any good honest auto mechanics in Milwaukee? (neighborhood, maintenance)

[Angorlee]

I once broke down and had my car fixed at a local Ford stealership and wow!! They must have thought that I was a millionaire or something(despite the fact that I drive an old, beatup car). Any good, honest and reasonable mechanics around?

[Nuclear_Art]

Originally Posted by Angorlee

I once broke down and had my car fixed at a local Ford stealership and wow!! They must have thought that I was a millionaire or something(despite the fact that I drive an old, beatup car). Any good, honest and reasonable mechanics around?

Dealerships are always high priced. It's always better to find a neighborhood garage near where you live or work to make it the most convenient. Actually the same goes for oil changes. Stay away from the quick change places because they do a crappy job at prices that aren't too competitive.

[43north87west]

Originally Posted by Angorlee

I once broke down and had my car fixed at a local Ford stealership and wow!! They must have thought that I was a millionaire or something(despite the fact that I drive an old, beatup car). Any good, honest and reasonable mechanics around?

Ditto the neighborhood places. You're not going to find a dealership with particularly cheap service prices anywhere in this country. Still, even some of the neighborhood places are willing to turn you upside down. A lot of it depends on if they have a boat payment due soon. I was in this business a long time ago, so I know about it.

The most important and significant thing that any car owner can do to lower the cost of repairs, is to perform scheduled maintenance. Of course, one cannot anticipate every single breakdown or mishap, but one CAN avoid the great majority of them. That goes for the smallest things like radiator hoses and accessory belts, but also affects things like transmissions and timing belt services, which people are very hesitant to do because they are comparatively "expensive". In the long run, a $500 timing belt job can save you $2500, and even more, once you factor in the cost of towing (depending on model, some may be much cheaper, others more costly).

That also goes for oil changes. Anyone who cheaps out on oil changes is an idiot... especially with some of the wonderful sludge-prone engines (Chrysler 2.7L, Toyota 3.0L 1MZ-FE, VW/Audi 1.8T, and others) of recent history.

[number21]

the mechanics files on the car talk website (cartalk.com) is a good resource. It has people add good mechanics and reviews on their own accord. It worked for me in Chicago.