving a while, when the A/C is on, idling, etc. Better yet, give them a written list.

Now, don't tell them your life story. A good shop will be busy and they really don't want to hear about how you were delivering Xmas presents to your sisters kids that live in SW Texas because your Brother-in-law wanted to raise Alpaca's and he really used to have a good job up North and now he's kind of a bum .... Blah, Blah, Blah.

Something along the lines of "The car starts poorly first thing in the morning and idles very rough, stalls and requires a re-start, often more than a couple times."

Don't come in and tell them, "I need a tune-up" expecting that to fix the problem and them come back a week later screaming that the tune-up didn't fix your problem. If you can diagnose your own problems, then you should be able to fix them too.

2) Listen to the shop person you're talking with and see if they repeat back to you the complaints you are having looking for more information. A good mechanic or service mgr. will always look for more information to speed up their diagnosis of your problems.

3) Only authorize repairs up to a certain dollar amount, don't give them a "blank check" for repairs. Now days, it's easy to get to $500 with labor so be prepared. The days of the $45 tune-up are long gone.

4) Watch for the parts "run up", repeated calls asking you to bump your maximum repair amount by X amount of dollars because now your car needs XYZ. If you get more than one of these calls and your complaint was fairly minor, the shop is just throwing parts at the car in an attempt to repair the problem.

Have them finish the repairs you've authorized to this point and take the car somewhere else. Yeah, I know that's a pain but it's less of a pain than a $550 repair that turns into a $2000 repair and the car still isn't fixed.

Now if you severely overheated the engine or ran the engine out of oil, expect repairs to really add up and to get more calls as the damage is uncovered.

5) Once you find a good shop, stick with them. Shops love repeat customers and a good shop will always treat their customers right. If a mistake is made after years of good work, give them a chance to fix it.

DON'T take the car somewhere else expecting the other shop to pay, you won't have a leg to stand on legally and most likely the good shop will tell you to hit the road. You lose on two counts.

There you have it, next post will be some common problems and simple diagnostics to narrow down what the problem could be.

How to Avoid Auto Repair Ripoff's

One of the most discussed topics in the workplace, home, school, etc. is auto repair and how to find a good repair shop and mechanic that won't charge you for unnecessary work and /or perform low quality repairs.

Follow along and read the posts on popular misconceptions, myths and general lack of knowledge that leave you wide open to get ripped off at disreputable repair shops.

Just because you return to the dealer where the vehicle was purchased and the car/truck is still under warranty doesn't exclude you from getting ripped off.