Some of us have been there before: we head to the auto parts store to buy parts that we probably weren’t planning on buying in the first place, and after we shell out some of our hard-earned cash we head back out to our vehicle and we’re met by someone with their hand out asking for money. Usually, they conveniently ran out of gas and only need a couple bucks to get home, but we know better… especially since a couple bucks worth of fuel is walking distance.

The parking lot mechanics just looking to make ends meet. Photos: Brant Ward, The Chronicle

Yeah, we’ve seen it plenty of times and some of us are more forgiving and hand the con man a couple bucks thinking he’s desperate, while some of us shake our heads and tell him we don’t have any cash – as we stuff the change from our recent purchase into our pockets. Most of us would rather they just be honest, or do something to earn the money they’re asking us to hand them.

In Oakland, California, where the unemployment rate is about 35%, it’s a different scene in the parking lot at a local auto parts store. There’s a group of men who are asking for your money, and they are willing to earn that cash by installing the part you just bought for your car. They didn’t just run out of gas, they probably just ran out of luck finding legitimate work, so they took their automotive skills to the streets the help people in need.

At first sight, you see these guys with their bags of tools in the parking lot approaching people who look like they need it and you might think they’re opportunists taking advantage of people. But before you assume they’re trying to rake people over the coals with their high-cost, shade-tree mechanics, a closer look shows that they’re actually extremely reasonable with their fees, and typically offer to do the work for just a few bucks.

One of the mechanics, George, says he can do it all: from the simple task of adding oil to a more difficult task like replacing a cylinder head, and the rates are affordable for just about anyone on any budget. They’ve become a bit of a fixture in that shopping center, with potential customers lining up outside of the auto parts store who may not have the tools or the know-how to replace the part they just bought.

They consider themselves entrepreneurs who are making the best of their situation, but the city seems to think they’re a nuisance. Local residents, and the city council are bothered by the repairs, claiming that there’s no quality control with the repairs, and that they’re not paying taxes.

The quality control issue is a valid point for a repair as intense as replacing a cylinder head, which is typically done at a remote location. But for the smaller tasks like adding a quart of oil for a woman who is not dressed for it, or changing a burned out bulb, it seems like a win-win situation for mechanic and customer. The city raises the point that state law requires mechanics to be licensed, and that George and his friends are in violation of the law – which carries a $5,000 fine or up to six months in jail.

A spokesman for the AutoZone there said they are complying with regulations, and that they cannot stop people from working on cars in the parking lot. Some days the mechanics can make up to $500, other days not so much, but it beats standing there with their hands out collecting money on a freeway ramp, or begging people for a couple of bucks for gas. There are regular customers, too, and they appreciate what these guys are doing and are glad to help them, but local residents and the city council are working with local law enforcement to put an end to it.

Perhaps if this was the scene, then it makes more sense to shut these guys down.

Both sides of this coin have valid points; they can be seen as a nuisance to others in the community, but at least they’re willing to earn your money rather than just ask for a handout. We pay our friends to fix our cars (usually with pizza and beer) and many of us helped someone with their car outside of an auto parts store, so it’s not as if nobody has ever worked on a car in an auto parts store parking lot. This store, however, seems to be the only one in the area where this happens.

Do you think this really just boils down to the legal aspect of not paying taxes on the money earned? Because the people who make hundreds of dollars each day asking for a couple bucks at a time aren’t paying taxes either – nor do they have the proper paperwork to accept charity donations – yet we see them all the time and the city council doesn’t shut them down.

So what do you think of these parking lot mechanics? Should they be shut down, or do you see them as performing a service to those who want it, and they should be left alone? Tell us in the comments section below, and think about it the next time someone asks for a couple of bucks for gas when you know they’re lying to you.