Auto advice please!

Ari-
Call/go to Lindan Auto in Merriam. Just north of Johnson Dr., 1/2 block east of Merriam Lane. Ask for Danny. He owns the place, he is honest and has worked on my cars for years. PM me. You can give him my name. No worries. Originally Posted by Dawg

I can think of several options and "Lindan" certainly would be a good one.
Good Rep for sure..

call chucks parkville garage in parkville. tell them the year and model and they will tell you exactly what it will cost to replace it. at least then you will have something to go on. if you should decide to take it to them they do great work

I think Bartipero had a good answer. I would just add that if you're going to a dealer, pick one that has been around a long time. Dealers generally have an easy way for you to get a loaner.

Just go to a new vehicle dealer for your brand or specialized shop. Penny wise, pound foolish to use the "hey, I know this guy" guy. If it is an older car you may want to weigh cost of repair against merely trading it in for another unit. Originally Posted by bartipero

Apparantly you don't know any mechanics, because believe it or not, there are some very good techs that do not work at dealerships and furthermore the cost of a "heater core" is not prohibitive enough to justify trading in the car....imo..

I think Bartipero had a good answer. I would just add that if you're going to a dealer, pick one that has been around a long time. Dealers generally have an easy way for you to get a loaner. Originally Posted by riskyr

Not banging on Dealers here but the cost is always going to be higher imo and an interesting side note is the replacement part will be aftermarket anyway. Probably come from the same vendor that "Joes garage" uses..
P

Nope, you are dead-on correct MW. Typically, the dealer will be at least $20 an hour higher. Every shop should quote the same number of hours for the job. They just look that up in a book. The difference is really the hourly rate and the parts cost. Of course, by now, she probably already has it fixed and we are still hashing it out. :-)

Just wonder if she paid, or left the mechanic with a BIG smile on his face. lol

While it is true there are a lot of perfectly capable independents, when you know none of them new vehicle dealers are the better choice. They use the same books everywhere and you can ask for after market or factory parts, unless it's an expessly warranted repair. Some are higher, some not, just like independents. They all come from the same places. But the biggest difference is on average you can expect new dealer mechanics to be better trained, ASE certified, and in possession of the best diagnostic equipment for the brand represented. Not only that, but dealer shops are continuously surveyed, rated and ranked by the customers they serve and have factory enforced performance standards that ultimately can result in dealer termination if consistently low. Added to that is factory mechanical support by specialists who are themselves often above average experts in their field, some having participated in engineering the car itself.

It's not likely all of that is needed for a heater core, and despite all of us 'know it alls', she probably does have it fixed by now. But like it or not, everybody's Billy Bob is a roll of the dice compared to a dealer shop, unless you really know the tech's business.

the only time i would use a dealer would be if the car was still under warranty. ive got horror stories i could tell about dealers shops.

As could we on the so called independents. Like the one on my late model truck that ran out of oil in the dead of winter 300 miles from KC in the middle of nowhere because the independent mechanic didn't tighten the oil plug; or the car that made it 1 mile because the $500 repair was actually a misdiagnosis of the problem, thus shelling out an engine. None are perfect but some have a higher probability of failure than others. And they are decidely if not unfortunately the ones we call independent, since we are generalizing here.

I have had more problems with "DEALERSHIPS" with oil plugs and filters. Will PM dealers on request.

Had a dealership change the oil in my car and the tech left the funnel in the oil fill when he started the motor and cracked the head. I was lucky they were honest about it and fixed it for free.

I would suggest Ari just trade off her car. If the heater is bad, it's probably not the only thing going wrong with the car.

While it is true there are a lot of perfectly capable independents, when you know none of them new vehicle dealers are the better choice. They use the same books everywhere and you can ask for after market or factory parts, unless it's an expessly warranted repair. Some are higher, some not, just like independents. They all come from the same places. But the biggest difference is on average you can expect new dealer mechanics to be better trained, ASE certified, and in possession of the best diagnostic equipment for the brand represented. Not only that, but dealer shops are continuously surveyed, rated and ranked by the customers they serve and have factory enforced performance standards that ultimately can result in dealer termination if consistently low. Added to that is factory mechanical support by specialists who are themselves often above average experts in their field, some having participated in engineering the car itself.

It's not likely all of that is needed for a heater core, and despite all of us 'know it alls', she probably does have it fixed by now. But like it or not, everybody's Billy Bob is a roll of the dice compared to a dealer shop, unless you really know the tech's business. Originally Posted by bartipero

As far as you know...yeah I've heard the "award winning service" crap regarding dealerships...so who gives this award?..the same people who sell them cars..lol.

If you don't know the independent you're dealing with there is the BBB, AAA, Angies list etc and none of those organizations sell them product.

Had a yellow colored chain place work on my brakes a few years ago. Found the brake fluid system full of oil when the brakes failed. Every rubber gasket was swollen. The only people I had work on that car in months and they denied any responsibility.

I promised myself I wouldn't jump in this thread in public but I really think I should. 30 year tech here, 19 ASE certs, work in an independent shop.

Dealer vs. Indies-

Double edged sword. Dealers are going to show a strong preference for OEM parts. That's not necessarily a bad thing. New starter for an '08 Dodge Truck Hemi is $100 cost. Aftermarket over $200. EGR tube for a mid 90's chevy v8 truck OEM $96 cost. Dorman aftermarket $92. I can go on and on. A good independent will always source his parts where he/she thinks the customer gets the most value. Almost 3/4 of the time, that's OEM. Where it's NOT is in the stuff you can't get from the aftermarket anyway, for the most part.

Labor rates, well in my area about $10 an hour difference between dealers and indies. One of the differences is if you take the vehicle to the dealer the VIN gets put in the computer and that repair will follow the vehicle forever wherever you go. Also if there is a recall on replacement parts (and yes it happens) you will be notified. If it's a diagnostic issue then the dealer has access to the latest and greatest computer program. A few indies do, but not many. You also get the opportunity to have work done by factory trained techs. I probably spend 100 hours out of the shop every year on continuing ed at schools and that doesn't include the time I spend on my own studying. I'd love to go to the factory schools. Unless I work at a dealership, it's' not going to happen.

Labor Time:

It all gets looked up, but from where? I use Mitchell OD5. There is also AllData and the factory times. They are NOT the same. Usually close, but not always. Additionally, a lot of shops that pay their techs on billed hours pad the flat rate time by 10-20%. If they didn't it wouldn't work for them. Trust me on that one, especially on diagnostics. A tech that can diagnose right the first time is worth his weight in gold and should own his own shop because it's the only way he's going to get paid enough.

I've corresponded with Ari and given her a guess on what it will cost at my shop so she has an idea on how bad she's getting reamed, if at all. The heater core is her car isn't enough to trade it off, but it's not cheap either as it's one of those that's just flat out a PITA (and yes, there are easy ones). She's also going to be out of her car for the biggest part of, if not the whole, day. Depends on how many jobs they have the tech on.

Jack

Apparently I need to replace the heater core in my car. The jiffy lube guy told me this could cost from 150 to 700 depending on who I know and who does the work.

I know nothing about cars and don't even know how to fake like I do. Of course I want it done right and don't want to get ripped off. Any suggestions on how to go about choosing a place or some places to go? You can pm me if you would rather or post here. I have an American made car less than 10 years old.

Thanks! Originally Posted by Ari816

You might try a radiator sealer for about $5. They usually will work. Most are made of sodium silicate, otherwise known as water glass. When exposed to a small (read that again - small) leak the silica (same thing that is the major ingredient in sand and glass) will form a solid when exposed to air. If it works, it is not permanent - but is a good short term fix, if it is a small enough leak to form a solid when exposed to air. The material is added to the radiator (open only if cold) the material is added and circulated until the water is hot.

JR