Archive for September, 2007

Check engine light is on

Sunday, September 9th, 2007

check engine light image(Quick story) I remember one time my sister had her car repaired when she was out of town.

She was driving and her check engine light came on. She called me in a panic. I told her to take it to a chain store and hope for the best but to ask for the old parts back.

The shop said the vehicle needed an o2 sensor and my sister confirmed the light was out and received the old part.

When she got back in town I asked to see her old part, it was not an o2 sensor but an egr valve off of a large diesel engine. Definitely not from her little economy car gas engine.

When I looked under her car the old original o2 sensor was still in the exhaust stream.

To make a long story short the shop just cleared the check engine light and let her go after confirming with her she was heading back to her home state.
Two things to learn from this. One if you have out of state tags tell the shop you just moved to the state your in and have not changed your tags yet.

The shop knows that if you are a transient customer that they will never see you again and can give you the royal screw over with no problems.

The second lesson is if you ask for the old parts back know what the part looks like.

Have the shop show you the old part on the car before they remove it so you can confirm it is the part quoted in the repair estimate.

Learning some basic automotive skills will make you feel more confident about going in for auto service. The service writer or service manager will instantly recognize this confidence.

A consumer that understands the vehicle and how the auto service business works is usually passed over when it comes time to apply the rip offs and scams.

For more information on check engine light diy diagnosis. For more info on protecting yourself from auto repair rip-offs.

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Beware of cheap oil change services

Monday, September 3rd, 2007

The simple oil change service. There are many kinds of shops that perform this service. Dealerships, chain stores, quick lube centers, independent shops and mobile auto repair service.

They all view the service as an opportunity to up sell you something else.

The profit margin on an oil change service is very small. The shop considers this an acceptable loss because it provides them an opportunity to look your vehicle over very carefully.

The shop calls this an at bat. And sometimes they strike out but most of the time they hit a homerun.

Being under your vehicle and then in the engine compartment to refill the oil provides them with all the opportunity needed to work up a nice big list.

Even the quick lube centers that do not even have qualified technicians are selling services like coolant flushes transmission fluid changes fuel injection cleaning and more.

It cracked me up when they started selling windshield services where they would apply a rain shedding product and new wiper blades for about $75.00.

When I say that quick lube centers do not employee qualified technicians I am being truthful.

These auto repair service shops pay a very low hourly rate and there fore are unable to find a certified technician to work for $7.00 - $9.00 an hour.

This could spell trouble for some customers. An oil change is a simple operation but if done incorrectly major engine damage can result.

For more information on how to protect yourself from the common oil change service scam visit my inside the Auto repair business page.

 

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