Vehicles & Servicing Best Posts in Thread: I can't find a qualified and trustworthy car mechanic.

There are many motorcycle wash places that spend an hour on the bike for 50 pesos. When I had a bike I used the one is called Finish Line. Its number 4 on the top 15 list at this site and if I have done it right this should be the link to the map
EDIT: The link to the map worked but the motor wash is not listed. Look for Xeno's Store on that map and the motor wash is right beside it. As a plus. They will do an oil change and chain lube during the wash if you ask for it and pay for the oil etc.

 

hey! i have lived here now four years and actually have three suggestions for you. my vehicles serviced have all been either motorcycles or an old Daewoo multicab and now a Toyota chassis jeep. the Toyota is at least 30 years old. my point would be all of my vehicles have been pretty simple machines. first suggestion is Roberts Tires out by the airport on the national highway. the back end there has done some work for me i was happy with. i am less happy with the front end staff (flats, balancing and alignment). second suggestion is "jun jun". it took hi 29 hours from my phone call to him of a blown head gasket for him to have me back on the road. five days so far and everything seems good, but its a simple four cylinder with no real accessories. jun jun so far has done wheel bearings, brakes, radiator repair/replacement for me all with good results. all this was done at my house which makes this even more attractive. total cost for the head gasket including milling the head was $168 parts and labor and he chased the parts. last is "rey" who has a place on the highway nearly to Dauin. i guess message me if you want numbers and/or directions-thanks-shabby

 

They reeled me in with the good job. Like fishing. The hook was baited and I bit.

So this time I had a coolant leak and took the car back to Roberts to fix it. As I expected, it was the water pump. In my car the timing belt has to come off to get at the water pump and its a big job. So I asked for an estimate for all the things I wanted done. They wrote down 5,000 pesos but stressed that it was only an estimate as they would find other things that needed to be done when they got into it.

That sounded like a budget of 10K to me so I planned for that. Got a text this morning: Car is ready to pick up. Total cost 15K.

I'm looking forward to seeing the itemized bill. Ain't it fun to own a car in Philippines? For the record, I'm not saying they overcharged. More along the lines of underestimated, but I'll know more when I go pick it up.

 

Yes. It serves the purpose of both raising the boiling point of water and lowering the freezing point at the same time so its dual purpose. I'm just used to calling it Antifreeze. The main reason I like it as opposed to plain water is the anti-rust additives in it. Have you ever used plain water and noticed it gets rusty pretty quick? I figure that is reducing the life of my water pump and rad

 

I went to see him today. He is quite busy back in there and does not communicate well in English, but well enough to reply. I asked him if he would be interested in doing an oil change and rad flush and he said to go to Roberts as he was very busy there.

So I went to Roberts and got it done for 2,338 pesos most of that was oil, filter and antifreeze cost. They were quite professional and did not charge a fortune for labor. The oil, filter and antifreeze were expensive but good quality so worth it to me. Still, US$50 for an oil change and rad flush on a Honda Civic . . . what are they paying in the states for that now?

 

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.

 

I think the answer is quite simple like in your home country, just go the the authorized dealer. They have all the knowledge and their mechanics get updated all the time. Maybe labour a bit more than the guy on the corner of the street, but the saving you should have visiting that guy is not worth the better value of check up etc. @the dealer.

 

You can buy a stuff to use on plastic trim at Robinsons Hardware in the mall. They have shelves of car care products.

 

I thought I'd inject a little mechanics humor. This sign is a little out of date. For perspective my dealerships rate here in Oklahoma City is $157 /HR.

 

One major problem is inconsistency. You recommend someone and they have a bad experience.