^^Thanks. I think a tech's job ends with "well, It ain't throwin' a code", "It's running great", "4 bangers are supposed to run like that", or "no fault found".

But like Fletch, the guy who runs the autocraft shop on post, says:"ain't noone gunna take as good'a care of your car as you". Because noone else drives it. I'm a firm beliver in that.

Also, you're damn right. OEM would have solved this problem.

 

Well a lot of techs do that. Why? Because we have to. If a car comes in like that we can do a couple of things:

Spend 8 hours (at $70 or more/hour) diagnosing
Buy random parts and try them
Or just let it be if its not a safety hazard and let it come back if it gets worse or throws a code

The first two would end up in VERY large bills.

The computer knows when to throw a code. Your O2 sensor may have been making the car run worse but it must have still been in the acceptable parameters to allow the ecu to not turn the check engine light on.

Oh, and as a shop, we never order from Autozone. Some parts are ok but not all. I know we have member working there so I wont go as far as to say that they are stupid. I know many other very knowledgeable people that work there also. Parts suck, Most of the employees are stupid, but some are good. And they have free code checking. That right there is a pretty good charge at a shop.

 

^^ Didn't mean to offend mang. Just really pissed at autozone and refused to take it to the dealership because I knew what they would say.

 

Okay, but what good is free code checking for the general public? I can't count on two hands how many times a week we have people walk up the the parts counter and ask for XXXX sensor and after a little questioning find out they've been to Autozone for their free code read. First of all, they have no idea what they are asking for, don't know what it does, they just know that Autozone told them that was what was wrong with their car. For instance, tons of people come in asking for a speed sensor. Well, on most Hyundais with automatics there are 3 different types of speed sensors (input, output, and gear driven for the speedometer). Autozone's information cannot differentiate between the three, so the customer is left still not knowing, and pissed because they think we're just trying to get them in the shop to charge the diagnostic fee.

Any tech worth his pay knows that there are many reasons a check engine light can come on, and it's not always as obvious as it seems. It's not always as simple as replacing a sensor and in depth diagnosis is frequently required the fix the REAL problem, or the problem behind the problem I guess I should say. People with technical knowledge like you and I understand this, but most of the general public does not.

I'm not knocking the very few who work there and know what they're doing, don't get me wrong. I love to be able to walk in and talk to someone who knows what they are talking about, but the hiring standards just seem to be sinking at places like that where real knowledge would be extremely helpful for those who are interested in doing the work themselves.