I hate auto repair shops

[stomachmonkey]

Taking my DD in tomorrow to get the hail damage fixed. Will take a week. Inspection is due end of month and it needs an oil change so figured let me take are of it today. Run it to a small place around the corner from the office that I've used for inspections before. They are "easy" on inspections.

Guy says an hour so I leave my number and tell him "call me when you're done". 3 hours later no call so I run back over.

Oil change is done but not inspection, "10 minutes" he says so I cop a squat in the waiting room.

It's 105 out today and the waiting room smells like a gut wrenching combination of man stench and hot grease.

Half hour later he calls me to the counter, as I walk up he drops the wiper blades.

"what's this"?

Well you need blades, can't pass you without them?

"you should have called me".

Well you needed them to pass and I really did not look that hard for anything else.

"you should have called me, im allowed a grace period to fix no pass issues without being recharged for the inspection. You replaced the entire assembly for $25 when the blades are only $10.".

Well it's all I had.

"you should have called me".

I'll charge you $10.

"and what's that? Air? $35?".

Oh yeah, your air filter was dirty, it was a ***** to replace, it'll run better now and get better mileage, here's your old one

"great, so it's free then?".

Huh? no.

"you shoulda called me, you weren't authorized to repair it".

You want me to put the old one back?

"sure, go ahead".

How about I just give it to you at my cost, $11?

"fine, you do realize I'm never coming back here ever again".

Yeah.

[VaSteve]

Originally Posted by stomachmonkey

"fine, you do realize I'm never coming back here ever again".

Yeah.

LOL



I look over my car for anything that's going to cause me a problem in the inspection line. I have 4 cars and it's a pain in the ass to get them inspected. I got failed once for a license place light on my old 944. (They must have been cracking down).

[tevake]

Last time I took in the 911, the inspector told me that the front license plate was too low. Its mounted on the front valance where its been for thirty years. WTF. finally he said he would pass me this time. Well no worries about next time, it will be somewhere else.

Cheers Richard

[Aurel]

No inspections here in New Mexico, only emissions.
But, in New Jersey, my 911 was totally exempt from inspection, including emissions. In NM, it is not old enough and must pass emissions. Bye bye SSI...

[RWebb]

is it possible the guy was way busy?

[stomachmonkey]

Originally Posted by RWebb

is it possible the guy was way busy?

I don't see how being busy is justification for performing services that were not requested or authorized.

If the car needed tires or brakes he would have been justified in putting new ones on and expecting me to pay?

Bull****.

[RWebb]

True.

Perhaps he figured that the wiper blades & air filter would have been wanted anyway?

Not a lot of money. OTOH, I'm unhappy with a local eatery often adding $1 (4 times in 3 months) to my credit card bill (after a ~~20% tip), so I get your point.

[Noah930]

No safety inspection here. No tread on your tires? No turn signals or working brake lights? Wheels pointing in 4 different directions? No problem. But if something in your engine compartment doesn't look stock even if you can pass the sniffer test, well that might be a problem.

[look 171]

Originally Posted by Noah930

No safety inspection here. No tread on your tires? No turn signals or working brake lights? Wheels pointing in 4 different directions? No problem. But if something in your engine compartment doesn't look stock even if you can pass the sniffer test, well that might be a problem.

I love this place.

[look 171]

For a few bucks, I would be glad to have them put on a set of blades so I DO NOT have to go back. Would you want him to say "No pass" come back when you change your blades. Are you willing to wait another 3 hours. It would have been faster to change out the blade then have to get the phone number and to you about the issue of not passing. if you never go back to get an other inspection, I am sure he would NOT be able to make rent for the amount of money he charged you. A bit of a pissing contest here? he gave you the stuff at cost just so you can get out of his hair. If he changed it back, it would have cost him a lot of time. Time=money. he's already backed up.

[look 171]

Originally Posted by stomachmonkey

I don't see how being busy is justification for performing services that were not requested or authorized.

If the car needed tires or brakes he would have been justified in putting new ones on and expecting me to pay?

Bull****.

What would like him to do for you to make this right?

Are you mad because he did not call? Is it that he charged you a few bucks to install a filter and blades?

[Noah930]

I thought a shop has to check with a customer that repairs are authorized, or else the customer can refuse to pay the bill. Isn't that why they have you initial the estimate when you drop off the vehicle? It may not have been a lot of money, but it's still a bit of an issue of integrity. And it sounds as if the owner was waiting on the premises while these repairs were being done, no? How hard could it have been to call over to him in the waiting room that these things needed to be done? Unless it's one of those places where you drop off the car with a wink and stuff always gets passed. Then those guys have free reign to do whatever it takes to get the sticker.

[look 171]

Sure it is an integrity issue. Factor in the time it takes to get an air filter and the blades, get it change and HAVE to go back. I look at it as a service not a rip off. That's just me.

[fastfredracing]

Most of my customers have been with me for a long time, so I know how to read them, and what they expect out of me. Most of them just expect me to take care of little stuff , and get it done, and only to call them when it gets expensive. I do stuff like this all the time. I would never call to get an approval to change a light bulb, I would give you the bulb for free before I go through the trouble of calling you , waiting for a call back, all the while tying up one of my lifts . An air filter is not part of the inspection here, and I would not even look at if for a regular inspection, so maybe they were fishing for a little extra work?. If you were standing thre tapping your foot the whole time, I would have of course called you over to have a look see, and get your approval.
My job can be very fast paced, and hectic, and sometimes , you have to choose your battles, just to get through the workload. Most people would definately be pissed if I failed them for a license plate light bulb, and wiper blades, and made them come back.
I will alwys call new customers for an approval before I do any work, and sometimes, I will get an approval for an agreed ammount ahead of time . They will say something like if it is going to go over $300.00 , call me first.
I would love for some people to stand in my shoes for a week, and see if they can still ***** about the service I provide after that.
People just cannot seem to wrap their heads around the fact that it takes time to fix cars too. Say you have 5 inspections scheduled for the day. When they come in, I have no idea what each car will need. One car may take 25 minutes, and need nothing, and the next will need 2 ball joints, a muffler, and rear brake pads. Now this turns into a 5 hour job, if I am lucky enough to get parts that day, and all the other jobs for the day are backed up that much further.
Someone here recently said that bashing auto repair shops must be an artform.
It would take a hell of a man to put up with what I have to , to get through my day everyday
All said and done, it just comes down to a lack of understanding of what both parties expectations are, and no 2 customers are the same, sometimes I am a hero, and sometimes , I am a villian.

[VINMAN]

I agree with Stomachmonkey. I dont care if the part cost $1 or $1000. Guy should have let him know what needed to be done.

[asphaltgambler]

I'm in the business (unfortunately still) It's: Overbook, oversell, then try to get it all done by appointed time, overwork the staff - rinse and repeat

[Steve Carlton]

Originally Posted by stomachmonkey

Taking my DD in tomorrow to get the hail damage fixed. Will take a week. Inspection is due end of month and it needs an oil change so figured let me take are of it today. Run it to a small place around the corner from the office that I've used for inspections before. They are "easy" on inspections.

So, the car needed wipers and an air filter. Big deal. You cut off your nose to spite your face, IMHO.

[racer]

So.. did I misread you also PAID someone to change your oil or did they simply do the inspection? Can't believe someone with 9,900 posts still pays for oil changes.

It certainly comes down to expectations and "control" issues. You wanted to micromanage the shop and still have it meet your undefinded expectations. Shop thought they would "help" out by replacing "failing" wipers and even checked your aircleaner.

This is why some shops hate "anal" owners.

sounds like you lost a place that was "easy on inspections".

[Rick Lee]

When my track insurer made me take my 993 drivtrain to TPC, they replaced my trashed (spun on track and ran rear end into tirewall) Fabspeed MaxFlows with GHL's without even asking me. I was pissed about that. What would make someone there think, "He'll probably want GHL's instead of what he had on there when I got the car, even though they cost the same?"

[andyt11]

Originally Posted by Rick Lee

When my track insurer made me take my 993 drivtrain to TPC, they replaced my trashed (spun on track and ran rear end into tirewall) Fabspeed MaxFlows with GHL's without even asking me. I was pissed about that. What would make someone there think, "He'll probably want GHL's instead of what he had on there when I got the car, even though they cost the same?"

I'd be inclined to agree with you Rick. A major (expensive) item like an exhaust should be discussed with the owner before they do anything.

However, Look171 and RWebb are right. An air filter and wiper blades?!! It's not worth my time to go somewhere else, buy them myself (save $10), and then go back for re-inspection. I'm sure most reasonable people think the same way which is why the guy went ahead an did it.

I'm surprised he gave you them at cost. I'd have removed my new parts, pushed your car out onto the street and told you not to waste my time again.