Since posting the Engine Diagnostic Special for $49.95 we’ve  had several people ask why they should pay $49.95 to have their vehicle diagnosed at Thompson Buick GMC Cadillac when there are several places around town that will hook up a scanner to their car for no charge.  That’s a great question.  

If you go to a parts store or oil change kiosk in the parking lot of a mall or mega-mart you may indeed get your vehicle hooked up to a scanner for no initial charge.  The first problems with this are that the scanner is not a GM scanner that is regularly updated and the employee/greeter does not receive ongoing updated training from GM.  Our technicians are held to a much higher standard and have much higher abilities than any employee at a parts store or oil/brake pad changing establishment.  The employees at these establishments may have a name tag and a uniform, but have they had the highly technical training to correctly diagnose your vehicle?  Do they even have the right tools?  What happens if they do figure out how to fix the problem, then you are on a trip and it happens again?  Can you just pull into any parts store or oil change kiosk and have it repaired under warranty?  If it is fixed here you can go to any GM dealership nationwide and the warranty will be honored.  There is nothing wrong with the employees of these small establishments, they just lack the expertise and equipment to do the job properly and normally end up costing more than a dealership anyway.  Can you and your family afford to have them learn their trade on your vehicle?

Over and over we see customers come in who saw a sign at a tire store or inspection bay that proclaimed they could diagnose the vehicle for free.  The customers then pay hundreds of dollars for unneeded or improperly performed repairs and end up coming here anyway.  You and your family rely on your vehicle to get you where you need to go safely and reliably, the question is not “can you afford to go to a dealership?” , the real question is “how can you afford not to go to a dealership?”.  Feel free to contact us with any further questions.

Thank you,

Team Thompson