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Auto Repair Shop Mechanic Shares How He Lasted Just 4 Hours At A New Job Because Of How Unethical The Manager’s Business Practices Were
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Auto Repair Shop Mechanic Shares How He Lasted Just 4 Hours At A New Job Because Of How Unethical The Manager’s Business Practices Were

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How should a new employee behave during their first day at work? Hundreds of articles and books have been written about this by the most experienced HR specialists, so you can collect a whole encyclopedia. But in general, most of the advice boils down to the fact that you should be as loyal as possible to corporate rules, listen carefully and follow the orders of higher-ups.

And if the newcomer fundamentally disagrees with what is happening in the company? Literally from the first hours at the new workplace? Then, probably, any recruiter will tell you that this will not end in anything good for the newcomer. However, there are always pleasant exceptions.

One such exception is the story of this auto mechanic, who now runs his own auto repair shop in Auburn, Washington, but left Firestone a few years ago to look for a new challenge. The story, told by the author in his TikTok, went viral, gaining nearly 2.3M views and 269K reactions.

More info: TikTok

The Original Poster quit from Firestone several years ago and found a new job at a car repair shop

Image credits: dirty2dreamyllc

So the Original Poster quit from Firestone and got a job at a local repair shop. The OP admits that he was expecting an assistant manager job and didn’t want to do mechanical work again. During the interview, the owner asked the applicant various questions about his expertise, and the OP answered in such a way that at the end, he was sure that he was not expected to perform any mechanical work.

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Image credits: dirty2dreamyllc

The owner needed someone to sell parts and run the front shop – with no mechanical work

In fact, the owner needed someone to sell parts and run the front shop – and the OP, with his experience as a front-end mechanic, was a good fit for this position. However, when the OP came out on his first working day and the owner told him to diagnose the very first client’s car, he was a little surprised.

Image credits: dirty2dreamyllc

OP’s first client had a mass airflow sensor code in her car

The owner explained that he would like to see what skills the newcomer had. He was satisfied with the explanation and went to inspect the car. The client had a mass airflow sensor code, so the OP decided to check what was the reason. He suspected that after a visit to Jiffy Lube, their specialists simply forgot to plug the mass airflow sensor into its place.

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Image credits: dirty2dreamyllc

When the OP shared his thoughts with the owner, he just told him to sell the customer a new mass airflow sensor. But the employee insisted on checking – perhaps it was simply not plugged into place. That turned out to be the case – and when the OP put the sensor back in its place, the code was gone.

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Image credits: dirty2dreamyllc

The OP fixed the minor issue manually, though the owner insisted he sell a new sensor instead

The OP told the owner that the issue was fixed, but he still insisted that the employee sell the sensor to the client. Then the OP approached the customer, asked her to step aside, and explained that he had manually solved her problem – because the Jiffy Lube service center workers probably simply forgot to plug the sensor back in place.

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Image credits: dirty2dreamyllc

The OP told the customer that he was going to quit after just 4 hours at the new job as the owner seemed to be a shyster

However, according to the OP, the owner of this store still required him to sell her a new sensor, which she did not need at all. Therefore, the OP continued, when the client left, he left after her – because this guy was a shyster and he did not want to work with this kind of person. The OP admitted that it was his first day on the job and that he quit four hours after starting it.

Image credits: dirty2dreamyllc

The woman sincerely thanked the mechanic for his concern and then gave him her business card and asked him to let her know where he’d be working next in order to continue servicing her car directly with him.

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Image credits: Nenad Stojkovic (not the actual photo)

When the OP started his own business several years later, he succeeded as clients followed him themselves

That is why, as the OP said, when he started his own business a few years later, he succeeded. Because people themselves follow him, and an honest and humane approach to the customer always resonates in the hearts of people.

@dirty2dreamyllc #answer to @tiktok_qna I couldn’t believe what this owner actually asked me to do. It was a no from me and I left 4 hours after I started #smallbusiness #autodetailing #cardetailing #detailers ♬ original sound – Dirty2DreamyLLC

People in the comments told the OP that he is an awesome person and that they really share his beliefs

People in the comments massively praised the OP for being so principled and wished him continued success in business. Also, as it turns out, a lot of people share the OP’s beliefs. As one of the commenters admitted, he has owned his repair shop for 37 years and has always tried to do the right thing and take care of his customers.

Moreover, according to some people in the comments, any person should trust their auto mechanic in the same way as they trust a doctor – after all, the life of the driver and others largely depends on the car mechanic’s conscientiousness. And, according to most commenters, the OP is just an awesome person.

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We must say that people often face such dishonest employers on their life path. For example, the owner of a small clothing store asked this woman to record a video resume, and this applicant was offered a salary significantly lower than advertised at an interview when the higher-ups found out he hadn’t worked for two months. And if you have had similar strange stories about employers as well, please feel free to share them in the comments to this post.

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fatharry3 avatar
Fat Harry
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The thing about a garage or a mechanic is that when you find a good, honest one you keep going back, year after year. I've been going to the same garage since 2005. They're the sort of people who will tell you there's no charge because it just involved plugging something back in that had come loose, or they'll tell you you've got a good 2000 miles left on your tyres yet. And that honestly breeds loyalty. That pays much more in the long run than being a con artist.

brittanycopeland avatar
Brittany Copeland
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Lol a guy at Firestone tried doing something similar to me once, tried to convince me that my tires were five seconds from blowing and I needed a whole new set cuz of this one scuff mark when I went in for an oil change. Sucks to be him though, cuz he was new and my mom was his boss and just back from vacation. She stood behind him and the other guys got real quiet when he kept going. She ripped him a new one while explaining that those tires were 3 months old and he wasn't selling me anything. He didn't last long after that.

stanflouride avatar
Stannous Flouride
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Censoring shyster? shy·ster /ˈSHīstər/ A person, especially a lawyer, who uses unscrupulous, fraudulent, or deceptive methods in business. Mid 19th century: said to be from Scheuster, the name of a lawyer whose behavior provoked accusations of ‘scheuster’ practices, perhaps reinforced by German Scheisser ‘worthless person’.

kathrynbaylis avatar
Kathryn Baylis
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Note also that the customer was a woman. So of course the manager was banking on her not knowing anything about cars. Bastard. When I was younger, I had a VW Bug. Went into a place for an oil change. When they were done, and I paid the bill, I got my keys and went to drive home. Car roared and nearly jumped when I turned the key. It wasn’t doing that when I arrived there. Had a hell of a time keeping it still at stop lights. Got home, got out the manual, and went over possible causes. Found out it was the idle screw. Since the timing was so suspicious, I just know that, when they changed my oil, they decided to tighten the idle screw to make it sound like something big and expensive was wrong with the car, so I would come back and they could charge me out the yingyang for an unnecessary repair that they probably wouldn’t even do, because the actual repair would only take them a minute to fix. Got a screwdriver, loosened the screw, as it had been tightened as far as it would go, and readjusted the idle back to where it had been, all by myself. Then I passed the information about my experience the next time I saw a friend of mine, who happened to be a detective on the police department’s Fraud Squad. Don’t know if the shop was ever brought up on fraud charges, but I was satisfied. Found an honest shop after that.

zenashirey avatar
Zena Shirey
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I once had a mechanic that I trusted completely. No matter he worked for a big company (meineke) He always was honest in what he did . We had a 15 year relationship then one day he was gone ,broke my heart .A new owner had taken over whom was treating him unfairly, what a mistake. This shop went from being a top earning establishment to a ghost town overnight. Proof of an honest man's power ,still miss him.

the_original_blue62 avatar
Bravo6Two
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Three generations of my family went to the same guy for close to 30 years until he retired because we could trust him to treat us fairly. And then some- he even loaned my grandfather his own truck a time or two so he wasn't stranded. Small businesses like mechanics live or die by their reputation.

scottrackley avatar
Scott Rackley
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Firestone is just as crooked. Girlfriend went to one for 100k tranny flush, mainly because I didn't want to do it. (Ended up doing it anyway) After they quoted the price (which was too expensive by a factor of 4), she called me and I told her to come back home I'll flush it next weekend. I get a call back from her saying the mechanics can't let her drive that car out of their lot. So I go down there and inform them they can hand over the keys to her or the police, but they're handing them over. I even saw one of them considering it, so I pulled out the phone and asked them, "Really?" After she got the keys and went home, I had a little talk with the manager.

glennschroeder avatar
Glenn Schroeder
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I started going to a local shop because my father went to it. When the original owner retired his son took over, and he always treated my right. Now HIS son is running it. I'm still going there.

warbabe76 avatar
Barbara Gibson
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The mechanic my family has used for many years has treated us so well my eldest just bought their first used car and made a point of bringing it back from college so that he could look it over. Dad may be gone but the relationship he built with this mechanic and the shop he owns lives on.

aurrickferrant avatar
Aurrick Ferrant
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I try to educate myself with the basic mechanical knowledge. I may not be able to fix my own stuff but it has helped me figure out when someone is trying to nickle and dime me. Just the little bit of understanding I've had has rescued me from thousands in un-due repairs. Speaking from experience, the repair industry is loaded with con artists and if you find an honest mechanic, don't leave.

harryfeldman_1 avatar
Harry Feldman
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

As a fellow former mechanic i would do the same thing as basic courtesy to help customers in this business. Unfortunately all these "Chain" stores are so corporate run to the ground just for sales metrics that they have forgotten about his business is a service first to help people with automotive trouble.

saredyim_1 avatar
Cheese man Steve
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

A shop once showed me an air filter and said "it's so dirty, you need a new one" I usually work on my own car but took it to the shop because I had more money than time at the time. I knew what my air filter looked like and that was not it. I told him politely that he might have the wrong customer, knowing that he was full of s**t. I later left a review on the Googles to make sure people watch out for him.

lunabell117 avatar
C
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Honestly this is why I can't do jobs that work on commission or are all about making the sales anymore. I want to give the customers what they want, not saddle them with things they don't need. Used to be a bra saleswoman at a shop that also sold exorbitantly priced loungewear and dresses. Was told every single customer to try and upsale them to the loungewear and dresses. I'd point them out to browsing customers. I'd mention them to customers who liked our products. But I wouldn't push them on people that just wanted a bra. F that. I hate that crud when I'm trying to shop, I know exactly how the customer feels being put in that position. Good on this guy, he's a keeper wherever he ended up.

firstnamelastname_7 avatar
Firstname Lastname
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

99% of every repair shops I’ve been to in my life have been run by shitty scammer scumbags. It’s gotten to the point where I don’t even bring my car in when I know it needs to go in because I know some a*****e is going to try to rip me off. I swear, I am going to kill the next mechanic who tries that s**t on me then burn the shop to the ground.

jasonlickliter avatar
jason lickliter
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Years ago when tv repair was a thing i had a simular issue. I went on a call and the only thing wrong was the tv wasnt plugged in. I called the boss and he wanted me to bring in the tv for repair. Wtf? its already fixed cause i just plugged it in and its working fine. He still wanted to charge the service call for going out there and i guess thats fine but i was not going to take it in for repair. The lady had 4 kids and was on a fixed income. Also they had a repair tech who dosnt drink soda or water and its too late in the day for coffee. So he buys a 6 pack of beer and thought that was just fine to drive drunk and repair tvs. lol yeah i f*****g quit.

kevinyancey avatar
Kevin Yancey
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That's why I don't trust anyone to do anything I can do myself. I've been working on cars for over 40 years (damn, I'm getting old), and even did a service advisor/assistant manager job like this dude. I didn't care for their business practices and stayed longer than I should, just to protect as many people as possible from getting screwed over! Plus, I had a guy working under me, that was worthless, screwing up more than he repaired. I finally got him to quit, by organizing the tickets so he got nothing but oil changes and the other three guys got the rest! I treat every customer the way I would want to be treated, with respect and honesty. I'd rather lose the opportunity to make a dollar, than to lose a trusting customer!

grahamhackett avatar
Graham Hackett
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This guy did the right thing, as he should have. He doesn't really deserve points for not being a thief.

alisonkennedy avatar
Alison Kennedy
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I love my mechanics, they have never steered me wrong, been with them for 20 years. They also don't talk down to me because I am female.

ljbeanfield avatar
ljbeanfield
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My friend tried to get something on her car fixed the other day because she couldn't do it herself, but they didn't know that she can fix her own car and tried to charge her almost double the original amount!

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trishunt5038 avatar
Tris Hunt
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It's reasons like this when I'm glad that my brother is a mechanic.

snowfoxrox avatar
Whitefox
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Hubs met a mechanic at his job (cook) got to know him pretty well. We have followed him to 2 shops now because he's always treated us fair. If we cant do it ourselves, we know he will be fair.

dodsonmichelle avatar
Celtic Pirate Queen
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My ex is the reason mechanics have such a bad reputation. Yeah, he was a good mechanic, but was always looking for ways to screw people over. He'd go to "Pick a Part" clean the item and then sell it as new. A very dear friend of mine had his employee bring his classic El Camino in for service. As ex & his idiot friend were pushing it into the garage, they backed it into the engine hoist and dented the tailgate. I SAW THEM DO IT. Friend brings employee over to get car & notices dent. Ex insisted it was already there. My friend takes one look at my face and knows (why they didn't pull the dent out, I'll never know), guy refuses payment & they leave. Yeah, there was a HUGE fight between us that night and I almost lost a friend I had long before I met ex.

nathannicholson avatar
Nathan Nicholson
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is BS. I'm a mechanic. Why wouldn't this guy just plug the sensor back in, give the good news to the customer, and be the hero? He could do that before ever reporting back on his "diagnosis." He didn't even look the whole car over before reporting his findings. Any technician worth his salt looks the whole car over before completing a work order. The situation should've never happened, plus I doubt the service manager told him to sell a part the customer didn't need. That's not how you retain customers. You do right by them, they do right by you. Generally. A sale on a Maf sensor nets $50 profit give or take. Not worth losing a customer or new hire to sell that part. Plus, a dirty boss will wait at least two weeks to show their true colors. This "mechanic" is a blowhard tick tocker looking for attention. Meanwhile he's throwing people, and their business, under the bus. People who are just trying to work to pay the bills and feed their family. Kick rocks, dude.

locally_sourcedmeatballs avatar
Locally.Sourced Meatballs
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That's why I go to the same mechanic for anything that I cannot do myself. He's a little more expensive than some and sometimes there's a day or two before he can get to you. But he won't up sell you, doesn't b******t you. He even managed to get me some oem parts that I was having trouble sourcing because I couldn't afford to pay to have my sway bars and stabilizers done years ago when I was younger. He got me the parts and I did it myself. He definitely didn't have to do it and napa didn't have them and the dealership wouldn't help me out.

victorweisbeker avatar
Victor Weisbeker
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I’ve had similar problems with Firestone in NC . They tell me I need work done and not trusting them I take it somewhere else. Their 60,000 mile tires barely last 20,000 miles. They did front alignment which wasn’t done correctly.

houseofno avatar
Houseof No
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Want to know the difference between coal and a diamond? They're both carbon in their natural forms. The difference is that one is rare, valuable and difficult to find. The other is fit only to be burned. Odd. I also just described the difference between honest people and dishonest ones. How about that? My department recently changed schedules from 8 hours x 5 days with 30 minute lunches to 10 hours x 4 days with one hour lunches. The ten x four schedules have proven very popular with my coworkers because of the one hour lunches. My boss passed a rule that if anyone fails to clock out for lunch, the whole department stays on ten hour shifts but the lunches go back to 30 minutes. I recently failed to clock out for lunch. I sent an email advising that I failed to clock out in time for my lunch (clocked out 15 minutes late due to personal mental lapse on my part, which I fessed up to voluntarily). In my advisement to my boss about the personal lapse, I also asked that I be the only one to be penalized, not my coworkers. My parents raised me that way.

darianstarfrog avatar
Darian Starfrog
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yea, its common than you know..that's why going to a mechanic as a woman, is often not a good idea.. asshats take advantage because they know , or think, you dont know any better..goes for charging more too.. seen it many times

msa avatar
Ms A
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I used to work as a service writer at a dealership… nope. Dealerships can suck a fat one. I will only take my car to small, independently owned shops. I’m just glad I know a few in my neighborhood. And do you know how difficult it is to find someone that still works on manual transmissions?

walaszek avatar
Mel Walaszek
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The thing with corporate owned businesses is if the manager dose not have a increase in sales over a period of a few months he is fired. If this is happening in a shop you visit you can be sure they will find many high priced repairs if you need them or not. Best thing to do is at the very least get a second opinion from an independent owned shop who has been been run by the same owner and crew for at least 10 years.

renoknight42 avatar
Samuel Kuehl
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The thing is auto repair shops are suppose to do this. Because part mark up is just part of how it makes a lot of its money right next to a book that says how long a job should take and charge that amount of time even if it takes less. Some things i learned from a strange occurance a while ago while sitting in on a court case and talking with former auto repair mechanics.

wizweird avatar
Wiz Weird
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Actually, the labor guide is supposed to be for estimates only. Any decent mechanic can beat their times. But sometimes you run into problems from design flaws.. my wife watched me take 4 bolts off of her pulsar took me almost an hour, and she couldn't get her hand into the space I was squeezing mine into. The labor guide helps with those things, but we never charged that much, we charged actual time. Some shops figure if you're willing to pay what the estimate says then charge you that much. We were a neighborhood shop, so we always beat the estimate.

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chasugc_1 avatar
Chas UGC
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I wish the OP left the name and zip code of this shop. These mechanics are such crooks. I had two of them destroy my car brakes in the San Fernando Valley because they wanted me to sell them my restored classic convertible Mustang really cheap when I brought a new car. I paid two different mechanics, $300 dollars each to fix my brakes, and afterwards my brake fluid kept running out of the car almost instantly when I applied the brakes. The automotive bureau's just laugh at you. Don't go to the Mustang Service Center with Bo, in the S.F. valley. He's probably dead by now anyway. Bunch of crooks.

wizweird avatar
Wiz Weird
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Jiffy lube put a few drops of motor oil in my brakes. The car was a Daytona Shelby z, and had the rare rear disc option. They ended up paying 1700 to repair mine. They had to replace everything in the system. Even a drop of oil in the brake master cylinder can ruin your entire system

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fatharry3 avatar
Fat Harry
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The thing about a garage or a mechanic is that when you find a good, honest one you keep going back, year after year. I've been going to the same garage since 2005. They're the sort of people who will tell you there's no charge because it just involved plugging something back in that had come loose, or they'll tell you you've got a good 2000 miles left on your tyres yet. And that honestly breeds loyalty. That pays much more in the long run than being a con artist.

brittanycopeland avatar
Brittany Copeland
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Lol a guy at Firestone tried doing something similar to me once, tried to convince me that my tires were five seconds from blowing and I needed a whole new set cuz of this one scuff mark when I went in for an oil change. Sucks to be him though, cuz he was new and my mom was his boss and just back from vacation. She stood behind him and the other guys got real quiet when he kept going. She ripped him a new one while explaining that those tires were 3 months old and he wasn't selling me anything. He didn't last long after that.

stanflouride avatar
Stannous Flouride
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Censoring shyster? shy·ster /ˈSHīstər/ A person, especially a lawyer, who uses unscrupulous, fraudulent, or deceptive methods in business. Mid 19th century: said to be from Scheuster, the name of a lawyer whose behavior provoked accusations of ‘scheuster’ practices, perhaps reinforced by German Scheisser ‘worthless person’.

kathrynbaylis avatar
Kathryn Baylis
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Note also that the customer was a woman. So of course the manager was banking on her not knowing anything about cars. Bastard. When I was younger, I had a VW Bug. Went into a place for an oil change. When they were done, and I paid the bill, I got my keys and went to drive home. Car roared and nearly jumped when I turned the key. It wasn’t doing that when I arrived there. Had a hell of a time keeping it still at stop lights. Got home, got out the manual, and went over possible causes. Found out it was the idle screw. Since the timing was so suspicious, I just know that, when they changed my oil, they decided to tighten the idle screw to make it sound like something big and expensive was wrong with the car, so I would come back and they could charge me out the yingyang for an unnecessary repair that they probably wouldn’t even do, because the actual repair would only take them a minute to fix. Got a screwdriver, loosened the screw, as it had been tightened as far as it would go, and readjusted the idle back to where it had been, all by myself. Then I passed the information about my experience the next time I saw a friend of mine, who happened to be a detective on the police department’s Fraud Squad. Don’t know if the shop was ever brought up on fraud charges, but I was satisfied. Found an honest shop after that.

zenashirey avatar
Zena Shirey
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I once had a mechanic that I trusted completely. No matter he worked for a big company (meineke) He always was honest in what he did . We had a 15 year relationship then one day he was gone ,broke my heart .A new owner had taken over whom was treating him unfairly, what a mistake. This shop went from being a top earning establishment to a ghost town overnight. Proof of an honest man's power ,still miss him.

the_original_blue62 avatar
Bravo6Two
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Three generations of my family went to the same guy for close to 30 years until he retired because we could trust him to treat us fairly. And then some- he even loaned my grandfather his own truck a time or two so he wasn't stranded. Small businesses like mechanics live or die by their reputation.

scottrackley avatar
Scott Rackley
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Firestone is just as crooked. Girlfriend went to one for 100k tranny flush, mainly because I didn't want to do it. (Ended up doing it anyway) After they quoted the price (which was too expensive by a factor of 4), she called me and I told her to come back home I'll flush it next weekend. I get a call back from her saying the mechanics can't let her drive that car out of their lot. So I go down there and inform them they can hand over the keys to her or the police, but they're handing them over. I even saw one of them considering it, so I pulled out the phone and asked them, "Really?" After she got the keys and went home, I had a little talk with the manager.

glennschroeder avatar
Glenn Schroeder
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I started going to a local shop because my father went to it. When the original owner retired his son took over, and he always treated my right. Now HIS son is running it. I'm still going there.

warbabe76 avatar
Barbara Gibson
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The mechanic my family has used for many years has treated us so well my eldest just bought their first used car and made a point of bringing it back from college so that he could look it over. Dad may be gone but the relationship he built with this mechanic and the shop he owns lives on.

aurrickferrant avatar
Aurrick Ferrant
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I try to educate myself with the basic mechanical knowledge. I may not be able to fix my own stuff but it has helped me figure out when someone is trying to nickle and dime me. Just the little bit of understanding I've had has rescued me from thousands in un-due repairs. Speaking from experience, the repair industry is loaded with con artists and if you find an honest mechanic, don't leave.

harryfeldman_1 avatar
Harry Feldman
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

As a fellow former mechanic i would do the same thing as basic courtesy to help customers in this business. Unfortunately all these "Chain" stores are so corporate run to the ground just for sales metrics that they have forgotten about his business is a service first to help people with automotive trouble.

saredyim_1 avatar
Cheese man Steve
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

A shop once showed me an air filter and said "it's so dirty, you need a new one" I usually work on my own car but took it to the shop because I had more money than time at the time. I knew what my air filter looked like and that was not it. I told him politely that he might have the wrong customer, knowing that he was full of s**t. I later left a review on the Googles to make sure people watch out for him.

lunabell117 avatar
C
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Honestly this is why I can't do jobs that work on commission or are all about making the sales anymore. I want to give the customers what they want, not saddle them with things they don't need. Used to be a bra saleswoman at a shop that also sold exorbitantly priced loungewear and dresses. Was told every single customer to try and upsale them to the loungewear and dresses. I'd point them out to browsing customers. I'd mention them to customers who liked our products. But I wouldn't push them on people that just wanted a bra. F that. I hate that crud when I'm trying to shop, I know exactly how the customer feels being put in that position. Good on this guy, he's a keeper wherever he ended up.

firstnamelastname_7 avatar
Firstname Lastname
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

99% of every repair shops I’ve been to in my life have been run by shitty scammer scumbags. It’s gotten to the point where I don’t even bring my car in when I know it needs to go in because I know some a*****e is going to try to rip me off. I swear, I am going to kill the next mechanic who tries that s**t on me then burn the shop to the ground.

jasonlickliter avatar
jason lickliter
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Years ago when tv repair was a thing i had a simular issue. I went on a call and the only thing wrong was the tv wasnt plugged in. I called the boss and he wanted me to bring in the tv for repair. Wtf? its already fixed cause i just plugged it in and its working fine. He still wanted to charge the service call for going out there and i guess thats fine but i was not going to take it in for repair. The lady had 4 kids and was on a fixed income. Also they had a repair tech who dosnt drink soda or water and its too late in the day for coffee. So he buys a 6 pack of beer and thought that was just fine to drive drunk and repair tvs. lol yeah i f*****g quit.

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Kevin Yancey
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That's why I don't trust anyone to do anything I can do myself. I've been working on cars for over 40 years (damn, I'm getting old), and even did a service advisor/assistant manager job like this dude. I didn't care for their business practices and stayed longer than I should, just to protect as many people as possible from getting screwed over! Plus, I had a guy working under me, that was worthless, screwing up more than he repaired. I finally got him to quit, by organizing the tickets so he got nothing but oil changes and the other three guys got the rest! I treat every customer the way I would want to be treated, with respect and honesty. I'd rather lose the opportunity to make a dollar, than to lose a trusting customer!

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Graham Hackett
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This guy did the right thing, as he should have. He doesn't really deserve points for not being a thief.

alisonkennedy avatar
Alison Kennedy
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I love my mechanics, they have never steered me wrong, been with them for 20 years. They also don't talk down to me because I am female.

ljbeanfield avatar
ljbeanfield
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My friend tried to get something on her car fixed the other day because she couldn't do it herself, but they didn't know that she can fix her own car and tried to charge her almost double the original amount!

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trishunt5038 avatar
Tris Hunt
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It's reasons like this when I'm glad that my brother is a mechanic.

snowfoxrox avatar
Whitefox
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Hubs met a mechanic at his job (cook) got to know him pretty well. We have followed him to 2 shops now because he's always treated us fair. If we cant do it ourselves, we know he will be fair.

dodsonmichelle avatar
Celtic Pirate Queen
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My ex is the reason mechanics have such a bad reputation. Yeah, he was a good mechanic, but was always looking for ways to screw people over. He'd go to "Pick a Part" clean the item and then sell it as new. A very dear friend of mine had his employee bring his classic El Camino in for service. As ex & his idiot friend were pushing it into the garage, they backed it into the engine hoist and dented the tailgate. I SAW THEM DO IT. Friend brings employee over to get car & notices dent. Ex insisted it was already there. My friend takes one look at my face and knows (why they didn't pull the dent out, I'll never know), guy refuses payment & they leave. Yeah, there was a HUGE fight between us that night and I almost lost a friend I had long before I met ex.

nathannicholson avatar
Nathan Nicholson
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is BS. I'm a mechanic. Why wouldn't this guy just plug the sensor back in, give the good news to the customer, and be the hero? He could do that before ever reporting back on his "diagnosis." He didn't even look the whole car over before reporting his findings. Any technician worth his salt looks the whole car over before completing a work order. The situation should've never happened, plus I doubt the service manager told him to sell a part the customer didn't need. That's not how you retain customers. You do right by them, they do right by you. Generally. A sale on a Maf sensor nets $50 profit give or take. Not worth losing a customer or new hire to sell that part. Plus, a dirty boss will wait at least two weeks to show their true colors. This "mechanic" is a blowhard tick tocker looking for attention. Meanwhile he's throwing people, and their business, under the bus. People who are just trying to work to pay the bills and feed their family. Kick rocks, dude.

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Locally.Sourced Meatballs
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That's why I go to the same mechanic for anything that I cannot do myself. He's a little more expensive than some and sometimes there's a day or two before he can get to you. But he won't up sell you, doesn't b******t you. He even managed to get me some oem parts that I was having trouble sourcing because I couldn't afford to pay to have my sway bars and stabilizers done years ago when I was younger. He got me the parts and I did it myself. He definitely didn't have to do it and napa didn't have them and the dealership wouldn't help me out.

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Victor Weisbeker
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I’ve had similar problems with Firestone in NC . They tell me I need work done and not trusting them I take it somewhere else. Their 60,000 mile tires barely last 20,000 miles. They did front alignment which wasn’t done correctly.

houseofno avatar
Houseof No
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Want to know the difference between coal and a diamond? They're both carbon in their natural forms. The difference is that one is rare, valuable and difficult to find. The other is fit only to be burned. Odd. I also just described the difference between honest people and dishonest ones. How about that? My department recently changed schedules from 8 hours x 5 days with 30 minute lunches to 10 hours x 4 days with one hour lunches. The ten x four schedules have proven very popular with my coworkers because of the one hour lunches. My boss passed a rule that if anyone fails to clock out for lunch, the whole department stays on ten hour shifts but the lunches go back to 30 minutes. I recently failed to clock out for lunch. I sent an email advising that I failed to clock out in time for my lunch (clocked out 15 minutes late due to personal mental lapse on my part, which I fessed up to voluntarily). In my advisement to my boss about the personal lapse, I also asked that I be the only one to be penalized, not my coworkers. My parents raised me that way.

darianstarfrog avatar
Darian Starfrog
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yea, its common than you know..that's why going to a mechanic as a woman, is often not a good idea.. asshats take advantage because they know , or think, you dont know any better..goes for charging more too.. seen it many times

msa avatar
Ms A
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I used to work as a service writer at a dealership… nope. Dealerships can suck a fat one. I will only take my car to small, independently owned shops. I’m just glad I know a few in my neighborhood. And do you know how difficult it is to find someone that still works on manual transmissions?

walaszek avatar
Mel Walaszek
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The thing with corporate owned businesses is if the manager dose not have a increase in sales over a period of a few months he is fired. If this is happening in a shop you visit you can be sure they will find many high priced repairs if you need them or not. Best thing to do is at the very least get a second opinion from an independent owned shop who has been been run by the same owner and crew for at least 10 years.

renoknight42 avatar
Samuel Kuehl
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The thing is auto repair shops are suppose to do this. Because part mark up is just part of how it makes a lot of its money right next to a book that says how long a job should take and charge that amount of time even if it takes less. Some things i learned from a strange occurance a while ago while sitting in on a court case and talking with former auto repair mechanics.

wizweird avatar
Wiz Weird
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Actually, the labor guide is supposed to be for estimates only. Any decent mechanic can beat their times. But sometimes you run into problems from design flaws.. my wife watched me take 4 bolts off of her pulsar took me almost an hour, and she couldn't get her hand into the space I was squeezing mine into. The labor guide helps with those things, but we never charged that much, we charged actual time. Some shops figure if you're willing to pay what the estimate says then charge you that much. We were a neighborhood shop, so we always beat the estimate.

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Chas UGC
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I wish the OP left the name and zip code of this shop. These mechanics are such crooks. I had two of them destroy my car brakes in the San Fernando Valley because they wanted me to sell them my restored classic convertible Mustang really cheap when I brought a new car. I paid two different mechanics, $300 dollars each to fix my brakes, and afterwards my brake fluid kept running out of the car almost instantly when I applied the brakes. The automotive bureau's just laugh at you. Don't go to the Mustang Service Center with Bo, in the S.F. valley. He's probably dead by now anyway. Bunch of crooks.

wizweird avatar
Wiz Weird
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Jiffy lube put a few drops of motor oil in my brakes. The car was a Daytona Shelby z, and had the rare rear disc option. They ended up paying 1700 to repair mine. They had to replace everything in the system. Even a drop of oil in the brake master cylinder can ruin your entire system

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