If your vehicle is in need of repair, and you can't do it yourself or don't have someone who can do it, how do you decide what to do? Do you just take it to the first mechanic in the phone book (or online directory), or do you "shop around"? Once you are informed of a problem, do you seek a second opinion to make sure it really needs that work done? Do you compare prices for parts as well as labor before turning over your keys?
I'm involved in different car groups so I get my opinion from them. We help each other a lot especially when looking for customizations and repairs for our cars. It's nice to get opinions from people who are not charging you money, and just have this huge passion for cars just like you because their advice are mostly for your own good.
I use to work at a new and used car dealership that had a service department. I would sometimes hear the customer's car problems before transferring the call. I would also hear disgruntled customers wanting to take their vehicle somewhere else because they refused to believe what the mechanics found was the problem but mostly because of the cost of the repair. Depending on the extent of the repair and the cost it's always good to get a second opinion just make sure it's from a reputable company or someone you trust with you/your family's life.
Living in Hawaii it's fortunate for everything is near by including relatives, so car repairs are not of much concern to me when I had a car. I ask for the best around where I live from trusted people and they tell me where to go. When I was younger my Mother went to one repair shop for all our vehicles for decades and so did I when I started to drive. When we moved we needed a new mechanic and one was recommended by our usual repair and service mechanic and we've stayed with them always. I trusted the one place Mom went for decades and they are very popular and often busy. So busy they refer sometimes what their overflow is. We are very fortunate in having good mechanics who take good care of our cars in Hawaii.
When our car has a problem particularly with the needed body repairs, we always consult our circle - my sister and my husband's cousin who are well-versed with vehicles. And then we also ask car sellers on the cost of the planned repair. We always do that because some car repair shops would scam you on the cost and reason out that their materials are imported or genuine as if the other shops are using fake materials.
Determine what parts you need and price out the OEMS. EVERY single mechanical job has a standard amount of time it should take to complete, which is 95% always over. So say you need new ball joints. Price the joints for your car, then price the labour, I always say $75 per hour. If you are getting a quote that's am lot higher, you need to ask WHY.
Everyone car owner needs a mechanic they can trust. It might take a while to find the "right" one but friends can recommend good mechanics. That would be a good starting point. If you don't have a mechanic you trust then I suppose getting a second opinion would be a good way to find out if someone is trying to get you to pay them more money than you should.
It is a good move to try to get different quotes if you didn't have an already trusted, tried and proven mechanic. There are many instances when you go to one mechanic he gives you a diagnosis and you go elsewhere and you then get a different cause for the problem. Sometimes you will have to be doing some research on your own to try to determine which diagnosis you should believe.
