Pulling a Code in California
For those of you not familiar with the concept of "pulling a code" it involves hooking up a little hand-held computer to your car and pushing one button and waiting about 2 milliseconds. The code pops up and tells you what is wrong with your car.
Anywhere in the universe, you can get this done for free at your local Checker or Autozone. Everywhere in the Universe except the backwards state of California. Apparently car computer codes are a highly guarded secret out here. This was my experience.
Checker (Called Krager's out here): Said they would charge me $40 to pull the code. The guy explained that he had to pay himself back for the $1000 machine he bought to pull codes. I asked him why they charge in California and not in the rest of the country and he said "Well, they probably just want you to buy an air sensor or something." Ya, I thought that was the point. If it's my air sensor that is messed up, I want me to buy one, too. It's an auto parts store ... ?
Firestone: $40 "pull the code fee" + $90 diagnostic fee. I didn't believe the girl at the desk and explained once again that I just needed the code pulled, nothing else. Just hook up to my ODBII port (it's not even covered) and push the little button on the sensor. She was sure though, yes, that process would cost me $130 for some reason.
Autozone: Autozone charges you $160 to "borrow" the ODBII sensor from their store to take into their parking lot. Then after they pull the code, they will refund your money back, thus tying up $160 on your credit card for several days. I asked if I could just leave my ID, or keys, or phone and explained I was traveling and gave her the sob story. She relented and said I could use the code reader, then informed me they didn't have one. Sweet, thanks.
What's worse is that if you want to call around and ask if various places will pull a code for you, you'll just get a bunch of people who speak spanish or indian or french or something. Nobody around here even speaks enough english to tell you if they can pull a code.
So, in conclusion California sucks.
It's too bad you had a bad
It's too bad you had a bad experience with car places in California. I guess they just charge what they can get away with. You know, the whole economics thing. They'll charge what people will pay, and they don't really care if you think it's too expensive.
I have to disagree about California sucking...that's where I'm from, and despite some crappy things about the state (like the auto stores), there are good things too. I guess if you only have a bad experience there, though, you tend to lump the whole state in one group of suckiness. There's a lot more to the state than crappy auto stores. Like the beach...it makes it all worth it. :) Hope your car is better.
It's too bad you had a bad
It's too bad you had a bad experience with car places in California. I guess they just charge what they can get away with. You know, the whole economics thing. They'll charge what people will pay, and they don't really care if you think it's too expensive.
I have to disagree about California sucking...that's where I'm from, and despite some crappy things about the state (like the auto stores), there are good things too. I guess if you only have a bad experience there, though, you tend to lump the whole state in one group of suckiness. There's a lot more to the state than crappy auto stores. Like the beach...it makes it all worth it. :) Hope your car is better.
go to harbor freight, buy
go to harbor freight, buy this. use it in the parking lot. return it.
guess what? washington
guess what?
washington sucks too then.
except for the nice guy at the garage place down the street who took pity on me and didn't charge me anything only to tell me nothing was wrong with my car and that the weird sound that it was making was, "interesting".
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