For a 60k maintenance for my car...the difference is $329 at the dealership to $75 at a local indy shop (its reviewed really well on yelp as being good)..... wtf? that's quite a difference, i think the dealership might do more and the indy shop does a lot of inspections mainly???? dunno.....car peeps..thoughts?
Dealerships make a large chunk of their money on the maintenance shop. There should be no difference. If you want to be sure, ask each shop for their checklist so you can compare. Most likely, they are both very similar.
In addition to what BlazersBlood stated, if there is any advantage to the dealer is that they tend to stand behind their work better than an indy. That said, if you have a good indy shop, they will to. What shop is it and I'll look it up on Angie's List.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/ed-little-auto-service-culver-city Ed Little's Auto Service in Culver City. has 5 stars AFTER 70 reviews on yelp which is pretty good. Long Beach Mazda, I've been good with but my service advisor doesn't work there anymore and I got a weird feeling with the new guys there...like an upsell type of vibe. I've always been more comfortable with dealer service..... dunno...maybe I'll bring it in, but they new guy they got seemed strange. the dealership has been good for warranty stuff...but now that I'm out, looking to save some cash.....afraid of some spendy upselling.
What kind of car and what will the dealer do for that price versus what the independent will do for their price? 60 thousand service could be time for a timing belt or something major, depends on how long you want the car to last.
Dealers are there to fuck you. Find a good indy shop and go there for everything. Have the same guy look at your car every time you have it serviced. Get to know him. Let him get to know you and your car. Always put in the best parts and do all the suggested maintenance. Keep a record of the shit you do and be sure all the right things are getting done at reccomended intervals. Dealers are not going to do more. They will do the bare minimum and there is no chain of accountability. Have a good relationship with a mechanic and you will be more likely to have him check things out more often and thus help you keep your car in top condition. If you hear a little noise you won't have to wait in line and pay sixty bucks just for a diagnosis.
my car has a timing chain. I checked what the dealer does, its alot of "inspect and adjust" kind of stuff. the only thing is to change some of the fluids, change the spark plugs i believe
yeah, we'll see what's up. I have a few minor things to check up on...wanna see what the indy shop says versus the dealer, had a small leak the dealer wanted $300 to fix. and if push comes to shove, I'm out $75...that's not much more than the oil change, i always have them tell me if they want to do anythihng extra
Until the past few years, I've only owned one kind of car since I was a kid. As such, I only had one mechanic work on them in Oregon. When I moved around, my mechanic back home gave me a list of interview questions. He was not only cheaper, I found he was far superior to the dealer. You never know who is working on your car when you go to a dealership. I know exactly who worked on my car when I took it to Motor Sports. Wayne not only had a relationship with me, he had one with my car(s). In fact, a lot of independent shops get their start from mechanics who are trained in dealerships. The best ones look to make more money by hanging their own shingle. Currently, I have two cars under dealer warranty. However, I'm still having intermittent service done (oil and filter, tire rotation, etc.) done at a couple of independent shops (each shop only specializes in one brand). They act as an audit for me and they're getting to know my car. If that strategy costs me a few hundred more in the short term (it's cheaper to go to Jiffy Lube), IMO it's well worth it.
I went to Angie's List, but they want to charge me $25 to lok it up as it's not in the Portland area where my membership is. Sorry.
