How much do you trust your local garage?

[BruceT]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E66BDZ0PShM


Good bit of kit the 'Roadhawk'...

[mjb]

I have reasonable confidence in my local garage... the one in my back garden, that is

Hope those t**ts get locked up.

[welshviking]

I do all my servicing myself (inc brakes) the only thing i have not done is a cambelt change, at least you know what work has been done when you are doing it yourself. Some garages around my area are rip off merchants.

[Doggy]

Don't trust any of 'em - local or otherwise

You can't be too paranoid on this issue, (unless, of course, you can find someone competent, honest and fussier than you are).

I'd trust jasper, but that's about it.

My nightmare is being forced to pick up the bill while some clueless moron stumbles his inept way around Pug diagnostics. I joined this forum mainly to give myself a good chance of learning from other owners. So far it's paid off & I'm more than happy to share any info I gather along the way.
[/rant]

[jasper5]

thank you doggy

Very kind of you to say so

[turbolag]

Having spannered in the trade for a number of years I have zero faith in any of them. In my time I've filled cantankerous punters exhausts with grease, so they smoke terribly but by the time they've got back to complain it's all burned off. I've put fish in door cards, i've found lesbian love letters in gloveboxes, photocopied them and plastered them up round Milton Keynes. Once of my colleagues once found a large stash of cannabis in an ashtray, and pinched it for himself - it's not as if the owner is likely to involve the dibble.

Always write down your mileage, don't just reset the trip meter, and make it known you have done so. Always note the current fuel consumption on the pooter, and make it known you've done so. Back when I had my Pulsar GTiR all the buggers wanted to do was take it for a thrash, so I ended up doing the clutch myself, even though it was an engine out job. A couple of times some of the techs went for a blat (never me) and more than once irate customers phoned in to complain they'd been speeding themselves when their own cars cruised by 30mph faster than they were going...

[jasper5]

The big difference between myself and others is that my customers can watch everything I do, in 29 years in business I have never had unhappy customers, I would rather do the job for nothing than upset someone!

[STALLED]

Moral of the story:

Drive a 406, they wont want to thrash that!

[STALLED]

Moral of the story:

Drive a 406, they wont want to thrash that!

[steve_earwig]

Seeing as how we're mates... I just sent the link to them anyway

[DaiRees]

Only 1 garage I trust, old friend of the family. Problem is he's close to retirement and doesn't have the kit (or the desire) to mess about with "modern stuff". That's why i end up doing most of my own work. The problem is with modern cars that you have to use "professionals" to some extent.

I hate dealers most of all, they charge you top dollar for what's often really poor work. Good independants are difficult to come by. I don't even trust tyre monkeys and stand over them watching what's going on, if the garage don't let you watch I don't go back. The only time I left a car to have new tyres fitted it came back with scratches and chips to one of the alloys, it had obviously been placed face down on the concrete floor, I mean what kind of idiot has that little sense or care for other people's property? You think I'm ever going to trust you with my pride and joy again???

Great to know there are still people like you in the trade Jasper, the difficult bit for the customer is finding them. It's also a sad state of affairs that there are so many tossers in the trade that most punters have a general and inherent distrust of all garages. I know it's been on here before, but hopefully this'll help... http://www.goodgaragescheme.co.uk/index.html

[steve_earwig]

Oh dear.

[DaiRees]

GAAAARRRRGGGGHHHHHHH!!! Even the anti-rip-off scheme is a rip off!!!! WTF??

[Welly]

I have a fantastic place I use (through the business) and he is very good, if not a bit fanatical but that's not a bad thing.

The most important thing when using a garage service is to be very clear as to what it is you want them to do (and get it priced if necessary) so the car goes in with a 'list' of jobs. If anything else crops up then ask them to ring you.

The worst thing you can do with some garages is to simply ask them to 'have a look' at a knocking noise, squeel, whatever because that can leave you open to all kinds of stuff being replaced.

Of course, we're all here because we have a common interest in cars and I suppose we all know more than your 'average' driver and this helps greatly when it comes to repairs etc.

I don't like main dealers because their hourly rate is high and they operate as a profit making business with lots of staff and tend to lose sight of what it is they are there to do.......like fix punters cars, in a reasonable time, at a reasonable cost, and without fault

[omega]

like that roadhawk device surprised that they never saw it ,will have to check if its got a thatcham rating,still i can see a downside in that if you are having fun in your car and plod stops you theres no escape