honest mechanic?

So i'm thinkin bout beefin up my ride but i don't have the tools/most of the knowhow to do it myself.  Can anyone suggest a way to find a mechanic that i can trust not to rake me over the coals just so he can make some extra cash.  I plan to spend a lot of money anyway and i don't think i could afford a shady wrench turner?  Is there a forum somewhere i could find?  Consumer report page?  Or is this just luck of the draw and word of mouth kind of thing?  Any tips would be great!

I'd have to say ask around.  Family, friends, or coworkers should be a valuable source of information regarding this...

It was hit or miss for me the first few times.  I just asked around for a few suggestions and tried the few suggestions that looked good and eventually found one trustworthy who knows his stuff.  I would avoid the most inexpensive shops cuz they tend to not know as much.  The one I go to is like the 2nd or 3rd most expensive in my town.  Also avoid shops that donn't look "all that busy."  It helps to have some knowledge also cuz the, dare I say, ignorant, is the ones who really get screwed.  Know what is necessary to add on your aftermarket stuff, how long it "should" take to get done/what's involved, and I recommend getting any extra needed parts yourself since you generally save money that way.  When you do find one, recommend them to people you know, give them/support their business. 

Word of mouth (from people you trust) seems to be a good way to go.  I knew I had found the right mechanic when he handed me back 1/2 of the parts I had purchased for repairs I was told by someone else needed to be done, and said, "I don't know who told you that needed to be replaced, but they were wrong.  Take this and get your money back."  First time I had EVER had a mechanic hand me a bill that was lower than his original estimate!  Met him through a client at work, and now almost everyone at my center takes their vehicles to him, plus our company vans.
 
I also spend a lot of time researching repairs on this site, so if someone tells me that they think something needs to be done/replaced I know what the part is, what it looks like, what it's purpose is, and how likely it is to be what's "wrong".  I may not be able to fix it myself, but I can carry on an intelligent conversation about it with my mechanic.  He knows I check things out on this site all of the time, and he thinks it's great that everyone on here is so helpful.  As an added bonus, now when something doesn't "feel" right with my Blazer, I can usually narrow down the possibilities and check some things myself thanks to this forum!

^^^ A guy I do work for has a 1993 Bonneville and one time he was having tires installed at an independent garage, came to me with:
new front brake rotors
new rear brake drums
new pads
new shoes
two new wheel cylinders
and one new brake caliper.....they told him he needed all of this stuff and if he didn't do it SOON the brakes would go out on him!
I quoted him $175.00 to install everything and he seemed very pleased with that, compared to what their quote was (I don't recall exactly what it was).  He left it with me and I pulled the wheels and discovered that the retainers for the rear brake drums (clips installed at the factory to hold the drums in place on the assembly line) were still on them!  They are discarded when you remove them, so they never even took the drums off!  His brake shoes (rear) still had 7mm of lining on them.  I cleaned and adjusted the rear brakes, resurfaced the front rotors,replaced the pads and changed the brake fluid.  The only parts he needed was a can of brake fluid and front brake pads.  I charged him $40.00 for labor, and told him to take the rest of the parts back and never go to that shop again.  He was very pleased, and now I service his entire family's and a few freinds/co-worker's vehicles.
Like I've said before there are honest techs out there, it's sad that you have to go through all of this to find one, but I don't blame you, I've seen MANY more dishonest ones than ethical ones where I work.  Good luck in your search!

+ 1 on searching online forums for whatever make/model you have for problems.  Another good way to find out if you're getting screwed or not by asking a bunch of geeks/mechaincs who have been down that route before.
 
Just wanted to add something I saw in the steering post in 2nd Gen.  I don't think its a good idea to go to someone if they "can't find the problem."  I mean, isn't it their job to find the problem?  I could see this excuse used on, say, a DeLorean or something rare, but a Blazer?  Come on!  Mechanics like that must not know as much as they should know.

Stay away from the dealer and local stereo + motorsports shops.

Yeah, thanks to this forum I have definately been able to at least have an idea of what needed to get done.  I recently had my truck serviced and they told me i needed to get a cat converter put on(im running straight pipes) and i old the guy i'd have to wait.  He really pressed the issue and made it sound like I was going to get into trouble without one.  I did a little research for the area im in and fouind out that i dont even need to get a smog test to register my blazer.  The whole thing really just pissed me off once i reallized that he was trying to milk me.  I guess i'll just start asking around.  Thanks guys

quote:

ORIGINAL: juscarter
The whole thing really just pissed me off once i reallized that he was trying to milk me.

 
Maybe the guy was an environmentalist and was pressuring you because running those straight pipes is harming the environment....*shrug* Myself personally if I were servicing your truck and saw those straight pipes under there, I'd probably give you an equal reaction. But that's just me...

My Chevy dealership has always treated me good... When I'm too lazy to fix something myself, I bring it in, and they only fix what I told them to...
 
I'd brought my Blazer in for my CEL being on, throwing O2 sensor codes (turned out to be the fuse...) and my parking brake wasn't working...
 
They changed the fuse, changed my leaking left rear axle seal, which is what killed off my parking brake... and just because it was there, they did the left front axle seal... Their reason being: Customer Satisfaction.
 
Not all dealerships are bad... Just expensive...

I've encountered a swindler or two. Two years ago, one told me my engine was shot because there was some oil on one of the  spark plugs. I changed them again last week, no oil! He probably dipped it in a drain pan and came running to me. He has since been fired.