Ask For Your Old Parts Back to Expose Sleazy Mechanics Before They Start Working [Cars]

Auto repairs are expensive enough?the last thing you want to do is pay for repairs that are never actually done, or don't even need to be done. Here's an easy way to find out whether that job really needs to be done: ask the mechanic before they start the work whether to give you the old parts back when the job is done.

If you don't work on your car yourself?and I'd encourage you to at least learn to handle the basics on your own?you're probably stuck trusting a dealership (or worse, an in-and-out oil-change joint) to do a lot of your maintenance and repairs. If you're getting the sneaking suspicion that those "free 18 point inspections" are really a way to propose work that doesn't need to be done, ask for your old parts back in the boxes the new parts came in.

This isn't foolproof by any means?some parts have to be specifically disposed of or recycled, so you may encounter some resistance, and if you have a good relationship with your mechanic, there's no reason to go this route. For those other cases, the parts are your property, so broken or no, you're entitled to them. Even if they give them back, you can always take them to another mechanic and ask if they really needed to be replaced. Plus, you can tell pretty quickly how trustworthy a shop is when a mechanic backtracks on the laundry list of repairs they "can't let you drive away" without doing as soon as you pop the question.

I've done this personally several times?mostly when I drove an old vehicle, and it was especially difficult to find a qualified mechanic to handle my more advanced repairs and source fitting parts, and it works like a charm. Once you find a mechanic willing to give you back old parts, walk you back to you car and show you what they're doing, and talk to you like you're intelligent, stick with them. For more auto repair suggestions, hit the AutoMD link below.

Ten Really Expensive Auto Repair Mistakes to Avoid | AutoMD

Photo by starmanseries.

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/cgv2rdfRR9c/ask-for-your-old-parts-back-to-expose-disreputable-mechanics-before-they-start-working

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