My mechanic is the best

Lando Griffin

Have a VW Passat and the Engine Management Light came on last week.
I rang the main dealer and asked could the plug it in and they wanted 68euro for the privlage.
Was passing my mechanic house and saw hime and drove in and told him the Light was on. He stopped what he was at and plugged the car in to his machine and the fault showed. He explained that on VWs some part of the fuel pump/line can stop for 1/10 of a second and it throws on the light.
He got rid of the light and advised that sometimes it happens once and maybe never again, but if it comes on again bring it in and he will have to do a fuel pressure test. He then popped the bonnet had a look and asked about the car.
I asked how much and he said "your all right, thanks very much"
This is why I keep going back to him, he always exlains what he is going at with the car and is good value and a great worker.
I have heard people with small problems go into him and he sorts them out straight away and little or no charge.
The only downside is he is so busy you have to arrange a service well in advance.
Bravo private mechanics.:D

Colonel Sanders

Any chance you could name him or at least say where abouts you're based?

ottostreet

Yeah my mechanic is the same. Great for stuff like that, only problem is he sometimes takes his time with the car, but that's my only small complaint!

Lando Griffin

Colonel Sanders wrote: »

Any chance you could name him or at least say where abouts you're based?

He is in Cork but I wont name him, dont think he would appreciate it, likes to keep things simple.

Greyfoot

Fair play to him, honesty and good will is inside all of us, buried deep within in some though.
Stealership would have probably advice you changing the fuel pump too....

djimi

I had a mechanic like that; used to charge me €100 for a service in which he changed/checked practically every moving part on the car! Unbelievable nice bloke; used to let me watch all the work he was doing and explained everything as he went along.

Then he moved to Australia...

djimi

djimi wrote: »

I had a mechanic like that; used to charge me €100 for a service in which he changed/checked practically every moving part on the car! Unbelievable nice bloke; used to let me watch all the work he was doing and explained everything as he went along.......

..... he stripped the engine at every service for a ton :eek:

djimi

RoverJames wrote: »

..... he stripped the engine at every service for a ton :eek:

He may as well have! He used to do things like take out the brake pads and clean them off; I have no idea how normal that is for a service but I know Ive never found anyone who charges anywhere remotely close to that kind of money for more that kind of work! From what I can see €100 in most places buys you an oil and filter change...

keithclancy

djimi wrote: »

He may as well have! He used to do things like take out the brake pads and clean them off; I have no idea how normal that is for a service but I know Ive never found anyone who charges anywhere remotely close to that kind of money for more that kind of work! From what I can see €100 in most places buys you an oil and filter change...

I doubt he removed the brake pads to clean them, theres no point to it.

I mean... if you were that way inclined you'd just move the caliper and clean them that way.

bazz26

Lando Griffin wrote: »

Have a VW Passat and the Engine Management Light came on last week.
I rang the main dealer and asked could the plug it in and they wanted 68euro for the privlage.
Was passing my mechanic house and saw hime and drove in and told him the Light was on. He stopped what he was at and plugged the car in to his machine and the fault showed. He explained that on VWs some part of the fuel pump/line can stop for 1/10 of a second and it throws on the light.
He got rid of the light and advised that sometimes it happens once and maybe never again, but if it comes on again bring it in and he will have to do a fuel pressure test. He then popped the bonnet had a look and asked about the car.
I asked how much and he said "your all right, thanks very much"
This is why I keep going back to him, he always exlains what he is going at with the car and is good value and a great worker.
I have heard people with small problems go into him and he sorts them out straight away and little or no charge.
The only downside is he is so busy you have to arrange a service well in advance.
Bravo private mechanics.:D

Even though he said you owed him nothing I would have thrown him the price of a few pints for his trouble. It's always good to keep them sweet.

Pottler

RoverJames wrote: »

..... he stripped the engine at every service for a ton :eek:

Yeah, and now he's gone to Australia and spends all his time telling everyone how "you can't make a living in Ireland". I know a lot of really nice, cheap mechanics, and they're all broke. I know a good, but bloody dear mechanic and he drives a nice 4*4. Everyone hates him for his prices though. Funny thing is, he makes a living. Cheap and thorough mechanics are usually loved by everyone except their wives and bankmanagers. They are also often un/underinsured, often pay no vat or tax and undercut all the ones who do it by the book. Personally, I have no time for them whatsoever. But that's just me. I may be a bollix:-)

dahamsta

Lando Griffin wrote: »

He is in Cork but I wont name him, dont think he would appreciate it, likes to keep things simple.

Would you fire it on via PM then? Good mechanics are in a minority!

flanzer

Going to a main dealership mechanic is as bad as the hoards of people who buy iPhones. It's a fanboy thing. There's hundreds of better options out there for consumers

I've been going to a private guy for years now and have full confidence in him. I'd a leak to one of the fuel lines going to the engine a couple of months back. Dropped into him. He removed the 4 inch pipe from a clapped out Corolla he had and put it in mine, there and then. Didn't want to charge me

You wouldn't see a dealership do this. I also send work colleagues and friends his way. I know he'll look after me

mickdw

Its easy to be a busy fool. nothing wrong with doing the odd favour for good customer but being stupidly cheap all the time will just put you out of business. There are guys who seem to be working for a basic days wages. God knows how they pay for overheads.

Nissan doctor

mickdw wrote: »

Its easy to be a busy fool. nothing wrong with doing the odd favour for good customer but being stupidly cheap all the time will just put you out of business. There are guys who seem to be working for a basic days wages. God knows how they pay for overheads.

Most of the guys working that cheap don't have any overheads....or tax bills!

Bearcat

Yeah there's a happy medium.......

Went to Landrover main dealer recently to get a price for a new alarm fob and to get it coded. Jazuz they made feel like a criminal and more or less demanded my birth cert which I can accept re identity but the price they were charging was running in hundreds for a defender fob.

I'll survive on my single one unless someone can give me a heads up where i can get it done at a reasonable price.

They also had not a clue about defenders......and they knew I knew it.

mickdw

Nissan doctor wrote: »

Most of the guys working that cheap don't have any overheads....or tax bills!

Ya they are certainly not tax compliant. How long they can continue to operate in the current climate without being tax registered is another question as revenue are looking at everything.

DublinDilbert

mickdw wrote: »

Ya they are certainly not tax compliant. How long they can continue to operate in the current climate without being tax registered is another question as revenue are looking at everything.

You will find they may very well be "tax compliant", with respect to revenue. But are only declaring a fraction of their income, in the same way that lots of taxi drivers were saying they earned €12K / year when it came to paying tax. Its a real problem with cash in hand businesses.

tossy

flanzer wrote: »

Going to a main dealership mechanic is as bad as the hoards of people who buy iPhones. It's a fanboy thing.s

I buy iphones but yet wouldn't let my car near a main dealer? What does that make me? i'm confused and need to be pigeon holed so hurry back

Weylin

Lando Griffin wrote: »

Have a VW Passat and the Engine Management Light came on last week.
I rang the main dealer and asked could the plug it in and they wanted 68euro for the privlage.
Was passing my mechanic house and saw hime and drove in and told him the Light was on. He stopped what he was at and plugged the car in to his machine and the fault showed. He explained that on VWs some part of the fuel pump/line can stop for 1/10 of a second and it throws on the light.
He got rid of the light and advised that sometimes it happens once and maybe never again, but if it comes on again bring it in and he will have to do a fuel pressure test. He then popped the bonnet had a look and asked about the car.
I asked how much and he said "your all right, thanks very much"
This is why I keep going back to him, he always exlains what he is going at with the car and is good value and a great worker.
I have heard people with small problems go into him and he sorts them out straight away and little or no charge.
The only downside is he is so busy you have to arrange a service well in advance.
Bravo private mechanics.:D

They must be queuing up the street to see this guy....he is a total idiot if he is doing for free,what a garage charges 68e for.:pac:
A tip for op when a guy says "your all right, thanks very much"he still expects a least 20e for his help...........wake up:pac::pac::pac:

Lando Griffin

They must be queuing up the street to see this guy....he is a total idiot if he is doing for free,what a garage charges 68e for.:pac:
A tip for op when a guy says "your all right, thanks very much"he still expects a least 20e for his help...........wake up:pac::pac::pac:[/Quote]
Amount of times a main dealer got paid for work on my cars - never
Amount of times this guy serviced - fixed my car for a fair and reasonable prime - everytime.

Jimdagym

Lando Griffin wrote: »

Amount of times a main dealer got paid for work on my cars - never
Amount of times this guy serviced - fixed my car for a fair and reasonable prime - everytime.

You say that, but the first thing you did with a fault wasn't call your mechanic, it was ring the dealer.

flanzer

tossy wrote: »

I buy iphones but yet wouldn't let my car near a main dealer? What does that make me? i'm confused and need to be pigeon holed so hurry back

It was an analogy that I used. Everyone who uses a dealership will generally say, 'I want that stamp on the service record', not even caring about the cost. It's a consumer mentality thing, driven by the brand. IMO, I simple receipt from an indy suffices, even when I go to buy a 2nd hand car

Here's a quick vid of what the jist of the analogy I was using. Indys provide more bang for your buck

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FL7yD-0pqZg

Lando Griffin

Jimdagym wrote: »

You say that, but the first thing you did with a fault wasn't call your mechanic, it was ring the dealer.

Ah but why of course

The main dealer is across the road where I work. Would be handier as my mechanic is a bit out of the way.
It would me actually suit me better to have it looked at here.

Pottler

Ok, this is not a "main dealer versus indy" Rant, but it is a rant of sorts. I have an awful lot of vehicles, and a lot of them get hard work and break. My neighbour is an Indy mechanic, he's ok, competent enough. I'm also an alright mechanic and part of my work is repairing and servicing industrial diesels(biggies, but it's only a bit of what we do). So, professionally speaking, I know how to hold a spanner. I also work a lot and can't be 4rsed fixing broken vans, so I pay someone to do it. I've seen dozens of mechanics work(Nissan Doctor strikes me as being an exception, all lick 4rsing aside as I've seen some of his photo threads and he is clean, tidy and knows what he is doing, he has that simplicity of description that only comes from expertise).
On the other hand, I've watched a lot of "cheaper" Indy mechanics at work (some not so cheap)and they are, to be blunt, pure dog rough hackers. No torque wrench for them, a guess will do. Re-use that, sure it'll be grand. Bate it off with a sledge, it's quicker(and also won't last:mad: and will feck up more than it fixes.) Customer gets job "done" cheaply and goes away happy, for a while, maybe a fair while. Good mechanics are actually few and far between, somtimes because of time pressure, financial pressure to "get the yoke out the door", constrained by customer expectation of cheapness and also by lack of real knowledge and equipment. So, price is not everything and cheapness is often a false economy.
On the flip side, many main dealers are also sh1te, clueless and careless, overpriced and undercharmed. The diagnostic software and coding is their weapon of customer loyalty and they are often sharkish.
So, cheap indy hacker, main dealer rip off hacker, or expensive enough but highly skilled Independent? My moneys on the last guy and a clean workshop is often a good guide to what you will get.:)