As you need a Doctor for your sickness, your car needs a Mechanic, there’s no other option. Your car is very special to you and for its best maintenance you decide on leaving your sweetheart at the unknown mechanic’s repair shop. The next day you are slugged with a huge bill of $1500 or so. And then you breathe to yourself, ‘Man, you are cheated!’

After reading the guide book hastily, you might remember few key words like power-steering belt or distributor cap. To explain the issue better you would carry some form of communicative clout along with your hand gestures. The mechanic nods and responds until you sign the service level agreement. His work is done and you return home, hoping for the best. Upon completing the work you pay the bill without questioning wondering how the hell the tinted passenger side window and the 4 new tires can help in resolving the knocking engine.

Well with careful planning, questioning and research, you can avoid getting cheated by the mechanic. Here are few tips that can help you in selecting the best mechanic:

Selecting a Repair Shop:

•    Take suggestion from your friend or neighbor or consumer organization for finding the best shop.
•    Inspect for clean and organized environment and check the walls for trade diplomas and ASE (Automotive Service Excellence) certificate.
•    Check if cars of similar values of yours, are in the lot and whether the staff is attentive to you or not.
•    Check if there were any complaints filed with the local Better Business Bureau.

Describing the Issue:

•    Pinpoint the issue in detail and don’t hesitate to take a drive with the mechanic to analyze the firsthand sound rather than the secondhand sound description.
•    Don’t make a blunt statement ‘Do whatever you want, you are the professional’. This will give the mechanic a scope to pull out more money out of your account.
•    If you have time, check for second opinion at the next repair shop and compare the diagnostics and their prices.
•    Inspect the work order or repair estimate, with a lawyer’s eye and ask questions. Sign only when you understand their repair suggestion.
•    If possible verify whether the new part has being actually replaced or not.
•    If you get a call after few hours by the mechanic recommending additional work, don’t approve it instantly, visit the shop personally and inspect the hard evidence behind it. Tracing the frauds is more important than your inconvenience or slight delay in the repair.