The "Really ?!?!?!?!" Thread

[Accumulator]

Heh heh, I knew I was guilty of something

Some languages don`t even make sense without rigorous adherence to their rules.

[Ronkh]

https://twitter.com/KeithOlbermann/s...04169392672768

[Accumulator]

[sarcasm]Oh, that`s a Public Service, huh? Bet he only charges enough to cover the cost of printing it. Doing it for the Greater Good. [/sarcasm]

Some folks are gonna have to get a whole new shtick after the next POTUS gets in.

[Angus]

I can`t believe this worked:

My little sister`s phone got stolen/lost a week ago. Yesterday, I got a strange text. Today, I peaked! - Album on Imgur

Fake or not, it`s too damn funny.

[Ronkh]

I can`t believe this worked:

My little sister`s phone got stolen/lost a week ago. Yesterday, I got a strange text. Today, I peaked! - Album on Imgur

Fake or not, it`s too damn funny.

[Ronkh]

WSJ Editor To Reporters: Stick To Facts | The Daily Caller

[Accumulator]

Heh heh, so Ms. Singer uses the expression "super chummy" and what, expects to be taken seriously!?!

Eh, the WSJ has been a mess since forever with regard to their reporters going off the rails. But why did Baker send out a bunch of what-do-you-expect-to-happen emails?!? Lousy way to run [anything] IMO. Whole place sounds like a mess, but eh, I quit reading it ages ago.

[Oneheadlite]

Rant: I hate my industry.

I`ve gone on about how I work at an independent BMW/Audi/mini shop. Since our focus is pretty small, people have come to assume we`re expensive. I`m trying to figure out where they get this from.

Example A: Had a customer who`s car broke down (E90 3 Series, Overheated - Electric water pump failed) in front of another do-all-makes shop. So, instead of a tow, they brought it there. That shop charged them 40% more for the job than we would have (and they used cheap chinese parts which failed several months later). They replaced the water pump and thermostat, which is common practive. But, they charged them labor to replace the thermostat, which you HAVE TO REMOVE TO DO THE WATER PUMP.

Example B: Another car (E90 3 Series) came to us after the owner had spent a "bunch of money" diagnosis a running problem at another shop. They provided the records of what they had done. They were completely off the scent of what the actual problem was, and were spending the customer`s money (over $1500) throwing parts at it.
Looking at the history, they had also been scalped on the water pump-thermostat double charge. During an oil change at 70k miles, they replaced the oil filter housing cap (sometimes they come apart). With a cheap chinese one, that they charged twice the price you would pay for one FROM THE DEALER. At 75,000 miles, 3 months later, they again charged the customer $70 for another cheap chinese filter housing cap - probably because the garbage 1st one came apart. What about your warranty? We do 2 year, 24k warranty on our parts and labor. Absolute robbery. They also replaced spark plugs, then replaced them again 20k later chasing a misfire (factory interval on those - 100k).

Example C: With the airbag recall, we get all sorts of people coming in wanting a second opinion after the dealer. Apparently oil pan gaskets must be the thing to do there - almost every car we see from them "Needs" an oil pan gasket. Most often, they`re a 3 on a 1-10 scale (10 being worst). Those guys should be ashamed of themselves.

I don`t mean to say there aren`t good mechanics at all varieties of places, but man the bad ones are bad.

The worst part is this garbage totally ruins the rest of life for me, because now any time I have to hire someone to do something I don`t have the talent or time to do (house stuff, etc), I`m stressed out worrying I`m going to get "those guys" instead of "our guys".

[Accumulator]

Oneheadlite- That sounds like how the shops are around my area (and is why my Audi gets serviced over an hour away). I bet that 90% of the service invoices that came with my `93 were utterly fraudulent (including an engine-out over an oil leak they didn`t find/fix).

BUT as for the perception that your shop is pricey, I bet some good ads could help with that. Something that stressed how you do things so they`re cheaper overall, let alone in the long run.

[Tc99m]

Oneheadlite- My barbershop runs local ads and has a sign out side their shop. That they fix Great Clip hair cuts.

[Oneheadlite]

Oneheadlite- My barbershop runs local ads and has a sign out side their shop. That they fix Great Clip hair cuts.

That`s awesome.

[Dan]

Rant: I hate my industry.

I`ve gone on about how I work at an independent BMW/Audi/mini shop. Since our focus is pretty small, people have come to assume we`re expensive. I`m trying to figure out where they get this from.

Example A: Had a customer who`s car broke down (E90 3 Series, Overheated - Electric water pump failed) in front of another do-all-makes shop. So, instead of a tow, they brought it there. That shop charged them 40% more for the job than we would have (and they used cheap chinese parts which failed several months later). They replaced the water pump and thermostat, which is common practive. But, they charged them labor to replace the thermostat, which you HAVE TO REMOVE TO DO THE WATER PUMP.

Example B: Another car (E90 3 Series) came to us after the owner had spent a "bunch of money" diagnosis a running problem at another shop. They provided the records of what they had done. They were completely off the scent of what the actual problem was, and were spending the customer`s money (over $1500) throwing parts at it.
Looking at the history, they had also been scalped on the water pump-thermostat double charge. During an oil change at 70k miles, they replaced the oil filter housing cap (sometimes they come apart). With a cheap chinese one, that they charged twice the price you would pay for one FROM THE DEALER. At 75,000 miles, 3 months later, they again charged the customer $70 for another cheap chinese filter housing cap - probably because the garbage 1st one came apart. What about your warranty? We do 2 year, 24k warranty on our parts and labor. Absolute robbery. They also replaced spark plugs, then replaced them again 20k later chasing a misfire (factory interval on those - 100k).

Example C: With the airbag recall, we get all sorts of people coming in wanting a second opinion after the dealer. Apparently oil pan gaskets must be the thing to do there - almost every car we see from them "Needs" an oil pan gasket. Most often, they`re a 3 on a 1-10 scale (10 being worst). Those guys should be ashamed of themselves.

I don`t mean to say there aren`t good mechanics at all varieties of places, but man the bad ones are bad.

The worst part is this garbage totally ruins the rest of life for me, because now any time I have to hire someone to do something I don`t have the talent or time to do (house stuff, etc), I`m stressed out worrying I`m going to get "those guys" instead of "our guys".

That is absolutely the majority of mechanics out there. There is no money in proper diagnosis, and customers refuse to pay for it, so shops throw parts at cars. Happens in other repair trades too. My neighberhood is about 5 or 6 years old. I can`t tell you how many AC units I`ve seen replaced. Not fixed, replaced with new units becuase they tell the customer they are unrepairable. I`m in the same boat as you, I cringe at calling someone in to do anything because there are so many frauds out there.

[Ronkh]

Cop pulls car over, but doesn`t ticket the driver because.. it`s a dog driving - Story | WNYW

[Ronkh]

New York protests to remove statue of Christopher Columbus | Daily Mail Online

[Accumulator]

Eh, if New Yorkers wanna be all [whatever you`d call it] that`s their business and any nuttiness is on them. Outlaw big sodas, take down statues, whatever...Certain [individuals] find all sorts of stuff to get worked up about, guess it makes `em feel special.