Reputable or decent car A/C mechanic in Santiago?

vmhatup

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Aug 18, 2009
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Can anyone recommend a good car mechanic that deals with air conditioning in Santiago?

Thanks.
 

Redscot

Member
Dec 10, 2004
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Can anyone recommend a good car mechanic that deals with air conditioning in Santiago?

Thanks.

Los Mellos, are located in an alley (sounds clandestine) near the beginning of Padre las Casas off Estrella Sadhala. AC is their specialty and they have been good to me and many others I know. If you go to them tell them Wilson, el Americano con el Hilux Azul, sent you.
 

Hillbilly

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Jan 1, 2002
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Good call. Well known.
Another option is over across the avenue from the Hospital. A tiny side street that runs from the little park to the street that crosses to the high school. I can show you on a map...You go to the right at the Vet's office, stay to the right and take the first right. Easy once you are located properly.

Mellos are fine, too. Either one.

And I just recalled one trained in the US. On Sabana Larga, before you reach the Liceo, on the North side of 27 de Febrero. Right side after the Optician Place...

HB
 

beeza

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Nov 2, 2006
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Los Mellos, are located in an alley (sounds clandestine) near the beginning of Padre las Casas off Estrella Sadhala. AC is their specialty and they have been good to me and many others I know. If you go to them tell them Wilson, el Americano con el Hilux Azul, sent you.

What a coincidence! There is an auto A/C outfit in Cabarete called Mello too. (Mello incidentally means twin in Spanish) The twin brothers in Cabarete are excellent. They can rebuild an A/C compressor with their eyes closed. They operate out of a 40ft container near the Esso station.
 

sayanora

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Feb 22, 2012
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What a coincidence! There is an auto A/C outfit in Cabarete called Mello too. (Mello incidentally means twin in Spanish) The twin brothers in Cabarete are excellent. They can rebuild an A/C compressor with their eyes closed. They operate out of a 40ft container near the Esso station.


The misinformation in this one is astounding..
 

pelaut

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Aug 5, 2007
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www.ThornlessPath.com
Can anyone recommend a good car mechanic that deals with air conditioning in Santiago?

Here's one more curbside guy. Drive from Bartelm? Col?n to 27 Febrero ton German Soriano.
At the end of Soriano, turn left onto Emilio Ginebra, then right onto a short street with no name.
Curbside guy on the left in the middle of the block is quick and sure. Operates out of his house.

In decades trying I haven't found a reliable storefront A/C outfit, but lots of good shade tree men.
Good luck.
 

sayanora

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Feb 22, 2012
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What a coincidence! There is an auto A/C outfit in Cabarete called Mello too. (Mello incidentally means twin in Spanish) The twin brothers in Cabarete are excellent. They can rebuild an A/C compressor with their eyes closed. They operate out of a 40ft container near the Esso station.

I'm entertaining this because a few people asked why I said this post was purely misinformation.. Mello does not mean twin in any form of Spanish I've spoken, it would be gemelo, or mellizo. The brothers that work at Aire Condicionados "El Mello" are not twins, but brothers that are 10 years apart.. the older one is called "El Mello" which is an apodo or nickname.

These guys cannot rebuild air compressors because they told a friend of mine his air compressor was shot and he'd have to buy a new one to have air conditioning in his 2004 Toyota Corolla.. The guys gave a quote of 11k pesos with the new compressor and all the new fluids.. I told the guys they were out of their minds with a few choice words and told my buddy we'd drive to La Vega to have my mechanic take a look at it..

End of story : It cost my friend 400 pesos for 2 cans of freon and resealing a gasket that was incoming to the air compressor I guess.. He says his air conditioner is as good as new now for under 5% of the price he was quoted.. I'm starting to see all these places in the tourist areas are out to get people, and now I need to make sure I drive back to the central to have anything done properly and fairly.. I'm starting to see why some of the tourists might be jaded with some of the experiences they may have to endure.
 

beeza

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Nov 2, 2006
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I'm entertaining this because a few people asked why I said this post was purely misinformation.. Mello does not mean twin in any form of Spanish I've spoken, it would be gemelo, or mellizo. The brothers that work at Aire Condicionados "El Mello" are not twins, but brothers that are 10 years apart.. the older one is called "El Mello" which is an apodo or nickname.

These guys cannot rebuild air compressors because they told a friend of mine his air compressor was shot and he'd have to buy a new one to have air conditioning in his 2004 Toyota Corolla.. The guys gave a quote of 11k pesos with the new compressor and all the new fluids.. I told the guys they were out of their minds with a few choice words and told my buddy we'd drive to La Vega to have my mechanic take a look at it..

End of story : It cost my friend 400 pesos for 2 cans of freon and resealing a gasket that was incoming to the air compressor I guess.. He says his air conditioner is as good as new now for under 5% of the price he was quoted.. I'm starting to see all these places in the tourist areas are out to get people, and now I need to make sure I drive back to the central to have anything done properly and fairly.. I'm starting to see why some of the tourists might be jaded with some of the experiences they may have to endure.

I'm so pleased I was able to entertain you.

Although let me please clear up a few things. As a father of twins with a Dominican wife, don't you think I would know what Dominicans call twins?

Mello is a twin. In fact he has an identical twin, so really they are gemelos, but they call themselves mellos. The only way I can tell them apart is one of them has a chipped front tooth.

As for rebuilding your friends compressor, there is only so much one can do if it is damaged beyond repair. For instance if the cylinder walls are scratched or the pistons are broken, no you cannot recondition it, you would have to replace it. However an A/C compressor is a very complex machine and they are able to rectify the most common cause of failure which are leaking seals, broken flapper valves or a burnt out clutch coil.

I have found them to be straight up guys and I wouldn't endorse them if I didn't think they were worthy of it.

I would hardly call that misinformation and I resent your comment.
 

sayanora

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Feb 22, 2012
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I'm so pleased I was able to entertain you.

Although let me please clear up a few things. As a father of twins with a Dominican wife, don't you think I would know what Dominicans call twins?

Mello is a twin. In fact he has an identical twin, so really they are gemelos, but they call themselves mellos. The only way I can tell them apart is one of them has a chipped front tooth.

As for rebuilding your friends compressor, there is only so much one can do if it is damaged beyond repair. For instance if the cylinder walls are scratched or the pistons are broken, no you cannot recondition it, you would have to replace it. However an A/C compressor is a very complex machine and they are able to rectify the most common cause of failure which are leaking seals, broken flapper valves or a burnt out clutch coil.

I have found them to be straight up guys and I wouldn't endorse them if I didn't think they were worthy of it.

I would hardly call that misinformation and I resent your comment.

I apologize if I offended you, apparently we've had very different experiences and maybe we can at least agree they can be inconsistent with findings.. Still never heard the term Mello referring to twins tho, this would be pronounced May-Yo in spanish btw, not mellow, which would be "gemelo" shortened.
 

Castle

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Sep 1, 2012
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I apologize if I offended you, apparently we've had very different experiences and maybe we can at least agree they can be inconsistent with findings.. Still never heard the term Mello referring to twins tho, this would be pronounced May-Yo in spanish btw, not mellow, which would be "gemelo" shortened.

Yeah, the term Mello is used for twin. But it not a short of geMELO, but a short for MELLizo, which also means twin.
 

renec

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Sep 14, 2012
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I was there yesterday and the business card says Nino, I spoke to a guy named Gabriel, it's at the end of the alley on the left, is this the same place you recommend?
 

Redscot

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Dec 10, 2004
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I was there yesterday and the business card says Nino, I spoke to a guy named Gabriel, it's at the end of the alley on the left, is this the same place you recommend?

Yes, that is the right place. I hope things worked out.