I'm frustrated right now as our old i30 (2001 w/ 208k mile) is still at some tire shop and its nearly been a week and I'm going to be overpaying to get her home. Long story short: a really bad stall + grinding noise (bad rear calipers... again) + dying right where the shop was = me deciding to leave it there as opposed to driving it home (sure I would've gotten home fine). I should've driven it home.

This has gotten me thinking that I don't think I want to trust any more small "Tire Shops" anymore as I've had bad experiences with them for mechanical work. My impressions have been that it takes them awhile, they do questionable work and it winds up costing sometimes even more than a dealer would've charged.

What have been your experiences? How did you find that mechanic (that I always hear about) that does fantastic work and a reasonable rate?

For instance, several years ago I took the i30 to a small Tire Shop that someone recommended because of said rear calipers. I was too scared to try to replace them (which was also a mistake) and so I took it to the shop and they quoted me like $1,200 as they said the front calipers were also bad (BS!) and they "didn't like" how the front pads "looked" (I had just replaced them 2 weeks ago with high quality pads). I told them to only do the rears w/ pads and rotors. Well, they only did ONE of the Calipers (likely now the second one is the one failing) and they DIDN'T BLEED THE BRAKES! WTF! I barely had any brake power to get home and had to flush them when I got home. The nipples were different on the calipers which I why I think only one got replaced. This shop had also earlier replaced the radiator fan which worked well, but was/is loud and vibrated constantly in the cabin.

A radiator shop replaced the i30's radiator and caused the Airbag light to link (still on after reset attempts - I presume they unplugged something). I've also had small shops (on various cars) replace my alternator which then caused a bad squeal when A/C was turned on. I've had a stereo shop install a alarm system that constantly went off and triggered the SRS light. The Firestone near my parents house were really nice, but totally incompetent. A shop near me seemed to do decent work, but then started quoting absurdly expensive prices.

On the other hand, I had a great experience with the local Nissan dealership in replacing both battery terminals (had bad corrosion from a bad battery awhile ago) and they did a inspection as well as was very reasonable in cost.

Frankly, I've had better luck with the "me" Mechanic. I may strip every bolt I meet (and spend 3 hours trying to get a stuck one off), but I do my research, find the most probable cause and order the right parts and fluids. I'm always scared a week afterwards that the car is going to explode, but so far I've had success in doing at least the basic repairs and maintenance. Maybe its apples and oranges, but...

What have been your experiences? How did you find who you use now?

 

I have developed the philosophy of taking a car to a shop that specializes in the particular repair that I need. This is based on having taken it up the rear end too many times.

The first thing I learned is DO NOT let a tire shop do anything to the car except replace the tires and align the wheels. And sometimes you shouldn't let them even do that. I usually do my own brakes, but 2 times I have had them done by Just Brakes and nothing bad has happened.

In general, you have to find a small shop to do your repairs. That is a trial and error thing. A lot of people claim to be a mechanic and maybe make a living at it, but give them a job where things are difficult and see what happens.

Talk to others, go on social media and see what kind of recommendations you can get. Find a shop that specializes in Japanese cars and you have a good chance of getting good repairs.

 

I think you're better off doing the research and then asking yourself is this something I can do myself. Doing the front brake pads and even rotors is definitely something you can do yourself. The rear brakes are a little more of a pain but in my opinion if you can do the front you can probably do the rear. If I were you in the future I would take each repair on an individual basis. Do some research about the repair, most repairs can be found step by step on here or even you tube. If you cannot do the repair then finding a reputable repair shop can be hard but not impossible. Do some online research of the repair shops in your area usually you can find a comments section on most sites. Also go in and talk to the workers BEFORE your car breaks down. Another thing to do is ask around coworkers, family, and friends. Good luck and I hope you find a quality shop.

 

The best way to avoid all of this is to teach yourself to do it all. Of course there are exceptions to all of this, but I've found that most "mechanics" are just morons.

Tire shops don't have real mechanics. They have parts swappers. That's it. Most are just a step above the shade tree mechanic you can "hire" at a junkyard parking lot.

Even most "real" shops only have parts swappers. Ever so slightly more knowledgeable parts swappers, but still only parts swappers.

And even at that, most dealerships are stocked full of morons too. They're "certified" by the manufacturer yes, but most are still morons. The vast majority of the cars they work on they're just told to replace X by a computer or the OBD2 readout. And sadly that makes them glorified parts swappers incapable of true problem solving/diagnostics.

Truly great diagnostician mechanics are unfortunately largely non-existent these days. It's a real shame.

 

DIY FTW.
Only way to know it was done right or even at all.
Stay away from shops unless you know you can't do it. FSM is in my sig.

 

Only the master tech will be a great mechanic and he cannot be bothered to look at most problems unfortunately. Usually when i go to the dealer ship i ask to speak with the master tech almost immediately. Just makes my life easier.

 

The size of the shop is irrelevant, the skill set of the mechanic is what's important.
Develop a relationship with the shop of your choice and always talk to the mechanic so you're both on the same page.

 

Couldn't have said it better myself.

I've been hosed by a lot of repair shops in the past, particularly chain ones & dealerships. Since then, I try to do simple things on my own like fluid changes, spark plugs, filters, brakes but know my limitations. I have an indy mechanic who I go to for bigger jobs. He's experienced, reasonably priced and most of all, is the guy actually working on my car. I hate how stealerships have a service advisor as the gate keeper. The SA is nothing more than a glorified salesman. He prevents you from being able to easily talk to the actual tech working on your car. But like James92SE said, most "mechanics" these days are just tire and oil jockeys. It's a real chore to find an experienced person who actually takes pride in their work and isn't out to pick your pocket.