What's Reasonable Time at Mechanic

[BrewKaiser]

Took my '73 E9 into the shop now over 4 weeks ago for items ranging from: clutch master cylinder replacement, carb adjust and tune, door alignment, replace headlights, and a few electrical issues. I have little concern over quality of work performed as the mechanic came recommended by Carl Nelson, however, it's been over 4 weeks now. Being new to the "classic car ownership experience" I'm wondering if this typical or if I'm warranted in pushing to wrap things up.

 

[eriknetherlands]

Well, some things you mention are normally bolt off, bolt on actions. And yes, they are mostly just a few hours of work. Though the shop may have a waiting list, i expect that you had that discussion prior to agreeing on the work, so I'll leave that out.

The "few electrical issues" you mention can be a can of worms however. Just a bad ground gives you all kinds of funny behavior, but it's generally fixed in under 2 minutes. If the (one of) the previous owner(s) was(we're) self taught electrical plumbers and there's a spaghetti accident behind your dash, then it's easy to spend 80 hours to sort it out, identify a problem and fix it.
Same could be for the carbs; perhaps it a set screw just needing half a rotation, or it could be worn parts inside that need replacing. (One original Zenith carb has >260 individual parts, and you have 2 of these buggers!)

Then sometimes with classic cars there is the challenge of finding a part if yours isn't salvageable.

I'd give them a polite call to ask about progress; you'll learn something, they'll know you're not falling asleep. Most shops appreciate curious and involved owners.

 

[BrewKaiser]

@eriknetherlands Thank you for your response.

Initial timeline was not locked down but was expected to be a "couple of weeks". In addition to addressing the few issues I noted since recent (3 mo) ownership, my goal was to acquaint myself and the E9 to the local (to me) mechanic that still works on these.

Since the owner is the only one working on my car, he is limited somewhat by what his other mechanics can do.

Yes, we suspect a grounding issue and I fully understand the rabbit hole this can turn into.

So far clutch cylinder and tune is complete. Turns out had a dead cylinder due to fouled plug caused by a very long wire from distributor to Ravelco anti-theft device.

I've been trying to call once a week for updates. The Customer Service person is not very communicative and the owner is generally unavailable.

I may pop over early next week.

 

[Ohmess]

A fair number of old school mechanics don't talk on the phone much. And they don't do email/internet at all. Think about the owner's situation. He's got to work on the more complex problems and run the business. Timing on your project could be impacted by your car, his workload on the more complex cars, complex problems his mechanics need help with, parts availability, personnel issues like needing to fire someone, managing cash flow so as to make payroll, etc., etc. If you began with a vague discussion of timing, seeking to press him for a deadline now may not help the relationship. My suggestion at this point is to concentrate on the communication issue, and not on the issue of how long the work takes. Indeed, you might consider asking him to call you from time to time so that you can avoid wasting the time of his customer service person.

 

[JMinPDX]

I don’t think that’s unusual. If it’s a shop that works on current daily driver models they may be working on your Classic as ”time allows”. Wonder how many of their techs are e9 familiar? I’ve learned not to say “I’m not in a hurry” when dropping a car off.
About ten years ago I took my my coupe to a NJ shop for suspension work (Including welding rear shock top mounts). Owner was a very knowledgeable and a great guy. They had the car for at least six weeks. It sat outside so much that my sisal floor mats were sun faded.
I visited on a weekly basis, but never put to much pressure. I always prefer visiting in person as opposed to calling.
Good Luck, it will be worth the wait.

 

[craterface]

This is fairly typical. I would advise that you ask what method of communication he would prefer. I always email my mechanic, so as not to disrupt his work flow. It's fair to ask for a short email update after the car has been there for four weeks.

 

[Drew Gregg]

Herman--All of the above advice is from experienced E9 owners. I would make sure that your coupe is not outside subject to rain & sun. That can cause a whole bunch of other problems not on your initial list.

 

[Breiti]

That would drive me crazy....
I did everything by myself.
The only way to get a reliable fix I can trust in.
I.m.o.

Breiti

 

[Arde]

I am a contrarian on this one. Time is the variable I am willing to relax, and ideally have a mechanic that owns his place, that enjoys working on classics as a background activity. I am fortunate to have that and the mechanic sends me picture updates with stuff he finds, we make joint decisions. Examples, he sent me a picture of the fuel pump gasket (not that old), we decided to replace and resurface things. We were texting on the tire choice topic, we decided to go for Michelin XAS and he sends me a beautiful picture with the tires installed. I tell him be careful the hub cap screws are not loose as they rattle and you have to remove the wheel to fix, he tells me he already noticed that... It is like being there, I am in no rush to get the car back because each day another detail is fixed. What does it take? Own extra cars so you do not miss a particular one...

 

[Breiti]

Those kind of mechanics are pretty rare.
Keep him cheerful...

Breiti

 

[sfdon]

I strongly advise you to treat your coupe as a journey and not a destination.

 

[Krzysztof]

I experienced mechanics needs a lot of time to concentrate on different topics.

From quality perspective the best mechanic I've been using was single-person shop with minimum number of paper work. The big disadvantage was that he has a looooong waiting list and he's work forces were very limited. But once he started my car all was coming good with the best quality. I was happy to support him with spare parts (having knowledge of course) and transportation. It was also great opportunity to have regular contact with him.

Mane "good" mechanics are expanding their business over time. Having different workers they do not have enough time (paper work etc) to teach and monitor worker's quality. Sometimes it is beginning of the end of good service shop.

All in all after several different mechanics I prefer to do all by myself (except very specific topics). Especially for my classic BMW as the knowledge of the young is so limited.

In regards to communication I found that the best us to visit mechanic from time to time in person.

Good luck with your repairs!

 

[BrewKaiser]

Appreciate all the feedback and perspectives. My hope in starting this thread was to set my ownership perspective relative to expectations and what's "standard". As a business owner myself I have a very high standard and low tolerance when it comes to customer service and communication. It takes very little effort to communicate and keep customers informed. @Arde experience is a good example.

You have all provided good suggestions on approach and perspective on what's higher priority: getting quality work done.

Fortunately, I have another fun car to occupy my time, but the E9 being the latest fun car in my garage I am eager to experience it.

As stated above, ensuring it is not being exposed to the elements is a concern, but one I feel current mechanic understands. I also know that the longer the vehicle sits at the shop with intermittent work performed the more fuzzy the accounting of actual time spent becomes.

@Arde what year and model Alfa is that? I have also been pining for a GT Sprint or GTV1750/2000 for years, but have been leery of ownership experience. There are few to none mechanics in my area capable of working on these and like with my E9 my current obligations leave me no time to undertake learning and performing repairs on these myself. My brother-in-law in Danville has worked on Alfas for years. It's a small community much like these older Bimmers.

 

[Arde]

Oh, my Alfa is a 1974 Lancia Fulvia. I test drove an Alfa stepnose and it did not do it for me... They are beautiful though.
Jay Mackro is Mr. Alfa here and can guide you better.

 

[deQuincey]

I am a contrarian on this one. Time is the variable I am willing to relax, and ideally have a mechanic that owns his place, that enjoys working on classics as a background activity. I am fortunate to have that and the mechanic sends me picture updates with stuff he finds, we make joint decisions. Examples, he sent me a picture of the fuel pump gasket (not that old), we decided to replace and resurface things. We were texting on the tire choice topic, we decided to go for Michelin XAS and he sends me a beautiful picture with the tires installed. I tell him be careful the hub cap screws are not loose as they rattle and you have to remove the wheel to fix, he tells me he already noticed that... It is like being there, I am in no rush to get the car back because each day another detail is fixed. What does it take? Own extra cars so you do not miss a particular one...

of course it can be seen that way, but my experience is that if you give more time to your mechanic, he will procastinate until the very last moment and he will do it finally in a rush
…it also applies if the mechanic is me ;-)

 

[Krzysztof]

We should take from our historical experience trying to follow the rule:

"the master's eye makes the horse fat" (waiting for Arde's response to that one )

I just have too many experiences with procrastination (Others or mine) with or without car's domain

 

[Mike Goble]

One of the realities of being your own mechanic - you know exactly who is procrastinating on getting the job done.

 

[sfdon]

Blame goes where it belongs- the wife and the honey do list.

 

[kentvonseverin]

Blame goes where it belongs- the wife and the honey do list.

Don, just finish the car for Mr. Kaiser...

 

[kentvonseverin]

@eriknetherlands Thank you for your response.

Initial timeline was not locked down but was expected to be a "couple of weeks". In addition to addressing the few issues I noted since recent (3 mo) ownership, my goal was to acquaint myself and the E9 to the local (to me) mechanic that still works on these.

Since the owner is the only one working on my car, he is limited somewhat by what his other mechanics can do.

Yes, we suspect a grounding issue and I fully understand the rabbit hole this can turn into.

So far clutch cylinder and tune is complete. Turns out had a dead cylinder due to fouled plug caused by a very long wire from distributor to Ravelco anti-theft device.

I've been trying to call once a week for updates. The Customer Service person is not very communicative and the owner is generally unavailable.

I may pop over early next week.

Dropping in to check on the progress is probably your best course of action.