Message-Id: <gbi3reK00jVQA9y6ls@andrew.cmu.edu>
Date: Tue, 12 Feb 91 14:11:38 -0500 (EST)
From: Frank Ritter <fr07+@ANDREW.CMU.EDU>
To: Harry.Bovik@CS.CMU.EDU
Subject: Fwd: bastone auto service
References: <Added.cbgmlE_00Ui30BM046@andrew.cmu.edu>

Dear Harry Q., here's some more info for you:

---------- Forwarded message begins here ----------

Date:     Friday, 08 Feb 91 17:31:45 EST
From: vinson@redbud.psy.cmu.edu (Norman Vinson)
Reply-To: vinson@psy.cmu.edu (Norman Vinson)
Subject:  bastone auto service

frank, please send this to bovik when you get the time.

thanks.
****************************************************************

	I get my car fixed at Bastone Service on Carron St. in
Shadyside (361-3554).
	I think they're honest and do good work.  Below, I relate a
couple of experiences.

	A few weeks ago something fell out from under my car.  I took
the car in to be serviced and they said they didn't know wat had
follen off.  It was most likely a heat shield and, given the age of my
car, I didn't need to replace that.  For that, there was no charge.

	This indicates that they don't do unecessary work.  It might
also lead you to think that they're dumb but I've got evidence against
that.  My car is a ford escort.  Sometimes escorts lose power becuase
of a problem w/ te vacuum advance. Mechanics often don't know about
this but bastone was able to recognize that this was where the problem
was.

	Additional evidence regarding their honesty:

I recently had to get my carburator rebuilt because it was all grimmy
and a few parts ad been damaged by the dirt.  However, they had
rebuilt it last year.  They rebuilt it again but charged me only 200 $
instead of the 240 $ it would normally cost.  The guy said he could't
guarantee the work beyond 90 days but he gave me a discount because
his records indicated that it had been rebuilt last year.

Following this, I had trouble startin my car (again) and took it in.
There was a problem with the distributor but it was fixed N/C
because these parts (the cap and the rotor) had been replaced when
the car was tuned up last month. 

Obviously,  they  could be  robbing me  anyway:   how do  I know they
really did replace the rotor at the tune-up  ?   Nonotheless, if they
really were  dishonest, they  missed a  lot of  opportunities to make
some money.  

norman vinson

vinson@psy.cmu.edu