The answer is through someone you trust. (Can you trust anyone in the U.S.? Sure.)
If you ever owed an old car, you know how important it is to know a good garage that can fix your car at a reasonable cost. Yes, many places (dealers and garages alike) will try to rip you off, especially when you are a woman. (Woman equals “stupid” when it comes to cars, at least some dealers and repair shops think so.)
I want a new car when I can afford it, even if it means car loan. However, my car is only six years old, and it never gave me any trouble until two months ago when the engine light came on. I had six years of break from car troubles, so I panicked. I was on my way to my first wine-tasting party, with cocktail shrimp in a cooler that I promised the hostess. I ended up going home, with the shrimp, because the manual says stop driving the car when the engine light comes up.
Since I didn’t want my VW dealer to rip me off, I asked a friend to search for solutions online. Yes, there was an easy one. I can reset the computer system of the car by detaching the positive end of the car battery for a few minutes and reattaching it. It worked. However, the light would come back once every 2-3 weeks, which was rather annoy. After the fourth time, I decided to give my dealer a chance. Big mistake!
The dealer made me sign this and that, which made me nervous already. Then, it called me 3-4 hours later to tell me the thermostat was stuck open and I needed a new temperature sensor… Well, what choice do I have but to have these fixed. There went $600! I knew it shouldn’t take three hours to change a thermostat and a sensor, unless these people are really incompetent or greedy.
What made me feel really uneasy was the dealer tried to explain to me that the engine light can mean other things… So, I felt that they were not sure they nailed the problem, and I was expecting to see the light on in a few months. How wrong I was, the light came back in just two days!
I felt I was trapped in a black hole, because I don’t have a choice but to ask the dealer to fix whatever they claim to be the cause. I wanted to sell the car, but I don’t want some poor guy to buy the car and call me in a few days to tell me how dishonest I was. So, I set up another appointment with the dealer, 7 am on Monday.
Thank goodness the dealer does not open on Saturdays. Thinking another $600 will be down the toilet, I started to look for other solutions. I went online to look for “Wayne’s auto electric,” an auto repair shop recommended to me by a friend at work when I was driving my old Saturn. I liked the owner and the people at that shop, for they were good, efficient, and reasonably priced. I looked for them before I went to the dealer, but couldn’t find them, thinking they must no longer be in business. I was wrong. They just moved, during the six years I enjoyed a trouble-free new Golf. I was told that they don’t fix VW. I was very disappointed, but I was quick: I asked for recommendation. They told me to look for “Volx Germen.” Luckily, I found the shop without trouble, though it has changed its name to “Wrench Werks.”
A young lady answered the phone, and said I could take the car in right away. What a blessing! I could tell I came to the right place, because I felt comfortable around these people. I told them what happened, and they told me that they would try to identify the problem first. No paper to sign. I was not afraid to be ripped off. I think it is because they sound very confident and because it was referred to me by a garage I trust.
It turned out to be a temperature sensor. I don’t know how many temperature sensors a car has, because I was supposed to have gotten a new one from the dealer three days ago! (Ok, a little online research taught me something about a car' temperature sensors. See the addition below.) In any case, I authorized the repair, and the cost was less than $200! That should have been the price the dealer charged me, plus the thermostat for $40. So, I got ripped off by the dealer for at least $300! Well, the dealer will never see me again, but I will call to cancel my Monday morning appointment and to tell them that they are too greedy!
Note on temperature sensors:
"An electric fan can be either by itself (usually front-wheel drive) or auxiliary (used with a mechanical fan). Both types are controlled via a temperature sensor - in the radiator or upper radiator hose or on the thermostat or water pump housing. This sensor is usually an on/off type switch with a fixed temperature setting. (Some vehicles may have 2-3 settings for multi-speed fans.) This sensor is commonly called an "auxiliary fan switch".
Other common temperature sensors are: 1) gauge sender (variable output); 2) warning light sender (on/off type); 3) lambda and/or fuel injection sensor(s) (variable to control fuel injection settings); 4) thermo-time switch (cold start valve control). Your Volkswagen may have other sensors as well.
Temperature control is critical to both performance and emission control. Unfortunately, this system is the most difficult to troubleshoot without proper equipment and diagrams. It's even more difficult with computers that adjust timing, idle speed, vacuum and fuel delivery automatically to make up for potentially faulty temperature sensor signals.
Maintenance of your cooling system sensors is virtually impossible since there's nothing really to "maintain". Keeping them clean both internally (coolant replacement) and externally (engine cleaning) is the best way to ensure trouble-free driving. Checking and replacing all parts at the factory-recommended time or mileage limits helps as well."
