Refreshing to See Honest Mechanics These Days

Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not saying all mechanics are crooked. That being said, however...have you ever noticed how there are just a few more things wrong with your vehicle when you take it in then the basic oil change you needed?

My father is an auto mechanic - has been for my whole life. I used to think that mechanics were helpful, friendly and concerned for their customer's safety and well=being....Until I bought my first car and needed work done. Sicne then I've found mechanics downright rude, arrogant, and shady.

What's bringing this whole rant about is my car, of course. I have an SUV that has been (irritatingly so) loosing air out of the rear tires for months now. All of the sudden, it also started making a strange sound while I was in motion. Tires loosing air I can manage; it's called an air hose at the gas station every two to three days. Funny sounds? Definitely not ok.

I took it in to the local mechanic in my town. Truthfully, I expected them to find all sorts of problems (not related to the tires or the funny sound) with my car, but to my surprise they didn't. Turns out the rotors on the car had started to rust on the inside, hence the rubbing sound when I was driving. I steeled myself when I asked how much it would be to replace the rotors. Low and behold, the mechanic laughed and said, "We'll just take the tires off, turn the rotors over, and put 'em back on, ma'am. There's nothing wrong with the other side; they'll last a good while yet."

I was stunned and pleasantly so. I half expected him to be all "Well, missus, it can get might-y pricey." Maybe I wasn't being fair (I'm willing to admit), but my experience has not been great with mechanics in the past. He even laughed and mentioned the tires next. Then I thought "Oh no; here's the kicker." He said they thought they looked a little low and they could patch them for me. Not sell me new tires but patch them.

Every time I take my vehicle in for any kind of non-standard maintenance (tires, suspension work, funny sounds, etc.) I expect a minimum of $150-$200 spent; these guys fixed my funny sound (which could have become hazardous at some point) and my tires (seriously an issue when it comes to good gas mileage) for less than $70! All-in-all I was very pleased!!

'Course, I know this has nothing to do with my writing, books, or other authors, but I figured this is my blog so I can add the occasional tidbit that is not necessarily related to writing. Also, and you never know with a writer's brain, I may have a decent, honest mechanic star in one of my books sometime. :)