Call three shops, compare the numbers, pick the smallest one. That is how many people shop for car repair, and on paper it sounds reasonable. Nobody wants to overpay for a brake job or a water pump. But Bryce Neighbors says that habit leads people wrong more often than it helps them. "A quote by itself doesn't tell you much," he says. "It doesn't tell you what parts are being used, how much time is actually going into the job, or whether the shop checked for anything else that might fail next month."
Neighbors is the owner of Young's Automotive Service Center, an independent auto repair shop in Covina, California. He is an ASE-certified master technician and previously taught automotive technology full time at Citrus College. He purchased the shop in 2020 and continues to operate it today. His message to drivers is simple: a low number can be misleading, and the cheapest quote may end up costing more in the long run.
Why can the lowest number cost more? A low quote can mean a shop is using a cheaper part, skipping a step that should be done alongside the repair, or missing something because nobody looked closely enough to find it. Neighbors has seen customers pay less upfront and then pay twice, once for the first repair and again a few months later when the real problem shows up. "I'd rather tell a customer the full picture and lose the job to a lower bid than win the job and have their car back here in six weeks," he says. That has cost him work over the years, but he says it has also built the kind of repeat business that keeps a small shop running.
Neighbors tells customers to ask what is behind a number before they compare it to another shop's. A fair quote should account for the parts being used, the labor the job actually takes, and anything connected to the repair that needs attention at the same time. He points to brake work as a common example. A shop can quote pads alone and leave out rotors that are already worn past a safe thickness. The price looks better on the page, but the car is not actually fixed right. "If two shops give you different numbers, ask why," Neighbors says. "A shop that can explain the difference in plain language is usually the one doing the job properly."
Neighbors built his approach around service writing software and diagnostic tools that let him document exactly what a vehicle needs before any work starts, rather than guessing at a number over the phone. He says that documentation is part of what protects a customer from paying for the wrong fix. He also brings his own standards from his time as an ASE-certified master technician into how Young's Automotive Service Center prices work. A technician who has spent years diagnosing a wide range of problems knows the difference between a quote built on a quick look and one built on an actual inspection.
"Price matters. I'm not telling anyone to ignore it," Neighbors says. "I'm telling them not to treat it as the whole answer. The real cost of a repair includes whether it holds up." For drivers weighing competing estimates, Neighbors suggests a short list of questions: What parts are included? Is labor time close between the shops? Did anyone physically inspect the vehicle, or was the quote given over the phone? The answers, he says, usually explain the price gap better than the number itself.
The implications for consumers are clear: treating price as the only factor can lead to repeat repairs, safety risks, and higher total costs. For the auto repair industry, Neighbors's approach highlights the value of transparency and thorough documentation in building trust. As drivers face competing estimates, the advice to ask questions and demand details may be the best way to ensure a repair is done right the first time.
