What to know before visiting your auto mechanic

What to know before visiting your auto mechanic

| By: Russ Knight

We know the auto repair industry has a reputation of being untrustworthy. Countering this by providing transparent and honest service is how Christian Brothers Automotive was started. In the spirit of transparency, we’d like to give you a few pointers to help alleviate any concerns with your Tulsa auto repair. Here are a few things that might help you before and during a trip to Christian Brothers Automotive Tulsa Hills or any shop.

Before you go, it’s best if you know the maintenance history of the vehicle. When did you last service various items necessary for your vehicle? This includes:

  • Engine oil – do you prefer or does your vehicle call for full synthetic oil?
  • Power steering fluid – if hydraulic, some newer vehicles are fully electric
  • Coolant / anti-freeze
  • Brake fluid
  • Transmission fluid
  • Drive line or 4WD components – Gear box, front and rear differentials
  • Brakes
  • Spark plugs
  • Battery
  • Engine filter
  • Cabin air filter

Your vehicle’s manufacturer publishes a schedule of when each system should be serviced. In some cases, we and other shops may recommend services sooner than the manufacturer, most often to get an additional warranty coverage, like with BG Products Engines For Life program.

AT THE COUNTER:

Tell us if you have noticed anything out of the ordinary – sights, sounds, smells, feelings – hopefully nothing you have tasted! This helps our shop and others in Tulsa to get a better sense of the health of your vehicle. Take the courtesy inspection – if we can find something that is a safety concern, you want to know about it! Courtesy = free. Let us look and tell you what we see. You don’t have to follow the recommendations, but most often it is done in order to serve you.

If the repair shop doesn’t ask, tell us what your intentions are with the vehicle – do you plan to “drive the wheels off” or if you plan to sell it in the next few months – that information helps us understand how best to serve you with the recommendations we make. If you have seen any lights on the dash, tell us that too!

GOOD QUESTIONS TO ASK YOUR AUTO REPAIR SHOP:

  1. What are these recommendations based on? Make sure you understand WHY we are recommending service on your vehicle. It could be based on miles or condition. Recommendations based on miles are based on what the factory that built your vehicle says but could be based on some extra warranty that helps cover vehicle components. Condition has to do with what we see on the vehicle – something inoperable, leaking, etc.
  2. What happens if I don’t do this repair today? This is often asked another way – “how much time do I have until this becomes a problem?” Most often, we can’t tell you exactly how much longer until it becomes a problem, but we usually can tell what symptoms to watch for telling you the problem is getting worse. We NEVER want to scare you! Often, we will try to scope a problem and tell you how severe it is based on a range of 1-10.
  3. What is the warranty with this repair? Our warranty is two years or 24,000 miles – whichever comes last – nationwide. So this means whatever benefits you the most! We are pretty proud of this! We believe that is really strong and should cover you should anything happen related to our repairs. If you are at another shop be sure to ask about the warranty.

AFTER THE SERVICE

Be sure you understand how the warranty works. Our warranty information is printed on the bottom of every repair order along with an 800 number to contact in case you are outside of our service area.

If something comes up after your service, it is reasonable to call back and let us try to make it right. The same is true of any shop. Usually, direct and honest communication yields a good result!

Have other questions to help ease your navigation of auto repair? Reach out to us at Christian Brothers Automotive Tulsa Hills, we’re happy to share our knowledge.

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