Minor Automotive Miracle
I've never been enamoured with mechanics. There are times when I view them as a somewhat irritating necessity. However, one of their bretheren has managd to provide some small measure of redemption.
The Mighty Intredpid had been running with the "Check Engine" light on for a little while. Sometimes these little warnings are accompanied by some spectacular actions and noises on the part of the motor, but I seemed to be humming along nicely.
However, since DW and I are making a minor weekend getaway today, she wanted me to get it looked at so we could avoid being stranded by an untimely (but not unexpected) engine failure.
I was surprised to note that mechanics do indeed work on Saturdays, although they move only slightly faster than the average postal worker at the best of times. I went down to one of the Canadian Tire stores only to discover a backlog of cars and drivers looking for maintenance and repair. When I got to the counter, I was informed that they couldn't hope to get my car in before noon, and even that might be a stretch. Fine. Off I go to the one at the North end of town. En route, I swing by one of the Master Mechanic franchises. Closed Saturdays in the summer. Hmmm. I go to another independent place (where I had my oil changed recently) and while both bays were occupied and the 2 mechanics were going great guns at their work, they couldn't get me in for at least an hour.
Feeling a bit frustrated and a bit self-chagrined, I took one last stab at an independent just across the street in a strip mall near where DW does her stained glass. I popped in and explained my situation to the guy. He said that he had to go and pick up a car, but since the diagnostic wouldn't take long, he'd have a peek just to see if it was anything critical.
Fortunately, the magic box said that the only thing wrong was with one of my Oxygen sensors. He said it wasn't anything that would leave me stranded and that it was about a 45-minute job to fix, even though he might not have been able to get to it that day. So I was quite relieved and asked what he wanted for the diagnostic. He didn't charge me for it at all. Needless to say I'll drop the Mighty Intrepid off next week for the fix.
Nice to see that customer service does exist out there somewhere. You sometimes have to hunt around for it, but its there.
Happy Saturday!
3 comments:
Not feeling your pain, or in the case, joy. My dad's a hero race car driver and my brother a mechanic with a shop. If there's a strange noise, I scream daaaa-dee. Yes I am spoiled. On the down side, I regularly drive 10 yr. old cars, because they just keep the damn things running!
I have a mechanic that is a friend of a friend. I have my friend call him and I can get in and out quickly and don't have to worry about him "finding" other issues.
My father's a mechanic so my cries for help was usually accompanied with the two words I hated to hear, "Go change." I cannot complain though as I can do a lot myself and I can bitch-slap the mechanics when they get too bright. Customer service is a dying thought, for sure, so I do try to reward those that still get it; I have money, you want it, treat me nice.
I'm never a pompous ass with it, but if the person serving me cannot be bothered or is disinterested, then so is my wallet.
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