Tales from the Auto Shop: No, just No

[peach2play]

I know, I've been quiet, but I've been working at my other job in Seattle and haven't been in the Mile High City at the shop. I finally am home this week and boy what a doozy.

OM: Our lovely office manager
Me: Owner extraordinaire
SC: Big set of kahones on this one and not in a good way

OM: Thank you for calling the Auto Shop, How can I help you?
OM: Um...well, um...let me ask?<Puts customer on hold>
OM: Peach can you come talk to this customer...

Me: Thank you for holding this is Peach.
SC: Hey, it's SC.
*Now, up until now, I have really like SC. We work in the same industry and get along really well. He's had a rough time of it. Just moved here from Florida, had a new baby, and wife lost her job here. *

Me: Oh hey, how are you? :-)
SC: Good, hey, I was wondering, I need to change my oil and I was hoping to do it there.
Me: Sure, when do you want me to put you on the schedule?
SC: Oh no, I was just hoping to change my own oil there...you know, to save money...
Me: O.o
Me: Well, I can't have you in the bay and changing your oil out front would be weird.
SC: Oh well, I thought I would ask. Have a great day!

Wait just a cotton picken minute...did you just ask to use my bay, my tools and my resources to change your oil, all because you don't have a oil drain pan? You, sir, have just made my naughty list.

[sirwired]

There do exist DIY shops of this nature, but most shops are not such a thing.

Plus... Fer Pete's sake... A cheap trolley jack, a pair of jackstands, and a drain pan (I use a $6 concrete mixing tub from Orange apron.) and oil/filter, and you are out about $50. This is not a huge investment.

[MoonCat]

"Yeah, hi, is this Starbucks? Listen, can I bring my cappuccino maker over and make myself some coffee? I just really like the ambiance and--what do you mean, NO??"

[Argabarga]

Well, at least they didn't argue.

[notalwaysright]

Speaking of customers trying to save a little money... At the roofing company every once in a while a homeowner would ask for a bid for just a re-roof, saying that they would handle the tear off themselves. Sure, they'd be saving money, maybe a considerable amount. So fair enough. HOWEVER.

Unless you've torn off a roof before, you really have no idea what you're getting yourself into. First, do you have the tools already on hand? Second, if you're tearing off, then you're also paying the dump fees. Do you have a suitable truck? Are you planning to do this all by yourself, or with some kind of free labor (kids, relatives)? If not, be prepared to pay your unofficial employees, either in cash or beer. This has worked for some people who already have these things, usually handy men or other construction type guys. But most people just saw this "tip" online and had no clue how hard it really is. I've been part of the "ground crew" before, just loading the truck with old shingles... It was not fun. Also, even though the roof was small it had three layers of shingles.

Sorry, rambling.

[Shotgun Chuck]

Somehow, after fixing two brake hoses on a nasty gravel driveway (one of which required removal, modification, and reinstallation of a steel hardline due to terminal rust where the line met the hose - still planning to someday cut the connection apart to see if it was even still two pieces when I tried to separate it), this almost sounds like a shot in the dark I would take. The difference is, I know a guy who has a two-post lift in his home garage and would probably let me use it, and even if he's out of town I know another guy who at the very least has a garage.

[CyberLurch]

Somehow, after fixing two brake hoses on a nasty gravel driveway (one of which required removal, modification, and reinstallation of a steel hardline due to terminal rust where the line met the hose - still planning to someday cut the connection apart to see if it was even still two pieces when I tried to separate it), this almost sounds like a shot in the dark I would take. The difference is, I know a guy who has a two-post lift in his home garage and would probably let me use it, and even if he's out of town I know another guy who at the very least has a garage.

Allowing John Q. Public to work on his/her own car in your shop leaves you open to massive liability, and insurance usually forbids such things. Auto-repair garages are dangerous places even for professional mechanics. It's why they generally don't want customers in the work areas unless escorted by an employee.

I sympathize with your experience repairing brakes on a gravel driveway. I've had to do it myself. It's why I keep a couple of 4x6 sheets of plywood, one covered with cheap linoleum, in the shed. A hunk of old surplus carpet is also a back-saver, particularly in cooler weather.

[peach2play]

Allowing John Q. Public to work on his/her own car in your shop leaves you open to massive liability, and insurance usually forbids such things. Auto-repair garages are dangerous places even for professional mechanics. It's why they generally don't want customers in the work areas unless escorted by an employee.

This, so much this! I appreciate it never hurts to ask, but it did lower my opinion of him a bit. He's not that mechanically inclined and I have no idea if he even knows how to change his own oil. My guess is he'd start to try to change his oil, then ask for help and we'd end up changing it for free anyway. Our oil changes are only $40. I understand money is tight, but you'll spend close to to that in oil filter and oil anyway.

[WishfulSpirit]

But most people just saw this "tip" online and had no clue how hard it really is.

I'll admit I'm not in great shape, but even when I was more conditioned I DESPISED physical labor. Still do. No, no, and no. Give me your price quote. I'll pay you to bring in people to do it while I sit in my home and drink lemonade. I'll even provide lemonade and sammiches for your crew if that's allowed, but NO WAY am I doing it myself. I'd rather cough up the dough.

My husband, on the other hand, is a DIY guy (and to his credit, he only tackles projects he can handle) but once he's on a project, I have to make it clear that I will NOT be doing more than holding something together for a few moments while he puts a screw in. He decided to DIY it, he can do it himself or call his cousins for help. So there.

[Nunavut Pants]

I once talked my mechanic into letting me rebuild my own transmission at his shop, under his supervision. It was a good experience for me. I think I may have saved about 10% on the total cost, but I didn't do it to save money.

He laid out the conditions for me very clearly: I get all the parts from him, I work when he has time to supervise, keep the shop clean, yadda yadda yadda. I'd been a customer there for a number of years before asking, though, and we have (and had) a pretty good relationship.

I'm not sure I see the caller as a real SC, as all he did was ask and he did take "no" for an answer.

[Kanalah]

I have people ask if it will be cheaper if they purchase their own fabric for the quilt. Which yes, it can be. There's only a few kinds of fabric that work well in quilts.

I had some ladies contact me of doing some wholesale quilting for them, thinking that if their clients already purchased the fabric that the assembly and quilting would be cheaper. It's not the fabric that's the most expensive part of the quilt, it's the time taken to put it together properly and quilt it.

[sirwired]

I had some ladies contact me of doing some wholesale quilting for them, thinking that if their clients already purchased the fabric that the assembly and quilting would be cheaper. It's not the fabric that's the most expensive part of the quilt, it's the time taken to put it together properly and quilt it.

Yeah, I expect the time you spend buying fabric from the fabric store is not particularly significant. (Especially since I expect most quilters are at the fabric store frequently already.) It's fascinating that they expect the fabric they provide you somehow decreases labor cost.

[Sandman]

I know every shop is different, but what if the customer had the part that needed to be installed (and he got it cheaper than what you could have). What would you tell him?

[CyberLurch]

I know every shop is different, but what if the customer had the part that needed to be installed (and he got it cheaper than what you could have). What would you tell him?

Personally, I would probably tell him 'no'. What if that discount-store part quits six days after it's installed? Who is the customer going to bring the car back to? Who's going to pay the labor to replace the part again? Guaranteed the customer isn't going to want to, and neither will the discount auto parts store. And every minute the mechanic spends re-fixing a car is a minute he's not making any money.

Any mechanic worth his salt is going to want the part to be as reliable as possible, and that means he's going to get it from a professional jobber and not some bottom dollar discount parts house.

Yes, the jobber part is usually more expensive, and yes, the garage is going to mark it up. But if it fails and he has to replace it again, that markup ensures he doesn't lose quite as much money, and is a better assurance that the part won't fail in the first place.

Also, installing customer-supplied parts sets a bad precedent. Customers do talk, and other customers will wonder why they aren't getting the same deal as their friend. The markup on the parts is a not-insubstantial chunk of the shop's revenue.

[Racket_Man]

Personally, I would probably tell him 'no'. What if that discount-store part quits six days after it's installed? Who is the customer going to bring the car back to? Who's going to pay the labor to replace the part again? Guaranteed the customer isn't going to want to, and neither will the discount auto parts store. And every minute the mechanic spends re-fixing a car is a minute he's not making any money.

Any mechanic worth his salt is going to want the part to be as reliable as possible, and that means he's going to get it from a professional jobber and not some bottom dollar discount parts house.

Yes, the jobber part is usually more expensive, and yes, the garage is going to mark it up. But if it fails and he has to replace it again, that markup ensures he doesn't lose quite as much money, and is a better assurance that the part won't fail in the first place.

Also, installing customer-supplied parts sets a bad precedent. Customers do talk, and other customers will wonder why they aren't getting the same deal as their friend. The markup on the parts is a not-insubstantial chunk of the shop's revenue.

THIS ^^^^^^^^^
I know for a fact my mechanic (who knows that I am a delivery driver and abuse the hell outta my vehicle and been going to him exclusively for well over a decade) does use used/rebuilt/salvage parts when repairing my vehicle. BUT as I let him have a (so to speak) "free hand" in this (and it saves me a bit of money) he has also had to do "warranty" replacements of parts that failed in a short enough time span (say an axle bearing that failed in less than a year of installation).

And yes I do get a "frequent flyer" discount cause I do so much business with him and have recommended others to go to him.