The mechanic was behind it too.
@MikeInNH; not to start a fight here, but how would the mechanic or the service writer know you just did the timing belt.
I presume that they were going by mileage as an indicator.
I’m always skeptical too about dealers, but I also realize that they want to make work for their mechanic’s and money for the dealership. If not they would be out of business pretty fast, because they missed problems about to go seriously bad and that would give them a bad name too.
We all carp on the dealers for finding work, other than the work you came in for, but doesn’t the private, independent shop do the same.
We’d all have a fit if we took our car to Billy Bobs Repair…for new brakes and the mechanic missed the seriously bad ball joint, the bearing hub about to fall apart, and the squealing PS pump.
Yosemite
Yosemite has some good points.
I consider myself honest even though it can be financially painful; and sometimes very painful.
Most of the guys I’ve worked with in the past are the same way.
If a car is on the rack for an oil change is it going to get a lookover for other problems? Yes, in a New York minute.
Most of the cars I’ve serviced don’t even have the correct pressure in the tires. If someone can’t be bothered with the most basic service procedure of all there’s no reason to think they will bother with anything else.
@MikeInNH; not to start a fight here, but how would the mechanic or the service writer know you just did the timing belt. I presume that they were going by mileage as an indicator.
Why does that matter? If the went by mileage that’s just plain stupid. Most people (at least intelligent people) don’t get their vehicle serviced at the dealership. I was there for them to replace an exhaust gasket (which they were the only ones that had it)…NOTHING MORE. So they had no business just randomly inspecting vehicle. Sorry…any dealer that does that crap is just plain sleaze. I understand to recommend OBVIOUS problems…but they went out of their way to find bogus repairs.
@MikeInNH, a lot of people DON’T service vehicles.(eg period)…They simply change oil at a quick lube and that is all. This is how my wife and her sisters operate. Some of them are running about with 170k on OEM timing belts. My wife is tad better then them with 100k intervals. They all manage 150k-200k before they move onto the next car. They basically fix as needed which some includes service items.
So a dealer has customer come in they obviously upsell/advise and hopefully not oversell. You can say no and move on. Not sure why so angry.
I’m not sure what the dealer uses as a computer program for assisting in repairs, but they may have something where they put in a cars info (year, make model and mileage) for their own use on the invoice, and the program also spits out a list of required maintenance items that should be looked at.
I would look at a program like this NOT as a way to cheat the customer, but to help maintain that car and in the long run it brings in more work for the dealership.
The customer can always say NO!!!
I refuse the suggested maintenance that is listed at the bottom of the page when I have gone to the dealer, but I look at that list as a FREE list of things that “I” should look into.
I take it that MIkeInNH did his own timing belt, but most people don’t do their own. So how would that person ever know it should be replaced. We know they don’t read the manual and the independent mechanic would use mileage as an indicator for this repair too. If someone didn’t we wouldn’t be replacing the belt, but the entire engine…because nobody mentioned it was due for the repair.
My horseshoeing clients rely on me to tell them if I think their horse needs shoes. If I waited until that horse came up lame, the client would think I was doing a pretty piss poor job. He would also most likely come up lame a few weeks after I was there and they would call someone else to fix what they perceive as my poor skills.
You can always say you will consider the repairs and drive away.
Yosemite
So they had no business just randomly inspecting vehicle. Sorry…any dealer that does that crap is just plain sleaze.
How is that different from a good waiter asking if you want cocktails, recommending an appetizer, or telling you about the dessert options?
Every dog, every time. A good friend of mine is practice manager at a local veterinarian. They use a system similar to auto shops–every dog, every time. When the dog is in for service, either routine physical or treatment for an injury or illness, I get recommendations from them. Harvey is due for teeth cleaning, $110. Has he had his anal glands expressed, $80. When was the last flea treatment, $40. Science Diet has a new formulation that may help with his digestion, $35/bag. It keep the customer informed, active, and part of managing the dog’s well-being. To not bring up needed or possible maintenance or repair would be remiss. So assuming the car dealer operates under the same principles, the choices are either be sleazy or negligent.
If the went by mileage that’s just plain stupid
??? No, that’s the opposite of stupid, that’s the way it’s supposed to be done. Your owner’s manual doesn’t state to replace the belt when it breaks, it states to replace the belt at 105,000 miles. If your car is in for oil change and brake service, and it’s at 110,000 miles, and the service interval for your timing belt is 105,000, you bet I’m going to give you an estimate for your brake service and then tell you “Your car was due for timing belt service 5,000 miles ago.” Unless there’s a sticker on the cover indicating it was already done.
a lot of people DON’T service vehicles.(eg period).
So very true. I think most people on this forum seriously underestimate the number of people out there like that. There’s a great number of people out there for whom the car is just another appliance in life like the microwave or toilet, and gets about as much attention.
Just to add more fuel to this small fire regarding a shop’s recommendation about changing the timing belt on a vehicle with 110k miles…
How about this scenario?
A typically maintenance-averse customer has his/her car in the shop for routine service, the shop fails to mention that it is due/overdue for timing belt replacement, and the next day that belt snaps, causing catastrophic engine damage. You KNOW that this customer would blame the shop for not alerting him/her to the need for this service.
The expression, “Damned if you do, damned if you don’t” comes to mind here.
However, I think I would rather be criticized for recommending a particular type of service that might not be needed, instead of not mentioning it and then being blamed for the resulting breakdown and repairs.
@MikeInNH, a lot of people DON'T service vehicles.(eg period)
Again…so what?
I wasn’t there for an inspection…I was there for some simple exhaust work which should have cst me $50 (it was in the estimate)
But the list the gave me for IMMEDIATE repairs was just WRONG. Besides the timing belt…the said the drivers side cam seal needed replacing. There’s no way you can determine that unless you remove the upper timing belt cover (which the mechanic admitted he didn’t do). Radiator hoses weren’t OEM…So the said they needed to be changed…There was a lot more on the list…but I can’t remember…If you think that’s GOOD practice…fine. I sure as h*ll don’t. I took the estimate and filed it in the circular filer. Went to another dealer who fixed the donut flange for $50. I ended up buying my next Pathfinder from them.
We’re talking as if all dealers and all mechanics operate the same. They don’t.
- Some just blindly do what’s authorized. Even of a wheel were falling off they’d ignore it.
- Some stay observant as they do the authorized work and if they notice anything needed they note it.
- Some actively search for things that might need doing and list them.
- Some list anything they can find and anything that the vehicle’s age suggests MIGHT be needed (they list it all as critical needed whether they have any evidence to that effect or not).
- Some make up things without even bothering to see if they’re needed for the sole purpose f revenue generation.
- Some will actually damage something to generate revenue. Fortunately, this is IMHO very rare, but it does happen and I felt obligated to include it in the summary.
#1 is just plain poor service.
IMHO the #2 practice is the best and most honest.
I can live with the #3 practice, but it bothers me.
The #4 practice I consider overreach.
#5 is dishonest.
#6 should be punishable by prison time. Legally it actually is.
Did anyone complain about the oil level being down ? You aren’t…so a stain or two is not unusual. A car that old without a little leaking is NOT NORMAL. They are like small cracks in a foundation. If you don’t have any, let me come over and put some in…so it’s normal. ;-). As far as the battery is concerned, I would have it tested regularly as they age longer then four to five years somewhere else that does not make a living selling batteries. Or, you could buy your own tester with the money you will save from buying a new battery elsewhere.