Vehicle maintenance is too expensive. We’ve all paid the dealership for service on our new car, or paid the corporate shops (Goodyear, Firestone, Pep Boys, etc.) to fix a problem that we wouldn’t know the first thing about repairing. We take our vehicles to the pros at these places because they have the expertise that no one else has, right? That’s why they can charge $150 an hour for their services.
Don’t misunderstand my point here. I get that they have overhead that goes into that $150 per hour. And I understand that they charge for “flag” hours. Flag hours is (or used to be) the term for the standard number of hours that that a shop would charge for a specific job. Need a tune-up? That’s two hours of labor, plus parts. Sometimes it only takes 45 minutes to do the tune-up. They still get the two hours of labor charge. That more than makes up for the job that takes them 3 hours. It’s a standard practice in the industry. The more efficient the mechanic, the more he/she can beat the flag rate, and the more money that can be made in an 8-hour day. Don’t begrudge them their pay rates. But be an informed consumer and know this information going in. Some shops will negotiate for the number of hours, but don’t expect that from the national chains or the dealership.
A relatively new service, or newly widespread, that has been popping up is the mobile mechanic. The mobile mechanics I’ve seen have a van with their tools and equipment in them. They also have a few commonly used parts that they can buy in bulk and know they are going to use, because the parts are very common. Either they are common to different vehicles, like fuel injectors or spark plugs, or they are parts the mechanic knows from experience break down a lot. These mobile mechanics can charge a lower rate for their service because they don’t have the shop overhead. The couple mobile mechanics I have experience with did good work, charged good rates, and got the job done in a reasonable amount of time. That said, there may be some shady operators out there who will take advantage of unsuspecting customers. If you decide to go this route, do some homework. If the mechanic uses an apartment complex or a mini-storage as their operating address, more research is probably needed. If they are operating out of their own home, that they own (which you can check on your county tax rolls in most states), they will be easier to track down if there is a problem later on.
What about parts? Why are dealer parts so much more expensive than aftermarket parts? Well, sometimes it’s because they are actually better parts. The dealerships will tell you that’s always the case, but in my experience a bolt from the dealership is no better than a bolt from Elliott’s (a chain store that carries pretty much any bolt you might need), and a Fram air filter from O’Reilly’s will last the same six months that a Mopar of Motorcraft air filter will last. For more expensive parts, say a fuel injector or a tie rod, the price difference can be staggering, as much as 100% difference in some cases. Save the money and buy aftermarket parts from NAPA or the national chain auto parts stores. Don’t buy the cheapest available, though. There is some level at which “you get what you pay for.” For example, at NAPA and at O’Reilly’s they sell good, better, and best parts. For most applications, buy the better or best parts. There’s not much difference in the price. Only buy the “good” parts if you’re going to sell the vehicle and don’t have to worry about longevity.
Another way to save some cash on parts is by ordering them online. That comes with its own set of challenges, though. Getting the correct part for your vehicle can be an issue if it is a specialty part. Returns can be a challenge if you get the wrong part, or if you realize you don’t need a part you ordered. There can be restocking fees, or other charges like shipping costs. There is also the time factor to be considered. If you have one car and the fuel pump is out, you’re probably not going to have the luxury of waiting for a back-ordered part. Online parts are good for maintenance and repairs you can schedule, but not so much for breakdowns.
The best way that I’ve found for saving money on auto repairs is to do the work myself. It turns out that almost anyone with a little mechanical aptitude and a computer with internet service can do most repair work themselves, or at least themselves with the help of a friend. I have three vehicles, all of which are at least 10 years old, and one of which is a foreign sportscar. I have yet to find a vehicle repair that is not on YouTube. Most of the YouTube videos are very detailed and point out common mistakes and useful shortcuts, for example on my sportscar the manual instructs that the front seat be removed in order to change the water pump. Turns out that the front seat does not need to come out if you move it all the way forward.
The first few repairs you do will be the most expensive, albeit still usually less expensive that taking the vehicle to the shop, because you will need to buy basic tools and equipment for the job, like a jack, some jack stands and a mechanics tool set. Something like a 100-piece set will suffice to get started. You will add more tools as you do more jobs, because you’ll find you don’t have the 18-mm open-end wrench that you need, or you need two of the same socket and only have one. But remember, you only have to buy the tool once. Well, usually, unless it’s a small 8-mm socket that I break every now and then. But buy Kobalt tools at Lowes and they will usually replace the broken ones for no charge.
Start with small repairs if you’re not comfortable doing the work yourself, like oil changes, radiator flush, that sort of thing. Once you do a few small jobs, you’ll discover that it’s not all that complicated. You will still need the mechanic shops for some things, though. It’s not economical to buy tools that are very expensive and only get used, once, or once in a great while. For example, a computer alignment stand is extremely expensive, but you will have to have an alignment after you change some front suspension parts. It’s more economical to buy the parts and do the work yourself, then take the vehicle to the shop and pay $100 or so for the alignment.
Finally, and most important, ALWAYS REMEMBER TO KEEP SAFETY AT THE FOREFRONT! If it isn’t safe, don’t do it.