Local Mom & Pop Vendors

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alpinecrick

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Fingers crossed for you too!

Most alignment guys go to alignment school where they learn to run the alignment rack and align Nissan Sentras and their ilk. It seems as though a lot of them struggle with older 4wd trucks--especially older IFS 4wd trucks.

Also, it is highly likely that MOST of the alignment racks in use in this country have not been calibrated in recent memory............

When I make an appointment and when I show up I emphasize that I want the alignment guy to drive my truck when he is finished. WITHOUT EXCEPTION over the past 5-6 years, when they take my truck for a drive they return and drive it right back up on the alignment rack and go back to work on it.
 
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thinger2

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Budget Batteries in Burien, Wa
They will charge your ancient battery overnight for free.
If that doesnt work, they will old school farmer cook it at 200 amps three times.
Only when that fails will they try to sell you a new battery.
For alignments, Tinys tire in Midland, Wa.
They are not the cheapest, but they understand 4x4 trucks and will check and adjust the Z heighth and torsion bars.
For my German garbage I have two places.
Ovals Motorsports in Milton, Wa and Too Quicks in Midland, Wa.
Both just awesome.
Two businesses where you can call them for a quote and you get the number if they do it, and the number if you do it.
And if you decide to do it and **** it up?
They will talk you through it over the phone.
For my Japanese crap my go too is Hawks Asian auto repair in Fife, Wa.
I really cant say enough about this guy.
Just an awesome and decent and honest rock solid person.
Who also really knows his ****.
Anything hydrualic or pressure or fuel related
Williams Oil Filter Service in Tacoma Wa.
They dont have popcorn, they dont have a coffee stand, you will wait in line.
But this is the place to go.
The shops in Seattle are a joke.
Take the drive to Tacoma.
For starters and alternaters,
A guy in Kent, Wa who is known as "The Rebuilder"
A little hole in the wall joint.
My wifes closet is bigger that his lobby.
But he knows his **** and he has the parts and I have never spent more than 60 bucks on a rebuild.
And finally, Dr. Injector in Federal Way, Wa.
200 bucks for a complete tbi rebuild and rebush.
On an entirely differnent subject
Pochells appliance parts in Spanaway,Wa.
The rubber hub on Moms 1980s clothes washer shredded a few years ago.
280 bucks online.
20 bucks at Potchells.
Because they never throw out anything and the price on the NOS sticker is the price you pay no matter how old it is.
Got an old Kirby or Hoover?
Big Vac in Tacoma, Wa
Last time I was in they still had paper catalogs and dial phones.
Really oddball strange and obscure bizarre electronics?
Electronic Dimensions in Tacoma,Wa.
If Glen is still around he can find it for you.
I bought 1950s Swiss made movie projector bulbs from this guy cuz he knew what I was looking for and had them in stock.
Some of these places are 50 miles away from me but they are worth the drive just for the quality and the service and I want to support them.
The only way an awesome business survives is by having customers who appreciate what a rare thing that is these days and spend money at that store instead of being ******* cheap and lazy.
Take the drive, buy local.
Drop off the part and go have lunch at a neighborhood locally owned restaraunt.
You will feel better for doing it and it might just end up being a fun day.
 

thinger2

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Fingers crossed for you too!

Most alignment guys go to alignment school where they learn to run the alignment rack and align Nissan Sentras and their ilk. It seems as though a lot of them struggle with older 4wd trucks--especially older IFS 4wd trucks.

Also, it is highly likely that MOST of the alignment racks in use in this country have not been calibrated in recent memory............

When I make an appointment and when I show up I emphasize that I want the alignment guy to drive my truck when he is finished. WITHOUT EXCEPTION over the past 5-6 years, when they take my truck for a drive they return and drive it right back up on the alignment rack and go back to work on it.
Up here most people end up at Les Schwab
Which used to be a fairly good company.
But I would only go to them for tires.
I took a 69 vette in for tires, they told me it needed new cats.
It didnt have cats.
I took a 96 caddilac sts in for a nail in the tire.
They tore it apart and put new brakes on it and tried to make me pay for it and when I told to get ****** they tried to put the old brakes back on it which is when I told em to get ****** again.
Took a 96 jetta in for an alignment and they decided to put wheel bearings in it and bent the spindle and tried to tell me it was a factory defect when I was standing there watching them through the window.
They blew the bearing out twice!
2 times!
Les Schwab is great if you want teenagers to ruin your car for cheap.
They can do that really well
 

skylark

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Up here most people end up at Les Schwab
Which used to be a fairly good company.
But I would only go to them for tires.
I took a 69 vette in for tires, they told me it needed new cats.
It didnt have cats.
I took a 96 caddilac sts in for a nail in the tire.
They tore it apart and put new brakes on it and tried to make me pay for it and when I told to get ****** they tried to put the old brakes back on it which is when I told em to get ****** again.
Took a 96 jetta in for an alignment and they decided to put wheel bearings in it and bent the spindle and tried to tell me it was a factory defect when I was standing there watching them through the window.
They blew the bearing out twice!
2 times!
Les Schwab is great if you want teenagers to ruin your car for cheap.
They can do that really well
I get a fair amount of business from ex Les Schwab customers. It really is a shame, they used to be a great company.
 

1ton-o-fun

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I was a manager at a ARCA racer owned parts/repair/machine shop 25 years ago. This 70 year old lady walks into the store in tears. She just left the AAMCO transmission shop about 4 blocks away $1800 lighter and STILL in 1st gear in her Buick Lesabre. She begged me to look at her car but said she had no more money left. We put it on the lift and immediately saw what $1800 got her... A fresh rattle can silver paint job in the general vicinity of her transmission! Looked like it was done by a 10 year old kid! They raised her car up, sprayed half a can of silver on her car (over oil, dirt and everything), took her money and sent her down the road. I took pictures and ended up testifying in small claims court on her behalf.
 

Erik the Awful

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I had a customer come in with his brakes screaming. He said he'd had an oil change done and they tried to sell him a brake job. He wanted a second opinion. I got under the car and found both front backing plates bent to scrape on the rotors. I bent them back straight and told him he could go another two oil changes before he needed brakes. At the time it blew my mind that people would be that shady. Most of the evil done in this world is done to put food on a table.
 

BNielsen

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Around here there's 2 or 3 "mom and pop" junkyards who are willing to work with you on stuff, there's a radiator shop that's apparently the best in the county, allegedly there's a guy who will rebuild alternators and starters for a fair price, and there's still tons of reliable mechanics around me.
It's starting to get to the point where I'm tempted to learn how to really do the odd jobs myself, rebuilding components (so long as the sh!tty Chinesium parts allow it?) doing alignments myself, and anything else a chain-shop would f_ck up.

There's still some "mom n' pop" shops that I wouldn't and won't go anywhere near anymore. Tire shops that messed up tires and denied it, exhaust shops that did subpar work and refused to fix it because "It must've been something you did driving"
 

1997

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the thing about a mom and pop shop is, sometimes the spec's don't work in real the real world. They're just spec's. Remeber GM engineers, back in the day, broke rules, -> muscle car was born.

Had this shop where the guy had been around chevy (2's) nova's (Canso's in CDN) since they were invented.
Wasn't long before word got out, he was "the alignment guy".

When he set up the front end, it was the result of his proven experience.
Can't beat that and since he was also a Chevy 2, Nova guy, he was always busy ...... when he retired it was a sad day.
 

thinger2

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I get a fair amount of business from ex Les Schwab customers. It really is a shame, they used to be a great company.
Yep, they were.
But now they have a huge turnover rate amongst qualified employees and "upsell" is the new game.
In the last few years every woman that I know has been just flat out lied to in order to upsell them.
Hell, Ive gone in wearing greasy coveralls and a friggen Snap On hat while my knuckles were bleeding and they try to sell me **** the car doesnt even have!
A good friend of mine taught me a little trick.
When they try to upsell you, demand that they go inspect the "vacuum modulating kickdown linkage valve"
They will huddle in the corner all Googling like crazy.
If the manager finally figures it out and calls ******** on you,
Start aggresively telling him about an "exciting new marketing oppurtunity" that he can get in on the ground floor of!
Sometimes ya gotta fight fuckery with more obscure fuckery
 

Erin

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I'd give just about anything to have one good mom and pop tire shop in this city. It's all chains, and my main mechanic doesn't do alignments. Taking my red truck into one of the few chain shops that hasn't wronged me in some way or another (yet) this morning to get the alignment checked and I'm already nervous.
Luckily, we have one mom &pop tire shop, and one mom & pop alignment shop(one man show) where I live. They’re my go-to places. The guy at the alignment shop is in his 60s, so don’t know how much longer he’ll be around.
 
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