Do people at work think you can fix their car?

I pretty much use the same strategy as Caffeine. I just ask them up front "what year car is it?", and then when they say "2003 blah, blah, blah", I stop them right there & explain to them that my cars are all old, and therefore mechanically simple so I can work on them, whereas their newer car is computer controlled and requires expensive, high tech diagnostic equipment to properly assess the problem (and I don't have any of that stuff).

If it's the brakes, I tell them "Dude, you drive your wife and kids around in that car, pony up and let a real mechanic look at it." Then I make a joke about how much of a fucking cheap-skate they are, we laugh it off, and the subject changes. Works every time.

However, none of this applies if it it's someone asking for help with an older car. Getting an oldie back on the road makes me feel good regardless of whether it's mine or not, so I pretty much always offer to help anyone in that situation.

 

all the freaking time.

...hey...do you have one of those computers in there?....
Yep, but i only have the cartridge for cop cars....works like a charm...

 

They know I can fix their car. It's what I do all day long. If they want me to look at it off the clock, my rate is 75.00 per hour. If they want me to do it on work time, They can get a work order written up, and it will cost them 100.00 per hour. Their choice. My time is money, and I didn't get a hundred grand worth of tools handed to me for free.

 

Isn't it funny how some people will never say more than "hi" to you unless they want you to fix something for them?

 

I get it more from family than coworkers, but I feel your pain. A few weekends ago I did some work on a friend of the family's kid's VW Cabriolet. Unfortunately for me the new starter I put in was a bum piece that's gonna have to be replaced again when I have a free weekend. Ever put a starter in a 1.8L VW? Pain in the friggin' arse.

 

Yup. My brother!