We all know mechanics and repair shops get a bad rap because of some unscrupulous individuals out there. These days, your average repair shop charges around $135- $200 per hour for labor alone depending on location and you have to drive to them. Dealerships and specialty shops can charge as high as $250 per labor hour. Lucky for you, I am very fair and I will treat you the way I would want to be treated. You won’t be overcharged and will get the truth about your vehicle’s issues and what it would take to fix it. In the end, I simply want a fair exchange of pay for my services.

Here is the simple truth… in order to stay in business, I need to be compensated for my time like anyone else. I have to load gear into my 8-cylinder work vehicle and take the time drive to out to your vehicle. As high as gas prices and cost of living are, the service calls that I make must absolutely be worth the trip out to see you. Given the aforementioned, below is a very basic rundown of my flat and hourly rates.

My Standard Fees:

I charge on a case by case basis. I make a lot of exceptions and do a lot for my customers. The ones that have worked with me in the past all know this. Although the following are my fees, I assess the situation and make executive decisions according to the circumstances presented to me. I give a lot of discounts and free time, so don’t be afraid of my rates and fees. I am a human first and a mechanic second.

CHAT WITH ME (FREE): I will chat with you about your vehicle’s issues on the phone, text or via email, no charge.

TRIP CHARGE – I drive to your location and initial diagnostics: There is an $100 flat rate visitation fee on weekdays and $120 on weekends just for me driving to your location and helping you. This will cover my travel time, gas, wear and tear, insurance, paying myself and load up time (I have to determine what to bring because I have too many tools).

Diagnostics and checking things out: ideally, I will only charge the visitation fee for attempting to diagnose and narrow down the cause(s) of your vehicle’s problem(s)–this is good for one hour of my time. Sometimes if the diagnostics require more than an hour of exploratory work, I will discuss this with you and we can go from there.

Most mechanics try to figure out problems through diagnostic equipment, basic visual/acoustical inspection, or just tinkering with things in order to see something obvious. Sometimes though, things like access becomes a hindrance: engine shrouds/cowls, belts, hoses, intakes, brackets, cross members, enclosures, wiring harnesses, covers and other components have to be removed in order to inspect things more closely and precisely–this is where extra exploratory time comes into play. Not to mention if one wire is chewed through by a mouse and it is buried deep in huge wiring jungle, this could take a while to locate and figure out–every mechanic hates the one broken wire thing because it will drive you nuts just trying to find it! These are very real potential scenarios. I will discuss options you if we should cross that bridge.

HOURLY RATE: My rate is $100 per hour on weekdays; $120 per hour on weekends. These rates encompass all work performed on your vehicle whether it is a battery replacement, timing belt job or water pump replacement. I will need your approval before any repairs commence.

DRIVING TO PARTS STORES: If the parts store(s) is more than a couple of miles from your vehicle, then I must add additional fees for the distance/gas usage.

Revisit after parts arrive: Unfortunately, if your vehicle needs parts and I have to come back at a later time/day once the parts arrive, then I will have to bill another trip charge (but usually reduced unless you are far away from my home base of Rimrock). No matter what, I will discuss this with you and usually we can come to terms on the total price of everything. My customers are generally happy with what I charge since they are working at a discount to begin with when compared to a physical shop or dealership.

Repeat customers and even if we become friends: I make lots of friends out there. Once we have rapport and establish a good customer/mechanic relationship and you bring me all of your work, I DEFINITELY give discounts for stuff (even free sometimes). I am a good guy and do not take advantage of people–take that to the bank. You will never know this unless you hire me for all of your vehicle work; so… get on board and make me your go-to mechanic!

PARTS: I don’t stock any parts. I don’t work on a credit system with customers and I generally will not pre-purchase any parts with my own money unless we have some repair history together. All parts must be paid for upfront by the customer. Here are the current options:

1) Hand me the cash and I can run down to the local parts store and pick up the part.

2) You can pay me via Paypal or Zelle and I will acquire the parts through online or in-person vendors.

3) I can give you the list of the necessary parts and you can purchase them from the vendors online (usually that means Amazon.com or maybe RockAuto.com) and you would then let me know when the parts arrive.

4) With parts list in hand, you could walk into the nearest local parts supplier like O’Reilly’s, Autozone or NAPA and purchase your own parts.

PAYMENT METHODS

Currently, I accept the following methods:

• CASH
• PAYPAL
• ZELLE
• BARTER: If something is worth trading work for, I might be interested. Even a vehicle that doesn’t run might be a good trade to pay for your repair on the vehicle that I am working on. You never know what I might say, so ask.