How can I tell if im getting pooped on when I go to a mechanic - General

Sitting at a oil change place right now. I went in to get an oil change. As I haven't the past year of driving. They do their work and then they come to me saying "yeah man the transmission fluid is burnt and is all sorts of fucked up" I say go ahead and fix it. So that's 117$ + 55$ for oil change. So while doing the flush one guy comes in and says "Hey man... The belt on your engine is falling apart!" In fear of being swindled I pretend to know what I'm doing by saying, let me check it out. He walks me over to the car where 5 other people were standing. The guy says "look" as he pinches the belt as it bends with ease. He said "the belt should be this firm and this wide" as he showed me a belt still in its packaging. I say do it. So now they've got me for a few hundred dollars. [editline]25th September 2012[/editline] Did they just milk me like an old lady? I guess I should mention when they gave me my old belt back it was frayed and shit. Idk how bad that is.

It depends on the shop. Look up Yelp reviews or Google reviews of the place. They should be a decent indication. It's hard to tell if you got ripped off or not without looking at your car myself, but it's certainly a possibility.

Just checked. It has 7, 1 star reviews on yahoo. #yolo #fuckthepolice But belts should be changed if they have a tear down the middle for half the belt length right?

i'm more curious to how a tear like that happens, but yes, they usually should be replaced after any sort of damage [editline]25th September 2012[/editline] out of curiosity what kind of lawnmower do you cart around in

A very old and rarely serviced 1999 Ford Expedition.

Start saving money now. Just kidding.

Best way to not get swindled is to study you car. Get the original factory service manual of it whether PDF version or otherwise, start reading. Learn about scheduled services, look at specs and measurements, look at fluid types. Learn the basics first like whats the best oil measurement for the engine, how many quarts or gallons does thr cooling system need for a flush? Take it from me who got swindled because I did not know anything about my car. Its not the case today

[URL="http://facepunch.com/showthread.php?t=1213187"]http://facepunch.com/showthread.php?t=1213187[/URL] Excellent thread with a link to a completely free repair manual. It even has TSB's and wiring diagrams!

Here's an answer to thread title: Check to see if you are going to a mechanic. If you answered yes, then you are getting "pooped on" by your mechanic. After running a shop for a long time I realize how crooked other shops are. Any time I'd get in a job that was outsourced to me from another shop or brought to me after another shop had repaired it, I was disgusted at the quality of labor and amount the customer had to pay. I always tried to do things as cheap as possible for everyone, often doing tiny things for free just to get them on their way. Other shops, especially large-name ones, are giving every shop a bad name by overpricing labor on jobs done by shoddy "certified" mechanics who just got out of high school. It's a damned shame, I tell you. Even when I tried being cheap and affordable, people shat on my business. I recall a specific time when an older gentleman came in with a tire and wheel in the back of his truck and requested it to be fixed -- something we did for $10, like every other business in our area. It was an exceptionally large hole and I had to use a plug patch, which is a combination patch that costs more than a standard tire patch, but did not charge him the extra $2 we usually charge. I told him it'd be $10 when I was done and he acted surprised that it costed $10, like every other place in the area. "$10 to fix a flat?!" he said. He continued to rant about how that was a "ridiculous price!", but did not once mention that he should have had it repaired somewhere else (understandably because it would have cost more in gas to drive 15 miles to the nearest place to fix it, Wal-Mart, who also charges $10). So I look down at the tire and wheel, toss it in the back of his truck, and tell him that it's on me, and to have a nice day. He was a bit dumbfounded and asked if I was sure, I reassured him, shook his hand and sent him on his way. I'd rather he have what he wanted than be in a bad mood over a petty $10 bill. Thinking back on all of the shit times I had serving unappreciative people for underpriced jobs, I'm really glad I'm out of the business in a way. But sad that the only alternative around here are the expensive repair shops who overcharge the gullible citizens in need of auto repair. Regardless, if you're in need of repairs, take it to a well-known but non-name-brand shop in your area, those are usually the best mix of price and quality of work. Lesser known shops tend to botch repairs, and name-brand places are big spending for even the smaller things. Learning to do it yourself is great too, but I won't be like everyone telling you to do it yourself and never take it to a shop -- it's hard to learn! Hands-on experience is the best, and without it, you won't get far. Reading about working on an engine and working on an engine are two VERY different worlds, but don't be afraid to get your hands dirty if you're really willing to learn. It takes practice to get good at something.

It seems like a lot of mechanics are like best buy geek squad people who try to shove everything down your throat. Thanks

Some of the things Bradley said are true for regional things. There's a Big O Tires that I found the people who work there actually know their shit, and while they still have corporate pricing (usually a ripoff) I have no qualms about the quality of work that I have seen them done to the vehicles of family and friends. I also have a buddy who owns two Preludes who I reference often for advice who happens to work at the O'Reilly across the street. But yeah, for the most part what Bradley said is true, but just keep in mind it doesn't always hold true universally. [editline]25th September 2012[/editline] Of course these things are based on the individuals working there, there are still cheap ass scumbags everywhere.

Don't trust dealer mechanics either. At times they are so much more worse than the known professional. Who would you rather trust, recently-cert mechanics at your dealership or this guy who owns a family business for as long as the neighborhood was there and knows the every ins and outs of your car? But nothing beats the work of your own hands. You'll be relieved to know you fixed your own crud and no one else to blame if something goes wrong. Plus, you're going to be saving lots of $$$$

My teacher is a dealer mechanic He said that there's 3 kids there who know fuck all about cars but their mommies and daddies work there so they got them jobs. "Dude the engine service light is on but its not throwing any codes?!"

[QUOTE=sHiBaN;37804784]Don't trust dealer mechanics either. At times they are so much more worse than the known professional. Who would you rather trust, recently-cert mechanics at your dealership or this guy who owns a family business for as long as the neighborhood was there and knows the every ins and outs of your car? But nothing beats the work of your own hands. You'll be relieved to know you fixed your own crud and no one else to blame if something goes wrong. Plus, you're going to be saving lots of $$$$[/QUOTE] I called the BMW dealer in Mississauga before I went and bought Sheila, and that guy was massively helpful. He told me how to do basic maintenance and proper repairs, and never once said "well come in and we'll look at it for you, but you'll have to pay us".

What. You go to a mechanic to get oil change You are inferior It's literally the simplest task ever,pouring oil from a can into a hole

[QUOTE=IPK;37897759]What. You go to a mechanic to get oil change You are inferior It's literally the simplest task ever,pouring oil from a can into a hole[/QUOTE] no need to be an ass about it

[QUOTE=Mr_Razzums;37799195]Sitting at a oil change place right now. I went in to get an oil change. As I haven't the past year of driving. They do their work and then they come to me saying "yeah man the transmission fluid is burnt and is all sorts of fucked up" I say go ahead and fix it. So that's 117$ + 55$ for oil change. So while doing the flush one guy comes in and says "Hey man... The belt on your engine is falling apart!" In fear of being swindled I pretend to know what I'm doing by saying, let me check it out. He walks me over to the car where 5 other people were standing. The guy says "look" as he pinches the belt as it bends with ease. He said "the belt should be this firm and this wide" as he showed me a belt still in its packaging. I say do it. So now they've got me for a few hundred dollars. [editline]25th September 2012[/editline] Did they just milk me like an old lady? I guess I should mention when they gave me my old belt back it was frayed and shit. Idk how bad that is.[/QUOTE] You actualy cant see if the belts are worn out unless you remove it and bend it like [IMG]http://i.imgur.com/8hnWa.png[/IMG] inside out. You want to see the inside

How you can tell the serp belt needs to be replaced, A ticking or weird noise coming from the engine. YOu can hear it in your car. Physically looking at the belt some have wear indicators where a color will show or wording. Or just in general if you see a crack or warping/streching then it's time to replace it. The mavis by me where my grandfather loves to bring his car has a deal of lifetime warrenty brakes, they wear out you come back pay 90 in labor and get new brakes. Anyway I paid 120 for his car at my shop for new brakes to show him the difference between that shit he gets and quality brakes. Anyway He brought the car back to mavis a couple of weeks later for something exhaust related ~ His pads are worn down extremely, you need new ones ~ His alignment is horrible and tires needed to be balanced So he just got the exhaust issue fixed and told me they said his brakes and tires were shit atm. I brought the car back to shop and realized the alignment is perfect still. Ready to go off about the brakes which worked perfectly fine they took two pads off for me showed me them next to brand new ones and they looked literally the same (Besides the new scraping from braking :v:). Anyway They checked the PSI on all tires and everything was fine. Did all of that for free just to make sure i stayed with them and didn't doubt them one bit. Saved my grandfather money and made them a new customer

[QUOTE=cNova;37936562]You actualy cant see if the belts are worn out unless you remove it and bend it like inside out. You want to see the inside[/QUOTE] Wat You check the tension between pulleys to see belt wear, you press down on it and if it stretches out-of-spec its done. You can also twist it to look at the underside for cracks or shredded lining. Besides you'll hear the squeaking