Auto repair at the dealership?

[blackeagle007]

I get why it’s most expensive to get your car fixed there. Costs a lot to run that place. I’m curious about the auto techs there. Are they factory trained? Do you think any benefit getting your auto serviced at the dealer?

[Telekinetic-Potato]

The dealer usually has factory trained techs and the highest level of accountability (if you can prove it was their fault)

Then there's places like Mavis, goodyear etc midas, Firestone etc. Their business model is high prices but less than a dealership. They'll use all the other tactics to up sell. These places usually have bottom of the barrel talants and mechanics who are intermediate level with some very serious ones who travel to different locations within a region if there's a big problem. Or they'll hire service managers who were mechanics and hated doing it (like me)

Then there's local shops. Lowest accountability but if you find a good guy, they might be even better than dealer trained.

Many of these owners went to trade school or even college, we're trained at some point by a dealership (look for accreditation such as audi certificates or maybe a bmw patch. Mechanics who work on foreign cats usually are incredibly competent)

They have much dirtier tricks for scamming you if they're not trustworthy though. Specifically because they're so knowledgeable. They'll blame their mistakes on the make of the car, not disclose risks of a repair for fear of losing work. Some shops even have a reputation in my area for stealing OEM parts and replacing them with aftermarket. Like catalytic converters, tpms sensors and other parts that they believe are unlikely to be traced back to any one shop.

The best way to find a good one is to have a friend who works in the industry suggest someone. And be likable because even the good guys will be more lazy if you're an ass.

I'd say for the average person, get your check engine light looked at by the dealership, if you can't afford to get it fixed there, take it to a small shop you get oil changes at.

If you need tires or there's a shake in your cat or it's time for a service interval, take it to a Mavis or something and make sure they mention the same services that Google tells you your make model and year is asking for the given milage.

[DryGermanGuy]

Factory-run dealerships and official brand dealerships are the only ones with the OEM OBD software/encoding tools and often the only ones with proper hardware repair catalogues and tools. But they try to cash in on every silly little thing, like having a 200% markup on oil.