Taking one's car in for service in these Covid Times

[Mr. Tightwad]

I can’t recall ever seeing a mobile tire mounting machine. They took the old tires off your vehicle at your house, and mounted new ones?

No mobile tire mounting machine. He used a jack. Two worn tires and a nail was in another. All done at my house, like the other repairs.

No germy dealership involved.

 

[ProspectiveBum]

No mobile tire mounting machine. He used a jack. Two worn tires and a nail was in another. All done at my house, like the other repairs.

No germy dealership involved.

Sorry, I still don’t understand. How did he remove the old tires from the rims, install the new ones and balance them at your house?

 

[Mr. Tightwad]

Sorry, I still don’t understand. How did he remove the old tires from the rims, install the new ones and balance them at your house?

I didn't watch him much. Can't give you a good answer. He drove the Tesla van over to my place, I glanced inside, it had plenty of gizmo's in it. 2 hours later 2 new tires and one that I believe was patched (is that the correct term?).

 

[stephenson]

Shok,

Letter to the owner if the dealership, copy to the manufacturer, local health department.

Then, contact the local press - calmly, and with facts - photos would have been good.

 

[Zathras]

Sorry, I still don’t understand. How did he remove the old tires from the rims, install the new ones and balance them at your house?

Typically they replace the wheel + tire if replacement is needed.

 

[ProspectiveBum]

Typically they replace the wheel + tire if replacement is needed.

OK, that makes sense. A little surprising from a cost perspective, and seems like there’d be potential issues if the replacement wheels had curb rash, etc. Thanks for the clarification.

As Mr. Tightwad noted, fewer worries about picking up somebody else’s germs with this arrangement.

 

[street]

When I have work needed on any of my outfits I take them one of two guys that work on stuff from their home/shop. Some call them "under the shade tree mechanics". I have more of a personal satisfaction for the work they do because they know me and the work is done right.

Going to a place like that there is no office or crowds to deal with, so I feel very using any guidelines.

 

[Bamaman]

I worked in the automotive field for 24 years, and my family still owns a big city luxury car dealership. They are taking every precaution to minimize any COROVID problems, and are fully attuned to the customers' needs. And they offer all of the maximum distancing--delivering cars to customers' homes, etc.

I remain a very frugal guy, and all maintenance on all of my 5 cars and 2 boats are done by me. I cannot remember when my last visit was to a car dealership service department except for a recall repair in the last 10 years.

Sometimes, my most peaceful place is lying under a car watching the oil drain out. And I actually enjoyed changing oil last week on 3 cars.

 

[HadEnuff]

just took mine in today. Western NY, Upstate. I'm a bit of a phobe myself. Just came off of a 14 day quarantine after finding I'd played golf with a guy who later tested positive. He got sick, I did not. I tested negative.

Anyway, couldn't have been happier. Everyone wore masks, kept their distances, the waiting room was spacious enough so we all had plenty of room to distance. It was a Toyota dealership.

I was so pleased I let them ding me for $150 for a new battery. Blow that dough!

 

[audreyh1]

Recently took DF’s truck for a recall service. It was as I expected- minimal interaction. The service agents wore masks and had lots of space around their desks. Was brief to drop it off.We didn’t wait but DH followed in our care so we ran errands. They called me when it was done. Quick pick up. Was quite pleased.

 

[Car-Guy]

I know everyone can't (or won't) service their cars themselves but in my case I do all my own service/repairs/etc...So no CV19 worries at home in my own shop... I won't even take my vehicles in for warranty work "unless" it's a pretty expensive repair. (And that hasn't happened in many, many years) Why? It's very inconvenient for me and they usually break at least one thing for everything they fix. I don't need that kind of help. Probably helps that I have all the tools and enjoy working on cars.

 

[stepford]

I need to bring DW's car in for service next week. Even before COVID the process at this shop was to drop off the car in the shop parking lot, leave the keys at the front desk, then leave the car (either using a 2nd car or bike to get home). Upon completion the car will be left in the parking lot with the keys in it. Minimal contact.

The only changes I'll be making will be to be masked and gloved when driving the car home. Take a shower and launder my clothes immediately after and leave the car windows open to disinfect and air it out for a couple of days before use. I think that should be safe enough.

 

[audreyh1]

I didn’t worry about the old truck being sanitized. I was wearing some PPE anyway. I noticed that they put a seat cover on before driving the truck away. When I picked it up it was in the front of the line with the windows down - that was probably smart. I take some precautions about surfaces, but I feel like fomites are pretty low risk. It’s the shared air and being close to other humans, particularly talking or unmasked, that concerns me. Brief encounters are the safest.