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Comments
Richard
If the repair shop supplies the part and labor, it's their problem if the part is bad out of the box.
Probably not an issue with brake parts, but it could be a factor with electrical parts, or labor intensive jobs like heater cores or something.
Most of the SRXs I've seen are the V6.
As for the North, the cause of the great unpleasantness of the 1870s as some southerners like to refer to it, the damage from salt depends on how the car was used and housed and cared for. Driving a car and then putting it in a nice warm damp garage with snow and salt hanging on is a rust accelerator. Leaving the same car in the environment at the ambient temperature slows any attack. Washing off the underside of the car at the do-it-yourself carwash when the temps hit the upper 30s or 40s is a great help. Doing the underside rinse with a garden hose in March or April also gets rid of the salt and is recommended by the owners glovebox manual in our cars.
Hence, we have one car that stayed outside this winter and the good Buick seldom got driven in the slushy stuff when it was on the roads; it stays in the garage.
Worst car for rust I even had was a 61 Chev that I bought when someone totalled my car and I was waiting for the replacement. The Chev, which was 15-16 years old and an extra car, was kept in a barn with lots of milk cows. The warm damp, even humid, barn kept the metal wet and any salt was accelerated in activity.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
I don’t know what years you’re referring to but GM didn’t have to “recommend against turning rotors” because you COULDN’T do it.
When my ’95 Bonneville beast had about 53K miles on it the shop where I took it for PA state inspection called and said I needed new rotors because they were under the minimum thickness. I said, “HUH, I’ve never had those rotors turned so they couldn’t have been turned under the minimum, so what gives”? He said, “they didn’t have to be turned they just wear out at that mileage”. I never heard that before. Since I do my own brake work, when I went to the auto parts to buy new rotors (and pads since I was going to be in there), I ask the guy at the counter how many miles I could expect to get out of the replacements he said, “you’ll be back here after 50K miles, these things wear out on their own at that point”. :sick:
When I had pulsating brakes on my ’05 Hyundai XG 350 at about 25K miles I took it to the dealer and they turned the front rotors under warranty. When I spoke to the mechanic before I left I related the tale about my Bonneville and he said, “yeah I know, I worked at our Pontiac shop before I came here and I saw a lot of that. The rotors on this car can be turned at least one more time”. That’s another reason that turned me off about GM. You don’t have to design a car that has marginally sized rotors put on right from the get go.
jmonroe
'15 Genesis V8 with Ultimate Package and '18 Legacy Limited 6 cyl
IMO, that post about Chrysler was topical and interesting. We can all take from the info what we want to and I see nothing wrong with posting it here. It also made the national news so most saw it anyway.
2013 LX 570 2016 LS 460
Replacing calipers is usually totally unnecessary. Just make sure all of the slides are clean and lubed up.
The make money by charging labor and by marking up the parts. They buy parts for wholesale and sell them for retail.
You are NOT doing the shop a "favor" or saving them trouble. Making a phone call to the parts store isn't much trouble.
Shops don't like it when a customer does this and in response, they usually mark up the labor to compensate. Also, if the part you brought in is defective, you will be on your own.
Yes, very poor taste to do this.
2013 LX 570 2016 LS 460
Just poor taste all around.
Jay--
Funny, I thought I was bringing up a specific incident. GG pointed out that it was a recurring problem--not exactly a slam of an industry or of union workers. I thought this particular story would be of particular interest to Richard since he was considering the Jeep GC. Some of my, arguably less than humorous, asides may have been misinterpreted since the emotorcons don't work.
Several weeks ago, quite a few forum members chimed in on the sad state of education--not exactly a car sales topic. As someone who works in the education biz I read numerous postings that painted my profession with a broad brush. I chose to ignore those comments and did not contribute to that thread.
It would be hypocritical for me to bash the automotive unions since my cousin's two sons and husband have all worked, or continue to work, on the assembly line for Ford.
So is it okay to point out the misconduct is some professions, but not others? Would this forum even exist if it weren't for the misconduct of some customers and salespeople?
Gogiboy
Richard
Your local Goodyear store may be offering a decent price, but it is always better to be well informed and have at least one other price. When two stores have such a large price discrepancy, there is usually a very good reason.
Perhaps you meant the 1860's. If so, my grandparent's generation referred to it, not as the Civil War but, as the War of Northern Aggression. When my grandfather returned from this war, he referred to the late 1860's as "Carpetbaggers Revenge". He was 30 years older than my grandmother and had died before I was born. I have always found it hard to comprehend that my grandfather fought in the Civil War. Today, my generation refers to the war as the "Stupid Southern Mistake". We still haven't completely recovered, but we are making progress. (Joke Emotorcon goes here.)
Richard
Richard
But tell me this, do you really think the independent guy I go to to have all my work done is really going to get made at me and maybe alienate me and lose me as a customer because he won't make a few bucks off a part I brought in?
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
Will never go back to a Goodyear place.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
The world is split into many factions -- economically and politically. Some folks are entrenched in an I'm always right and those who disagree are always wrong attitude They view the screw-ups of individals who belong to outside groups to reinforce the stereotype that everyone who affiliates with that philosophy should be condemned as idiots. We all suffer because of that because good people are found everywhere. Even among groups you disagree with.[surprise !] We all want a decent way of life and should be working together not against each other. Probably will never happen. Some folks only feel good about themselves when tearing others apart. That will never disappear especially from extremists at both ends of the spectrum.Human nature.
No need for anyone to feel offended by my rant -- just howling at the moon.
the only time recently I shopped around to have my own parts installed was when I did the struts on my TL. I was leaning toward KYBs, and most local places did not normally carry them. I imagine they would not have a big problem getting them however.
But, I could get them from tirerack for a whole lot less, and none of the local tire places I called had any problem quoting a labor rate to install them for me.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
We do understand that not every posting here will be a frontlines story. That's the nature of the business and the times. And we do prefer that the discussion not stray too far and too long from the designated topic.
As it happens, I did see the clips from the JGC story and all that I can say is that it is stunning. It would be hard not to say something about it after having seen it. Frankly, I don't care what those folks do on their lunch breaks though one could argue that it might have some impact on the safety and quality of the products being produced by that particular factory. One thing that I did notice is that none of the guys was driving a GM vehicle - they were driving Fords!
tidester, host
SUVs and Smart Shopper
For all we know, they are in the stock room or sweeping up. HOpefully not in the clean room putting together engines!
and thankfully, there were no robots out in the lot sucking down 40's. And we all know, it is the robots that really build the cars these days!
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
How about a Volvo? I fell in love with an XC70 last week, in a nice urgandy color. Super comfy too. And you can't get much boxier than that.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Personally, I am disappointed, but not shocked.
There is a trial going on in CT that makes that stuff pale by comparison.
Who wins the next round of the 'Cop car shootout' will be pretty interesting
Tens of thousands of sales are pretty attractive in this economic times.
Please respect me as a person who as a been in and around shops all of his life.
I guess I'll just be blunt this time.
One more time...you are NOT saving them any hassle or time. You are trying to cheap out by bringing in your own parts that you figured you could buy for less than they would have charged you. They are well aware of this and they resent it.
It is no different than bringing your own bacon and eggs into a restaurant and asking them to cook your breakfast.
I suppose an exception may be a shop that does restorations and you bring in a master cylinder for your 1941 Buick that they couldn't find.
The shops DO mind and they are probably just charging you additional labor to make up for the money they didn't make on the parts!
Sorry, it's low class and you really shouldn't do this.
Richard
Worth a look?
Doug
Yeah I know if I take my car to the dealership or any large national chain shop with a part and ask them to put it on they will most likely throw me out. But if I go to my regular mechanic with that same part and ask if he could put it in he will say "No problem" and not think anything more or less of it.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
Richard
Richard
I don't care how big or how small the shop is. ALL shops hate it when a customer tries to deprive them of their profit on parts. They may not tell you this but they simply don't like it for the reasons I mentioned.
In fact, some shops just won't allow this and I really don't blame them.
I suppose if business is slow and the shop sees a way to make some labor dollars they will take on a job without complaining.
I have been in, literally thousands of small shops and you can believe me when I tell you that the shops really don't like this at all.
You can justify it in your own mind by thinking you are doing them a favor but you are doing the opposite thing.
I'm done trying to convince you. You know more than I do on this subject.
I value your experience here, based on that I do have a question for you.
Wife would really like chrome versions of her stock wheels. Here is Seattle price is $2,xxx to purchase a set, however there is a company out of LA that will do it as part of an exchange for $800. This was recommended by the sales guy in fact.
The question for you is will anybody be happy to move my tires from the old wheels to the new wheels? OR am I going to piss 'em all off by asking. Unfortunately I can't swap the tire myself...
I will say that when you go to sell or trade that car, those chrome wheels won't add one cent to the car's value and may even turn off some people.
I would call around and avoid the big places like Les Schwab who would probably decine the work. Just make sure they have the right equipment so they won't damage the new wheels.
If you end up at a loss, email me. I know a shop here in Issaquah that would be happy to do the work.
One of our customers was a local eye doctor who was (being nice here) about as "frugal" as they came. He drove a 10 year old Cadillac that he despised putting a nickle into. He would even mix regular gas with premium. It would "ping" on this mixture but he didn't seem to mind.
When he bought tires, he bought recaps. If a radiator hose blew, he would ask us if we could somehow patch it. When he needed a new heater core, he had us bypass the heater. Hey, this was So. Calif so not a huge deal.
One day I watched the Cadillac pull in with steam coming from the hood.
He paced nervously wearing his white coat and wringing his hands hoping it was something minor.
He was in a hurry so someone picked him up and took him to his office.
Once the car cooled down, we saw the water pump had gone bad so we called him and let him know that.
A half hour later, he showed up with a cheap rebuilt water pump from the local discount parts house.
Now, you don't put a rebuilt water pump on a Cadillac be we did it.
Of course, we reused all of this hoses and clamps and put 100% water back into the system.
One week later, the bearing failed in the water pump. He whined and fussed and did his best to get us to redo the job for free.
In the end, he had us replace the pump with a proper new one. Of course, he paid the labor twice. I know he took the failed pump back and tried to get the parts store to reimburse the labor to him. I doubt if he was successful.
Plus it has that niffty bumper thing that allows you to bump other motorists and send them spinning.
Not only that they still have "911" on the back so people will think its a Porsche.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
and truthfully this is pretty low on the list, though the wife usually keeps cars for 10 or so years, so at least we would have em for a good long while.
Thanks for the offer, will keep it in mind if we decide to give it a shot
Since your brought up the name, I have to give props to Sears for a refreshing example of honest advertising. They have an oil change special in Sundays paper listed at $25. At the bottom it is written "No shop or disposal fees".
Great! This is much different than the usual small print you see today that say shop fees, disposal fee, handling fees etc... Extra. Or, $4 or 7% handling fee may apply.
I had the coolant flushed on my MPV last week $99. It was suppose to be a special price. Well, after the $14 shop fee and $4 b.s fee, I probably ended up paying retail... boo! I hate paying retail.
probably close to the size of the SRX, and loaded with goodies too. and brand new for the price of a used Caddy.
I figure you have a shot. your friends love theirs, and you have a bad Caddy history. Plus, she has no LT attachment to it, having just seen it on the lot, without knowing what it was.
So, take her to lunch tomorrow, and make sure you drive past the Subaru dealer. Then just say you want to swing in, just to look, since some of your on-line buddies suggested it.
Never know. She might see one, and get hooked. And if you are clever, you will tell the dealer to have one in the best color sitting right out front to try out!
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
There is actually another issue beyond lost mark up. If the shop just takes your part, they don't know for sure it is the right one. So, if it isn't, they may cause another problem (or end up 1/2 way through a job, then find out). And of course, it then becomes "their" problem to sort it out!
And as Isell mentioned, if the part is bad, oops (and it happens). your part, double labor. Their part, their problem.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Richard
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
Richard
Richard
was reading the local autotrader yesterday (the supermarket freebie). A private seller had a 2007 (I think) charger "cop car" in black with white doors.
but, not a fleet car. supposedly the demo/concept/promo car for selling the charger police package.
Unique if nothing else.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.