I can relate to the original poster and even had a bit of a recent coolant loss problem after a long trip that had me worried. What I did was to book it in for a cylinder compression test , and a pressure test of the coolant system. $100 later I knew I did not have a blown head gasket and no coolant leaks. Sometimes when you have no idea what the problem is, or suspect you may have one, the best thing to do is to pay for a test or two.
Extremely Sorry! I feel so good I can’t contain it. I went to the dentist Wednesday and the tooth cleaning chick asked if I’d had any health changes since spring? I responded, “Yes, I just keep getting better!”
It’s not that I don’t have any aches and pains, arthritis, etcetera (because I do), but I’ve come to realize that a positive attitude and a lot of effort, do a lot for one’s health outlook, much more than one could imagine.
CSA
Most mechanics around here charge $65-100 for a basic diagnostics of a vehicle and this seems reasonable. This runs off those who have no intention of paying and then plan to fix the problem themselves once they know what is wrong. I talk to those in any service business and this is a common problem. Even better, when the person messes something up while trying to fix it themselves, they try to blame the service person for giving them bad advice. An HVAC guy had some customers do this after the customer didn’t turn off power to their unit and cooked a main control board while attempting their own repairs.
I stay pretty busy these days. There was one time a while back I thought I was having an ECU problem on a vehicle. I took it to a mechanic and it was a cheap relay or something. Yes, I paid them for the work and part but it was cheaper than my conclusion that the ECU was bad. I would have been really frustrated to replace that and not solve the problem.
Charging money upfront for a diagnosis runs off most of the troublesome customers as well which is worth a lot.
Then there are the customers who already “know” what is wrong and don’t want to pay the diagnostics fee because all you need to do it replace a certain part from a Youtube video or AutoZone code scan. I did say I would do this at one point but would require a signed form acknowledging that I wouldn’t be liable if this didn’t solve the problem which ran that customer away. They were looking to pull something. Again, this is reason to stand on your head and require an upfront free.
Again, this article is 7 pages of great reading about the problem with experts being disregarded. https://okhumanities.org/Websites/ohc/images/spring%20summer%202018/How%20America%20Lost%20Faith%20in%20Expertise.pdf
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I did not ask for a diagnosis, just booked it to have two specific tests done, and to get another set of eyes on the vehicle.
With regard to the original posters complaint, its not the first guy who bothers me so much, but the second guy who suggested that he needed to spend 1600 to replace the radiator and water pump before he could diagnose a blown head gasket. That was pretty suspicious, and I think dishonest…
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I had a hard time passing the 2 mile run for the Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT) due to a knee injury from high school football. I was sent to a civilian orthopedic surgeon for an evaluation. He was a skinny marathon runner vegetarian and suggested l lose 15 pounds, eat better, (I have loved vegetables all my life), and do lots of low impact exercise. I was already doing cycling and water aerobics. He did suggest I do the alternate 10K bicycle ride instead of the run. I passed it every time. Less than 6 months after my examination he dropped dead of cardiac arrest at age 55! A “healthy” lifestyle does not make you immortal. I was sad for his early demise. He was a nice guy and only concerned for his patients health. My maternal Grandfather was missing his toes and part of a foot due to an industrial accident. He used a cane but walked at least a mile every day weather permitting. He cooked incredible breakfasts. Including (not all at once) eggs, bacon, ham, sausage, plus biscuits, homemade bread toast, grits, fried potato wedges and hash browns with sausage or ground beef gravy. He was born in Virginia and my Grandmother in Arkansas. They cooked Southern. I loved telling health food granola crunchers about my Grandfathers cooking. They would nearly always say he must have died young. I would lower my eyes, slowly shake my head and answer. “Yeah, killed him dead at 90”! Returning to cars. My Grandfather purchased 4 year old Cadillac’s from their owners. They had depreciated to 1/3rd purchase price or less by then. He was very skilled at inspecting them. He was also very skilled at maintaining them. I remember his “Caddys” being like new cars.
I have only experienced one attempted “rip off” and one actual one. The first was with my nearly new 2002 Mitsubishi Eclipse. It was a 5 speed M/T. I was stopped at a red light. I usually shift to neutral but keep my foot on the brake to illuminate the brake lights. The brake pedal slowly sunk almost to the floor. I released it and it had normal pressure. I didn’t know if it had one but suspected a defective hydraulic system pressure relief valve. I drove it to the dealership and a mechanic climbed in started it and confirmed what he called the “pressure valve”. He said it would take about an hour. It did and when I went to the cashier to retrieve my keys I was presented with a $90 bill for diagnostics! I said this was a warranty claim. They said warranty covers parts and labor not diagnostics. Really? I worked at a Buick dealership for 2 years and knew this was total BS. The diagnostics took 3 minutes. I asked if they could dial Mitsubishi USA and hand me the phone so I could confirm this. They said they would wave the diagnostic fee this time. I evaded that attempted scam. Fortunately I never had another warranty claim and had scheduled maintenance done at a trusted independent shop. I would not trust that crooked lying dealership’s service department to check my oil. On the other hand I had a very good experience with their sales department. The only actual rip off was when my 1990 Mazda Rx7 GTU S made it to the grocery store then failed to restart. No sound from the fuel pump. I called my next door neighbor who rescued me and my groceries. The next morning I walked 1.5 miles to a well recommended independent mechanic. When I told him I had a problem with a Mazda RX7. He stated “I don’t do rotaries”! I tried to explain it was a fuel pump not an engine problem he shouted “I DON’T DO ROTARIES”. OK… I called a school buddy who had a shop in the capitol city specializing in Mazda rotaries. He had sold his business and now repaired computers. He was confident the current owners ‘Budget Automotive’ were competent and worked on Mazda rotaries. I had towing insurance and had my car flat-bedded to the shop. They informed me the Mazda dealer did not have a fuel pump in stock and it would be about 3 days to get one. Enterprise was about 3 blocks away so I walked there and rented a car. The next day the shop called me at work and said the Mazda dealer discovered they had the fuel pump and my car was running fine. It was a Friday. I left work. turned in the rental and picked up my car. $629 which I fortunately charged on my VISA card. parts $224 Labor 4.5 hours at $90 per hour $405. Most of the labor was remove and replace the fuel tank. Saturday I received the Haynes manual I had ordered from Amazon and the car would again not start. R&R of the fuel pump was rather simple. Roll the carpet out of the way, remove the access panel then simply R&R the fuel pump. The electrical connector was the only thing with grime wiped off. the fuel pump had not been removed or the fuel tank. I took photos. The clips? that held the electrical connection in place were limp. I zip tied it together and it ran fine until I sold the car a few years later. I took Monday off from work and first went to the Mazda dealer parts department. The last sale on record to the shop was 3 months old for a suspension part. Flat rate for the fuel pump R&R was .8 hours! They gave me a print out. I took that and my printed photos to the state attorney general office consumer protection. A very helpful lady said she was not familiar with auto mechanics but it was obvious these parts had not been removed. unfortunately there were no other complaints filed against the shop. They were given a copy of the complaint and of course denied everything. I was given a copy which got my charge removed by VISA although I think in these cases the crooks have already been paid.
My parents had a crooked dealer sell them a lemon and then not fix it correctly under the warranty.
They were young and I was just a few years old so mildly remember the car and its behavior. They bought a “new” car at a significant discount because it had 9,000 miles on it. Yes, this was sold as a “new” car and not program or demo as they sometimes call these.
It was obvious real quick there was something wrong with the transmission. The transmission would freewheel, allowing the RPMs to spike, and then engage hard. The car would stall at slow speeds/RPM or do a burn out if you were really pushing it. The dealer tried to tell my parents they didn’t know how to drive a car and all kinds of other crap. The dealer finally took it in for warranty and said the idle was set too low so they set the idle much higher and that there was a vacuum leak.
All they did was mask the problem by setting the idle higher and always denied there was a problem. My parents took it back in several times and never got any resolution. They went back like a month after the warranty was up for a “minor adjustment” and were then told that the transmission needed to be rebuilt.
I took driver’s ed in high school and it somehow came out that this dealer once loaned cars to the local school district for use in the driver’s ed program. They would take the car back before 10,000 miles and give them a new one. The same model of car was used that my parents had owned. I told my parents and they said that there was something about the car that made them wonder about this.
I remember being in the car with the teacher and a panicked first time driver. The driver had the gas pedal to the floor and the teacher was hard on the auxiliary brake, holding the car still as the engine raced against the resistance of the transmission. I can only imagine the heat generated in the torque converter, clutches, and fluid itself by this type of abuse going on day after day.
The dealer definitely misrepresented the car. I am not a fan of dealers as a whole or any type of car salesman for that matter but have overall been very pleased with any of the independent shops I have used.
Another thing to consider when researching a service professional…
Do not take the BBB “rating” as gospel. All a BBB rating means is that they paid their dues to the BBB and the BBB gives them an A+ rating even if they have complaints or bad reviews. This will not happen with an non-accredited business. They will get a lower rating because they didn’t pay.
The reviews by people on the BBB site are useful but throw the actual BBB rating out the window!
Here is a prime example for an appliance repair service I have heard nothing but horror stories about from my customers. It gets an A+ rating from the BBB because they paid but a 1 star rating from all 52 reviewers. https://www.bbb.org/us/il/hoffman-estates/profile/major-appliance-services/a-e-factory-services-0654-88648416
Then there is the service called HomeAdvisor. I don’t know if there is anything like this for the auto repair and service industry but I have had dealings with them and it is a nightmare for both the consumer and the contractor. Some of these online review and rating sites need to be taken with a grain of salt. https://www.resellerratings.com/store/HomeAdvisor
I looked through the mechanics in my local area on the BBB and they overall got good scores. My town is small enough that the bad ones probably get weeded out. There was one with a few good and a few bad reviews. It is BBB accredited so got an A+ score. There is one with a couple 5 star reviews but they are non rated.
Isn’t/wasn’t Hoffman Estates where Sears corporate headquarters are/were located . . . ?!
Yes they did move from Chicago to Hoffman Estates. I do not know if they still exist there.
Soon, they won’t exist ANYWHERE . . .
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Yup!
Two of the three Sears stores in my area closed over the past couple of years, and when you go into the one that is still open, you could go bowling in the aisles and not hit anyone. Additionally, all of the K-Mart stores in my area are now gone.
my little bro just bought the 2019 Model 3 fully loaded dual motor and has been going in and out of the dealership due to several minor defects.
deep scratches along the under carriage from transport, many paint scuffs throughout and spacing issues. He says sacrifices must be made to travel 0-60 in 2.3 for $60k
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Sears and KMart are pretty much biting the dust. Talk about a RIP OFF… The corporate owner ran the place into the ground.
I used to like Craftsman tools and at least Lowes still has them as well as others. Are they still a decent value for the money when it comes to automotive tools? How about power tools such as drills, impact drivers, impact wrenches, etc?
The guy is a corporate raider . . . he did what we all expected him to do
well, they’re cheap, but the quality is way down in my opinion. Almost none of them are made in usa anymore.
Their air tools used to be good. I have a 3/8" drive air drill that I’m quite happy with, but it’s from before the time when they were still a viable company and not watering down their products.
I recently bought a 3/8" impact driver for my garage, but only because it was on sale. The downfall is that there’s no case for the bits. But for the price, I really can’t complain
I bought a few craftsman soldering guns several years back. High quality, used it many times with excellent results. I have a feeling it’s actually a relabeled Weller . . . ?
for several years, I was using a Craftsman creeper at work. No issues. But then I bought something better. I still have it, though.
The only thing I’ve bought in K-mart recently was some work socks. Other than that, there wasn’t anything in the store that appealed to me. The one near me is still surprisingly well stocked
The Craftsman Tools have been made in China for a few years now even before they were sold to Ace and Lowes and from the examples I have are nowhere as good as when they were made here. At my age, the only tools I buy are replacements for ones I break or lose. I have two newer corded electric drills, both from HF. The3/8 one is definitely light duty and will smoke with any strain but it was only 12 bucks. The 1
2" is a bear for torque, The hardest thing using it for deck screws is not driving them too deep. I have an adjustable torque limiting chuck somewhere if I can find it. I have had 3 cordless drill sets a 12 volt, a 13.4 and an 18 and each lasted a shorter time than the last one. I use them infrequently but when I use them, I use them a lot If I only need to drill a few screws I have some 50 to 100 year old hand drills. I am never going to buy another cordless tool.
That is funny. I have been going all cordless these days but am keeping my older corded and cordless tools until they break.
I have some HF tools and have been pleasantly surprised for the money. I didn’t buy the cheapest ones for $10 and $12 but got more of their middle grade at $50 for a drill with battery and charger, etc.
That being said, I recently upgraded to Milwaukee M18 Fuel stuff for the most part and the difference is night and day. Yes, the HF stuff can do anything just the same but the power and quality of the tool is so much better. I haven’t smoked any of the HF stuff either.
My impact wrench is an HF Earthquake 1/2 and I am pretty happy with it for the most part. What I don’t like is that there is only one battery size sold that fits it and it is a tad small for some of the work I use it for. It uses a different charger and doesn’t interchange with many other tools. This is the only one I have. Most of the Milwaukee tools I bought came with a battery and charger as part of a set so I never have to worry about running out of Milwaukee batteries. I will use the HF impact until it breaks and then upgrade to Milwaukee. I will replace the battery if it goes but my goal is to eventually replace it with Milwaukee. For now, I am pretty happy with the tool for what I paid and it gets good ratings.
I mainly use the impact for automotive tasks as well as breaking down junk on my farm for eventual scrapping to get rid of it. It costs more to haul in right now but I am cleaning up my place. I have also found it to work nicely for driving large lag screws into heavy timbers during construction projects. This seems to be what really taxes the tool and runs the battery down fast. The tool is great for automotive tasks but I do have my eyes on that Milwaukee for when this one breaks.
My big suggestion for tools is to pick the same brand with the same battery style. That was my mistake early on and I am not correcting it bit by bit.
I would also suggest, since you’ll own a car most of your life, to start to learn how they work. The internet is a great source. I was lucky enough to have a dad who taught me as a kid to do the simple things (R&R parts, except engine and tranny, etc.) he could do and also learn how a car worked.
I then went on in my early 20s to do the same.
But if you don’t know what is going on, then you can get ripped off by unethical people whether they be mechanics, lawyers, doctors, plumbers or the dreaded used car salesperson.
Glad to hear all turned out well.
I also saw Craftsman tools at Menards the other day. I saw a mechanics set but also noticed more carpentry oriented tools as well.
I know the brand as been sold to SBD but also hear they are trying to bring some of their manufacturing back to the US.
Just 20 years ago Sears was my goto store for many things. I rarely set foot in one any more. The Hedge fund manager who owns Sears raped them.
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