Here’s the corrected link. I HATE it when I hit submit instead of preview.
On the opposite side, I was at an old computer shop once and was looking for a western digital MFM hard drive controller. Because i wanted to check out the junk in back I had hubby as if they had any. The refused to sell it to him because they could tell he had no comprehension of what he was saying. I went up, explained what we needed and why and they traded it to me for an old graphics card and I got 5 dollars to boot!
I always have my dad go with me if I have car problems. He know several mechanics that work in various shops around town and he knows people in all the parts stores so if he’s with me I get a good deal… sometimes even a discount on what I have done or parts I buy.
I went by myself to get new tires for my car last summer. I picked out the tires I wanted and told them I wanted to keep the two best tires as spares. They were supposed to mount and balance my new tires and check my alignment and fix it if it was needed. I waited while they did this and after they were done I paid the bill and was on my merry way. I no sooner left the parking lot and I could tell the alignment hadn’t been fixed because if I let go of the wheel it veered to the right, drastically to the right. I couldn’t turn around and take it back right then because I had to pick up my daughter from her daycare. I ended up calling when I got home and telling the manager that the car was pulling hard to the right and they needed to fix the alignment. I took the car back in the next morning and caught a ride to work and picked the car up after work.
The first thing I noticed is that on my original receipt it said I had 35 pounds of air in each new tire. The next day I suddenly had 38 pounds in the left front tire and 40 pounds in the right front tire when they did their evaluation. They also charged me for tire disposal for 4 old tires when I kept 2 tires and only disposed of 2. It was only $1.50/tire but hey, that’s $3.00. Imagine if they cheat 1,000 people out of $3 a year. It can add up. So I pointed this out and got my refund and once again left to drive home. Again the car was pulling to the right! They still hadn’t fixed it.
I called again when I got home, (had to pick up my daughter again) and they said they’d take another look at it the next day. I had to take this freakin car in 4 times and they still didn’t get it right. They checked the camber and toe each time and had to replace the discs or shoes or whatever they were called… I can’t remember.
I had even taken the car to a business that specialized in alignments (friend of my dad’s owns it so he checked it for free!) and they told me exactly what was wrong and what needed to be done to fix it. He wrote it down for me to take back to the shitty place. I did this and they still didn’t get it fixed right! I ended up writing a letter to the Better Business Bureau and they contacted the store who in turn refunded half my money for the new tires I purchased. All the times I took the car in to them I didn’t have to pay for what they did (or obviously didn’t do) but I was 7 1/2 months pregnant and paying my babysitter overtime because I was dropping the car off in the morning and picking it up after work so my daughter was at daycare early and stayed late. (I paid by the hour too!) I made sure they knew what a pain in the ass it was for me to be doing all this running when I was pregnant and a single mother and everything. I even put that in my letter to the BBB… get a little sympathy, ya know.
Anyway, this is a long rant but I feel better. I think it sucks that I get treated like this when I go to the shop. I don’t know a lot about cars but I know enough not to get screwed when I have to take it in!
I must be lucky. I negotiated my own car deal (it was right afer my divorice) and after my car accident a few months later, I found out that I paid at least $2000 less than it was going for anywhere else.
They also never talk down to me at Radio Shack, and I don’t think that I look like a techie geek either.
As far as car repairs go, my best friend is an ex auto mechanic, and her fiancee is still an auto mechanic, so I usually go to them.
There’s a reason I only patronize AAA-approved auto shops for major work and maintenance. I always insist they put everything in writing as well. For regular oil changes, I go to places that advertise set prices.
My father got ripped off just as much as any woman I have seen.
Best way to keep that from happening is to pay a mechanic friend to come along & listen to the talk. I do come along sometimes & talk to them about what they are doing.
Gaskets? Those things are $1000 but can be a lot more if you waited too long to bring it in.