Taking Your Car to the Dealership vs Independent Shop

The idea of taking your car to its manufacturer dealerships and getting it serviced there might sound tempting, however, it’s not always as good as you might imagine because you can almost always find better service at an independent shop, “why is that?’ you might ask. We’ll touch on a couple of pros and cons of working with a dealership vs an independent shop.
Location
A lot of the times, a dealer is located physically far from you. This makes it super inconvenient for our customers that live more than an hour out from the dealer. Despite the dealer offering a loaner, sometimes it’s just not physically possible to travel to a dealership, we know customers that are hours out from dealerships, and it’s not fun, trust us.
Price and Convenience
Dealerships charge significantly more than independent repair shops, that’s a fact, so if you’re out of warranty, head on over to your independent shop. A lot of the time a newer car that’s covered by warranty we’d advise you take it to the dealer to save money.
Dealerships offer OEM parts only (original equipment) which are known for their part quality. What’s interesting is that you can still find aftermarket parts at independent shops that meet all the standards required for your specific vehicle and for prices that are a lot cheaper with the same quality as the OEM parts, so with independent repair shops, you get the freedom of choosing whether you want OEM parts or aftermarket parts which is a lot more convenient. Most independent shops know which aftermarket parts to use, and you can sometimes find better quality aftermarket parts.
Personal relationships
We can all agree that when taking your car to the vehicle to dealerships you’re probably not going to get the chance to interact with the mechanic and talk with them which kind of makes you feel like you’re just a number, while at independent shops you can have direct communication with your mechanic and even build relationships that will allow you to feel comfortable leaving your vehicle with them. Over time when the mechanics get familiar with your vehicle they can start to anticipate issues or problems down the road. Independent shops rely on repeat business and word of mouth to keep the stream of customers going so they will continue provide you with high-quality services that will have you coming back for more when needed in the future.
Keep in mind that the points above don’t represent every dealership and independent shop, as sometimes you can come across independent repair shops with services that are not as good as the dealerships, which is why you need to look carefully for shops that are known for their honest work and experience. If you’re near the Kaukauna, Wisconsin area then you’re lucky because Rob’s Imports Repair is here to service you. We’re family-owned and operated, and throughout the years our shop has provided the local community with top quality services with the goal of meeting all customer needs.