anybody know trustworthy automechanic in Northern VA?

Hi, I have a 94 honda accord, and I've recently been fed up with the
service at the Honda dealer I use in my area (arlington). Does
anybody know of a trustworthy mechanic in the area? Sorry if this is
the wrong place to ask.

 

It's one place to ask and considered "on topic."

Arlington Texas?

You can try http://www.cartalk.com/content/mechx/find.html . It lists several
Honda shops for zip code 76001, for starters.

Keep checking back. Often someone lives in the area of the poster making the
inquiry and can personally recommend a specific shop.

 

Dan
do you mean arlington , texas??
in euless i go to Hondtune.
the gansta hamsta has 180,000 miles on her and still running fine
she is a 92 HB . There are other places i can point out to you.
plodzilla

 

Did ANYONE bother to look at the subject line?? He said NORTHERN VA.
That's not Texas.

 

Rents are so high in that neck of the woods that it seems only greedy
SOB's can afford to stay in the car repair business around there. My
sister has lived in Arlington, as well as Falls Church and Annandale,
and it seems like every place she goes they try and take her for a ride.
I do know of a few decent places around Baltimore, as well as a few
thieves. Dealers in general tend to go for overkill to maximize profit,
cover their tails, or push you into buying a new ride.

Because of the high rents, it is also hard to attract good people into
the auto repair business around there. Another problem is that the
residents in NoVa tend to be transient and well-heeled as well, and many
businesses don't feel they need to cultivate loyalty with their
customers. In a small town, if you piss off your customer base, word
will get around quickly, and you won't be in business long. In a large
Metro area, particularly as transient as DC, there are always new people
moving in, who will give any place a try once or twice. Good mechanics
will also be so busy, it will be hard to schedule an appointment with
them.

This probably explains why most cars on the DC Beltway seem to be less
than 5 years old. It is probably cheaper to trade away a serviceable
vehicle than deal with the hassle of getting it repaired every few
months once it gets some miles and age on it.

Without knowing any specific mechanics, my best advice is to look for an
independent mechanic in a working class neighborhood, that seems
intelligent and has a reasonably neat, but fairly busy shop, and use him
for your state inspection. Go before the due date to give yourself an
out if he tries to hustle you, or give you a hard time. If he is
competent and honest, he will either give your car a clean bill of
health, or show good cause why it needs repairs. Even if his scope of
repairs is limited, he can usually refer you to another good independent
mechanic that can handle a specialty he is weak on, say a good
suspension or transmission man.

Tend to stay away from the major chain outlets, or if you must use
them (say for tires or exhaust systems) limit their scope to their
primary specialty, and be suspicious of any "recommended" or "urgently
needed" repairs that they push on you, particularly if your car has no
obvious symptoms. Many will try to hustle you into suspension work,
brake work, or a major periodic service that can be deferred for a
while, or not needed at all. If one treats you fairly, reward them with
your continued business.

 

AAA now does basic repair & maintenace in there diagnostic centers (at least
in California).
I used them once for break repair. It wasn't cheap but I did trust their
repair work. I believe they pay their mechanics well & this accounts for
the higher repair cost than at Joes auto repair.

 

Look for any auto repair shop that is a member of the BBB (Better Business
Bureau). These won't be the cheapest shops, but you can be reasonably
certain of getting a quality job with little to no risk of being sold
repairs that you don't need (packing the deal). For Arlington that would
be <http://www.fortworth.bbb.org/>

Go there and you can search online for repair shops that are members.