Auto Mechanics - Why such a difference of opinion?
In preparation for our road trip coming up, I decided that I had better get a safety inspection done on the car. I don't want anything falling off while in the mountains... Previously, Babe's father had the car inspected and was told that the brakes and the rack&pinion needed to be replaced, and the muffler had a leak.
Cost to replace the rack&pinion?
$700.
Brakes we can do ourselves, and that is precisely what I set out to do the other day, I started with getting everything I needed. Babe's sister's boyfriend provided us with the brakes they were going to use on their car which is the same make and model. I pull off the wheel, and inspect the brake pads. They had squealed a bit for a while, but I hadn't really heard them in a while, so I figured that I had gotten used to them. I looked at the pads, and they are still thick, the disc isn't scored, and I can still see my reflection as the articles online say I should. It's not a mirror mind you, but it's not supposed to be. Without removing the pads from their location I compared the pads on the car with the new pads, about 2/8th difference... Why are they squealing? I checked for any other damage anywhere, nothing. I rotated the disc's to see if something was amiss... nothing... All the pads were thick and in good condition it looked like...
Well, I wanted to get a second opinion on the inspection anyways, make sure nothing was missed. I took the car into a mechanic not far from home, and told them I needed an inspection (Their 59 point inspection, which included oil and filter change) because I was heading out of the province and didn't want anything surprising me. They took the car in, lifted it up, did the inspection, oil change, and billed me. Total cost: $62
What did they find?
A rack&pinion in need of repair? No.
Brakes need to be changed? No.
Muffler Leak? Yes, a small one that I can fix myself.
Other than that, a couple small things like the plug wires I had were the original, and I should get new ones next tune up, which they also said would fix a lot of troubles I noticed while driving. It was odd... I wonder if it was Babe's father who took it in, or her mother, or one of her sisters...
Why would an inspection change so drastically from one mechanic to another? It's ridiculous.
A tip? Always get TWO inspections. Yes it costs a bit more to go to two separate garages on different ends of town that are not owned/operated by the same people, but it just might save you on unnecessary repairs, like a $700 bill for just a rack&pinion that is actually fine. Maybe it'll need to be replaced in a year or two, but not currently.
Also make sure that you get down in writing what will be done, this way if you end up at one of "those" garages, you won't pay through the nose for things that they "fix" when you didn't ask. An ex of mine once went to a garage for an inspection, dropped it off, and came back a couple hours later, they told her that they had to replace her alternator, couldn't release the car without doing it, and since she needed the car that same day, decided to just do it.
Cost her more than she could afford, and they held the car till she could pay. Me, I would have called the cops and the news.
Cost to replace the rack&pinion?
$700.
Brakes we can do ourselves, and that is precisely what I set out to do the other day, I started with getting everything I needed. Babe's sister's boyfriend provided us with the brakes they were going to use on their car which is the same make and model. I pull off the wheel, and inspect the brake pads. They had squealed a bit for a while, but I hadn't really heard them in a while, so I figured that I had gotten used to them. I looked at the pads, and they are still thick, the disc isn't scored, and I can still see my reflection as the articles online say I should. It's not a mirror mind you, but it's not supposed to be. Without removing the pads from their location I compared the pads on the car with the new pads, about 2/8th difference... Why are they squealing? I checked for any other damage anywhere, nothing. I rotated the disc's to see if something was amiss... nothing... All the pads were thick and in good condition it looked like...
Well, I wanted to get a second opinion on the inspection anyways, make sure nothing was missed. I took the car into a mechanic not far from home, and told them I needed an inspection (Their 59 point inspection, which included oil and filter change) because I was heading out of the province and didn't want anything surprising me. They took the car in, lifted it up, did the inspection, oil change, and billed me. Total cost: $62
What did they find?
A rack&pinion in need of repair? No.
Brakes need to be changed? No.
Muffler Leak? Yes, a small one that I can fix myself.
Other than that, a couple small things like the plug wires I had were the original, and I should get new ones next tune up, which they also said would fix a lot of troubles I noticed while driving. It was odd... I wonder if it was Babe's father who took it in, or her mother, or one of her sisters...
Why would an inspection change so drastically from one mechanic to another? It's ridiculous.
A tip? Always get TWO inspections. Yes it costs a bit more to go to two separate garages on different ends of town that are not owned/operated by the same people, but it just might save you on unnecessary repairs, like a $700 bill for just a rack&pinion that is actually fine. Maybe it'll need to be replaced in a year or two, but not currently.
Also make sure that you get down in writing what will be done, this way if you end up at one of "those" garages, you won't pay through the nose for things that they "fix" when you didn't ask. An ex of mine once went to a garage for an inspection, dropped it off, and came back a couple hours later, they told her that they had to replace her alternator, couldn't release the car without doing it, and since she needed the car that same day, decided to just do it.
Cost her more than she could afford, and they held the car till she could pay. Me, I would have called the cops and the news.
Labels: auto repair, car inspections, mechanics
posted by Spanishearl at
2:31 PM
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