Irish_alley

last week i was surfing youtube and they covered this "quick lube" shops where they would scam people into "adding coolant" "flushing brake fluid" and every fluid they could flush but the cars just had a full service right before they pulled in at a school. theyre nothing but a rip off

dberladyn

I always watch. l let them flush and change Dexcool once. That was expensive, especially for a truck I knew I was selling, but I watched everything they did. I got what I paid and what I needed. This morning though.. I just.. I don't know.

mountainmanjoe

tech2

you just doubled cbc viewers

dberladyn

Now that was funny !!

mountainmanjoe

I'm ashamed to admit I used to work at one of those places.

Irish_alley

prob about 15+ years ago i worked at autozone, even they would rip people off. we had incentives to try and sell those little grease packs for things like spark plugs.headlights, spark plug wires, batteries/felt washers and water pumps. if we sold the most of our store we would get a $20 prize. if we didnt sell any we would get a chewing out. most times we pushed them when we installed batteries by saying "we'll install the battery for free but you have to buy this grease". which was totally illegal but we didnt want to be chewed out. there was other games they would play also but it was mainly on who would bring the store the most profit.

tech2

General question. How do you guys feel about a shop upselling $2000 worth of work to a 15 year old $1000 car. The work is needed but are you doing them a favour?

mountainmanjoe

The shop should inform the owner what is needed, how badly, and how much it costs. Whether doing it is the right choice is a personal matter and up to the owner.

If the service is honestly needed then it should sell itself and it doesn't need upselling help from the shop.

dberladyn

Depends what the car is worth to you. I had a few B2200's. They served me well. The mechanic I trusted did some repairs to it as you said. I have a side to me that is nice, loyal and giving. I gave. In the end the Truth always comes out in the wash. I felt taken. He lost a customer. I didn't really address it within myself until I directed a friend there and he did the same. My friend chewed me out and that was it. I never returned. Was it 'worth' it?

It depends on how you see it. Downtime was extremely costly, as is re-equipping yourself with a newer vehicle and new problems. Those trucks served me well. Cheap, good on gas, reliable, easy to drive, easy to park, easy to not care for. Just turn the key and that was it. Always.

I had a 1993 3500 Vandura that I paid way too much for. It was my third van. I didn't mean even to do that. Buy it that is. I was driving by, worn down mentally by all the beaters I drove so far in my life, and I was a bit too.. wanting.. when came to my vans. With the friends I had had, I thought it would be great to buy a passenger van. I was always the dedicated driver anyways. I had fun staying sober while everyone else... The dealership had two on the lot. A Passenger and Cargo. Both newer years, nice headlight package, A/C, etc. I was just curious about the passenger van and I walked out buying a cargo van - with payments. It was great, but that hurt.

One day driving home down the freeway, I look in the mirror and white smoke. Just a cloud behind me. Well, I am not touching it. I took it to a friends shop he worked at. This guy serviced all the city police cars. Again, I was too nice. He offered me a temporary car, I said no. Too nice. I asked him to take his time with it and do it right. That's what I was paying him for. I leaned on my dad for a vehicle, added stress to him. Then the mechanic just put me on the back burner. I didn't mean take three weeks, I just meant do not rush it. Do it properly, but I was YOUNG. I had a hard time speaking up for myself. I ended up having to pressure him, I need my truck. He put a rookie on it. The bill was outrageous (credit card). More hurt. I open the hood, all the clips are gone, things were a mess and my heart just.. that was my pride that truck.

It bothered me so much they did that. Then the compounding bills. One winter day, I just said @#$% it. I want it gone. I had a chance for another B2200, I bought it and sold the van. Chinese bought it. They whittled me. Then I seen the van sometime later. Dented, beaten up, destroyed. Anyways, the point is... so how quickly someone can cause a chain reaction by being a smuck?

I do not have an answer for you other than no matter what you do, the truth will shine through in the end. For my trade, I always had one policy and I am so messed up I cannot even remember or find the discipline to retain that policy. Basically, do all the hard work up front and be honest, be integral. It's a harder path, but it had seen me through so much. From starting at the very bottom to reaching the very top and like phoenix, doing it all over again a million times as I was continually destroyed by factors out of my control. Something else did this in my life, not my industry, but it did allow my industry to prey on me, which is the nature of the beast in any business. When you are strong people pay you, when you are down, they kick you.

Do it right the first time.