Repair shop question

Posted this on the wrong section, sorry Pedro and admin.
So my boxster needed new CV boots on both sides of the rear and I go to a shop, they order it then tell me they didn't look at the kit but it does not come with grease or boot clamps and I need to pay extra for that. I didn't think about it till much later but I think any good shop should have this grease on hand, and really it is not my fault they did not look at the kit and they should eat there cost of new clamps and grease, no? Any thoughts? It was not a lot of money but there principal of it.

Some kits come complete with boots, clamps and grease and others don't.
If I were in that situation, where I had quoted a job and then found discrepancies in the parts, especially because the cost of the grease and clamps is negligible when compared with the total cost including labor, I would eat theist of the parts and never let the customer know.
The cost of the grease and the clamps may be $8.00 max, for both sides!
Happy Boxstering,
Pedro

Pedro Bonilla
1998 Boxster 986 - 311,000+ miles: [www.PedrosGarage.com]
PCA National Club Racing Scrutineer - PCA National HPDE Instructor - PCA Technical Committee (Boxster/Cayman)

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Quote
Pedro (Odessa, FL)
"cost of the grease and clamps is negligible when compared with the total cost including labor, I would eat theist of the parts and never let the customer know.
The cost of the grease and the clamps may be $8.00 max,"
Pedro

That's it what I thought especially since it is costing me a bit to do this and they want to charge me $20 extra

They absolutely should have the grease on the shelf. It is not magic grease.
The clamps? Maybe not on the shelf, but they are easily available and not very expensive.

I agree with Pedro. As a matter of practice, a decent shop in normal times should eat the cost and not even mention it to the client unless the repair was delayed.
In these times, maybe they need to not lose any money - no matter how little. But that seems extreme even now.

All the above said, I would pay the money and never go back to that shop again. I might even tell them that as I left the building and drove away.

Is the $20 worth the argument and losing a shop that you like? Assuming it is close to you, now you will have to find a different shop farther away? You lose in that equation. Pick your battles?

I would certainly bring it up and mention that this could mean that you take your future business elsewhere. Then see how they respond and if they appreciate your business. If not a favorable response, then you know that they may not be trusted when bigger things come up. That is a stronger reason to change shops.

Good luck.

I think Tony more accurately wrote down what I was thinking.

Here in CT, there are many choices for getting work done on a car, plus I have several contacts in the business. So leaving any particular one is not big deal.

yes, I agree but there are a few more places where I am and this place was the opposite direction of work. I will not go there anymore. From a really expensive oil change to this debacle I am done with them.

for me, it just comes down to a matter of trust and "fit." if you trust the shop, i wouldn't blink at the extra charges. if you don't, move on, and try to find a shop that you trust and like the way they do business.