Some mechanics must think people are stupid!

[prktkljokr]

I remember when at Auto bastards we would personally get $2 for each $12 additive we put into a customers car, $10 was the most you could make each car as there were only 5 additives we could use, I personally used to get a extra $150 per week which used to help when you got $350 a week and the mortgage was $320, we had guys that would make more from the additives than their wage, so I know why some workers upsell for the company.

If the customer disputed the additive charges, they just deducted it from the total, im sure the actual cost of the additive would have only been $1

[olds]

In reply to the thread title, People that get other people to service their cars fall into two categories
1on't have the Ability,Knowledge or facility to do it themselves.
2:Have some of the above but are too lazy to do the job themselves.
Though knowing it wont be up to their high standards.

[Syndrome]

A Ford dealer rep recommended I "decarbonize my throtte body" at the 30,000km service. Told him no thanks.

[onemanempire]

Some, no wait.. many moons ago my ex had a mint 1994 300zx non turb.
We were going for a roadie to see the Dish in Parkes.
She suggested getting a service at a Nissan dealer before going. I said, sure.
I get a phone call on the day of the service from her asking if $325 for front brake pads was ok..
Hmmm, Hell no, it's not ok. I said I'll call you back in 5.

Rang old mate at Sprint Auto Parts and asked what's my price?
He says $75. Hmm, rang her back and asked to speak the service advisor, on her phone.
He said, um, er, ah, yes, we quoted her for the wrong pads, they will cost you $45 incl. fitting...
Like WTAF.
Yes she was a hottie, yes she had plenty of lukka, and a nice rack.
That's not the point.
I just don't get what's in it for the guy quoting for the pads. It's not like he's getting a % of the sale, or even an end of month bonus.

Plenty of dodgey bros out there, especially if the customer is female".
Just plain wrong, and I hate them for treating people that don't know anything about cars this way.

/rant off.

[swamp]

hi
Its more of personal thing .
Some mechanics cannot explain
Some customers don`t understand
Yes even auto sparks have no idea

But yes like all trades and people generally there are assholes amongst us

Things that have ripped customers
aircon receiver drier replace------------------ nope
wheel alignment not adjusted as required ------nope
wishbone bushes stress lines must be faulty -----nope
valve cover leaks must hsve started after roadworthy---nope was evident 40000km ago
worn ball joint must have started after R/worthy---------------nope,, doesnot wear out in a week
holes in muffler must have started since road worthy ----nope 50k old
radiator core rotting must have rotted out since roadworthy---nope been rotting for 3-4 years missing alot of fins

Jobs not done properly yes even more
air conditioning is a huge repeated poorly done job

Very frustrating
engine management "" classic "" no faults on the scan tool all is good DOH
auto elecs think there the only one who understands auto air ha ha ha ha LOL LOL

Auto elecs who cannot read elec diagrams !!

[Work Horse]

I had the 30 000Klm fixed price service on my D-max a few months back.

It's done less than 25 000 but is 2 years old.

Fixed price was $410.

Got a call from the dealer to ask permission to proceed with a few non-service items.

Windscreen wiper supply and replace, $240.

Front tyres supply and replace plus front-end alignment, $650.

I politely declined the wipers; Auto barn supplied and fitted for free, $68.

I questioned the service team how was it possible to scrub out tyres on a new vehicle with under 25 000Klms?
My Ute is 2X4 and has never been off the pristine sealed roads around Melbourne SE suburbs.

After phone calls and emails to the dealer, IUA (Isuzu Ute Australia), replaced my front tyres and realigned my front end under warranty.

Seems I am not the only D-max/Mux owner experiencing rapid front tyre wear on the 7th generation Isuzu, lots of stories on line.

The service team first suggested my tyre wear was within specification. I showed them all the complaints on line. I showed them the response from IUA, who said they were aware of the problem and would fix any problems.

I did get new tyres and a front end alignment at no cost to me except my time.

The dealer blamed the tyre problem on under inflation

[FTE217]

Seriously, swamp and workhorse posts says it all.
There isn't one Industry that is clean that I know of - anyone enlighten me ?

[.:4:.]

When i was working as an electrician, it wasn't uncommon when talking with mates in the trade to hear they were told to squeeze as much out of customers as possible. A mate of mine was a domestic and if the job was replace a light fitting or powerpoint for say an elderly pensioner, he was told to put on the speil that the wiring was unsafe (when it was fine) and that the job could not be signed off untill a full rewire of the house. So full on scam.
I worked comercial, and my boss was smart enough to know creating repeat business will reap greater rewards then fleecing customers. Often for repairs clients would get 3 to 5 quotes. When I'd come in to do a competing quote, not so much foolishly, but they'd tell me what the others had said. Fairly often there would be a list of needless replacements. Same token often enough, others would miss things and quote under and not provide the outcome. So they get the job but don't do what a quoted job is for. As in you pay for the desired outcome. From a company standpoint if you want to keep any shred of credibility you honor the quote even if the job makes a loss. Yes sometimes that happens but you keep that to a minimum, unforseen circumstances.
It used to suck coming in to sort out unforfilled quotes done by others for 2 reasons. 1st is the customer is happy that you are there, but unhappy that they have to pay again for rectification and 2nd is having to work out what has or has not been done by others.
I was never told to over inflate anything, so i did not. As i said my boss was pretty smart as with a new client the first one or 2 times they will get multiple quotes, but after that if you do it once and do it right, they just call direct if they need work done. So repeat business is where its at to keep a good reputation and run a successful business.

And back to mechanics, yes i got the owner of one place off my side when i questioned his 'the scanner says maf sensor fault' by asking if maybe the maf sensor is doing its job. I declined him ordering a new maf sensor. Next day looked at it with my own 2 eyes, yep, maf was fine, split boost hose. The mechanic wasn't overly happy that a dumb sparky told him how to do his job, but we did kiss and make up. (Last part i made up)

[Work Horse]

Originally Posted by FTE217

Seriously, swamp and workhorse posts says it all.
There isn't one Industry that is clean that I know of - anyone enlighten me ?

Landscape gardeners mate, we are as honest as the day is long!

[Fordman1]

Back in the day I had an ‘81 Escort, and it developed a terrible steering shudder whilst driving.

I took it to “Pedders” and the “shifty rocket scientist” said “it’s bad,we need to replace the front steering rack etc”. The quote was horrendous.

On my way home I stopped at a shell servo for fuel, and I talked to the mechanic about his thoughts.

He put the car up on the lift, tightened a couple of bolts and fixed it.

I asked him “how much”, and he said “no worries mate, on the house”.

I will NEVER EVER go to that other franchise again.

[Dr Terry]

Originally Posted by .:4:.

And back to mechanics, yes i got the owner of one place off my side when i questioned his 'the scanner says maf sensor fault' by asking if maybe the maf sensor is doing its job. I declined him ordering a new maf sensor. Next day looked at it with my own 2 eyes, yep, maf was fine, split boost hose. The mechanic wasn't overly happy that a dumb sparky told him how to do his job, but we did kiss and make up. (Last part i made up)

This is so common & usually it's the mechanic not diagnosing the problem correctly.

The problem usually involves oxygen sensors. For example, the code says something like "mixture rich bank 2", so the mechanic straight away blames the oxy sensor & the owner is needlessly out of pocket.

What they don't think of is. why is bank 2 rich? Did the oxy sensor cause the issue ? Probably not !! The oxy sensor is telling what is wrong & yet you are "shooting the messenger".

I probably sell more EFI sensors of any type than anyone else in Sydney (or maybe Australia) & most/many mechanics just don't diagnose correctly. Many treat their scanner as a 'money making machine', where they just do what the scanner says & often the owner goes along with it, depending how good the 'spin' is.

So you've got 3 types of mechanics. Those who don't know what they're doing, those who do not what they're doing & treat the customer as a 'cash cow' & finally those who know what they're doing & treat the customer (& their car) with some respect. Sadly the last lot are in the minority

Dr Terry