May 1, 2015

sup everyone, i am a mercedes-benz technician and I see a lot of crazy stuff when I work on customers cars, such as aftermarket stuff that's really dangerous and even just people leaving stuff loose because they didn't have a clue what they were doing.. Do you fix your car yourself or do you take it to a qualified mechanic to do the repairs?
If so what are standard labor charges per hour in your area.

In So-cal we are changing 100/hr at my shop which is low especially for mercedes only shops compared to some places.

 

May 1, 2015

Don't know a lot about cars. But funny story. I took my car to a Honda dealership for oil changes figuring I wouldn't have to worry about some teen age kid f---ing something up. The oil changes usually took an hour because they had other s--- they were doing. So they do it, I leave and I'm driving. I start speeding up and out of nowhere my hood flies up like in Tommy Boy cracking my windshield. I slam the brakes and had to pull on the median sticking my head out the window. Assholes must've left a tool where my hood latch was. I don't trust any mechanics now and use a friend who does it on the side

 

May 1, 2015

I remember this story/i actually gave you advice in the thread before i quit posting ! how did it all turn out i know you were fighting with the dealer

 

May 1, 2015

ha, forgot I posted that on SL. So they took blame and gave me a s-----y beater to drive around while they fixed it. They replaced the hood and windshield and fixed the dent on the roof from the hood hitting it. I got it back a week later and while I'm driving home I notice the windshield looks weird. In some spots it looked like I was wearing prescription glasses that were too strong. They gave me some s-----y warped windshield. I was so aggravated I didn't want to deal with them anymore and got it replaced at this spanish place near me for cheap

 

May 1, 2015

Yeah people do stupid things but as a technician a hood should never be left open or a wheel left un-torqued.. When you slam the hood and theres a tool around the latches it makes a distinct sound I have no idea how a person wouldn't hear it.. Dealers are shady all over the world and it's better to avoid them unless it is under a warranty claim.. I want to stay at an independent shop until I can so I don't have to be around all those techs ripping people off so they can commission an extra hour or two a day..