I hate being lied to by mechanics.

[human]

So when I first got my Impala a little over three years ago, the mechanic I was using at the time told me it was a very good and dependable car, except that you had to take the whole front clip off to change a headlight bulb. He went on to tell me that the local Chevy dealer charged about $250 to do this, which I don't doubt, but he'd take care of it for $85 whenever the time came to do it. Well guess what? The passenger side low beam bulb finally went out this week. I hadn't seen or talked with that mechanic in about a year and a half, since I've moved to the other side of town and haven't needed his services, so I decided to look up online to see what a headlight bulb replacement really entailed and I'm sure glad I did. As it turns out, the headlight assembly is easily removed by pulling a plastic retaining clip and unscrewing a 7mm hex screw. After that, it's just plug and play. With this knowledge in hand, and confident that I could do the procedure myself, I started pricing headlight bulbs online and ended up buying a pair of generic H11 bulbs on eBay for $4.99 with free shipping and since I had an eBay Bucks certificate for $4.01, my grand total cash outlay came to a whopping 98 cents! The bulbs will arrive midweek and I'll be shining brightly again shortly thereafter.

It really boggles my mind that this guy would tell me a lie like that, especially when he was volunteering "information" about a repair the car didn't even need yet, so he arguably had more to lose than to gain by telling me that. He'd always been straight up with me in the past, so I've always been inclined to take him at his word. I'm just glad I double-checked before I took the car back to him. I'd always considered him to be a trustworthy mechanic (a rarity in this world) but now, I'll likely think twice about going back to him. It's kind of a shame all the way around since as an independent mechanic with a one-man garage, his business model is largely based on building relationships with his customers and relying on them not only for repeat business but for referrals. And over the years, I've pushed a fair amount of business his way. Again, I may be rethinking that.

Daily Driver: 2011 Impala LT
Weekend Toy: 1995 Aurora
Coming Soon: 1964 Dynamic 88 Convertible

[Marc]

Human.....Your experience is one of the main reasons that I started to do as much car work as I could a short time after I got my first car (1957 Super 88, back in 1961).

[lazierfan]

Its not so much being lied to (I live in a growing small town so every mechanic now knows "That Aurora Owner" and his reputation)...

It is the guys that stick to "...what the book says..." and refuse to deviate from it.

I documented the Mode Actuator saga here a month ago- At first I thought it would be a reprogram of the ECM so the HVAC would reboot correctly.
No problem- the mechanic I went to, for $60, told me the process would get to the mode actuator and the voltage shot up to 12v.
No problem, switch it out with dealer item @ $95 with labor.
Here's when the problem hit.
The book told him 4.75 hours labor totaling over $500.

He would not do what I did and leave the dash and most all parts intact, reach in, pull the part, and install the new part.

Took me half an hour and paid retail for the part.

Mechanics charging in the hundreds of dollars on a 17 year old car should not be in business.

[Toronado3800]

Good topic. Wonder if it was ignorance or lying. He may know a short cut but want to charge the book time and make big money. Then again he may not.

I remember cutting under a headlight in a 2004ish Cherokee to access something for a cooling fan. Then cutting up a wheel well in my 77 Firebird to do heater hoses. All thanks to the internet.

[RCA1186]

Sounds to me like he may not have known of an easier way more than anything. Up to you whether you want to believe that or not. Personally, I do any work on my car that I can, and take anything that I can't do myself to the mechanic. Going that route, I have only taken my car to the mechanic once in 7 years of owning it.

[human]

The headlight bulbs came in the mail today and I replaced the one that was burned out in about 10 minutes. Interestingly, the filament appeared intact on the bulb I took out but a quick check with a multitester proved otherwise. The procedure I found online to replace the bulb was a snap and having not found any other procedure to contradict that method, I'm still convinced it is the official procedure and the mechanic was likely trying to hoodwink me. That said, I will extend a little benefit of the doubt that maybe he was confusing my 2011 Impala with the newer body style, based on the Epsilon platform, that had come out in late 2013.

All that said, I do understand how the book can sometimes specify a more complex procedure than is really necessary. Replacing a fog lamp bulb on a 1st generation Aurora is a classic example. The FSM suggests removing the front wheel and taking the inner fender loose to get to the bulb but my hands and wrists are fairly slender (unlike my waistline) so I don't have to do all that. I'm able to just reach up through the narrow gap between the fender and front bumper to get to the bulb, which someone with meatier hands and arms might have more difficulty doing. Having replaced four or five fog lamp bulbs on my '95, I can now reach in and swap out the bulb by feel in about three minutes without any tools.

Daily Driver: 2011 Impala LT
Weekend Toy: 1995 Aurora
Coming Soon: 1964 Dynamic 88 Convertible

[aphex]

Many local mechanics here have too many techs to know who you'll end up having work on your car. Poor quality work at top dollar has always been my experience. Never had a shop give actual maintenance inspection & oversight, fix noises the first time, or take full responsibility for a mess up.. and those are never fun.

When I first bought this 98 Aurora I went to a lube shop who put in 5W-30 (spring heat in the desert) even though it was on the oil cap 10W-30. They also reimbursed me 20 bucks or whatever it was for the MAF I had to buy and wire in because they ripped mine out causing the car to misfire as I drove it away. Reset my own oil life indicator and the console still screamed "Change Oil" and "Change Transmission Fluid". They really did a number and had the lunacy to try to charge me to put in the right oil! They're lucky I didn't hand them a mechanic's bill for the MAF sensor.

This forum has been the greatest help with my Aurora! If I can't find it here I end up looking up Northstar engines on similar vehicles to find answers. Sometimes you can figure things out by looking at the same part on any other vehicle to understand what you're looking for.
My 98 non-autobahn has had several issues but I've been able to solve them all, cheaply, saving over a grand so far. Probably more considering the endless pit mechanics are, who will never fix the problem you came in for.. Love this car, sought it out because my friend used to have one. It sat on lots for 3+ years and may have been put into the ditch once by the looks of it (gotta look hard), but it's finally getting the love it needs.

It's sad that I have more confidence in myself than the mechanics I used to go to. I only know 1 that I trust locally but the majority of his business is fixing RV's, Fedex & UPS trucks, etc..

[guy48065]

Just last week I went to the Dodge dealer to see what's involved in completing a recall issued for the brake booster. I had done my homework & knew the first step was to visually determine if the recall was needed (it's actually a rubber boot OVER the booster). They wanted me to leave the truck there for 2 hours so "a trained mechanic would put it up on the hoist for a thorough inspection". If the recall was necessary it would take even longer.

Who needs a hoist to eyeball a brake booster? I left.

[human]

I like to do as much as I can with my cars and other things. I just wish I had better facilities, technical skill and time at my disposal.

Daily Driver: 2011 Impala LT
Weekend Toy: 1995 Aurora
Coming Soon: 1964 Dynamic 88 Convertible