I am starting this thread specifically for those who have many questions/troubleshooting/mechanic issues and other discrepancies with mechanics. How do you know for instance, that your mechanic is leveling with you or isn’t selling you a line? I am not just talking about Toyota cars. They are the best service people I have ever had! I want to include other brands of cars as well.

I used to only let family work on my car. Then I found out my cousin had cheated me out of a couple jobs. I think if you go to a place that has to answer for any kind of problem, you have a better chance of getting treated well.

oh, that experience about your cousin was awful. i hope my family and i could also have a trustworthy mechanic to turn to. it's rare to find one even among one's relatives. tsk...tsk...

I always admired people that get under the car, all dirty and have fun changing the oil as if nothing is really happening, and it is just a routine thing... To me that is like major surgery! I believe that even if it is more expensive, it is worth to pay someone to to the job. On the other hand, when something is going on with the car, I wish I could be able to fix it myself... is it possible to become a mechanic without actually going to any school? I remember when I was a kid, right accross the street live this family. They had 5 kids, all boys between 18 and 12 years old. Their father bought an old car and put it in the garage, and all of the kids were working on that car on the weekends. After few months they finally got that car to run and it was like a big party. I don´t know what happened to those kids, but deep down I always wanted to be like them. So, should I get myself some old thing and work on it? LOL!