When I was about 18-19 and didn't know any better, I took my Fiero (my first car) to a Jiffy Lube and when I drove over the pit ramp, my catalytic converter ripped off. They told me it was my fault because my car was low to the ground (it was stock). They told me I needed to leave because I was causing a disruption. I called the police, and when the police came, they agreed to pay for a new catalytic converter to be installed. I took it to another shop (because the oil hadn't been changed), and the other shop (some Goodyear Tire and Oil) used a floor jack to raise up the side of my car to get to the oil filter. The Fiero has cooling tubes that run the length of both sides of the car because it's mid-engine... and the cooling pipes run under the door thresholds. This idiot used the floor jack on one of the cooling pipes, and it collapsed while the car was jacked up, causing the pipe to bend and the jack to impact my suspension. They bent the pipe back enough so coolant could get through it again... but I was furious. I was also a fool because I should have forced them to replace it. They told me the car was rare and no one had those parts (it was 1997, the car was only 10 years old).
It was literally at that point where I told myself that from here on out, I would do literally everything myself. Since that point, I've only taken one of my cars in if it's under warranty, or I needed something done in an emergency. Every brake job, suspension rebuild... heck, welding patch panels... fuel pumps, basically everything, I do myself now. I just do not trust repair shops. It also goes the same for homes. Half the time when I'd call someone to do work on my home, they'd do a s**t job, because they just don't care. So I've taught myself to do all the electrical per NERC standards, all plumping (sweating pipes or PVC), cut and lay tile, drywall... you name it. Everything except the roof... (fear of falling from high places).
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