I disagree with asemaster, I assume the customer handed over the belt to the shop when he signed the repair order quoting a 1.5 hours of labor. That should have included the replacement of the belt.
So this is a little off topic, but I understand concerns shops may have regarding the wrong parts if the customer supplies them. But what if you want a specific brand for some reason (I’m sure enthusiasts like Brembo breaks or whatever all over the place, all the time - are there special shops they go to?) - would you order them and then install them? Or if I don’t want to be a mechanic I just have to take “whatever the shop is selling that day”? Maybe I need to find a special modding shop? But for breaks? Of course, I also wish they’d just charge labor what it costs for the labor rather than marking up parts, but I guess that doesn’t fly.
I do hate how fast and loose many shops I’ve dealt with seem to be with small add ons. Like the shop that called me to tell me they fixed my problem, and oh a headlight was out and we fixed that for an additional $42.50. Wuh huh? I mean, that is something I can probably do myself for like $12 and 5 minutes. I probably would have paid it anyway if asked, and did pay it, but it made me much less likely to go back to that shop in the future.
@jp10558
The solution is simple, in my opinion
Ask the shop to obtain and install those Brembo brakes for you
That way, if the wrong part shows up, or there was an installation error, it’s the shop’s responsibility to resolve the problem. Because the shop probably stands behind their parts and labor for 1 year
It looks like the shop’s mistake was not informing the customer before replacing the two belts. However, the customer did get work he likely needed for a fair price.
@DexT: Don’t you think your best option is to be happy for the fair price you were charged and to let it go?
I do hate how fast and loose many shops I’ve dealt with seem to be with small add ons. Like the shop that called me to tell me they fixed my problem, and oh a headlight was out and we fixed that for an additional $42.50. Wuh huh? I mean, that is something I can probably do myself for like $12 and 5 minutes. I probably would have paid it anyway if asked, and did pay it, but it made me much less likely to go back to that shop in the future.
You know, you’re entirely within your rights to say “Oh, no thanks. I’ve got a new headlamp at home I’ll put in tonight.” That’s what I would have done. I mean if you were a long-time customer with a standing order to fix anything and never cared about the cost that’s one thing, but I won’t do much more than a $6 bulb without talking to the customer first.
Db, your suggested solution is perfect.
And now, in the interest of full disclosure, I’m so used to buying my own parts, and have such strong preferences, that when on occasion I do need a shop I have a compulsive urge to get the parts myself. Sometimes it’s because I want to do the work myself but realize after getting the parts that I’m not 25 anymore. I did that with my front struts earlier this year (or was it last year?). I had all the parts together, and… hobbling out with my cane… realized there was no way I’d be able to get those strut bolts free in the driveway on jackstands. So I chickened out. It beats ending up in the hospital getting epidural injections for the pain with the car sitting half done at home in the driveway. I’ve had enough epidural injections for one lifetime.
Fortunately, they guys where I go when I do need a shop know me, and they get not only the parts but also the Scion exploded view drawings complete with torque values and a complete parts list with the Toyota part numbers so they can verify the parts.
I don’t recommend that customers buy their own parts. If a customer has a preference, Db’s solution is the correct one.
@jp10558 But what if you want a specific brand for some reason (I’m sure enthusiasts like Brembo breaks or whatever all over the place, all the time - are there special shops they go to?) - would you order them and then install them?
I’m one of those people, I’m pretty specific about what parts I use on my vehicles. I don’t want the shop to use cheap white box crap on my cars. So I do bring in my own parts. There are two shops I use and neither has a problem with outside parts, but it’s understood that they don’t warranty the parts your bring in. Which is acceptable to me. One shop is a typical small independent shop. The other is more of speed shop and deals more in high performance cars, most of which are modified.
Brembo brakes are a good example. I have Brembos on my Mustang, I have four piston calipers in front and two piston calipers in back. The rotors are Brembos and the pads are EBC Redstuffs. As you might imagine Brembos are significantly more expensive than typical brakes but they aren’t any more labor intensive or anything to install (rotors and pads). So to me, I’m not willing to pay an additional markup (percentage wise) on having a shop procure them on my behalf. When I build a client a computer, the labor rate is the same no matter how expensive the parts in a build cost. For example putting a $1000 CPU in motherboard takes the same amount of time and effort as a $70 CPU does. So I can’t in good conscious charge someone more just because the part is more expensive. Though I realize that many automotive shop do charge more for pricier parts because they mark up parts by a percentage, and that’s their prerogative, I just don’t use such shops.
@JoeMario - Yes, I would have been happy paying what’s fair. The problems I had with my experience with the service advisor was: lack of communication and the assumption that customer will just pay and because of these problems, it felt like a bait & switch.
But as Mr. Milton once conveyed, every cloud has a silver lining. Upon learning that I was unhappy with the additional charge, Danny, the owner of the shop, asked me to stop by the shop so that he could process a refund. This gesture really affirms my 1st impression about Danny and why I’ve given him my business in the 1st place. He is just a FIRST class kinda guy. Kudos Danny for taking the high road!
Now, the service advisor who works for Danny however, because of other qualities that he showed during our few interactions, let’s just say if he’s given enough rope, we know what he will do.
IF it’s OK to shop-name-drop in this forum, please let me know and I will post Danny’s shop contact information. Otherwise, here’s a few hints on how to find him if you are in the North Dallas area (Plano TX) - his shop is just east of the Central Expressway (i75). He was a Porsche mechanic himself and the shop works almost exclusively on exotic cars.
This strikes close to the reason I take my car to, Gasp! Choke! the dealer. Chances are good that any other shop will be pressuring me to accept rebuilt parts to increase his profits, and turn my car into useless sludge. The dealer uses new parts, and so I don’t have to replace them again in a year as I have always had to do with rebuilt parts.
Irlandes, I know we often talk long and hard about the dealers’ higher costs and (IMHO) tendency to want you to pay them to make the car like new again… they provide a long list of expensive “must dos”… however, I truly believe that if you feel more confident taking your car to the dealer, than that’s what you should do. I support you on this.
This is going to come down to when the shop was informed about the new belts.
Did you say I need a pump and belts replaced, or did you ask for the pump to be replace and give them the belts when you drop it off and say, I have new belts if they need to be replaced. From the wording it sounds like you asked for the pump to be replace and after you drop the car off said you have new belts if they need to be replaced.
If you didn’t ask for the belts to be replaced when you asked about replacing the pump, then the charge is fair. And you did give them permission to replace the belts if they needed to be replaced. If you made it clear when you asked for the estimate that the belts also needed to be replaced then it’s unfair of them to charge you.
I’m glad the owner and you worked it out, but really unless you made it clear that you also wanted the belts changed at the same time the pump was changed you own them for the work they done.