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Re:US college enrollments are falling, except for graduate d... by yardie on Tuesday September 29, 2020 @09:52AM (#24627790)
I've come to understand that I'm a downtown living, college educated, hipster. Wanting to change my own oil and do my own repair I found a garage that charges $140/day to rent a bay and tools. Can't exactly be a shade tree mechanic at the dog park.
Re:US college enrollments are falling, except for graduate d... by steverb on Tuesday September 29, 2020 @10:52AM (#24628521)
Yeah. I HAVE done major auto repair in an apartment complexes parking lot, but a lot of buildings do not tolerate that sort of thing.

I have also done an oil change in the parking lot of a local auto parts store, and they were totally cool with it.

$140/day seems steep but kudos for taking the initiative.

Re:US college enrollments are falling, except for graduate d... by throwanem on Tuesday September 29, 2020 @01:56PM (#24630919)
I feel like it'd be weird to find an auto parts store that wasn't OK with doing repairs in the parking lot. On the one hand, you're going to get a lot of people coming in to buy parts for ad hoc stuff. And on the other, if somebody finds halfway through a battery swap or whatever that they're short a tool they need, where are they going to go to get it?
Re:US college enrollments are falling, except for graduate d... by yardie on Tuesday September 29, 2020 @05:11PM (#24633037)
$140/day seems steep to me as well. But if the tools are proper I can be in and out before the sun sets. If I do it in my parking lot I'm still spending $3-400 in tools. And I'll still need an air compressor.

They have a special rate for oil changes, $40. But you only get an hour on the lift. Just enough time to refill, replace filters, and rotate tires.

Re:US college enrollments are falling, except for graduate d... by bradlys on Tuesday September 29, 2020 @02:01PM (#24630986)
I do all my work on the street because I don't have a garage or driveway. I live in an upscale neighborhood ($2m homes average). There's not much of an issue with it. People look but that's about it.

Doing work in the parking lot of an auto parts store is very normal.