[Wayne 962]

Let me put my spin on this.

Many of the shops don't like us, primarily because we (and myself personally) are educating people on how to fix their own cars. In addition to the marketshare we've snagged from larger competitors, we've also created a new breed of customer - the people who would normally have paid $450 for a valve adjustment, but now do it themselves with a $10 tool.

That said, the shops that gouge people for parts shouldn't get your business. If their prices on parts are not close to ours, then they are making way too much $$$ on the parts. The suggested list price is often 400% higher than the cost of the parts, and is often meaningless to any of us located "in the real world." I really don't shed any tears for shops that have lost a customer when they tried to charge $1200 for a $300 part.

-Wayne