Like anywhere (any country) if you dont know whats wrong with your car when you go to a garage, you’ll probably be rippedoff. But here’s a tale of a brazen & blatent swindle…

My (very) old Jeep wouldnt start one morning. The starter motor was broken or jammed. So the insurance arranged for a tow-truck to take it to a garage of my choice. A neighbour recommended Paco Sena, Eurotaller in town (chiclana).
The quote was ?1200 (includes ?500 for parts).

Luckily i got a neighbour (retired british car mechanic) to have a look see, and a chat with the garage.

We then went to a car-parts shop, bought a reconditioned starter motor (same brand) for ?170
We took this and my car to another garage, where they took apart the ring-gear box to check for any broken pieces (a daunting job!), installed the new starter motor, and discussed sensibly the (good) condition of my car.
Cost ?50

Paco Sena wanted an extra ?1000 for “replacement parts (reconditioned), buying specialized tools, a million hours of labour…”

So always get a second opinion.
(i could have gone for the ‘complaints book’, but i try to limit myself to making the world a better place to just once a week)

lol! Bj.. your story is sadly true of many of us that have been bitten (more than once!) with Mechanics (not always Sp either!)

My Name and Shame for Fuengirola is:

Universal on Camino de Coin- quoted for work that didn’t need doing ???? (Oddly other sources ‘recommend’ him. But maybe he thought I was a push over - not!)

Taller Juan Burgos/STP garage by Lidl on Mijas Road- Sold me a car that had been in a crash and no airbags working, has never accepted responsibility or contributed to the 2,000 plus Euros I have had to pay out since day one. (PS I was shocked at his behaviour, as he had been my trusted mechanic for 6 years!)

As you say BJ.. just one reclamacion a year is sufficient!

I’ve heard some similar stories about British mechanics on the Costa, I won’t name them as I haven’t any first hand experience. To my knowledge I haven’t been ripped off badly yet, but maybe I have and just don’t realise as I don’t often get a second opinion .... but after reading your story maybe I will.

Hi PG,
I am glad to say I have now had 2 good mechanics in a row after above bad experience - although one has since gone bust (very high over heads and difficult to get all the licences to operate legalls).  Will hold onto the one we have found like gold dust, as truly there are a lot of sharks out there.  They know you have to have your car serviced and pass an annual ITV, and that seems to be enough for bad behaviour! 

I did try to shop around, but I prefer to find one who works well and pay him the going rate. (Feel so lucky to have found current one as it was a shock to loose the other I metion here). 

Find a good one, keep going back to him, and hopefully he will not turn into a rat like the one who sold me a duff car!