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 One
of the most frequent questions from fearful consumers is how to
eliminate or lessen the fear-factor associated with auto repairs.
There are several levels of repairs that need to be addressed.
Question #1:
"Let's talk repairs. Break it down [oops,
bad choice of words] for me, will ya?"
Answer: "Sure...repairs
fall into a few categories, and what I call special
circumstances/extended-recall related work. The main
categories are: Warranty-related, regular
maintenance, accident related and major repairs."
Question #2: "What's
the easiest-smartest/cheapest way for consumers to stretch their
auto-bucks?"
Answer: "Always
make sure you schedule regular, preventative maintenance on
your vehicle...or face the consequences. Especially with car
prices rivaling the cost of some homes, it simply doesn't pay to
be lazy. Nor does it pay to try to go cheap and trust your
car to one of those 10-minute oil change operations."
Question #3: "Hold
on a second, ..it's all the same, isn't it?
What's different between the oil a 10-minute lube place uses and
the oil or the service department of a
dealer uses?"
Answer:
"I thought you were smarter than
that, Ben! You're right, the oil may be
exactly the same. But what about the filters? Unless
they're using the factory-authorized, original-specification
quality oil filter, consumers could end up with an oil filter that
has as little as one-third the intended/designed filtering
capacity. It'll be cheaper for the consumer and alot cheaper
for the 10-minute lube joint, but much more expensive in the long
run."
Question #4: "Why?
If it fits on the engine is the "proper" filter and fit,
why will this cost more
in the long run?"
Answer:
"Because it's not the same as the
original filter that came on the car straight from the factory and
unless you replace it with the same quality, anything less is
going to have the potential of shortening the life of your engine.
If your oil filter is less effective [processing 66% less in
this example], then it's less effective, period. You're
gonna strain the engine more...and that's okay with me. That
means I get to do an overhaul on your engine sooner and keep
my crew busy. You get my drift. Pay now or pay
later."
Question #5:
"But don't the service departments at
dealership or places like yours charge more for something as
simple as an oil change? Can't I "bring my own
filter" and ask the 10-minute joint to use my parts and avoid
the problem you've described?
Answer:
"Sure, that sounds good.
But not every place will let you do that. But even if they
did let you bring your own replacement parts, think about the
person working on your car. What's their level of expertise
on your particular make and model? What's their level of
expertise, period? Besides, we price our oil changes
competitively...we actually lose money and use the oil changes as
a "loss leader" to get people into our facility.
We want to build loyalty and prove that we're the best at what we
do so when the customer does need a big job done on their car,
they'll bring it to us and let us take care of them. It's
all about trust."
 Question
#6: "Okay...I'm feelin' warm
and fuzzy now and you've made a good point, but let's get back to
dollars and sense. Aren't all of the cars designed pretty
much the same? I mean, something as simple and mundane as an
oil change, an oil filter and air filter change...air up the
tires, wash the windshield and send you on your way...how tough
can that be?"
Answer:
"It's not tough, but think about
that person working on your car. How many different brands
do they work on every day? How proficient can one person be
in so many different makes and models? One person cannot
know everything about every single car. A BMW or Mercedes is
going to have certain traits that a Chevy Tahoe or a Honda or
Toyota won't (and never will) have in common. I'd much
rather have someone doing routine maintenance that knows what to
look for--what to specifically look for--on my car and do the best
job of helping me properly maintain the car and avoid the big
ticket."
Question #7:
"Okay, fine. But with the
computerization of today's cars, isn't everyone pretty much on
equal footing? Doesn't everyone have the same access to
information?"
Answer:
"Same access? If they want to know
bad enough, I suppose they do. But the reality of the matter
is that they don't. Theirs [quick lube places] is a business
based on volume; move 'em in and move 'em out. Turn 'em fast
and get the next one in there.
You've spent $30-$60,000 on a car and want
it rushed through an assembly line to save $10 on an oil change?
No thanks...and besides, if you specialize in one particular make,
or limit your "practice" to a handful of makes [like we
do] we're going to know when there's been a TSB [Technical Service
Bulletin] put out on a make and model, and we'll know what to look
for and we'll get it fixed for you.
And if there's been an special orders
released that would extend the warranties on your vehicle,
we'll tell you what they are and help you not only protect your
investment, but get the work done, under warranty, at zero charge
to you!"
Question #8: "I've
heard more than my share of stories from consumers that have ended
up
with blown engines after getting their oil changed at a quick lube
joint. But can't those places be good at just one
thing--changing your oil--and still serve a valuable niche in the
marketplace?"
Answer:
"You really do get what you pay
for. I know one guy in particular that owns several quick
lube-type stores, you know, the franchise-operations that are on
every street corner. He's done the math and knows that it's
more profitable to hire cheapo labor and have to replace the
occasional blown engine than to hire well-qualified mechanics.
He knows that one of these guys is gonna forget to replace a
dipstick or an oil drain plug and it's gonna cost him a new
engine...but it's more profitable to hire the cheaper labor.
Scary, huh?"
Question #9: "That
only confirms my past suspicions about those types of
establishments...but what about any mechanic and the way they're
compensated? Don't your guys, as is the industry standard,
earn commission on their repairs? Isn't there a temptation
for them to "create work" for themselves and pump up
their paychecks?"
Answer:
"You've always got that potential,
but we think there's a far smaller chance for it in a shop like
mine than in one of those quick lube/quick tune-up places.
First off, our mechanics are experts in the types of cars we work
on, mainly Mercedes, BMW, Volvo Porsche, etc. They know
their way around that car better than the other guys, but the
industry quotes jobs based on the "labor book" rate.
We know that a new set of brakes is gonna take X-number of hours
and the parts are gonna cost Y-dollars.
My mechanics are gonna charge that labor
rate based on "the book" and where they can make their
money is being better than the rookies at the other garages.
If a job's gonna take 3.5 hours, they may be able to get it done
in 2.75 hours...they'll still get paid for the 3.5 hours [like all
shops do and will] but because they can turn work efficiently and
faster, they'll make more money. Obviously they'll do it
right the first time, because if it has to be re-done, they won't
see any $$$ for that work, so it really does serve their best
interest to do it right the first time.
Conversely, the inexperienced mechanic that
takes longer and has to keep sending out for additional parts is
gonna end up losing his butt and not making any money...because of
his inexperience. They're gonna be more likely to cut
corners...and cost everyone involved more time, money and
ultimately, inconvenience.
 Question
#10: "But if you're all
charging labor from the same labor books, won't one of those
general repair/all makes and models-type" places save the
consumer some dough by charging a lesser hourly rate?"
Answer: "Okay,
a job's gonna take 3.5 hours and the rookie mechanic/all purpose
shop charges $60 an hour...and our per hour rate is $15 an
hour...so you'll pay more you think? Always ask the
shops--when you're out shopping price and getting second opinions
on work to be done--always get the shops to quote on a job rate,
never on a per hour rate. And at the end of
the day, remember that especially when it comes to your car, you
get what you pay for."
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