Nearly Scammed, or Overly Skeptical?Follow

So my wifes car begins rapidly leaking brake fluid from the rear wheel while out of town the other day. Since the vehicle no longer seemed safe to drive we have it towed to the nearest tire/brake shop.

The next morning I get a call with a laundry list of problems and an estimate of over $900 for repairs. I check the vehicles blue book value to find that exceeds the trade-in value of the car. I call them back to tell them I will not be having them repair the car and will be picking the car up. He offers to work with me on the price.

Red Flag #1. (How can a repair for a vehicle be negotiable? There is parts and labor costs per hour. It should cost what it cost)

I decline, and he asks me what I plan to do with the car, if I was going to sell it. I tell him I will be picking the car up.

I arrive with a trailer to bring the car home, and go in to pay for and retrieve the estimate. The counter guy gets the paperwork from the bin and I see on the back of it $35 circled and what I thought said diagnostic. He takes the paperwork back to the back room and he is told to give me the keys. He does not give me the estimate.

Red Flag #2 (Michigan law requires you to give every
customer a written estimate when the cost of
repairing a vehicle is $20 or more.
This means you must actually hand a
written estimate to the customer – whether
or not the customer requests it.)

As I leave the shop and go to trailer the vehicle the mechanic runs out and asks how much I will sell him the car for?

Red Flag #3 (Why would the mechanic who diagnosed the problems offer to purchase a vehicle that needs repairs well in excess of it's value?)

So this weekend I will find out how much work the vehicle really needs, am I being overly skeptical of a repair shop trying to cut me a deal, or does something smell a little fishy?

Most cars leaking brake fluid from a rear wheel is no more than a $200 repair if you have to replace the works. Often, it's far cheaper.

Repairs can be negotiable. The mechanic can be flexible on his parts markup as well as his labor. Usually they're only flexible if they need money badly or know you well enough to want to be nice at their own expense.

On most vehicles, you could have safely driven it with a little extra care. About 90% of your stopping power comes from your front brakes and the fluid reservoir is often split into compartments serving the front and rear so once the rear leaked down and quit working you'd still have 90% of your capability.

You did do the smart thing by towing it and going to see another mechanic. The fact that you weren't charged for the diagnosis is sort of icing on the cake; it was a ripoff attempt. Once they let you go free of charge it's hard for you to do much to them legally.