Many people have had bad experiences with auto repair shops in the past.
Some folks can tell you one horror story after another about how one garage cheated them, another shop didn't fix the car correctly, and still yet another auto repair shop charged too much.
Having worked in the auto parts and service industry for over twenty years, I can tell you from experience that sometimes it can be difficult to find a shop that: 1.
Knows what they are doing and will repair your car correctly 2.
Will be honest with you about what the car really needs 3.
Will charge a fair price for the work.
Most shops will satisfy one or two of those points, but finding one that consistently satisfies all three can be a challenge.
Once you do find a shop that satisfies all three criteria, how do you make sure that they will treat you right every time you come in? The first and most important thing is for you to BE NICE! Most of the time, the guy (or gal) across the counter from you has some influence on what your auto repair costs.
I can tell you as an insider that rude customers are often charged more.
Also, if you haggle with the shop over the price, you may win THIS time, but they will likely "pad" the repair estimate the next time you come in.
Be genuinely nice (not just polite, but NICE!) to everyone in the repair shop, and an honest shop will charge you a fair price and be happy to accommodate any special needs or requests that you have.
The second thing you can do to get treated right by a garage is to give the same shop ALL of your business.
That way, you are building a relationship with the people there, they know what has been done (and what has not been done) to your vehicle, and they feel a responsibility to you because you are trusting them for all of your repairs.
When I worked at a full-service shop that did a lot of oil changes, many of our customers only used us for the discounted oil changes, but had another shop they used for everything else.
We were only breaking even on the oil changes, and our objective was to be able to get additional work from the inspections we did during the service.
When I would show a customer that his serpentine belt was in bad shape, only for him to tell me he would have "his mechanic" replace the belt for him, I promise you the customer that did that on a consistent basis did not get any breaks from us on his car repair costs when he couldn't wait to take the car to "his mechanic".
Another way to ensure that you are treated right is to bring the employees some goodies.
At one shop I worked at, we had a couple of customers who always brought donuts or homebaked cookies when they came in, whether they were getting an oil change or a major repair.
One customer would occasionally drop off a pot of homemade chili, a big bowl of potato salad, or a plate full of brownies, even when they weren't having work done on their car.
What kind of treatment (and discounts) do you think we gave to that customer? Those are the top three ways to ensure that your auto repair shop will treat you right.
It is imperative, though, that you find a garage to begin with that meets all three of the criteria above.
If you have found an honest, competent repair shop with reasonable prices, then make sure you are nice and friendly to everyone that works there, give them all of your automotive service business, and bring them some goodies (at least occasionally) when you come in.
If you follow these three rules, an honest shop will treat you right and be happy to see you, and in the long run you will reduce your auto repair costs.
Some folks can tell you one horror story after another about how one garage cheated them, another shop didn't fix the car correctly, and still yet another auto repair shop charged too much.
Having worked in the auto parts and service industry for over twenty years, I can tell you from experience that sometimes it can be difficult to find a shop that: 1.
Knows what they are doing and will repair your car correctly 2.
Will be honest with you about what the car really needs 3.
Will charge a fair price for the work.
Most shops will satisfy one or two of those points, but finding one that consistently satisfies all three can be a challenge.
Once you do find a shop that satisfies all three criteria, how do you make sure that they will treat you right every time you come in? The first and most important thing is for you to BE NICE! Most of the time, the guy (or gal) across the counter from you has some influence on what your auto repair costs.
I can tell you as an insider that rude customers are often charged more.
Also, if you haggle with the shop over the price, you may win THIS time, but they will likely "pad" the repair estimate the next time you come in.
Be genuinely nice (not just polite, but NICE!) to everyone in the repair shop, and an honest shop will charge you a fair price and be happy to accommodate any special needs or requests that you have.
The second thing you can do to get treated right by a garage is to give the same shop ALL of your business.
That way, you are building a relationship with the people there, they know what has been done (and what has not been done) to your vehicle, and they feel a responsibility to you because you are trusting them for all of your repairs.
When I worked at a full-service shop that did a lot of oil changes, many of our customers only used us for the discounted oil changes, but had another shop they used for everything else.
We were only breaking even on the oil changes, and our objective was to be able to get additional work from the inspections we did during the service.
When I would show a customer that his serpentine belt was in bad shape, only for him to tell me he would have "his mechanic" replace the belt for him, I promise you the customer that did that on a consistent basis did not get any breaks from us on his car repair costs when he couldn't wait to take the car to "his mechanic".
Another way to ensure that you are treated right is to bring the employees some goodies.
At one shop I worked at, we had a couple of customers who always brought donuts or homebaked cookies when they came in, whether they were getting an oil change or a major repair.
One customer would occasionally drop off a pot of homemade chili, a big bowl of potato salad, or a plate full of brownies, even when they weren't having work done on their car.
What kind of treatment (and discounts) do you think we gave to that customer? Those are the top three ways to ensure that your auto repair shop will treat you right.
It is imperative, though, that you find a garage to begin with that meets all three of the criteria above.
If you have found an honest, competent repair shop with reasonable prices, then make sure you are nice and friendly to everyone that works there, give them all of your automotive service business, and bring them some goodies (at least occasionally) when you come in.
If you follow these three rules, an honest shop will treat you right and be happy to see you, and in the long run you will reduce your auto repair costs.
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