I was charged $1700 for two Water Pumps

I think it really depends on what the mechanic has to fix. The OP here had an inverter pump failure, where it's a relatively simple repair. I don't believe a dealership charging $500 - $600 would mess this up. So there is no need for a true specialist to change out this simple pump. Yes there may be times where a true specialist is needed, with the proper training to tackle a difficult repair and should be compensated accordingly. This here is not the case and nobody should be charging more than the dealer high prices for this repair.

 

I remember the days when many shops and business owners were very helpful on Priuschat commenting on issues that many people were having. Soon many of the specialist and experts no longer comment on Prius chat because it was taking food off their table on the professional business side. It seems better to keep the general public less informed so that they can charge when the failure occurs. The good ole days…..

 

I've never really noticed much of that attitude at PriusChat, but for an example of a forum that really does go all out with that, check out hvac-talk. I was on there for a while years ago when I was doing some of that kind of work. They have official policy that members can't post anything that would be helpful if someone not in-the-trade is asking. And you actually see members getting reprimanded by the mods for saying something useful when they weren't supposed to.

The last time I was back paying a visit there, I noticed the recent news was that some member X was in trouble after being discovered to have put up videos on youtube, totally independent of hvac-talk, that could pose a risk of being useful to the Wrong Kind of People.

I've noticed thankfully that PriusChat is really pretty much free of that kind of craziness, and there are numerous members here who clearly are in the business, and are sharing their expertise here on a regular basis.

 

I understand exactly what you're saying. I'm a member of that forum, but not a professional member. Although the professional members are not 'permitted' to give specific DIY advice on how to perform repairs, they do typically provide sound advice. Non-professional members are limited to posting questions and answers, but only on threads they have started, not on other members threads. This is a good thing, otherwise there would be multiple unknowledgeable members providing advice on how to do something (wrong) that could get someone killed or an entire family killed. HVAC is not just an AC unit or a heat pump, but also furnaces, etc. We've never seen poor advice given before have we? Regardless of what advice they were to give, people would screw it up. It gets proven every day, multiple times over and over. And with our lawsuit-happy society, why should they put their livelihood at risk?

There is a very distinct difference with that forum, because it was developed by trade professionals, for trade professionals. Not by HVAC enthusiasts, for HVAC enthusiasts. They very clearly state many times, HVAC Talk is not a DIY site, including in the rules and terms of service when signing up. Some people get really bent out of shape, but they were nice enough to allow non-professionals to join and be able to post questions or ask for advice. I personally have learned a tremendous amount from that site about what to do and what not to do.