For those of you high in "need for closure" like my wife, myself, and Sheldon Cooper, I feel it is only right to give you all a brief postscript to my mechanic's visit last week.  Enjoy:
____________________

This car mechanic that my friend sent me to is in the middle of nowhere.  Not the middle of nowhere like "the boonies" nowhere, but more of a trek through the winding roads of a few suburbs, up a hill to nowhere and then BAM -- there is this quaint little mechanic shop setup all al dente atop this hill, overlooking the western MA suburb (if such a thing can even exist).

The guy who met me at the front desk was personable and knew what I was there for.  I told him, here is the list of things they my dealership said need to be repaired.  Many of the items on said list had to do with leaking this and leaking that.  The dealership had painted me a picture that made it seem as if the innards of my car were like a 5th grader's finger painting project: All wet and everywhere.

He took the car right in and put it on the lift.  Twenty-five minutes later he came back out and told me that he envisioned a much different car.  "Everything looks pretty solid," he said.  "I checked all the hoses, all the pans, all the connections, it's real clean, hardly any leakage anywhere."

"So, what exactly are you telling me?," I asked incredulously, "Nothing needs to be done?"

"Not as far as I can tell," he replied matter-of-factly.

"Just to clarify," I continue, "The dealership said there was $3,000 of repairs that were prudent, and you're saying that that's pretty much complete BS?  In terms of safety, you're saying the car totally checks out."

He isn't offended by this double-check.  It seems he is trying to keep the smile from his lips as he gets some amount of amusement from my bemusement.  "The car looks real good.  Clean.  I was expecting much worse.  You're good to go."

"How much do I owe you?," I ask.

"Don't worry about it," he responds, shaking his open palm at me.
____________

Oh mister mechanic sir.  You can bet your tuchas you'll be seeing me again, though I can't say the same about Steve Smith Subaru.