Jorrell has answered this mightily, but I'll add a small aside -

The first guy is trying to get something out of you - money. He's got something invested in you, and sees a real (and probably substantial, if he's like most shops) payoff from his work.

The BB (Bulletin Board/Brickboard) doesn't get the same payoff; this system works on a different ethic, and since many, many questions have been answered in SUBSTANTIAL detail, both formally (FAQ) and informally (previous posts), some people find it's most reasonable to direct inquiries to those resources.

Case in point - I recently had a question about my trans, posted a question: two problems: 1) my question was insufficiently precise/detailed and led to others wasting their time answering with suggestions which they might not have made with the correct information; 2) the exact symptoms of my problem, WITH RESOLUTION were already in the FAQ. Had I read more carefully, I could have saved everyone some time and effort.

Since I'm kind of new here, I try to make up for my general noobiness by helping out the other newer members who post questions that have already been answered so many times before. Where possible, I'll point to links to previous posts from the more knowledgable users so you (the general 'you', not 'you' personally) can get the BEST information possible. Look through those posts, my friend, because you will discover that a good many of the users here have a RIDICULOUS level of knowledge and experience concerning these cars.

Finally, I'll ask you your question back to you, reframed:

How come:

1) I go to Volvo shop with a problem, and they charge me $50 to look at it, and then explain the problem, how to fix it, etc.
2) I go to the Brickboard and they say "Naw, you can fix that by doing A, then B, and get C part from the junkyard. It's 10 minutes of work and $10 to fix a $200 shop problem.

How come the shop guys never do that second one?

Best,

Lanval
--
92 240GL - Virgos, IPD 25/25 sways, 150,000 mi strong