LOL
I talk to people all the time.
Even people that can't fix anything more complicated than a spoon generally understand what you're telling them, if you have some patience with them, and try to explain things clearly and concicely.(sp)
SHOWING people what's going on with their car is often THE best way to put them in a place where they are informed, and realise that they are not being ripped off.
ANYTIME an owner wants to see what's going on, we show them.
We field LOTS of phone calls, some simple as can be, some much more complicated.
We generally try out best NOT to be the bad guys.
I look at it like I was the customer, would I try to sell (insert repair or maintenance here) to myself? What are the priorites? Can I overlap some preventative maintenance with a repair?
Anyone that's worked on cars for a living KNOWS the vast disparity in the cars that come into a shop.
One owner will know some things about cars, another owner WILL NOT. One owner will describe what the problem is extremely well, others have no idea wha's wrong, only that something IS.
If the owner can't describe it, that's where a good service advisor can come into play by asking the right questions.
If I, as the tech, still don't know what I'm looking (or listening) for, I can give the advisor more questions, or simply have the call put through to me.
Some cars are completely neglected piles of junk, other are well maintained and repaired. Some of this is directly related to the service they get.
I can't tell you how many times I get cars that have only been to chain store lube shops, that are in need of serious repairs, and the owner doesn't believe me, until I show them, because (insert lube shop here) said the car was fine.
But back to the communication, if you can describe the problem in a decent manner, it's almost always easier to fix it.
