According to a 2018 Statista report, there were 229,000 auto repair and management shops in the US in the fourth quarter of 2017. That’s a lot of auto shops.
Many of these shops are local though, which means you can always find one near you. Roughly 86 percent of these local repair shops specialize in general automotive repair, with the average cost of vehicle repair estimated at $356.04.
With so many of these shops, how can you find a good auto repair shop for your needs? Well, this article will show you how to find a good auto repair shop today.
Do Some Background Checking
Start by looking for local repair shops. Thanks to the search engines, you can find one that’s near you. Collect a list of about 5-10 of them and carry out some background check on them.
See if they’re credible, reliable and experienced at what needs fixing. This is important because different auto shops specialize in different things.
Some are good at car detailing and bodywork, others are great at paintless dent repair, while others eat transmissions and electrical stuff for breakfast. Find the right ones for your vehicle problems and see what they’re like.
Check References and Recommendations
While the easiest way to find a local repair shop is by doing a search on Google, the best way is by asking family, friends, and colleagues.
If that option isn’t available, go do a review search for the companies you’ve compiled. Yelp and Google reviews will often provide you with more than enough details.
If that’s not good enough, go to forums like City Data, check your city, and see if there are good recommendations. If there aren’t ask for one.
Local Repair Shops Location Matters
Credible local repair shops for your vehicles should be conveniently located. This is necessary for when you need to come into the shop to see how the repair is going or get called in by the auto expert.
Good auto repair shops shouldn’t be located far away from you. They should be easily accessible for everyone involved.
Should Have Certified Automotive Technicians
What is a local repair shop without certified automotive technicians? It’s a joke is what it is. An unapproved car technician tries out everything by guessing and eliminating possible issues.
A certified technician is uniquely trained and skilled to solve your car problems. You wouldn’t want a quack diagnosing you, would you? The same goes for your car.
An unlicensed vehicle repairer can fix one thing, but what are the odds they won’t damage a few other things in the process? You really don’t want to take this risk.
Licensed car technicians know how to diagnose vehicle problems and deploy cost-effective solutions. Unlicensed hands don’t know how, and even if they find a fix, they won’t do as good a job as the professional for a reasonable price.
What Next?
Just do a price comparison to see local repair shops that can provide the most value for a reasonable fee. This should help you get good deals.
And if the reason you’re looking for a good auto repair shop, is to fix small dents, you should check out this article by Colorado Hail Solutions.