Austin, TX

[monkey catcher]

I am moving from the Los Angeles area to Austin in the next few months. Anyone know of a good mechanic down there?

[OkieRover]

No I don't.

But you will either love or hate Austin.
You'll love or hate it because other than the traffic it ain't nothing like Kalifornia.

[RoverChic]

Originally Posted by monkey catcher

I am moving from the Los Angeles area to Austin in the next few months. Anyone know of a good mechanic down there?

Dealership is LR Austin ask for Ken Parker. AMAZING! Also ask these guys here:

www.texasrovers.com They can help you out!

I love Austin! So fun Sixth Street is the place to be! Live Music is great!

[Muddy Oval]

I went to college there- loved it. I lived near 9th and Rio Grande so I could walk to work at the clubs on 6th street and stagger home in the wee hours of the AM. Ahhh... the memories, and lack thereof.

[monkey catcher]

Originally Posted by OkieRover

But you will either love or hate Austin.
You'll love or hate it because other than the traffic it ain't nothing like Kalifornia.

Just got back from a visit there, and am definitely in the love camp. Looking the Hyde Park part of town for a house. Hard to find a place with a garage large enough.

Thanks for the tips on TexasRovers.

[wade]

I live just outside of Austin and even though I like the people at LR there, I'd rate mechanic abilities on a scale of 1 - 10 at about a 5. They seem to be honest with me, but don't do a very thorough job.

Examplesjust a few..I have more going back to when the truck was new.)

At 95K I took my truck to LR in for a check up and they changed the oil, decarboned, changed tranny fluid, etc., but neglected to say anything about leaking oil exchanger hoses or leaking power steering fluid. I ended up changing the hoses myself.

I later had another leak and my check engine light was on. They changed the head gaskets and supposedly changed the oil pan gasket. The next few days, it was leaking worse than ever. Oil sender unit..They missed it the first time and when I looked underneath, it appeared the oil pan gasket had not been changed.

I had changed the indicator on the transmission knob and broke a clip. I didn't have one, so I soldered it. LR called and said I had a brake sensor out and so the truck was stuck in neutral. I told them to check the clip. They said it needed the brake sensor anyway since the brake lights were staying on, so we did that. (they replaced the clip)

On the check engine light, they said it was the MAF sensor. I bought a used one and put it in and the check engine light came back on. It ended up being a dirty battery terminal and lead to the fuse box, which I found and took care of.

Neither of my condenser cooling fans were working at the time, and they didn't notice. I fixed that also.

Basically, they seem to be honest, but I don't have lots of confidence in their diagnostic ability or attention to detail at this point. They may be just be too busy. They also seem to do all they can to make things right. It may just depend on which tech you get.

Would I go back...Yes, but I question what they tell me at this point and try to make sure that they are willing to pay the price if they are wrong...

[Trigger]

If you don't want to do the dealership route you can always go to Motorcars Ltd. They're a decent shop from what I've heard. I honestly can't say as I do all my own maintanence and the 90's not been in the shop. Also, they sponsor events of Texas Rovers so it's good to patronize our sponsors.
When you get in town make sure you look up Texas Rovers. We hold monthly meetings and talk Rovers.

[monkey catcher]

It sounds like when I get there, I will look up Trigger and Wade to help me. I like the idea of doing all my own maintenance, but just don't have the room in LA. Looking forward to the move. I will just miss the worst of Summer. Thanks.