Do people at work think you can fix their car?

Is it just me or dose everyone at work think you’re an ASE certified mechanic? I work in an office ( you know slacks ties the hole bit ). Everyone at work knows I am into old cars. I always get the proverbial question ( Can you look at the front end, it’s making a funny noise? Is my tire low on air? Can you add some Freon to my car? ). A line of questions are always coming my way. Not that I mind helping a coworker, but it gets a little old. Now after saying that, I always have time to look at the cars of the pretty women in the office. Dose anyone ever ask you to look under the hood at work?

 

I work for and by myself, so the bane of my own mechanical existence is my effing relatives. Same story but with even more strings being yanked............. Worst pita is that they never appreciate it, just go drive it into a problem again.

Guess if they actually cared they'd take better care of'em up front.

 

Yes. Same environment sounds like as yours. I won't work on anyone's car I work with. I don't want to have them constantly bugging me if something goes wrong or everytime there is a problem, they think I can diagnose their problem.

 

Before I retired, people used to ask me all the time if I could fix their TV/CB/anything electronic. My standard answer was "Yes, but I charge the same as the guy downtown, and I take a lot longer."

 

Yeah,,on a regular basis,,,,I help when I can,,,HRP

 

my default answer now is always....(unless shes goodlooking) "I do not work on any car that has a computer in it"

which is crazy because i work with computers all day...and THATS worse because i cant go to a family gathering without fixing someones computer too.

 

and because i use a computer for work, that automaticlaly means i know how to program VCR's DVD players, TV's basically setup anything electronic.

yeah i can do it....but i have no more knowledge than the guy asking me to do it!!

 

i don't mind helping'm as long as i'm on the clock. i usually get the ok from my supervisor, shit i've even gone to fix his bike when he was stranded on the way to work one morning.

my thing is that as long as i'm on the clock it's ok, i won't go help'm at their house or bring'm to mine. i got my own damn problems to fix

 

Yes, not only should I know what's wrong with their car and fix it, but I should actually enjoy doing it, because they know that I "like to mess around with cars". Also, since I've worked at various parts counters for the past 25 years, I should know the price of every part in the world, and what their price would be. Years ago, a guy threw a fit at the parts counter because the price I guessed for a tie rod end for his car (when he asked me about it in a bar at 2 A.M.) was off by $6.00.

 

Ha Ha Ha...that's perfect! But you forgot to add "and I should be willing to fix it for FREE", though!!!

 

Constantly getting questioned. I don't mind it much though, gets me out of doing the work i get paid to do. Best thing is that my supervisor is a bike nut, so the hookup on parts and service keeps me in his good graces. Amazing how many friends i recently aquired when i installed my 2 post lift. Is there some cosmic coralation between installing a lift and EVERYONE'S car mysteriously breaking.

 

I actually go and check out used cars for folks before they buy if they ask me. I used to be a used car dealer and have rebuilt about 50 wrecks up until 2 years ago so I know my way around them pretty well.

Now I am doing my own thing playing with old stuff, enjoying cars again!

 

they did when I used to work in an office. I quit working in the office and opened a garage and took the ase tests and worked on their cars for money....for a while.

 

I have fixed a few over the years, but I have the excuse that my clothes will get dirty.

 

Yes, I get questioned all the time. I usually won't work on anyone's car I work with, especially any newer stuff but if they have a hot rod then I would be all over it. I don't want to have them constantly bugging me if something goes wrong or everytime there is a problem either. I have plenty of my own stuff to work on anyway.

 

The people I work with (suits ties on and on) know I do some welding. So they ask if I fix things like mower decks and whatever else is needs welding, and they dont know that there welding shops in town closer to them. I usually get gas money that way. One guy at a parts store where I used to work still gets me to fix his stuff every so often.

I used to work at a rental center in a lumber store, and I parked my lowered 84 GMC by the street. I had a guy come into the store looking for me. He wanted to know who lowerd my truck and how. I told him I did it and talked him through the process. A couple days later he came back and asked me if I could lower his truck. I did lower it but it took to long and everything that could go wrong did. Ever had a ball joint fall out of the lower control arm? I did!! I got $300.00 for 3 months work.

 

Yea... But they also think I'm an ass hole and a dick so they leave me alone....

 

I work at a dealership.....in parts. Lotsa mechanics around. Anything old....I can fix it, so everyone thinks.

 

YUP_ that's my M.O. If I can tear myself away from the office to, say, rig up a broken fuel line so a coworker can go to the repair shop, or change a tire, or fix a missing vacuum cap, etc. no prob. I don't do anything outside of work though. I learned my lesson- they just want cheap/free labor. Boss is rich and yet I have to install a carpet kit and stereo in his Jeep. VP is rich, I have to go find him a new bumper and replace the damaged one, or change the power steering in his mom's car. It gets old so I just started playing dumb. "Nope, I have NO clue why your car is broken........... Take advantage of someone else

 

I used to do that, until I realized that most of the people listened to my opinion that the car they were looking at wasn't worth the money, and then bought it anyway because it was a pretty color....and proceeded to piss, moan, and wail when it fell apart.

 

God, I hope so!
(I am a mechanic.) what sucks is when you are at the bar having a beer, and someone overhears you are a mechanic and ask you "how much to put a timing belt on my Honda?"
they don't like the answer- I only work on pre 1973 domestics, but I have a guy at the shop that works on "new shit."

 

Yep, fix my car, fix my computer, fix my motorcycle, give me free beer....

 

I am the mechanic for a commercial roofer responsible for keeping over 30 street driven vehicles running plus all of our heavy equipment. When people ask me if I do side jobs I tell them "No, I get enough of working for free here at work." If that doesnt get them to go away I tell them " If I take on another project before I do (insert project here) my wife will have my balls on a platter!" they will usually leave me alone after that. If that doesnt work I tell them " I would but then YOU will have to deal with the redhead" That will shut them up every time.

 

Yeah, but I'm a mechanic at a dealership. So actually, I can.

And I am ASE master Certified.

 

i get asked all the time , since i "mess around with old cars"...usually it's some dumb women with a ford escort only running on 3 cylinders..that should be junked out

i keep a couple business cards handy from my friend who has a real auto repair business , and hand THAT to them..he actually has gotten some new business out of it

 

I always get the guys from the squadron asking questions, I dont mind talkin about it....I dont mind lookin at it....as long as we are on squadron time (same as above....my time is mine, but if I can have a good excuse to use their time and its boss mandated then I'm all for it)

That said I also have 1 or 2 folks a week stop by the garage when I'm working on the 49....it usually goes something like, "hey did you chop your own top? (or did you bag it yourself?)" Where I respond yes. "well what would you charge me to chop the top (or bag) that nissan hardbody?" thats when I pull out the $5000 price tag plus parts and materials...up front, The usual response is, Man thats expensive or dontcha think thats kinda steep? my response....yep I dont want to do it.

 

I was able to fix stuff until the damn computers and EFI came in...now I tell folks that I only can fix things with points distributors...

Which is fine, because I have enough to do now that I'm retired.

(I do change the oil in the g/friend's Jeep Grand cherokee though....)

 

I work in a hangar full of really good aircraft mechanics and half of them tend to come to me and ask if I'll work on their cars for them.....strange.

 

Damn...me too. I got sick of it, so I just upped my hourly rate to $100 (for non-family members)...funny thing is, I still get business, but it's rarely something little anymore. I felt like a jerk, but with all the follow up questions and BS, I had to.

As far as cars go, yes, but I just tell people not to be surprised if their car comes back with an old V8 and some steelies. They get it...I only work on old stuff.

Bryan

 

Thats funny.....

I usually get asked to work on motorcycles because I was a motorcycle mechanic part-time while I was in school. I worked mostly on off-road bikes. I usually tell people that I'll show them how to adjust the valves/change the top end/change fork seals etc.

If they really want to learn and aren't just looking for a free lunch then they take me up on it. The best part is that I don't ever have to show them how again, they just do it the next time.