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Something is wrong with your car and you don't know what to do. After reading this you will have a little more knowledge on how to find the mechanic that's right for you and how to keep the car repair bill down.

I use to hate taking my car into the shop. Before I found "my" mechanic, I had a few problems with being overcharged for repairs and having more parts put on my car than what was needed. To find the right mechanic you need to ask around. Start with friends and family. Find as people as you can and compare their recommendations. I would also strongly recommend calling your local auto parts store and asking them who would be a good mechanic to take your car to. Since most mechanics get there parts for your car from an auto parts store, e.g. Advance Auto Parts and Auto Zone, most employees know the local mechanics. Most employees also know which mechanics buy the cheapest parts and non oem replacement parts for there customers cars. These are the mechanics you want to stay away from.

Now that you have a mechanic in mind how are you going to get out paying as little as possible? First you need to understand how a mechanic makes his money and how he will charge you. The physical work done to the car is called labor. Labor is charged by the hour. Most mechanics have a book that tells them the amount of time it will take on a particular vechicle for a particular repair. Each mechanic charges different rates. You can have one mechanic that charges $40/hr. and another that charges $60/hr. A lot of that has to do with were you live and is something you are not going to have control over. Mechanics also make money off the parts that are put on your car. This is something you do have control over. You have a couple of options and they come with cons and pros. You can opt to buy the parts yourself which will save you tremendously. However, if you do bring your own parts most mechanics will not warranty their work. Here is an example: Charlie needs a water pump put on his car. He goes to Advance Auto and buys the water pump($25.00) and gasket sealent (.98) and a gallon of antifreeze ($10.00. He spent $36.00 on his parts. The labor is $40/hr. It is going to take two hours so a total of $80.00 for the labor. Charlie's total repair bill is $111.00. Joe needs a water pump. He has the same car as Charlie. Joe lets the mechanic buy the parts. Joe pays $65.00 for the water pump, $2.00 for the sealent, and $17.00 for the antifreeze. Now add the $80.00 for labor and Joe has paid $164.00 for his car repair. Charlie ends up saving $53.00, however his labor is not warrantied by the mechanic. So if the new water pump(which is warrantied by Advance Auto) is defective he will have to pay for the labor again. Joe paid $53.00 more and his labor is warrantied. He will not have to pay anything if his water pump is defective. Though it is not to common you get defective parts it does happen.

One rule to remember when you are buying parts for your car is "you always get what you pay for."

Learn more about this author, Amber Lundman.
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