Fixxin my car in the DR

zoomzx11

Gold
Jan 21, 2006
8,367
842
113
:DAbout a week ago my new (used) car suffered air conditiong failure. In this hot climate I need to have good ac in my car. Off I went to the local Dominican shop who fix everything automotive. After sprinkling soapy water around the engine for a few minutes the verdict came in. AC evaporator core is leaking. This is one of the larger and more labor intensive repairs. Estimate was $425US. Disappointed but suspicious I took her to another Dominican fix anything automotive and had a repeat perfomance with the soapy water but this time it was $375 US. Luckily I waited a few days which gave me a chance to complain to everyone about my bad luck. In that time I came across a DR1 poster who happened to mention that a frequent poster on DR1"the Hun" had a repair shop in Santiago. On the off chance I emailed him and he posted back that he would be happy to take a look at my car. I drove to Santiago and "the Hun" was personable, immaculately clean, and thorough in checking my car. He used a dye in the ac gas which shows up under black light. My problem turned out to be a leaking metal pipe which he had welded. Total cost was pesos 2000. I saved about $350US and best of all avoided being victimized. This guy is great!!! Works on all kinds of cars and I am his customer forever. We are not related, I am not being paid. A goodly number of times I have been helped by the DR1 family. I am only trying to pay back those excellent people on this site who have had such sage advice for me in the past. The shop name is Bayern Motor Works tel 829 581 4444. I guarantee you will be pleased with his work.
 
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Expat13

Silver
Jun 7, 2008
3,255
50
48
I agree 100%

:DAbout a week ago my new (used) car suffered air conditiong failure. In this hot climate I need to have good ac in my car. Off I went to the local Dominican shop who fix everything automotive. After sprinkling soapy water around the engine for a few minutes the verdict came in. AC evaporator core is leaking. This is one of the larger and more labor intensive repairs. Estimate was $425US. Disappointed but suspicious I took her to another Dominican fix anything automotive and had a repeat perfomance with the soapy water but this time it was $375 US. Luckily I waited a few days which gave me a chance to complain to everyone about my bad luck. In that time I came across a DR1 poster who happened to mention that a frequent poster on DR1"the Hun" had a repair shop in Santiago. On the off chance I emailed him and he posted back that he would be happy to take a look at my car. I drove to Santiago and "the Hun" was personable, immaculately clean, and thorough in checking my car. He used a dye in the ac gas which shows up under black light. My problem turned out to be a leaking metal pipe which he had welded. Total cost was pesos 2000. I saved about $350US and best of all avoided being victimized. This guy is great!!! Works on all kinds of cars and I am his customer forever. We are not related, I am not being paid. A goodly number of times I have been helped by the DR1 family. I am only trying to pay back those excellent people on this site who have had such sage advice for me in the past. The shop name is Bayern Motor Works tel 829 581 4444. I guarantee you will be pleased with his work.

Even though I live in SD and prefer the convenience of using a local Mechanic-the HUN has always gone out of his way to send me very detailed advice on whatever needs or questions i have car related-He is definitely a class act with top knowledge in the industry-if only he had a shop in SD as well...
 

Luperon

Who empowered China's crime against humanity?
Jun 28, 2004
4,510
294
83
Even though I live in SD and prefer the convenience of using a local Mechanic-the HUN has always gone out of his way to send me very detailed advice on whatever needs or questions i have car related-He is definitely a class act with top knowledge in the industry-if only he had a shop in SD as well...

The Hun is worth a day trip to santiago, world class shop and service.
 

Chip

Platinum
Jul 25, 2007
16,772
429
0
Santiago
Zol, aka "The Hun", nickname Zee is a personal friend of mine and a great mechanic and honest person to boot. You can't go wrong with him.

BTW, typically if mechanics here quotes prices in dollars is just an excuse to ramp up the price. If I have anybody here in the DR quote me a price in dollars for anything I immediately refuse to do business with them at that point nor ever again.
 

TheHun

New member
May 4, 2008
448
58
0
I really appreciate your kind words and recommendations.
Now I'm blushing...
I just try to give the same level of service that I'd like to receive whenever I'm the client. I do believe in honest, quality work, good customer service and affordable prices.
I also try to educate my clients about their vehicle, so they can get a longer, safer life out of their investment - and spending less money on it.
It's -for various reasons- not as easy to do business here than it was in the US or in the EU, however I try to do my best to get to it as close as possible.
If my clients are happy, I'm happy.
So fellow DR1 members, whenever you have a car related questions, I'll be happy to answer.
Thank you for your trust and support, thank you for driving to my shop from the North Coast, from Santo Domingo and from anywhere else outside of Santiago. It's our pleasure to serve you!

Zee AKA The Hun
 

Expat13

Silver
Jun 7, 2008
3,255
50
48
Just curious as a regular user of the forums but (embarrasingly so) rarely scroll through the other sections.

Just to put this out there for all...if a mechanic shop like the aforementioned-who obviously has a solid rep and therefore a value for us all-now i use him as an example only- if someone like this did advertise with DR1, would they show/come up automatically when doing a forum search for "mechanic" and of course the links which act as testomonials of his services. Or would it rank and register the same as it would now without ad space.
I dont ask this at all in a negative fashion to either parties as i firmly believe ads have value as well keep the money stream flowing which obviously keeps the Biz alive.
thoughts??
 

Robert

Stay Frosty!
Jan 2, 1999
20,574
341
83
dr1.com
Hi Zee,

Thanks for the nice PM. I'll will come into your shop and say hello when I'm in and around Santiago in the next 10 days.

I have no problem with 3rd party endorsements and really happy a lot of DR1 people are recommending you and getting great service.
 

Robert

Stay Frosty!
Jan 2, 1999
20,574
341
83
dr1.com
Just curious as a regular user of the forums but (embarrasingly so) rarely scroll through the other sections.

Just to put this out there for all...if a mechanic shop like the aforementioned-who obviously has a solid rep and therefore a value for us all-now i use him as an example only- if someone like this did advertise with DR1, would they show/come up automatically when doing a forum search for "mechanic" and of course the links which act as testomonials of his services. Or would it rank and register the same as it would now without ad space.
I dont ask this at all in a negative fashion to either parties as i firmly believe ads have value as well keep the money stream flowing which obviously keeps the Biz alive.
thoughts??

It's possible, but nothing we have pursued.

I prefer to see members jumping in and recommending people or services.
 

RacerX

Banned
Nov 22, 2009
3,390
376
0
I really appreciate your kind words and recommendations.
Now I'm blushing...
I just try to give the same level of service that I'd like to receive whenever I'm the client. I do believe in honest, quality work, good customer service and affordable prices.
I also try to educate my clients about their vehicle, so they can get a longer, safer life out of their investment - and spending less money on it.
It's -for various reasons- not as easy to do business here than it was in the US or in the EU, however I try to do my best to get to it as close as possible.
If my clients are happy, I'm happy.
So fellow DR1 members, whenever you have a car related questions, I'll be happy to answer.
Thank you for your trust and support, thank you for driving to my shop from the North Coast, from Santo Domingo and from anywhere else outside of Santiago. It's our pleasure to serve you!

Zee AKA The Hun

Hey man, where can I get my hands on a cylinder head for a 2.0L Toyota diesel?
 

Jerry Albers

New member
Dec 12, 2010
59
4
0
Zee and Johnny fix all my problems. I wouldnt even think of going to see someone else even if they were free. Zee - service is worth every penny and hes probably saved me almost $2000 in the last year.