Yes, but then it would be my idea. Then it could be argued that I was right. head in hands
“No dear, take it to the dealership. I insist. I’m your husband and I’m going to stamp my foot down. What? You want to use a local mechanic? And save us… money? Wha…? Grrr… hrrummph-hrrummph-hrrummph…” 
I mean, I guess in better times it could be reasoned away. But at this point, pretty much for all Americans, unnecessary expenses should be trimmed. Could you present it as “oh, the kids’ college fund could use it?” Or maybe “this could be added to the retirement account”? Especially considering the overwhelming evidence that mechanics at a certain dealer are in no way better than at a local shop…and in fact in many instances are worse.
I had to explain to my future MIL that if you pick a roofer/handyman/plummer/whatever out of the yellow pages (:smack: :smack: :smack:) and he actually lives in your upper-middle class neighborhood that he overcharges for his service and is making as much as you off of you.
Except that the dealer is not always the very best. Generally, a local trusted mechanic is better.
Heaven forbid that a roofer/handyman/plumber should make as much as you. :rolleyes:
But…they work with their HANDS! And sometimes they get dirty! People that work with their hands and get dirty shouldn’t make as much as middle class middle management paper pushers, no matter how skilled they are. Didn’t you get the memo?
hahahaha my future MIL is a tenured professor. If you wanna pay your handyman that much, be my guest! I’ll pop some corn and pull up a chair while you’re at it.
The bottom line is better service does not equal higher prices. Higher prices often mean you’re paying for clean service bays, coffee in the waiting room, the waiting room ITSELF, and someone to hold your hand while the other guy rapes your wallet.
What a load of bull. A good handyman/contractor/plumber/whatever is worth their weight in gold and probably pulls down considerably more than a “tenured professor” because of repeat business and the huge (but often justified) costs of remodeling/repair work.
Right, what do I know, I’ve only been remodeling my family’s rental units since I was 15. This thread has gotten way too funny.
Do you remodel/repair or do you just paint? The latter is much simpler than the former.
Perhaps the guy living in the upper-income neighborhood is the owner of the roofing/handyman/plumbing business, not necessarily the one climbing around on the roof or in your plumbing.
Can we stop with the hijack, please? Perhaps a Great Debate or IMHO thread about standards of living for tradesmen if you like.
This thread is getting off track. Please focus your comments on whether or not the Countess is getting screwed by the dealer. If you’d like to discuss other topics, open another thread.
Ellen Cherry
IMHO Moderator
OK, but as to the question of why go to the dealer for repairs, I considered going somewhere else once. But I was surprised that the dealer’s hourly labor charge was something like $75 per hour, while the local, respected independent shop had an hourly rate of $60 per hour. Not so different, and I figured that the parts cost would be roughly the same. Plus the dealership was closer to work, so it was easier to leave the car at the dealer and walk to work than to leave it at this particular independent shop.
Sorry, but I was writing that as Ellen wrote the note. As to the original question, the dealer is at fault, they know it and they’re working to make it right.
Oh, I agree with you. But some people think you can judge quality by the price tag. If you don’t know anything at all about cars except that you love yours then I suppose price tag is as good a guess as anything.
Back on topic…Take the loaner. I enjoy driving a loaner. I do all my long distance shopping, etc. I pull stumps. etc.
A lot of people do seem to judge by the price tag–they think the cheapest is the best regardless.
I know nothing of Honda Pilots and their transmissions.
Have the dealer detail what they need to do to repair the problem and insist on seeing the receipts for parts. If they’ve done something that has caused the auto to know longer hold fluid, find out what, and insist that you personally view the damage.
Damaged threads in the casing can be repaired quickly and easily in most cases. If they’ve damaged a part of the casing that’s removable, they have hopefully ordered a new piece. Have them show you where it bolts on so that you can confirm this.
If they’ve damaged the main casing then at the very least, they’ll source a used transmission from a scrapyard. Most modern autos have the VIN number (the one on the dash) inscibed in the transmission casing for theft recovery purposes. Have them show you where it is now, and have them show you that it has not changed when the car is repaired. The best scenario in this situation is that they source a new transmission case from the factory and disassemble/reassemble your transmission.
Make sure you know exactly what parts they have replaced and try to understand what needs to be taken apart. This will help if you develop transmission problems later on and can point out that the area was previously repaired. Modern transmissions are expected to go 150,000-200,000 miles without being taken apart.
TY everyone! Not sure if they read/post here but we got a call from the Dealership. Car will be ready today.
…all that remains to be seen is if we got a turkey for Thanksgiving & how badly was it stuffed. But then again, maybe it will be fine. Still, that parts advice is good advice & I will try to follow it.
As for people in my neighborhood, if that guy/gal is a good neighbor, there are a few houses for sale (and a couple of neighbors I wouldn’t mind seeing move. Same here as everywhere. ).