It seems like everyone is feeling their budgets stretch, including mechanics and drivers. As people complain about the price of repairs, an experienced mechanic is over it. He rants over $10k  brake scanner costs that he can’t control. 

Mechanic complains about $10k scanner costs that people don’t know about 

As a video shows a scanner mounted to the brakes of an SUV, a mechanic starts to rant about the sad, expensive truth of the industry. 

He explains that he has a scanner that costs $10,000 and requires $2,000 annual updates. It also has subscription fees. The device is necessary to work on brakes and other components. 

Then people complain about him charging $200 to $215 to service brakes. But the mechanic explains that he needs to make his business profitable and hates working with drivers who don’t value his services. 

People ask if he can do the work at a lower price, but no one helps him with the costs related to the scanner, and he refuses to provide free diagnostics. He calls himself a professional mechanic, not some random Joe. 

Then he shares that he would rather lose his friends to gain business from strangers, as friends don’t provide profit for his business. 

According to Tire Review, mechanics need scanners for modern brake jobs, especially with newer cars. Vehicles older than 10 years old require scanners to diagnose ABC/electronic parking brake (EPB) problems, clear codes, and perform resets or calibrations. 

It puts the EPBs in service mode for replacement pads to prevent damage and ensure the system functions properly. A professional scanner provides crucial bi-directional control to ‘talk’ to vehicle modules, which is something basic tools can’t do.