Car repair ripoff

joeparaski

Willow wrote: »

I wish I knew someone like you here Joe. Heck, I should drive to MTL to get some work done. I think we are getting ripped off. We had our rear brakes done 1yr ago, then in the fall the tuned them up and grinded the rotors. Took it in the stealership for a full tune up on Sat. Apprarently, they say the local garge guy forgot to put the boots back on the rear calipers and they are now seized, and there is rust build-up causing a cluncking sound when we brake. They also say we need to get the tranny oil flushed as well as the power steering. How many times do people need to touch my rear brakes when the truck has only 72K kms. They said if they can't free up the pistons it's 250$ per caliper. :eek::mad:

Willow, what kind of truck do you have? Maybe it's the guide pins and not the caliper pistons that are seized. Guide pins and boots are available for plenty of types of calipers, so just replacing those could be done if they're not hopelessly jammed.

Joe

Willow

It's a Nissan Xtrail, 2006. I would love for this to be the case. I'm tired of putting so much money in to these brakes just to return the truck in 2011.

joeparaski

Willow, I took the liberty to make an estimate for you: Prices are in Cdn. including tax.

$855 Pads, Calipers, Rotors....best quality brand
$730 Pads, Calipers, Rotors....econo quality brand

$425 Pads, guide pin servicing, Rotors...econo quality pads and rotors
$310 Pads, guide pin servicing, Machine rotors...econo pads

*guide pin servicing includes the pins and the boots
*machine rotor is possible...they must not be scored or rusted and must be thick enough and not warped.


Joe

TNRabbit

I bought about $2500 worth of tools when I rebuilt the engine in my Toyota truck, and STILL beat the shop in price (ok, I'm not including my labor~). I have the entire field service manual & did it right. I won't go to a dealer or repair shop unless I don't have the time or the proper tools.

JimKellyfan

TouchOfEvil wrote: »

The only way i bring my vehicle to someone is if it's under warranty, otherwise i do it myself. I simply do not trust people with my rides. If it's a warranty job well that means the dealer has it and it won't cost me a dime, so be it.

Yeah, good job taking care of the customer there. I looked, and there wasn't any TSB's ( Technical Service Bulletins or common problems ) on the H2 or the H3. Good find, I remember working as a tech, and sometimes I would find TSB's before they became TSB's from time to time.

It is a tough call, who to go to, who to trust. I work in the field, and am not here to promote them or anyone else, but can talk a bit about it. I, too, have trouble making a decision on who to go to, and usually fix it myself if I can, and have the time and energy and the means to do so. That said, I am one of the lucky ones who still owns tools, and have the knowledge ( key part there ) to do the work myself.

Who to trust, depends on your habits really.
If you never really go anywhere, except the once a year vacation, then you can go to the mom and pop place ( only one garage in the system ). But, if you drive all over, then a regional or national chain is for you. If you go to a franchise ( Meineke, Monro, Tuffy, Midas ), then meet and make friends with the owner, as managers change, as do technicians. Most places want to stay in business and treat people fairly. The biggest problem with the industry, is having non trained personnel on hand. Make sure the employees have current ASE certificates, and any other certificates available. If you want a free ride, go to the chains, Tire Kingdom, Sears and Firestone all have 1 - 800 get it for free numbers. Paying with American Express also is a free ride opportunity. I know there are some out there, and hopefully none here, but I did have to mention it. Too, keep in mind, vehicles change every year, and mechanics usually do not make or break the cars. The other problem with the industry, is the lack of proper maintenance on the vehicles by the customer. Everyone, please follow the maintenance program for sever duty, as most cars fall in this bracket. I typically change my fluids when they start to look bad, not necessarily at mileage intervals recommended, but usually sooner. On new cars, I change all fluids at 15k ( break in period ). On older cars purchased, I change all fluids immediately, go over all needs asap, and change fluids more frequently than normal until the "dirty-ness" subsides ( typically a vehicle not maintained well, you have nasty oil, change it, and it looks nasty again real quick, scenario ).
So, who to recommend, when getting an estimate, call around for parts, find out costs ( I recommend calling the dealer for parts prices. A big misconception is garages making money on parts - Hey, they need to make some on the parts as well - they are providing a warranty, and many other bills too, let it go ) If they are in line with dealer parts pricing ( that or less, let it go, as you are getting a good warranty usually ) ( It's like a steak, we don't go to the Outback steakhouse with our own steak, same thing ).

I would go to the dealer for the tough stuff, and anyone else for routine stuff.
But, hey, even dealerships hire whack jobs too.
You have to get out there, and look at reviews online for your market.
Yelp is one, Google maps is another.
See what others are saying about the area.

My father in law, just came to town, and we took his car in for routine maintenance. I saw the kid hand torque the wheels. I promptly when up to him after and gave him a 5 dollar tip ( balance 4 tires under warranty no charge ). I tipped, as I was the manager who instilled this policy, not only with my store, the chain picked up on it and now does it for 765 stores.

That was one of many changes for the better, I have been able to instill not only with that nationwide chain, but I have also instilled many changes with the franchisee based system I am with the since 2006.

The last thing I will share, I know this is long and multi directional, is look for the little things: clean facility, hand torque or proper torque to wheels, certificates current on the wall, can walk around the garage without tripping over everything, inviting, care and concern, going the extra mile, wowing the customer. There is more too, like fixing it right the first time and so on, that would be a most of the time scenario, as sometimes a problem can mask itself.

Again, good job to treating the customer fairly, that is good to read about.

I hope this has been of some help, and feel free to ask anything else, relevant or not.