COMMON CAR-REPAIR SCAMS AND CONS

Dishonest mechanics will often times attempt to scam anyone, but some cheats are especially skilled at fleecing any motorist who pull into the service station where they work. This is true especially along busy highways. So if your just navigating the Interstates or simply in the need of a neighborhood repair, pay close attention to what I have to say and watch out for these six common scams:

Short-Sticking: The occurs when the station attendant pushes the oil dipstick only partway in, making it appear that your car is so low of oil that your engine might freeze up at any time. The “Oil” is then added from an entirely empty oil container that had been set aside for this very purpose.

Your Defense: If you are informed that you need oil, do it your own self, do the dipstick check to confirm that you actually need oil. If it is low, then add it yourself.

A Smoking Alternator: This is an easy-to-achieve effect. The so-called mechanic simply pours a small amount of anti-freeze on the alternator. You will be in turn, warned that you need a new alternator. The mechanic then doubles his deceit, by replacing your old alternator with your old alternator back, still in its place with maybe some quick-drying paint or cleaned up a bit, but otherwise still in its place and untouched.

Your Defense: If your car wasn't smoking when you went into the service station, then you must assume that you've been had as a little green behind the ears. Common sense states that “problems” should not magically appear when touched by a mechanic.

The Loosening of the Spark Plugs: Also done by the mechanic, which can make your engine run sluggishly, and this is a perfect pretense for the sell job known as a “priority tune-up,” which can cost you hundreds of dollars.

Your Defense: A small gentle tug on the end of the cables and the previous “drivability state” can tip you off as to this scam. Which captures many hundreds of extra dollars for the mechanics who work this ploy.

A Leaking Radiator: Or a leaking tire as a result from a puncture from a screwdriver, and the sell for a new one or to have your old one repaired, by the way the mechanics who needs to repair the old one charges by the hour.

Your Defense: If a nail or some other road hazard has caused a slow leak, it will be easily detected as it will still be embedding in the tire; but any small hole should raise your suspicions. Radiators and radiator hoses do not typically suffer punctures of an unknown origin.

Please don't tell and teens about this next one: The Exploding Battery: This is a direct result of an Alka-Seltzer tablet being dropped into a battery during an inspection with the owner-driver not paying close attention to what was being done. The mechanic usually replaces one of you battery caps with another specifically designed to hold the tablet in the head of the replaced cap. When the tablet hits the acid of the battery it causes the cap to explode and him/her warning you that you need a new battery.

Your Defense: You must stop and ask yourself, be mindful and make sure that the mechanic hears the question, why would the battery suddenly fail after his/her initial inspection, particularly when there has been no problems with it prior to his inspection, then directly ask him/her if s/he has a case of stomach upset?

And finally “Defective Shock-Absorbers:” This is the mechanic and his oil can placing a few strategic oil squirts on the shock-absorbers while the car is raised on a lift for inspection.

Your Defense: Do your own inspection while the car is on the lift Remember if the oil is clean and free from dirt and grime of that ordinarily accumulated from driving, then it was placed there by the mechanic so that he can scam you out of a $450.00 to $600.00+ repair.

-Birdy