# Surprise **URL:** \ **Category:** General Discussion\ **Created:** [June 20, 2014, 8:18pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/surprise/85545 "2014-06-20T20:18:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![my2cents](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@my2cents](https://community.cartalk.com/u/my2cents)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2014, 8:18pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/surprise/85545/1 "2014-06-20T20:18:54Z")
…at least I was. I’d have thought the states with the largest cities would account for the most expensive car repairs (simply because of the cost of living if for no other reason). Why is North Carolina and not New York or California at the top of the list? > **[In what state will car repairs cost you the most?](http://www.cnbc.com/2014/06/20/in-what-state-will-car-repairs-cost-you-the-most.html)** > > North Carolina is the most expensive state for car repairs, according to a report by CarMD. ---
**Author:** ![missileman](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/missileman/32/1366_2.png) [@missileman](https://community.cartalk.com/u/missileman)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2014, 9:34pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/surprise/85545/2 "2014-06-20T21:34:40Z")
I don’t think that I would put too much faith in this report. I have a friend in Honolulu who says that everything is higher in Hawaii and I can believe that since they are so far from the mainland. ---
**Author:** ![Caddyman](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/caddyman/32/23_2.png) [@Caddyman](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Caddyman)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2014, 10:26pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/surprise/85545/3 "2014-06-20T22:26:11Z")
“North Carolina is the most costly state when it comes to car repairs, with costs 8.65 percent higher than the national average, according to a CarMD report outlined in the Christian Science Monitor.” I suspect the methods used to compile this “report” were so faulty as to make them meaningless…They tried to track “check engine light” repairs which can vary greatly state to state depending on emissions testing and repair laws… ---
**Author:** ![wesw](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/wesw/32/2713_2.png) [@wesw](https://community.cartalk.com/u/wesw)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2014, 12:30am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/surprise/85545/4 "2014-06-21T00:30:00Z")
any study or poll can be slanted. I don t put much stock in them or give much credence to people who use them in their arguements ---
**Author:** ![jtsanders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c2a13f/32.png) [@jtsanders](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jtsanders)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2014, 1:05am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/surprise/85545/5 "2014-06-21T01:05:43Z")
I don’t think there is any ulterior motive in the report, but I’m skeptical about how the study was constructed. First, it looks like the CarMD study was just for CONUS; Hawaii, Alaska and Puerto Rico are not included. Also, it would seem that anywhere with a high cost of living would have high auto repair costs. Therefore, it seems like The SF Bay area, Los Angeles, and San Diego would pull Cali up to one of the top 5. But maybe the rest of Cali drops the average down. There is not any useful information on CarMD to explain the top 5. ---
**Author:** ![ok4450](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e9bcb4/32.png) [@ok4450](https://community.cartalk.com/u/ok4450)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2014, 7:02am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/surprise/85545/6 "2014-06-21T07:02:47Z")
I’m not buying into that story at all. They claim it’s “apples to apples” when apparently it is no such thing. They claim this because repairs are related to the Check Engine Light and that can run the gamut from minor to major with a lot of influences on what has been done. If they were comparing the exact same repair under the same book time and if parts markups were similar, ad nauseum, then they might have a point. It’s also CarMD the same hucksters who sponsor those erroneous TV infomercials. ---
**Author:** ![asemaster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@asemaster](https://community.cartalk.com/u/asemaster)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2014, 7:07am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/surprise/85545/7 "2014-06-21T07:07:44Z")
As a professional mechanic who was raised by a mother who said if you can’t say anything nice about something don’t say anything at all, I say:… ---
**Author:** ![ok4450](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e9bcb4/32.png) [@ok4450](https://community.cartalk.com/u/ok4450)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2014, 7:12am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/surprise/85545/8 "2014-06-21T07:12:23Z")
CarMD has plenty to say in their infomercials about the mechanic profession…and most of it not good. ---
**Author:** ![db4690](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/db4690/32/2583_2.png) [@db4690](https://community.cartalk.com/u/db4690)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2014, 9:00am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/surprise/85545/9 "2014-06-21T09:00:08Z")
CarMD is a bunch of muckrakers Agreed? ---
**Author:** ![tardrex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/34f0e0/32.png) [@tardrex](https://community.cartalk.com/u/tardrex)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2014, 9:11am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/surprise/85545/10 "2014-06-21T09:11:07Z")
I think the key words are " National Average" They could be %8.65 higher than the national average and still be less expensive than the big cities. ---
**Author:** ![ok4450](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e9bcb4/32.png) [@ok4450](https://community.cartalk.com/u/ok4450)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2014, 9:52am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/surprise/85545/11 "2014-06-21T09:52:04Z")
Agreed that CarMD is a bunch of muckrakers but the word I’d use is a bit more crude. A cut and paste below from CarMD’s website which brings up the point of why bother with CarMD at all unless the consumer is intent on wasting the mechanic’s time going after a freebie… Always consult with a qualified automotive technician before making repairs. ---
**Author:** ![my2cents](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@my2cents](https://community.cartalk.com/u/my2cents)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2014, 2:10pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/surprise/85545/12 "2014-06-21T14:10:53Z")
I checked the carmd website for a bit more info. Here’s an example of what’s available: > **[About us - CarMD](https://www.carmd.com/wp/)** > > CarMD takes the mystery, expense and worry out of cars through technology that powers first and third party auto diagnostic apps, software, and tools. Anyone think this list is remotely accurate? Comments? BTW it looks like their main product is an OBD II reader. ---
**Author:** ![my2cents](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@my2cents](https://community.cartalk.com/u/my2cents)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2014, 2:15pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/surprise/85545/13 "2014-06-21T14:15:52Z")
Sorry. Looks like I posted the summary page. Anyways click on index data and scroll down to the top 25 check engine vehicle repairs. Comments? ---
**Author:** ![insightful](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/insightful/32/2732_2.png) [@insightful](https://community.cartalk.com/u/insightful)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2014, 9:17pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/surprise/85545/14 "2014-06-21T21:17:18Z")
What we don’t know is what % of those repairs actually fixed the original problem.