Originally posted by rams78110
Well since my actual individual model search is turning up exactly dick, what' do you think about a 2010-2012 Ford Escape or a 2009 Tiguan?
I'd avoid Ford, they are just too much hit and miss. They make cool cars, but there have been issues with certain transmissions in relatively newer models in recent years. I think the Ford Escape was one of the cars with a shitty tranny. You'd be better off with a Hyundai SUV than an escape. If you ever get FORD avoid the ecoboost engines or you'll be sorry. Ford does make some reliable vehicles, but they are probably not the type of car that you are looking for.
The Tiguan? Well... German cars I would just avoid altogether if you're looking for a cheap way to get to point A to B. I've never worked on the Tiguan, but I know that Volkswagens are actually becoming fairly sophisticated. It may be a little hard to find somebody that works on these aside from the dealership or a specialized independent repair shops. Volkswagens (and most german cars) have a lot of proprietary fasteners that make working on them expensive. Many independent shops in my area won't even touch newer Volkswagens, Audi's, Mercedes, or BMW's. There are some that do though, but if you live in a small area I would check what is available. Usually parts alone are outrageously expensive as well.
The dealership isn't always the best option either, unless you have warranty or just go in for an oil change. There are a lot of hacks in the dealership and they encourage upselling. The service manager will yell at you if you don't upsell, which includes recommending services that you don't need, replacing "broken" parts that aren't broken, etc.
Us Technicians are paid on a scale called flat rate as well. Flate Rate means that we're paid by the job, NOT by the hour. We're given a base hourly rate, and the specific job that needs to be done has a time allotted by the manufacturer. Say your timing belt has a time that says 7 hours, and you replace it in three, you still get paid in 7 hours. Conversely, if the timing belt takes 12 hours you are still paid for 7. That means if the shop is not busy, and there are not many cars coming in, YOU are not getting paid a cent. There are some days that go by that you spend 10 hours in the shop, and only get paid 3 hours due to the lack of traffic. Of course this means those in the shop are getting desperate, so this is when you're diagnosed with BS.
At an independent shop, usually you find more honest individuals from my opinion. The dealership encourages, and penalizes you for not trying to include BS that is not needed. They usually hire more help than is needed, and usually give the best paying, easiest jobs or "gravy work" to the techs that are least paid. This environment leads to dishonesty when it comes to the vehicle. The service writers that you talk to won't know better either, they just take you on your word, though service writers can also be afraid to sell you things that are needed because they're paid on commision and will be fired if they get bad marks on a customer survey.
