Service or ripoff?

[tassie tiger Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close tassie tiger]

So yes in a previous life I have had experience in a large mechanical workshop, It wasn't shonky but I could certainly see how a lazy person could get a job and do less then he was paid for.


Cheers Andrew

Agree with that. When I was on the tools we sorted those few ourselves though being heavy machinery laziness was something you couldn't get away with.

[Bushbasher Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close Bushbasher]

I always know when Toyota change my oil - they leave half of it behind on the bottom bash plate.

[Anth120playdo Banned Find all posts View Profile Close Anth120playdo]

I always know when Toyota change my oil - they leave half of it behind on the bottom bash plate.

Nice.


Taking your vehicle for service & repairs is like relationship & a relationship, if you don't have trust it just won't work. Going to a big workshop is similar to going to the hairdressers or Asian hairdressers (if you know hat I mean) knock knock, you get someone different every time. Well I suppose at the hair dressers you get to pick?

Also You don't have to take your vehicle to Toyota dealers to maintain your factory warranty!
Even with capped (till 60k) Over the warranty period 100k I think $$ wise you would be better off with your local guy you can trust, but you have to find him!

[Ghost Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close Ghost]

Nice.


Taking your vehicle for service & repairs is like relationship & a relationship, if you don't have trust it just won't work. Going to a big workshop is similar to going to the hairdressers or Asian hairdressers (if you know hat I mean) knock knock, you get someone different every time. Well I suppose at the hair dressers you get to pick?

Also You don't have to take your vehicle to Toyota dealers to maintain your factory warranty!
Even with capped (till 60k) Over the warranty period 100k I think $$ wise you would be better off with your local guy you can trust, but you have to find him!

It's true you should be able to trust the workshop that is servicing your vehicle. And that would possibly be more likely in a larger location, however I'm yet to find someone that I will trust with my car in Mackay. You are right tho you don't need to take your car to the dealer to maintain warranty. BUT, it's been my experience that it's a damn sight easier to get warranty work done when they know the vehicle.


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[Ghost Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close Ghost]

But did Lionel make you feel better. Sometimes we just need to be held and told it will be ok.

Hello - Champ.

Ah tassie tiger, dodgy people must like people like you! Trust blindly walk in and happily open your wallet without first inspecting the work done. Another perfect example someone had smacked into my others car door in the dealership, if I didn't check the car over properly I would have taken the car away and had absolutely no leg to stand on. All jokes aside if you want to be all trusting go for it, you will get burnt. I've been burnt way to many times with trusting people. Not just from workshops but from builders etc. So my view is that anyone that is taking my money especially ones that are either building, fixing or servicing anything I will thoroughly go over their work. It's the smart thing to do.




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[AJ120 Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close AJ120]

When I was in High School I did work experience at the local Holden / Mitsubishi dealer. One of the things we did was a pre delivery service on and brand new Pajero. I pointed out to the Boss that it had a small dent in the passenger rear door (brand new car remember) I was told to keep it quiet as if the guy didn't notice on pickup then its his problem as a dent can easily happen first time in the local carpark. He picked it up, didn't notice the dent, not sure what came of it as my work experience finished.

That's just one of many many stories of dodgy dealings with people in the car industry I could tell. To be honest though its not just the car industry, plenty of dodgy operators in all fields willing to pull the wool over your eyes if you let them.

Cheers Andrew

[fido666 Banned Find all posts View Profile Close fido666]

All those extra things on other services I think you might be on the right track about things not always getting done or completely. Eg; a brake fluid flush, 500ml booked out & no way you can do that, especially on a 150. Try 1.5lt!

I wonder who's Prado that happened to ;-)?

I am guilty of marking tyres to see if they have been rotated and I did catch the dealer out. They said they didn't do it because all the tyres had the same tread depth, I told them politely that these were fairly new tyres and I would like them rotated as per the service schedule. The only reason I marked them was the tyres on the old 95 series wore out on the front while the rears still had tread left, tells me they were never rotated.

I still have extended warranty with the dealer hence why I still take the Prado there for servicing but $900 for a 48 month (80K) service on a vehicle that has only done 60K seems a bit steep. That being said, I rang 3 other Toyota dealers in my area and they wanted $250 - $350 more!

[Steve M Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close Steve M]

Yea AJ similar thing when I worked for Toyota we use to heave a lot of scratched and dented cars from the lot. Get the pin striper in covers them nicely (don't touch the paint up though so rust spot) then tell the customer on pick up " oh sorry sir
/madam, we pin striped the wrong car but we can remove it for you if you like, we are not charging you for it"" no it looks ok I'll leave it on thanku, ok..... One of many stories when I worked for Toyota I even bought my new Toyota from another dealer while working for a Toyota dealer, they couldn't match the price. I think the other dealer was glad to see the arse end of me. He didn't know I worked for Toyota lol .... Cheers Steve

[pete8205 Member Find all posts View Profile Close pete8205]

I find it hard to trust a workshop were you cannot talk to the person that is working on the car. hence I don't go to dealers.

I don't mark anything If I'm using a different mechanic or any trade I ask to see the part replaced.
I'm a plumber when I work at someones home I always explain why and show the old part that I have replaced.

Hey Steve did you work at Penrith Toyota and buy from Windsor? there always cheaper including parts.

[Steve M Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close Steve M]

Na Pete worked at Blacktown and bought from Phil Gilbert.....Cheers Steve

[Anth120playdo Banned Find all posts View Profile Close Anth120playdo]

Anyway of topic now i guess, I've heard a lot more stories about husbands & wife's etc cheating on each other, have you? I'm sure we all have.
So how do you check on you partner or wife? Track their mobile? Hidden cameras? Mark their privates? Check their texts? Hite a p.i?
Do you think it's not happening to you? Are you sure you can trust them? Why?

[Heath74 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Heath74]

Really interesting thread, I can't help but buy in again!
I think cars are one of those things that 90% of people have very little knowledge of, myself included. So you tend to trust your mechanic, but we could all share stories around a campfire over a beer or two, of how we got done over. And when your safety is concerned if the mechanic tells you you need brakes, you believe him. So it's not just about $ spent, it's also about being safe.

If you can find a trustworthy single operator, they are like gold. But I've also found two dealers great, and been happy to get my services done there. I've never gone to the extent or marking sump plugs, but I do ask plenty of questions and have a look over the car after each service.

But ultimately you are going on trust.

[mackayvx Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close mackayvx]

At the end of the day, 'pain in the arse' customers are the ones who ask questions and check the work.
A 'perfect' customer is the one who swipes the card and drives off.

Im your typical 'pain in the arse'.

[Bear63 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Bear63]

I don't have a problem with customers that ask questions as we can go through the whole bill with them , show all the parts , clocking times etc , the ones that i don't like are the ones that question my integrity , esp with the numbers of years i have under my belt living and working in the same town so i have build up a nice customer base over the years
Just because you are a dealer doesn't mean that they all rip people off , i have done quite a number of rework jobs that "the trusted independent" hasn't done properly due to laziness (like wheel bearing repacks and timing belts), i believe you get that everywhere
We also get audited 4 times year by the manufacturers and weekly surveys from customers , i don't know of any independents that get audited to make sure everything is as it should be

[r4ndll Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close r4ndll]

My trusted mechanic left, the new guy seems ok, but we are warming up to each other. So far so good...
Meanwhile, Wife's Ford was bought new. Just dropped it in for one of it's fixed priced services at the dealer (not my usual place). Get a call today. "We've noticed your wipers aren't cleaning the screen very well. Would you like us to replace them?"
"Really? I replaced them two weeks ago" (No, I am not lying here,I really did)
"Oh. Would you like us to replace them?"
"No. Just the service thanks"