Quote:
Originally Posted by davendeb
This video is bordering on slander laws. It's so obviously an infomercial and over dramatic, with poor acting. I am not a camping world follower, neither of my 4 RVs were bought there, but I know a scam when I see it, and this video is one.
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I don't see it that way at all. Knowing nothing about buying a unit it really educated me that I have to pay strict attention. If I were in that neighborhood I would certainly give that guy a try and look it over to see if he's living up to his efforts. On the other hand, he's done a very real service to the 'average' person that is not aware of any of this.
I used to own an automotive shop. I loved making money but there was one thing I loved more. Going to bed at night knowing that I had done someone a real service. I used to give my good customers free headlights (and installation) just out of gratitude. They loved it and I had customers for life. I also backed all my work with a 100% satisfaction guarantee - if you're not happy, bring it back. If it's my fault, it's covered. Period.
I also exposed a lot of the BS out there. I had one guy come in (a new customer) and he wanted to buy a used car. I told him to come in for a pre-purchase inspection. I told him that if there was anything minor wrong he could use the information to get a lower price. If there was something major, he could pass on it and know that he saved a lot of money and headache. As it turned out, the car was clean. It had 125,000 km's on it and there was some minor, but average play in the steering linkage. I told him it was acceptable and not to worry about it as it was not a new car and he wasn't paying for a new front end.
Unfortunately, it was done on a Friday and it needed an alignment. I did not have time to send it down to the alignment shop so he wanted to bring it in. I specifically told him that alignment shops make all their money by selling work and it would be better if I brought it in on Monday. He did not want to wait.
So what did he do? He took it in on a Saturday and they phoned him up and told him he needed +$1,000 in front end repairs. So what did he do? He cancelled my $150 inspection fee cheque. When I found out I called him up and he explained that I had not done my job properly! I asked him to bring it in and this is what we found....
They had told him one tie rod end was worn and that the other was good. I put it on the hoist, brought him to look at it, squeezed both tie rod ends with a pair of pliers and asked him which one had more wear. He could not say, they both had the same amount of minor play. So why did the alignment shop not say he needed two of them....He then said why is the steering wheel off a bit? I told him,
and had written it down on the inspection, that the box had a minor amount of play in it. It is not a new car, it will have some wear. The question is, what is excessive wear? That is what I am paid to determine.
So I put the car down, loosed off the lock nut on the steering box and tightened it up a tad. Play gone. I took it for a test drive and all was well. So here he is, all red-faced because he realizes
he shafted the wrong guy. He pays me out in cash, I remind him that I told him how alignment shops make their money and that I wanted to bring it in for him (at no extra cost) because they will not try and shaft a mechanic from a shop. We know better and they won't do that to someone that can refute their BS attempts to make money on needless repairs.....
Bottom line, the customer got a great car for a cheap price with normal wear. The problem is, the customer was so ashamed of what he had done that he never came back despite the fact that I spent a lot of time letting him know it was OK - I've seen this story before. So I lost a customer by giving him exactly what he needed.
I'm up in Canada. One summer a guy comes in with a beautiful Cadillac. His address is 90210. I didn't know what that meant but I looked after him well and he was very happy. For me, this was normal. As it turns out, he had a summer place up here and came up every summer. So one day he calls me up from California and tells me his Cadillac doesn't always start. He says it's intermittent. I told him, next time he tries to start it and it does that hit the starter with a hammer. So he does, and it starts. What does he do? He liked me so much he drove that Cadillac all the way up from Beverly Hills, with a hammer in hand, and whenever it would not start, he got his wife to hold the key on while he hit it with the hammer
Why did he do that?
Because he wanted me to do the work and get the reward for it. He appreciated what I had done for him before. The guy could clearly pay anyone to do it at any time. I had already diagnosed it over the phone. He chose me and asked me to order him up a starter for when he got here.
That's real service. I used to give it all the time. And I made good money doing it. Not the same amount of money that a rip-off shop would make, but I wanted to go to bed at night with that warm feeling that I had done my customers a solid.
One more story. I had a little old lady (and lots of them) with an old but mint car. She always took it to me and I always looked after her. Probably billed her a total of maybe $1,000 over 5 years. One day she comes to me in tears. I don't know what's wrong but I will fix it. I'm not going to have one of my clients in tears. She walks up to me, hugs me, kisses me and tells me she bought a new car. I didn't clue in right away, why was this a bad thing? And then she says to me - it has warranty - and as such she won't be coming to me anymore. That's why she was so sad.
I recognize that the guy that made this video took a real risk making it. He also educated me. And I recognize a guy that wants to be able to sleep at night knowing he made the world a better place in the process. Personally, I give him great credit for it.
With a well run shop, there is enough money in the trade to do well. Honestly. With integrity. I have also seen a lot of shops that are after nothing but money and could care less. Now that I'm retired I brought a car into a shop that I used to sub-let a lot of work to back in the day. The owner I dealt with was gone but his son told me, "I can't remove that tire because it's worn and it's illegal. By law, I cannot do it". That tire was just fine with just a trace worn off on the inside. There is no law (here) backing up his story. Its nothing more then a way to scare people into buying tires. That's it. Anyway, like Forrest Gump, that's all I have to say about that.
2012 Skyline Koala CS-21; 2010 Ford E-350 XLT; 
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