How To Help Make Your Mechanics Job Easier: Customer Etiquette

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At AAMCO Colorado, we want all of our customers to be as pleased as can be. But sometimes, to make our customers experience the best it can be, there are a certain few things our customers can do to help facilitate that. This does not just cover AAMCO locations, but any and all mechanic shops. I suppose this would be considered a form of customer etiquette. So without further ado, here are a few things that customers should avoid doing less they want to upset their mechanics.

Providing Information: It is much easier for a mechanic to know where to start when given a little information on what is going wrong. Imagine if anything was handed to you, and you were simply told… fix it. You might wonder well is it even broken, how is it broken, what are the signs that it is broken. All of this information would give you good and proper starting points. If you have a stomach ache and go to the doctor to see what can be done. You don’t just walk in and say help me because the obvious first question they are going to ask you is how.

So it is quite necessary to give as much information as possible, even if you don’t know the proper terminology, just explaining the noise or symptoms can help them to find the problem. This will not only help move the process of fixing your vehicle along faster, but it will lessen the headache on the mechanics part, and as a result, may lessen the cost that you must pay.

Hovering: Most mechanics will not mind you waiting around for your vehicle to be fixed, some may even not mind you watching them work. But that is not the case for all mechanics, and some downright do not like it. It’s not as though they are doing anything dishonest, it’s just the added pressure of having someone watch over their shoulder can be a bit much for some. In essence, it could be considered a form of stage fright. If you intend on watching the mechanic work, be sure to ask first if it’s ok to view them.

You have to remember that for the most part, being a mechanic usually means staying out of the eyes of the public. It’s usually not a profession that is put on display, and it may be the reason a person chose to be a mechanic in the first place. Perhaps it was so that they didn’t have to deal with and answer customers’ questions. They prefer it in the back with nothing but their tools and thoughts. Also, on top of watching them work, it’s especially bad of you to pester them with questions as they are trying to finish the work on your car in a timely manner.

Keep Calm: When it comes to money, most people don’t want to spend more than they feel they have to. This is especially true in today’s economic hard times. But when a mechanic tells you that something needs to be replaced or fixed that otherwise had not been anticipated, or when you see the bill for what is owed, there is no need to go bonkers in the store. Even if you are right, and you were overcharged, or even if you know the corrections don’t need to be made. Keep calm and stay collected.

It was Michel de Montaigne that said, “He who establishes his argument by noise and command shows that his reason is weak.” So by becoming heated, you not only show you’re probably not telling the whole truth but worse yet, you’re just going to upset whoever it is you’re talking with. So be smart, and try not to let your emotions get the better of you. Besides, it’s easier to catch a fly with honey than vinegar. This means that if you’re expecting a certain outcome, it’s best to kill them with kindness. Otherwise, you’re probably not going to get what you want, and you’ll end up being even more upset anyway.

Wrongly Blaming Mechanic: It is quite common for vehicles that are older or have not been maintained well to have more than one problem. However, most people won’t think that the noise they hear can be a combination of multiple problems. So once a single problem is fixed, you may well hear a different noise, but its really the same noise as before, save for the part that’s been fixed no longer makes a noise. So after the repairs, you may think that the mechanic has broken something, as a new sound is being heard.

However, the same broken parts may be producing the same sound, only it seems a bit different. So before you flip out and lose your cool, perhaps you can calmly ask the mechanic if they noticed the noise change and whether or not anything else is wrong. There is no doubt they will understand what you are talking about. But remember, if they heard the noise and didn’t say anything, there is a good chance they don’t feel the noise being made is a big deal or needs to be fixed immediately. So they’ve been honest by not trying to convince you to fix something that is not needed or up-sell you.

Shopping Around: It’s ok to shop around for the best price, but there is no need to hide that fact. By doing that, you are being just as dishonest as you expect the mechanic not to be. If you take your vehicle in for a quote, let them know if you intend on looking elsewhere, or if you have taken somewhere else already. Let them know what the other mechanics have said, what they quoted and mentioned needed to be fixed. You may be pleasantly surprised. It could be that to be more competitive, the one shop will reduce its price to meet or be lower than its competitors. They may also let you know if suggested repairs are needed or not.

The worst thing that can be done by far though on the part of the customer, is to receive a diagnostic, where they told you exactly what was wrong, what needs to be done and gave you a decent competitive price, and the customer turns around and goes to another mechanic for the actual repairs. If you do not trust them, or their price is far too high than it is acceptable. It’s as though your simply shooting the messenger. Hopefully, some of these points will help auto customers understand that in the business world, the customer is always right, but that does not give them the right to be rude. We live in a civilized world, so let’s act civil. Give respect where respect is due, and the same will be shown to you.

If you are looking for an honest mechanic, you need to look no further than AAMCO. AAMCO transmission repair is second to none, so if you are looking for a Denver transmission repair, then look for one of our AAMCO transmission locations where we can be sure to help you. Because those who know, go to AAMCO!

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