Barbour's Porsche is as good as new after its repair. (PHOTO COURTESY: BROOK BARBOUR)
|
When it comes to vehicle maintenance and repair, where a consumer takes their car is an extremely personal decision that often
is based on a vehicle's make, model and year. Of course, price factors into major repair decisions — especially if an otherwise
expensive repair is still under warranty. But if a car is out of warranty, many consumers choose their local independent repair
shop over a dealership without a second thought. So, what influences consumers when their vehicles need a quick — or not so
quick — fix? This month, Aftermarket Business editors made it their mission to find out.
"I'm all for avoiding the dealer for car repairs that aren't under warranty," says Amy Roust, who currently lives in Oberlin,
Ohio. "My car is 11 years old, so it's silly for me to get new parts put on it. Our old mechanic in Ann Arbor would always
do a preventative maintenance inspection with our oil change, so that we could anticipate upcoming expenses and catch problems
before they started. After we moved to Ohio and started having car problems, I almost drove the two and a half hours back
to Michigan so that our old mechanic could get the job done right."
Roust, who drives a 1997 Toyota Camry, says that she and her husband bought the vehicle used, so it was never under warranty.
Her preference, based largely on what she perceives as inflated service costs at local dealerships, is to take the car to
an independent repair shop. However, she admits that if her car had come with a warranty, she'd have no problem taking it
back to a dealership for repairs.
"If it was a warranty situation and the service was free, of course we would take it to a dealer," she adds. "For us, this
is based simply on cost — if you go to a dealer they have to use all new parts and for an older car that doesn't make sense.
If a mechanic can do the work with used parts instead, it just makes sense for us." Like Roust, Brook Barbour prefers to give his business to independent repair shops. However, the resident of Richmond, Va.
drives a Porsche Carrera 911 and is unwilling to trust it to anyone other than a certified Porsche repair facility.
"I would prefer to go to an independent shop, but the problem is the inability in many cases to determine the viability of
an independent shop," Barbour says. "And because my car is a Porsche, you have to have a shop you trust because a lot of times
the technicians don't really know how to work on it."
A few years ago, Barbour's vehicle suffered $11,500 worth of damage during an accident that tore up his hood, front lights
and fender. Barbour searched high and low for a qualified shop to repair the damage, but ultimately chose a body repair shop
that was associated with a Porsche dealership because he felt more comfortable working with that particular shop — and because
no one he knew could recommend a comparative shop in his area. Still, he isn't happy that he had to go back to the dealership
for the repairs.
"My biggest issue in dealing with dealerships is they feel they have the right to charge exorbitant amounts of money for work
that could be done by a qualified mechanic at an ASE certified shop," he says. "If I didn't have this particular type of car,
I'd be more than happy to take it to an ASE certified shop that had a good rating with the BBB."
Jonathan Stupansky, a resident of Tampa Bay, Fla., just recently had his VW Jetta 2003 come out of warranty. Since then, he's
only had to have one repair done — to his radiator. For that fix, he chose a shop recommended by his parents.
"I'm not really concerned with a shop's certification," says Stupansky. "I'm more concerned with word-of-mouth recommendations,
but I really haven't had to worry about it much yet."
The only "problem" Stupansky has with the local independent repair shop he patronizes is that it takes longer to get parts
for his Jetta, since it is an import. Still, he's happy with the work they've done and is content to take it back to them
again when the need arises.
