Dealerships? Really?

It's always been my impression that dealerships will overcharge you just for the joy of tellling all the other idiots that you got your work done at the dealership, but that's in 4-wheelers. After having a dealership screw up a simple oil change on my treasured '74 Cutlass, I swore I'd never have a dealership work on any car I owned ever again.

I ain't sure about big trucks, but I imagine it's the same.

 

Year ago when I was dumb and wasting money on new cars I could get my oil changed at dealer for $20 and car washed for free. Thought that it was a great program as they always found "warranty" work and when car was 1-1 1/2 years old they would be pitching me on a new one. Figured out the system and would wait on oil change and when they came with the extra work I would say I would leave it if they had a loner car and didn't charge me for the oil change.

 

Dealership for the same reason stated earlier, if the repair fails I can get it straightened out at a different dealer. I was a tech so I am capable and have the tools to do my own repairs but some stuff I don't have the desire anymore, I'd rather pay someone to do a brake job than take my time and do it myself. My local mom and pop is a ripoff, he's slow and charges double on the parts.

 

Not that I want to dispute what BW9 says...but....


WI Kenworth is now $117/hr.
Inland Diesel (Detroit Diesel shop) gets $85/hr for NON-ENGINE related labor.

I take it to the dealer since technically they are SUPPOSED to know the vehicle better than anyone else
and usually have all the correct parts in stock for needed repairs.
Labor is always negotiable at my dealer - just like parts, to a point.
For example, I wanted an oil change at the dealer - they initally quoted me $329 for a full service
and when I told them the local Petro was offering $189 - they matched it. If they match the price, why not?

~
I think the biggest reason to take it to a dealer for repair is that if a Kenworth shop replaced an a/c compressor
and within a years time it fails and you are not close to that dealership, you can take it to any other Kenworth dealership and get it warrantied.

You can't do that with the "mom and pops shop"......

 

I had this happen with work I had done in Reno at the Pete dealer, and when I got towards home, the power divider I had repaired went out, and my local dealer warrantied the part, but I had to cover the labor charge. All I had to do was fax a copy of the repair to the Reno dealer and they sent me a check for the costs.

 

At most places be it auto or truck,the shop is what keeps the doors open and the lights on. Not sales,it really shows in a down economy.Just my .02

 

Nope
Best you can hope for is a check from the folks that did the original work