Your trusty mechanic

[Andy]

This is kinda in response to 3GM30F oil leak.Why is this- We drive our six month old $50K SUV into the shop of someone we don't know, step out and let them lube, oil, top off fluids, and vacum the interior and zip our credit card for $29.95 and drive out on a 100 mile road trip. (all this done while we sip their cheap coffee and read the morning news whilst they hide in a pit below our auto joking about cheap filters. And then...We ask a marina mechanic to change the oil in our ten year old half sunk yacht that rarely leaves the marina and we expect him to provide proof of insurance, have a ME degree from MIT (and coast guard license), give 45 minutes of FREE advice while we closely watch him, and expect to get it all for 20 bucks! Oh yeah, and he better guarantee the job and have it done by Friday at noon! (Unless there's a full moon and then we want it now)So Gary W., Which do you/we choose?a) I trust my boatyard/marina completely and will pay whatever they think is fair.b) I generally trust the by/marina and expect their price to be reasonablec) I distrust the boatyard guys, watch them like a hawk, and require estimates up front.d) I wouldn't let the *&%$#s touch my boat.

 

[Steve Dion]

not a lexus lube job.

Andy:You are not going to a Lexus shop for a $30 LOF job.My choice is going to be 'B' "b) I generally trust the by/marina and expect their price to be reasonable". Now this is a matter of opinion too. We do not normally expect this guy from Jiffy Lube to come to the office or the home and do the Lube, Oil and Filter change. If they did it would be a lot more money. When we can take an automobile to a shop that is equiped to perform a service like this they have everything they need at their finger tips. Plus the working environment is much more condusive to this type of work. When they do this type of a job on a boat it can be a 30 min. job or 3 hours depending on what the circumstances are. I would think that MOST (not all) of these yards tend to be fair with their charges. They have VERY expensive workmans comp rates. I have heard that they are 50-70% of the hourly wages. The problem that we are dealing with is some of the yards do not necessarily have training programs for these employees. They may send someone down to our boats to perform a service and when they start having problems, they just muddle with it until they find a solution or do it with less than journeyman workmanship. This is when the bill doubles and triples. So you are totally correct. Do not expect a boat to be a cheap toy. Learn to do what you can and expect to pay a fair and reasonable price for work that is done and done correctly in a professional matter.

 

[rp]

What about this?

You spend $2000 for the boatyard to fix your transmission and you gladly pay it because you want to keep your 'pride and joy' ship shape......then you complain about the high cost of medical expenses in this country when the doctor charges $5000 to take your gall bladder out, but the insurance company only gives him/her $1500 because they claim $1500 is a reasonable fee for that procedure. Go figure?Rp.

 

[Pete Loewenstein]

rp's logic holds the answer ...

... have your boat mechanic take out your gall blader, and your surgeon replace your transmission.(Sorry ... couldn't resist!)