i don't know if it goes here...maybe double...CAR REPAIRS

[Cheesypuff]

freaking mother...since i got back from hong kong...i've had to do over $1,700 wroth of CRAP for my car. sighhh...

i'm starting to hate cars...public transportation is WAY better. i don't think i spent a quarter of that on public transportation ALL YEAR in hong kong. sighhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. :throw:

[gear02]

my car's service light came on last week... :(

[DarkFury]

freaking mother...since i got back from hong kong...i've had to do over $1,700 wroth of CRAP for my car. sighhh...

i'm starting to hate cars...public transportation is WAY better. i don't think i spent a quarter of that on public transportation ALL YEAR in hong kong. sighhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. :throw:
She's probably pissed that you left her... :heh:

[uncledaddy]

Your mother caused you $1,700 in repairs? Was she racing?


my car's service light came on last week...

Depending on your make and model, procedures for reseting lamp may be in your owners manual. But don't forget to service. :)

[Daedalus]

$1700 could get you some pretty spiffy tools. ;)

[Prngr44]

What the heck was wrong with it??

[Cheesypuff]

ok...the bill just went up $187 sighhh

anywho here is what i had done.

brakes pads
rotors
alignment
new tires
broken motor mount
60,000 mile service check
-Replace engine oil filter
-Inspect the tie rod ends, steering gear box, and boots
-Inspect the suspension components
-Inspect the driveshaft boots
-Inspect the brake hoses and lines
-Inspect all fluid levels and condition of fluids
-Inspect the exhaust system
-Inspect the fuel lines and connections#

[DarkFury]

More or less, the Broken Motor Mount is all you really should cry about.

The rest are "normal maintenance" items. Pretty much you make it sound like your car just went kaput on you and you had to do emergency repairs or something. :shrug:

[Cheesypuff]

oh...yeah...sorry...didn't mean to make it sound like that. just....lots of money thats going into the car.

[Daedalus]

here is what i had done <for $1487!!!>

brakes pads
rotors
alignment
new tires
broken motor mount
60,000 mile service check
-Replace engine oil filter
-Inspect parts that might generate more revenue
-Inspect parts that might generate more revenue
-Inspect parts that might generate more revenue
-Inspect parts that might generate more revenue
-Inspect parts that might generate more revenue
-Inspect parts that might generate more revenue
-Inspect parts that might generate more revenue

Sorry, it just pains me to see "fluff" in the bill. A long itemized list looks impressive, but all those "inspections" don't take long at all. No air filter? No fluid flushes? Granted it may be a good deal depending on what kind of car you have. A set of tires alone for 1 of my cars would cost >$1200.

[uncledaddy]

Sorry, it just pains me to see "fluff" in the bill. A long itemized list looks impressive, but all those "inspections" don't take long at all. No air filter? No fluid flushes? Granted it may be a good deal depending on what kind of car you have. A set of tires alone for 1 of my cars would cost >$1200.

Actually the itemized list on repair orders is not meant to impress. Most states now require this type of listing as a record of services performed. The California Bureau of Automotive Repair requires specific separate listing of parts and labor and shops must keep these records up to three years before destruction, (though most shops keep records far longer). Even if you just inspect it, it has to be logged on the work order. It was time consuming and I hated it, but it is the law. It is meant to protect consumers in the event of a system failure after services have been performed. If the shop records that it inspected the tie rods and ends and next week one breaks the consumer has a record and shops will usually absorb further costs of repairs because they just performed the inspection, ( that is unless of course you happen to hit a curb that broke the tie rod).

The inspections are usually done with no labor charges assessed and I can see how the repairs done to cheesypuff's vehicle can hit the $1,500 mark with parts and labor, especially if repairs were done at a dealership with genuine parts.

Although I still don't know make and model. :)

[Daedalus]

I'll buy that it's the law, but I won't believe that "shops will usually absorb further costs of repairs because they just performed the inspection." Maybe it's just me, but I have heard/read quite a few stories to the contrary and none that would support it (people usually complaining about a big repair bill and extra mad because the car was just in the shop). If it were true, then shops would be assuming an immense amount of liability with little to no guaranteed labor revenue to show for it. I.e., why list something of small value if there's a chance it could cost you thousands in comebacks if you don't catch something? Better to just leave it off the list if that were the case.
"I just had an accident because my [brakes/PS belt/fuel line/etc] failed...didn't you just inspect them last week?" A couple weeks ago I read a story where an X5 overheated and blew the HG after a coolant hose ruptured. They had it in for service recently and "Inspect cooling hoses" is part of the package. The owner is having a take-out put in at a different shop...I'm guessing $4-7k. This was in Irvine.

[uncledaddy]

There are a lot of shady/crooked mom and pop shops that totally ignore these laws and unfortunately the California BAR just doesn't have the resources to monitor all of them unless there have been numerous complaints about them. The industry is saturated in California. I have seen only two shops in twenty years, that I knew of, get shut down by the Bureau due to illegal practices. I have read about numerous body shops though. The BAR focuses on body shops because they've been known to gouge customers and practice insurance fraud.

Maybe I was quick to say that a shop would absorb all the costs. At the shops That I have worked we would usually be able to meet customers halfway. They pay parts and we supply labor. Techs usually are the ones who come up short because they would not get paid for the work.

These are some of the many reason's why I have decided to leave the industry.