Fix your own vehicle

Rob5589

WKR
Joined
Sep 6, 2014
Messages
6,299
Location
N CA
If he knows your diagnosis is wrong, then he must know what the actual problem is. May as well DIY, why spend money at the dealer. I was a tech waaaay back, I don't even change my own oil any longer.
 

Fatcamp

WKR
Joined
May 31, 2017
Messages
5,808
Location
Sodak
LOL, Chrysler.

Though I just spent a bunch of money replacing a fuse panel on an F-250 and have a $500 throttle body on the way for my 4Runner.

Vehicles cost money. Buy a bike or ride the bus if you don't like it.
 

jspradley

WKR
Joined
Mar 16, 2016
Messages
1,725
Location
League City, TX
When I was a bartender, rule number one was the customer is always right. Rule number two was the bartender decides who is still a customer.

This is awesome!

I gotta say, one of the good things about my last job is my boss did not give a single eff about crappy customers and didn't care if we did either so long as we took care of the good ones.
 

Rokbar

WKR
Joined
May 8, 2020
Messages
483
As long as Chrysler's are made there will be large demand for service techs. Save money buy TOYOTA!
 

def90

WKR
Joined
Aug 12, 2020
Messages
1,702
Location
Colorado
So I work at a chrysler dealership and a customer brought a vehicle in with an intermittent no start. Checked vehicle out found out needs a major electrical part. Now I will admit I am not very strong in electrical diagnostics but had someone confirm my diagnosis who is. Customer comes in and is talking with another tech so I asked him a few questions about the vehicle and he scoffed at my diagnosis and said nope you won't get my approval for that keep looking. He then informed me that he used to be a tech at this same dealership and he knows that my diagnosis cannot be the problem. At what point do I just tell him to take his vehicle and fix it himself.......
Keep looking until your keep looking costs more than the original part.
 
Joined
Aug 26, 2013
Messages
2,364
Location
New Orleans, La.
I am very set in my diagnosis and did oblige him and took another look. He felt there was mouse intrusion and so I took my lunch and took a breath and re looked to make sure I didn't over look anything and came back to my original conclusion
RE: Mouse intrusion
Both of my son's vehicles had wiring /electrical problems that were intermittent at first, then got progressively worse. The dealership found that mice had chewed on the wiring of several of the harnesses, causing the problem. It seems that since 2005, most manufacturers are using soy based insulation on wires which the rodents find really tasty. Used to be wire insulation was plastic but was changed to soy due to cost.
His wiring problem was covered by his vehicle's insurance, so he only had to pay the deductible.
 
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khuber84

WKR
Joined
Jun 6, 2019
Messages
1,662
Here's what could be happening......dude comes in for diagnosis then disagrees and gets shitty with dealer tech, says thats not it when he really has no idea. He then goes home to attempt the repair himself to save money. He may repeat this at a few more service center till he gets it fixed, or exhausts him shade tree mechanic skills and breaks down for a certified mechanic to work on it.
 

Roksliding

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Sep 24, 2018
Messages
244
I don’t know how you get paid, if it’s by job done etc but I am an “electrical maintainer” and if my boss/supervisor/operator/customer doesn’t agree with my diagnosis and tells me to keep looking- hey you got it!! As long as I’m safe I’ll check everything, even if it has nothing to do with the issue! I’ll replace things three times over again!!! I give a shit! I get paid by the hour tho.

I’d be checking tire pressure, lug nuts, trunk integrity, door gaskets, whatever!

as long as your getting paid and it’s safely.
 

jspradley

WKR
Joined
Mar 16, 2016
Messages
1,725
Location
League City, TX
I don’t know how you get paid, if it’s by job done etc but I am an “electrical maintainer” and if my boss/supervisor/operator/customer doesn’t agree with my diagnosis and tells me to keep looking- hey you got it!! As long as I’m safe I’ll check everything, even if it has nothing to do with the issue! I’ll replace things three times over again!!! I give a shit! I get paid by the hour tho.

I’d be checking tire pressure, lug nuts, trunk integrity, door gaskets, whatever!

as long as your getting paid and it’s safely.

Good point, I'd even throw in a free blinker fluid top off... lol
 
Joined
Jan 17, 2017
Messages
577
Location
sw mt
Here's what could be happening......dude comes in for diagnosis then disagrees and gets shitty with dealer tech, says thats not it when he really has no idea. He then goes home to attempt the repair himself to save money. He may repeat this at a few more service center till he gets it fixed, or exhausts him shade tree mechanic skills and breaks down for a certified mechanic to work on it.


Have seen this a couple times....

about 20 years ago a guy comes in with an e250 van that would intermittently fast idle. Luckily it did it for me and I proved that the iac valve was hanging up. Customer said it couldnt be that because he had just replaced it (and it did have a new part on it). Carried on about how it had to be the ecm.....blah blah blah......finally just agreed with him knowing he was going to go home and fix it himself. Ecm for that van was around 800 bucks at the time.

Heard from a friend at another local shop about the guy bringing it in and being mad because i missdiagnosed it and cost him 800 bucks for a computer. Friend put in a new iac valve and all was good.
 

jmav58

WKR
Joined
Feb 12, 2015
Messages
547
Location
MT
I don’t know how you get paid, if it’s by job done etc but I am an “electrical maintainer” and if my boss/supervisor/operator/customer doesn’t agree with my diagnosis and tells me to keep looking- hey you got it!! As long as I’m safe I’ll check everything, even if it has nothing to do with the issue! I’ll replace things three times over again!!! I give a shit! I get paid by the hour tho.

I’d be checking tire pressure, lug nuts, trunk integrity, door gaskets, whatever!

as long as your getting paid and it’s safely.
Lmao. Trunk integrity.
 
OP
skyler_2010
Joined
Apr 1, 2017
Messages
551
Location
Grand Rapids, MN
I don’t know how you get paid, if it’s by job done etc but I am an “electrical maintainer” and if my boss/supervisor/operator/customer doesn’t agree with my diagnosis and tells me to keep looking- hey you got it!! As long as I’m safe I’ll check everything, even if it has nothing to do with the issue! I’ll replace things three times over again!!! I give a shit! I get paid by the hour tho.

I’d be checking tire pressure, lug nuts, trunk integrity, door gaskets, whatever!

as long as your getting paid and it’s safely.
Since he wanted more diag time on the vehicle he paid for another hour of me looking at it. I will put in as much diagnostic time is necessary and then if the customer wants to waste more money then I will put in even more time unless it's eating up time from other customers that I can actually make money on. Diagnostic time isn't where techs make money it's the repair and how efficiently fast they can do it, I know it's going to take me a little more than book time to get the bcm in because of not being able to get gloves at baby gap and where the bcm is on this vehicle so some of the diagnostic time that he added is going to go towards the repair
 

Axlrod

WKR
Joined
Jan 8, 2017
Messages
1,469
Location
SW Montana
This cuts both ways. I had my 2018 duramax at the dealer 5 months ago for service and rotate. I also asked them to see why there was a low coolant warning in the info center. told the serv. mgr. that I had checked the coolant several times cold and hot and had checked it right before i walked in the door. When I picked up my truck there was a $28 charge to add coolant- it could not have held more than a teaspoon full. I took the service mgr out to my truck and started it and the low coolant warning was on. Also when I asked about the tire rotation he said they didn't do it. There was also grease all over my steering wheel and windshield. He said he was real sorry and that he wanted me to bring it back. I said I was real sorry too- that you couldn't listen to me! My 2021 Duramax will be purchased at another dealer as will my wife's new Yukon.
 
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