How do you know if you are getting ripped off in a dealership?

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This article looks at some common complaints and problems when it
comes to a car dealership's service department. With the help of this
article you can take a closer look at your service invoice next time
before paying for it.

So how do you know you are been ripped off by a car dealership when it
comes to servicing your car? Or better yet how do you know you are
dealing with an amateur mechanic? Well after years working in the
automotive industry I can tell you few little dirty secrets that
dealerships wouldn't want you to find out. First of all for you to
understand the root of this problem you should first understand the
structure of a car dealer's service department. People like to take
their brand new car back to the original dealer for service due to the
fear of warranty issues. That is not sure, you can service your car
anywhere with proof the mechanic has used the correct part, and submit
your bill to your manufacture's head office and most of your warranty
claims are still honored. So here you are bringing your brand new car
for service, you may have noticed there is some sensor on your car
that comes on periodically and you want the mechanics to check it out.
After handing over the key you left for work, only to find out later
on by your service advisor the technician can't duplicate the problem.
But the technician suggested you should change your brake pads, and
machine the rotors at a cost of $700 after 30,000 km.

Changing the brakes is one of the favorite things a dealership and a
technician likes to do and recommend. Why? Simple, according to
Michel's book of labor hours, changing brake pads and machine rotors
pays the technician 2 dealership hours. 1.5 hours in the machining and
0.5 for pads, on top of that these jobs require almost no labor, or
brain, it is probably the easiest thing you can change on your car.
Have you seen your neighbors changing their own brakes on their
driveway? That's right, you can take a 30 minute lesson and do it
yourself. As an amateur mechanic one of the first things you are able
to learn and fix is probably your brakes. Beside that issue, the
dealership technicians understand it is difficult to argue when it
comes to brakes, not only it is safety related, but brake pads and
rotor don't have a typical lifespan you can measure. Due to the
individual's driving habit your brake pads can be gone in just few
thousand harsh kms, or they can last as much as 60,000 km.

So the next time you visit a car dealership and receive a phone call
recommending the brakes, make sure you say no, and take your car to a
private mechanic for a second opinion.

This article is brought to you by Benchmark Automotive Group Toronto,
we specialize in Japanese used cars under 10,000. For more detail
please visit us online at http://www.usedauditoronto.ca or
http://www.usedacuratoronto.ca