A lot of people have a hard time getting mechanics to take them seriously when reporting car problems. Does your mechanic seem to talk over you, or try to convince you that you're imagining problems? Here's how to cut to the chase when your knowledge of cars is just about zilch.
Steps
- Before you go in, call about the problem so that you can find out what kind of questions they're likely to ask or what information they'll need from you when you take your car in for its service.
- Ask the service manager when is the best time to bring your car in so that you can have an unhurried chat about your vehicle.
- Go over the problems with him and give him a written report of the problems.
- If he doesn't know what you are talking about, have him drive it around the block so that he can acknowledge and understand your concerns. Make notes on your list in his technical-speak to make sure you're both on the same page.
- Leave the list with him.
- When you pick up your car, drive it around the block to check that all the problems have been solved and bring it back straight away if any of the problems persist.
- If your car is new and you have persistent problems that the service dealer cannot fix, call up the factory and arrange for their service department to look at it.
Tips
- Agree on costs before you give the go ahead on any work.
- Expect to pay some diagnostics charges before you can get a good quote for the necessary repairs.
- Ask to have your quote separated into necessary, immediate repairs and other maintenance recommended. Maintenance is important, but you want to separate fixing the current problem from preventing future problems.
- Ask about the warranty on the repair BEFORE the repair is performed.
- Do get a second opinion, or at least call a second shop to check the prices you are being quoted at the first shop.
- When getting a second opinion, going to a local College, University, or Technical school, may be your best bet. Since they are using your car for training, they will rarely try to "upsell" you into things you don't need.
- Going to the local College, University, or Technical school, although cheap because you don't have to pay labor, may take longer than you would like to wait. (They also rarely do regular maintenance work, to not steal away your business from local auto-shops).
- If you can, get someone who knows cars to come with you to the shop. The service advisor or mechanic will likely appreciate the help when you are explaining your problem(s) and when they are explaining the repairs back to you.
- If a mechanic sees that you don't know what you're talking about (or assumes it because you're a woman), they might try to rip you off at an disreputable garage.
- If your service advisor or mechanic cannot explain the repairs in a way you can understand, leave, and go to someone else. For the service advisor, this is the most important part of their job!
- Many car owners feel like the statement "we were unable to duplicate your concern" means the same thing as "we think you are crazy" or "we would rather be doing nothing than work on your car." This is simply not the case with a quality repair facility. Repair facilities rely on finding your problem in order to make a living. Sometimes, "we were unable to duplicate your concern" means they spent some time trying to get it to do as you described and were unable to do so.
Warnings
- Do not take your frustrations out on the service manager. They did not build or break your car. They are trying to help you get your car fixed!
- Hopping from car dealer to car dealer hoping to find a miracle "cure" can be counter productive, sometimes it's better to stick with a team who knows your car's history. If you have had your car to more than one mechanic, be sure to provide as much history as possible to your current mechanic, including copies of your previous work orders if possible.
- Remember that the mechanic who quotes you the cheapest price for a particular repair may not be the best. There can be huge differences in the quality of parts being used and in the warranty provisions for the repair.
Actually, more correctly, the subject is the three phases of maintenance.
You may have heard it said, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." That is the beginning of many problems. Phases one and two of maintenance require "fixing" what isn't broken.
1. The most obvious phase of maintenance is the repair function. Very simply stated, this means, "if it breaks, fix it." This is actually the third phase and means exactly what it says. It is a last resort and should arise only at infrequent intervals.
2. Phase one is systematic daily maintenance. The machine operator is usually responsible for this part. You may have simply cleans the equipment, observing anything out of the ordinary and reporting it to the maintenance department. This allows replacement of parts about to malfunction thus preventing chaining of problems.
3. Phase two is the regularly scheduled maintenance to include changing of fluids, thorough cleaning of parts not normally seen by the operator and a more detailed inspection for parts about to malfunction. This would include parts that are bent or broken, to include any possible cracks, obvious wear and signs of lack of lubrication.
4. It can readily be seen that proper performance of phases one and two will greatly reduce the occurrence of phase three, breakdown repair.
5. The greatest incentive for performing phases one and two regularly is that machine breakdown will invariably occur when the machine is used, and most often when it is being used most heavily. A machine that is idle simply doesn't break down.
