Vehicles & Servicing I can't find a qualified and trustworthy car mechanic.

My own experience echo comments above; very difficult to find a mechanic who can actually identify the real cause of a problem, and then fix it. I had often put this down to the various mechanics not being able to understand me, always thinking - I must improve my Visaya! Fortunately I consider myself relatively mechanically aware, as I worked on my own cars when younger, as I could not afford professional prices. This has helped me to avoid the more obvious 'rip offs'.
In most cases the dealers do not seem to be much better or more knowledgeable, even for the premium prices. The usual solution seems to be - replace what it might be (you will be paying after all), rather than actually confirm the cause. I do not think this is a Dumaguete problem, I think it is more general.
I have had dealings with Nissan, Kia and more recently Ford in Duamguete. In defense of the Kia mechanics, (auto transmission would disengage when headlights were switched on - on a second hand, though relatively new and under warranty Picanto); after numerous visits by myself and my daughter, and many hours spent in Kia, the Kia workshop in Cebu, were eventually able to trace the problem to cables having been chewed by rats. I do not expect that diagnosis is in the Workshop Manual!

It could have been a one off, but recently (June 2017) I was pleasantly impressed by the diagnosis from Tim's Auto shop, opposite Tim's autos on North road and next to the Ford Dealership. I was initially greeted cordially by who I understood to be the son of the owner. They seem to be organised, though very busy and it took them several hours after I dropped off the car, before they were actually able to take a look and identify a strange clanking noise under the car! They identified a missing bolt on a suspension / steering? tie rod. I had often used Roberts (service workshop also along North Road) and found at least some of the mechanics to be reliable and knowledgeable, but they are relatively expensive, and had not been able to identify this particular problem.

 

First of all to everyone responding to my post, thanks! I have a Ph.new car, not imported, and the dealership has tried to solve several problems, but not all were solved. They didn't know the cause and ended up replacing parts on my costs of course without solving it. Merlinfish was spot on in his response. I will try the guys mentioned, like Tim's Auto Shop and others, and if successful, I will let you all know. And yes, if anyone knows an expat in Dumaguete with car repair qualities and an honest personality, then I am the first one to ask his details .

 

I don't remember if they have such sign,but this is something they should be able to do.

 

I know working on (especially) Jap Cars in Oz we found many things that were different especially with Imports, in Asia they leave many things out including some safety items like Intrusion Bars inside the Doors which are required by the Australian Design rules, other times there are items that were only available in Japan meaning parts are very hard to obtain, often repair Manuals only come in Japanese on Disc and are unreadable, seeing much of the import/ chop stuff that goes on here the only way I can see around major problems is to buy something older with a Carb that can be worked on by locals, but then you have the issue of Parts supply, hence why I see often strange Engine swaps here... But these problems also extended to European/American Cars where parts are no longer available, or if they are, to send from (especially) America often the postage/shipping far exceeds the value of the item many times over making it an unsavoury experience. Sometimes I think it is financially best just to catch a Tricycle/Jeepney and only Hire a Car locally when needed to avoid all of these head aches, I notice many ads appearing lately for the hire of Cars here in Dumaguete for Daily/ Weekly/ Monthly use, probably more viable than owning one here.

 

In my online searches it doesn't seem to matter which Island you live on, here the Dealers are woeful at best with many bad stories to tell of overcharging, bad repairs, even refusing to do repairs under Warranty... Ever met an honest Car Salesman? I know I have not... The majority of Mechanics are no different when it comes to putting food on their own tables...

 

I'd rather pay a high price before relying on what's called public transport here

What I did before picking a car was to look around me - what is it that everybody else is driving? Obviously there will be some knowhow and easy to find parts for the 3 or 5 most common models. Pick one of these and you'll rarely run into problems with missing parts or lack of knowledge.

 

What is bad with public transport here? OK. Some safety issues are around. But the availability of public transportation is quite good for Dumaguete area. In other areas or provinces we would really have to rely upon own personal transportation.

 

I find it cheap and convenient to get to downtown Dumaguete and get home, but that is because I live near the main highway in Sibulan. I can take a Ceres bus or an EZride jeep or a tricycle and one of them is coming along any minute. All are cheap. Biggest problem I have is getting crammed in like sardines. OK or once in a while but to do it every day it gets old fast.

 

I found out that in the evening it was very difficult to find any trikes or easy-rides, during day time no problems.

 

I found the same and the Siation-Jeepney terminal closes around 6pm leaving only the 'Ceres Bus option' which is only good for the Highway routes.

I did a Google search (I must be going senile as normally this is my preferred option to finding answers) and found the following link which may help add to the already suggested repairers around Dumaguete;

TOP 13 Auto Repair Car Shops in Dumaguete City | ExploreNegros.com