Have you ever been in a situation in which a customer
comes to you for a second opinion? That's always a tricky thing, isn't
it? Let me tell you, it gets even more uncomfortable when you disagree
with the initial repair shop's recommendations.
Case in point: I received
a call from one of our regular customers regarding her 1997 Honda Accord
with approximately 76,000 miles. The customer called me for a second
opinion regarding some work that was just recommended by another repair
facility.
At first I thought it was
strange that this "regular" customer would have gone service shopping
somewhere else. It turns out she had received a recall notice from Honda:
the famous "Emission Warranty Extension" for certain '95 to '97
Hondas (Honda TSB# 98-081). This recall has been active for several years
now as Honda continues a staggered mailing until 2006. This recall was the
first one to really upset the aftermarket repair shops. The U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) found out that Honda had
desensitized the OBD II misfire monitor detection in its vehicles. As a "penalty," EPA decided that Honda should extend the Emission Parts
Warranty up to 14-years/150,000-miles. In addition, cars between 75,000
and 150,000 miles get some "free" maintenance services from the
dealership in the form of a new distributor cap, rotor, ignition wires,
spark plugs and an oil and filter service.
It was the free services
that had upset the aftermarket repair industry because it took this
three-year-old group of vehicles out of the service arena. For those that
perform a lot of import service, I'm sure it caused a significant
reduction in revenue. At that time, several aftermarket repair industry
writers wrote some potent articles on the subject - specifically, on
EPA's penalty that forces customers to the dealership network for the
free maintenance services. Obviously, the preferred penalty would have
simply been a PCM reprogram or replacement. I'm still not sure why that
didn't happen.
Anyway, the dealership had
found some additional non-recall items that required attention. My
customer had declined this because we normally perform her service work. I
wasn't in the shop that Saturday, but my brother Glenn took a lot of
pictures of the Honda with the shop's digital camera.
The dealer had recommended
that the customer replace the oil pan gasket for leakage and two outer C/V
boots. Now, honestly, I cannot blame their technician for "looking"
for added work. this recall labor operation on a 1997 Accord only pays 0.8
hour; it's not exactly a money-maker. However, let this be a lesson for
us all to remember: Make certain that any items your technicians recommend
are truly needed. You never know when another shop is going to be in a
position to check your recommendations. Sure, it can be argued that not
all technicians will agree as to exactly when to recommend wiper blades or
exactly what tread measurement to replace tires. Let's face it, a lot of
us go "by the eye" on certain things.
This, however, was a
clear-cut case. In our professional opinion, these items did not yet
require replacement. Could this be a case of legitimate technician/service
writer error or was it someone looking for some extra work? As you can see
in the photos, there was only a trace amount of oil seepage from the
gasket, and the C/V boots were fine.
We all dislike being in
the "second opinion" position, knowing that we might have to disagree
with the first service provider. OK, you don't want to point fingers,
but what should you really do? What should you tell the customer? Do you
agree with the first opinion and recommend the repairs to save face for
the other shop? I don't think so.
You can be nice about it though. Focus on the positive factors in the situation with your customers. Explain that it was probably an error in the writing of the repair order, then change the subject and send your customer on their way.
