Ian Koch is a publisher of Car Repair Info . Check out The-Car-Repair-Portal.com for more.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

We’ve all been there before holding that coupon in our hands and thinking, “Wow, a $5 oil change? What could be wrong with that?”

The low price leaders will frequently present the possibility of very inexpensive service when the exact opposite is the case. In situations like this, you will want to be very, very careful.

Keep this rule in mind: If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

For example, if you need to get your engine repaired, and three out of four shops tell you that based on the info, you’re looking at around $850 best case and $1350 worst case, and some other shop swoops in with, “We’ll have you out the door for less than $650″, well…

Something is wrong. Inhale deeply, because you will smell a rat.

Low ball car repair estimates are simply tools for pulling unsuspecting drivers through the front door. In situations like this, these predators will almost always find something wrong with your car and the repair will explode to over double what you were expecting.

Frequently the business plan of a technician running this sort of shop reads like this: A Sucker Is Born Every Minute. Avoid these shops like you would a stumbling, rotting zombie.Auto Repair Chicago #2: Premium Powerhouse

Right next to the low price leaders in terms of completely confusing customers are the premium powerhouses. These are auto repair facilities run by total perfectionists who break out in hives if they have to let a car out of their garage in less than tip top shape.

These shops are fantastic at what they do, and they’ll do everything possible to make sure your car is taken care of.

So what’s the problem? In almost every case they are the “good shops looking bad” because they are completely out of touch with their customers.

Picture this: single working mother making less than $35K per year needs to get a brake job. Why would she care about premium parts? What’s that extra $300 going to get her – less brake dust? Maybe an extra two months on the life of the pads? In a situation like this you do not need premium.

Another frequent problem is that these facilities have a very difficult time prioritizing a list of needed work. In most cases, they see the situation as everything needs to be fixed!

You will hear statements like, “It’s really not in your best interest to leave this problem lying around right now”

I recommend using shops like this only if you really want that level of attention.

Premium Powerhouses are fantastic for car enthusiasts and anyone else who wants to get zero info on the phone, but have them chat your ear off when you drop off the car.

In almost every case, you will be treated extremely well and your car will run almost better than the day you bought it. But it’ll cost you.Auto Repair Chicago #3: Middle Mayhem

The last group of shops falls into the Middle Mayhem category. These guys represent the vast majority of facilities out there, and the reason I use the word ‘mayhem’ is because mayhem is exactly what they have created.

Shops like this will frequently be all over the place in terms of estimates, information, reasons they can’t say anything over the phone, and just about everything else you can think of.

Be aware that the reason many of these facilities refuse to give solid info over the phone is because of the insane level of competition they have. Because of that, they like to play their cards close to their chest. (But don’t worry, the good ones will share quality info.)Auto Repair Chicago Golden Rule:

Middle Mayhem shops are the shops you want to focus most of your time calling. As you call more shops, you will become more comfortable weeding out the Low Ballers and Premium Powerhouses of your area.

While Middle Mayhem is the largest group of shops, you will want to pay special attention to how they are pricing their services. There are almost as many ways to price as there are shops to hand out estimates.

Above all else – If you do not make sure you’re comparing apples to apples and not apples to hairless cats, you could be in for a rude awakening. Check and double check. If in doubt, call back. It is their job to help you out.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Now you’re in the shop They’re looking at your car, charging you for it, and when they walk into the waiting room, wiping the grease off their hands, how do you know the car repair estimates they rattle off aren’t complete works of fiction?

Let’s pause for a moment of clarity. Just what is an car repair scam? We’d like to offer some auto repair help using this simple analogy… Going out to dinner.

Imagine walking into a restaurant any given night of the week. You’re craving (let’s say for sake of argument) a burger, fries and coke. You sit down, the waiter walks over, and before taking your order tells you about the specials. He tells you about their tender sirloin tips, sautéed in a cabernet butter sauce served with garlic mashed potatoes and delectable grilled asparagus spears drizzled with extra virgin olive oil. Your mouth begins to water, and you picture a glass of Shiraz to wash it all down.

Fast forward about an hour. You’re leaving full and happy having spent about $55 more than the original $12 you had planned on. Congratulations! You were just unsold.Let’s repeat this experience and this time explore a scam… You order the burger, fries and coke. The waiter brings you the carrot plate with an orange juice, charges you for the steak, and then the valet refuses to give you your keys until you pay for the entire dinner including tip and a saganaki you never even knew they served.

Now THAT is a scam.

The truly insidious problem with car repair is how hard it can be to tell the difference. Unlike dinner, the inner workings of your transmission can be subject to interpretation.The most powerful tool you have against car repair scams is this: Stop using auto repair service in Chicago that refuse to provide quality information over the phone or internet. We have a simple, hard and fast rule If a mechanic is not knowledgeable enough to provide at least basic, quality information when I contact them initially; he is not knowledgeable enough to be working on a vehicle. Period.

Service writers and technicians need to understand that the rest of the world lives in the information age. With the ability now for consumers to use free public resources (like IanAuto!) and get information to compare notes, mechanics must stop chanting the old mantra “Can’t tell you, won’t tell you! Bring it in and we’ll take a look”.Auto Repair Chicago – You Need To Be Aware.

You Are Not Helpless. You Do Have Choices The major reason for prescreening is that failure to do so opens you up to a host of potential scams and creepy, high pressure sales tactics.

How hard do you think it’ll be to reverse a mistake when your car is 6 feet in the air with the tires off and they’re pointing out fictitious emergencies?

And if the person on the phone is doing nothing but evading your direct questions, just picture the customer service if you have a problem later on.

Remember, there are some amazing auto service pros out there who will blow your mind with knowledge, honesty and willingness to share. People like this should be given a medal for saving customers on a daily basis. The best thing is they’re either a phone call our mouse click away!Auto Repair Chicago – Understanding A Very Important Fact:

While you should never use a mechanic who will not provide honest, direct answers to your questions, you must also know they will have to take a look at your car to give a realistic, accurate estimate. The truth is that almost 100% of car repair related situations do require a physical inspection by a trained service professional. Cars are highly complex machines and a problem with one system can frequently effect the performance of another.For example: Check Engine Lights. These little buggers pop on when there’s an issue with a sensor buried in some deep, obscure system. We can all blame the manufacturers for not making this easy to diagnose. In situations like this, there is no way to get around a systems test. You will have to bring in your vehicle, the technician will have to plug in a diagnostic tool, and within about an hour (in most cases) you’ll have a solid idea of what’s wrong. But why can’t the technician tell you that?

We have called hundreds of shops across the country and have been hearing the same thing from close to 96% of them: “Nope, we can’t tell you anything until we see it.” Or “We don’t give any information over the phone, you’ll have to bring it in.” We’ve heard these exact two sentences so many times at this point, we’re starting to think there’s a mechanic’s phone call evasion phrase book!Here’s a response directly from our database: This is a shop who knows how to answer your questions, even when there is no direct answer…

The “check engine” light is an indication something is wrong somewhere in your vehicle. What it’s saying is one or several sensors/components is failing or providing readings within specifications. Diagnosis and troubleshooting is required to determine the cause of the problem, and this will allow us to provide an accurate estimate regarding exactly what needs to be fixed. The cost for an initial diagnosis runs $X. You can expect the whole diagnosis process to take around an hour. Our technicians are trained to handle these problems and are available ASAP. Please call to set up an appointment.

Now isn’t that better than, “Nope. Can’t say until you bring it in”?Auto Repair Chicago – The Most Astounding Fact Ever: Your answers are found in your mechanic’s questions. Even though having knowledge of your vehicle is the #1 way to avoid a scam, you can offset being less than informed by digging out good questions from the mechanic. There’s a simple reason for this; it shows they know what they’re talking about.

Because cars have become amazingly complex systems, you should not expect to get a diagnosis over the phone or online. But you should expect information. When you call a shop, the person who picks up the phone should be able to tell you something about something. They should also be able to ask you enough questions to draw out info and further highlight their knowledge and professionalism. They should also disclose if they have an inspection fee, disclose if that fee will be waived if you approve the work, and then be courteous enough to ask for an appointment.

Brakes, engine trouble, weird smells, and noises… in almost every auto repair related situation you must find a person who may not give you an exact answer, but will be able to tell you exactly why.Auto Repair Chicago – Bottom Line: An up sell is offering premium parts instead of the basic stock; a scam is creating problems or lying about repairs needed. Scams can be avoided by finding a service pro who will directly address your questions and/or concerns. And while maybe not diagnosing your problem, at least offering quality information as to why.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.