Saved a TON on car maintenance

[CowboyCO]

DW's SUV has needed struts and shocks for a while now and I finally bit the bullet and set aside some money to do the delayed maintenance on it. It was going to cost $750 to do the shocks, struts and alignment. I lucked into a deal at Brakes Plus. They were running a Monroe shock special, Buy 3 Get one free, plus $48 alignments. It ended up costing $480 instead of the over $700 I had been quoted at several shops.

Now, I will resist the urge to put that into the Disney account and will do some extra maintenance on my truck with the "found" money.

Watch for deals out there folks - they exist!

 

[GoofyMomInOhio]

My DH needed some work on his car...almost $1800 worth and that was the cheapest we could find with a good reputation. I decided it was worth a shot to ask if they would give us a discount and to my DH's surprise, they did! We ended up saving over $200 just because I asked.

 

[wmharley]

I do normal maintenance on my car. For under $30 I can do a full synthetic oil change myself compared to over $60 elsewhere.

that said, my mechanic, for items I cannot handle, or don't want to, has even recommended I buy the parts at a store first, then bring them to him to install.

This does the following: avoid the shop's markup on parts, and allows me to pick the item I want, or rather quality. then he just charges me labor.

Nice to know my mechanic offers me that choice.

 

[bettymae1121]

Better yet, marry a man that does all his own auto repairs!

I've saved thousands of dollars and have been able to keep my '98 Saturn much longer than I would have otherwise, all because DH can do all the repairs himself. Oddly enough, oil changes are the one thing he won't do, he says it's "too hot and dirty" and worth the $20 to have someone else do it!

 

[moniot]

I do normal maintenance on my car. For under $30 I can do a full synthetic oil change myself compared to over $60 elsewhere.

that said, my mechanic, for items I cannot handle, or don't want to, has even recommended I buy the parts at a store first, then bring them to him to install.

This does the following: avoid the shop's markup on parts, and allows me to pick the item I want, or rather quality. then he just charges me labor.

Nice to know my mechanic offers me that choice.

What happens if one of your parts needs to be warranted?

 

[Cjmuma]

I have always purchased my own parts and taken them to my mechanic. That said - DO NOT GO TO THE MECHANIC AT THE DEALERSHIP! They usually charge the highest labor rates. If a part goes bad under warranty, I take the part back to the store I purchased it at, and take the replacement back to my mechanic.

 

[dis75ney]

My DSIL's ex-fiance (they are still friends) is a mechanic, and he does all the work on our van. We pay for parts, pizza, and beer. He's going to be replacing our rear brakes pads/drums this weekend, and we'll be saving over $500 on labor alone!

 

[moniot]

I have always purchased my own parts and taken them to my mechanic. That said - DO NOT GO TO THE MECHANIC AT THE DEALERSHIP! They usually charge the highest labor rates. If a part goes bad under warranty, I take the part back to the store I purchased it at, and take the replacement back to my mechanic.

Will the mechanic charge you to put the part in again?

 

[CowboyCO]

I just found a mechanic on craigslist that will do my timing belt and water pump for $180 plus parts, so after parts $200, I'll only pay $380 for the job! That's less than half what I was quoted at a couple of garages. (The mechanic is a Toyota tech who will do it on his day off)

 

[wmharley]

What happens if one of your parts needs to be warranted?

My mechanic would treat me right. If they say the part was defective after its been on, depending what it is, I'd be able to have them remove it and then take it to the store to get it replaced.

I recently bought new rear emergency brake pads for our van and a radiator. Save a nice chunk of coin.

 

[Purseval]

My DSIL's ex-fiance (they are still friends) is a mechanic, and he does all the work on our van. We pay for parts, pizza, and beer. He's going to be replacing our rear brakes pads/drums this weekend, and we'll be saving over $500 on labor alone!

Rear brakes, even for someone who has never done them before and is following a step by step do-it-yourself thread on a website, take less than an hour. Labor must be pretty high where you live.

 

[daughtersrus]

I have always purchased my own parts and taken them to my mechanic. That said - DO NOT GO TO THE MECHANIC AT THE DEALERSHIP! They usually charge the highest labor rates.

That is not always true. DH is a tech. The rates at the dealership that he works at (Lincoln/Mercury) are the same as those at Meineke, Pepboys and other local shops. The parts may be a bit more. I'd rather know that the work is being done by someone certified and experienced.

Years ago, my dad owned his own service station (this was back in the 70's and early 80's). He had one customer bring him the parts that he wanted my dad to install. I'll never forget my dad's comment. He asked the guy if he brings his own eggs to the restaurant and asked the cook to fry them for him!

 

[wmharley]

That is not always true. DH is a tech. The rates at the dealership that he works at (Lincoln/Mercury) are the same as those at Meineke, Pepboys and other local shops. The parts may be a bit more. I'd rather know that the work is being done by someone certified and experienced.

Years ago, my dad owned his own service station (this was back in the 70's and early 80's). He had one customer bring him the parts that he wanted my dad to install. I'll never forget my dad's comment. He asked the guy if he brings his own eggs to the restaurant and asked the cook to fry them for him!

That is one dad I'd not go to then. There is no reason, why a shop would require you to use their marked up parts. They are charging you labor, so its not like they will go broke.

that said, many techs from a dealer go elsewhere. My mom found a toyota dealer tech who opened up his own shop as he got fed up with the conditions in the dealership. He was also cheaper too.

 

[daughtersrus]

That is one dad I'd not go to then. There is no reason, why a shop would require you to use their marked up parts. They are charging you labor, so its not like they will go broke.
.

So do you bring your own food to the restaurant and ask them to cook it for you?

 

[Purseval]

So do you bring your own food to the restaurant and ask them to cook it for you?

We go to restaurants in Jamaica that will cook your fish for you if you catch it and bring it in with you. But I understand what you're trying to say and I'd take my parts somewhere else then let everyone know what business to steer clear of.

There are plenty of mechanics who will use parts you bring in. There are also plenty who won't. I could understand a mechanic who told me that it's not a policy of the shop to use parts from outside sources. However if someone put me down for asking that's an entirely different story.

 

[CowboyCO]

I found a great resource in my town for used tires today. New tires for my truck are $145 minimum for each tire, plus mounting a balancing, comes to $680. But this place has take-offs from leased return vehicles that are all 60-70% of treadlife for about $50 a tire. That's a only 1/3 of the cost of new with 2/3 of the life left. Plus they warranty all the tires. I'd rather spend $275 every two years than $680 every three!

 

[wmharley]

So do you bring your own food to the restaurant and ask them to cook it for you?

A mechanic fixes cars. you are NOT required to use his parts. I pay him for his labor, not the parts.

I eat a restaurant that provides FOOD.. I eat their food.

A Mechanic fixes a car and charges labor to do so.

there is a difference.

 

[herdtoDisney]

A dealership may have similar labor rates to a indie shop, but they are going to use OEM parts-which are more expensive. An indie will just get them from Napa or whatever, or might use ones you purchase yourself.

I'm not saying one is better or not than the other-I've used both.

 

[luvmy3]

Better yet, marry a man that does all his own auto repairs!

and marry into a family that has been in the automotive industry for decades and can either fix your car for you or have connections all over.
We just had a ton of work done and paid about 1/3 of what we would have at a dealer. I learned early one way to save $ is to never take it into them to fix. (and before I get flamed that comes directly from family members who work at dealerships )

 

[MMitchell29]

A mechanic fixes cars. you are NOT required to use his parts. I pay him for his labor, not the parts.

I eat a restaurant that provides FOOD.. I eat their food.

A Mechanic fixes a car and charges labor to do so.

there is a difference.

I like the way you think and I definitely agree. Let me tell you my story, DH brought a nice used 03 Nissan Maxima (very clean with leather seats and all for 5,800) It only had one key so we called Nissan and asked about getting another key they told us it would be 79.00 just for the key and another 100.00 to program it. So I put my thinking cap on and went to searching online, because i knew there had to be a cheaper way to get this key done and Walmart don't have the machine to do it.

I went to ebay and not only did I find the key but I found an extra remote all for about 20.00 What is neat about finding the remote is that it came with instructions on how to program to your car yourself

So I called Nissan back told them I had my own uncut key all they need to do is cut it and program it for me and i'll be one happy customer if they can do it for less than 100.00 guess what the guy said he can do it for 50.00 i told him I was on my way.

So for about 70.00 I got a new key and remote that is a total saving of about 200.00 because they wanted another 100.00 for the remote. So now I am like you I find all my parts myself and just just get quotes for labor