On Fri, 12 Oct 2012 08:05:01 -0700, Smitty Two
wrote:




It might be a reflection of the fact that consumers have caught on to
the fact that the average dealer mechanic is no more competent than the
average independent mechanic, but charges 3-5 times as much.

Only advantage I'm aware of is the dealer mechanic has more
familiarity with that particular brand. That can be a plus if you have
a problem peculiar to a specific model or a recent service bulletin
has been issued.

I bought a new car a couple of months ago and the first oil change is
free so I took it in today. They gave me a price list and the regular
price for an oil change is only $29. Of course, they always try to
sell something else too. They gave me a coupon for $5 off the next
one so I may use them again.





WRT the fancy features on cars "nowadays," I like my power windows and
cruise control. The airbags, anti-lock brakes, and other hyped-up
"refinements" designed to protect me from my own stupidity are things
I've never wanted, nor wanted to pay for. I don't need to control my
radio from the steering wheel. I don't need a sensor to take care of
turning on my lights or windshield wipers for me. My g.f. has the
****ing tire pressure sensing modules, and has spent a few hundred
dollars just keeping the stupid warning light on the dash extinguished.

I like and have all that stuff. Add remote start too!. With my new
car, I don't have to push buttons to change radio stations if I don't
want to. I can just push a button and give a command to dial the
phone, find a destination with the navigation.

Oh, one thing of beauty is the rear view camera. They should be on
every car.

The 274 HP turbo engine makes it fun to drive too!