CrAnSwIcK

iTrader: (5)

it's true...dealerships don't necessarily know the car any better than we do, they're just following the manual like anyone else, if you can turn a wrench you can be a mechanic...though obviously someone with an interest in mechanics and some base knowledge would be better suited for the job, but the dealership isn't always the best choice....

RalliartN

iTrader: (1)

No, mechanics who do work on mostly one make get to see the nuances of each model, and take courses on difficult repairs. No contest.

CrAnSwIcK

iTrader: (5)

Nick, i have to disagree, when i was having synchro issues, i talked to two "experienced" mitsu techs, at two different dealerships about it, they insisted i pay them to take it apart, and then "maybe" it would be covered, when all i wanted was some information about similar models with similar problems, and what the cause possibly or most often was, and they were like "well, it's hard to say, we'd have to take it apart, and then you pay us $100/h blah blah" i came to find out they had never actually disassembled a transmission, and they had no idea what caused the gears to grind. same thing with the TOB/input shaft bearing noise, they had no idea, all they wanted was my keys and credit card number...i give no credit to those guys...i can do 100% better work with improvised tools...

2006_RA

iTrader: (1)

Well this is true when the dealership is worthwhile. When however they shaft their employees as much as their customers, no one stays long enough to gather the expertise.

Mitsubishi seems to be lacking with transmissions though. We had to change the gearbox on my father's 86 Lancer in 92 and way under 160 000 km.

Then on a 95 Mirage automatic it started slipping between shifts.
Dealer said $5 000 for a new transmission. A friend with the same car actually got a full refund from the dealer on her car that had the same problem.

We found the diagnosis and the remedy in the service manual for the 86 Lancer.
Got a kit for $232 non genuine of course and fixed it ourselves.

As we were dismantling the transmission, my father kept saying that he had never done this before !!!!
Goodtimes, goodtimes

RacerX-Ralliart

iTrader: (3)

Agreed.. Only time I went to the dealer was for a fan control module and they were trying to give me the one that fails and not the superseded one and tried to tell me there is no superseded one so i just ordered from mitsubishiparts

RalliartN

iTrader: (1)

Am I the only one who notices that dedicated Subaru or Mitsu or VW mechanics know what is the matter almost immediately, based on all their experience? Just had drivability problems with my VW diesel, started lagging at high rpm, took it in, mechanic right away says MAF. They replace it, I drive away, its perfect. The Jetta again recently, I notice a new slight vibration. The VW mechanic drives it on the road, immediately says it's the rubber holding together the dual-mass flywheel (bizarre german stuff) so gotta replace or it eventually fails catastrophically. He breaks it open and yep thats the problem. The old Subie developed hard starting, the mechanic says he knows exactly what it is, adjusts some fuel pressure thing, and it behaves perfect. This is normal for me - getting ripped off by a dufus isn't. I spoke to a Peterborough Mitsu mechanic when they first got Evos in and he told me about their training courses for the complex mechanical and electronic bits.

Crans, you know that no mechanic can guarantee what is wrong inside a sealed box like a transmission until they open it to check. And no business can offer guaranteed warranty coverage until they examine the evidence - that is normal business practice. And they have to do the work - the world is full of shysters and liars and thieves - do not trust anyone outside your business. Ask police, insurance, lawyers, mechanics who negotiate with the public on a regular basis.

Maybe the key thing is to deal with the mechanic, not the manager jerk at the front desk - now those idiots I have a real issue with!

I won't change your mind and vice-versa, we'll still pick our own poison. It is an interesting discussion though

2006_RA

iTrader: (1)

VW and Subaru are more established in terms of time and volume so that they have had a chance to become experts. I doubt any dealer's main line is Mitsubishi, so it's unlikely that any mechanics get to be exclusive to them and build such knowledge or indeed even just work on them enough to get that proficiency.
I mean, I had to walk in to the store and tell them which TSB to apply to my car even though the TSB was from April 2006, my car was made in Sept 2006, and it was then 2011 and it still took 2 subsequent visits to get it right !!!
The previous 3 trips all yielded the same response, "We just cleared the CEL, since we didn't find anything wrong."

I have experienced a competent Mitsubishi mechanic, just not in Canada.

CrAnSwIcK

iTrader: (5)

i realise that they don't have x-ray vision, i merely wanted to know what was more commonly the cause for the issue, it's no secret that mitsubishi gearboxes are dodgy, it's been that way for decades, i just wanted to know what i was dealing with, and the odds it would be covered, i'll be damned if i'm the only one to ever bring an 8th gen Lancer to a dealership with a notchy 3rd gear...they wouldn't even give me straight answer. that and at Belleville Mitsubishi they also told me to my face that because i had a short ram intake and aftermarket muffler that they suspected abuse and/or street racing, and they likely would not honour the warranty...i wanted to punch the guy.

i've had horrible service in Cambridge, Barrie and Belleville, i have heard good things about Peterborough, but i've never been...3 out of 4 is not good in my books...

$MIVEC$

I have 2 friends who were mistu mechanics at a dealership and I can say that both Cranswick's and RalliartN's point are valid. There are mechanics and there are mechanics. A mechanic for a make should know troubleshooting and constant issues with certain models or parts. It's not the same when you take it to a certified mechanic than to a mitsubishi certified shop. The problem is the same with any profession or job, some people do it because they have to and don't care and most of the time don't have a clue apart from looking at a PC for part numbers and tech manuals.

If I ask one of those friends about a certain issue they will not vouch 100% that it is the problem but they are pretty sure about and through the hours of service the've had they would of know be pretty confident. But the "he's a car guy" factor also is important. You know how many PepBoy mechanics don't know squat?

A mechanic is like a doctor he needs to know the symptoms to know whats wrong but a hands on intervention is always needed to fix the problem :P

The problem we will always have is that we are car guys that know more about our car and even other cars than the people payed from mitsu to work on them sometimes. I have had my share of arguments at the service desk because of mechanics trying to outsmart a customer.



One time I got annoyed at the open door light that kept getting on and sent the car to the stealership under warranty. They took 4hr to check the problem and then said the light was working normal. The issue was the light was on when all doors were closed. I had checked the door sensors etc etc. They returned my car saying the issue was solved and when i was like 2 miles away the light turned on. The mechanic took the car to the hangar again and came back in 30mins. I always check the people doing work on the car for things like this and guess what....when I got home I checked the backseat were he was working on and after removing the side cushion of the backseat I saw he unplugged the sensor of the trunk which was activating the light presumably....really nice service isn't it? Didn't solve my problem...he just screwed with a mitsu customer.