Am I Getting Ripped Off?

[JG2000SE]

I think we all would agree a good mechanic can be hard to find. I would love to work on my own car but lack the time, skill, and tools. I take my cars to a local shop owned by the same family for about 40 years. They seem to be fair and honest but wanted to get some opinions.

I just had some work done and wondered if everybody thought this was fair pricing. For arguements sake, lets assume all work was done correctly and in a good time. I don't have a scanner but the bills reads...

6-41-101 Iridium plugs $58.50
35-6321 Wire set $49.75
R86311 Fuel filer $13.50
96015 Trans filter kit $26.00
8Qts Dex/Merc Trans fluid $32.00
K060926 Micro V belt $49.00
Used control module $70.00
Labor $200.00
Tax $33.67

Total $532.42

Sound fair? The serp. belt on the car started to fray and engine started to run rough so I had some repairs and preventative stuff done. Only had the car about 1 month with 70k miles on it now. Any opinions are appreciated.

[J Wikoff]

The plugs were a little pricey, but maybe that plug normally is. What is the "used control module"?

[1oldman]

The only thing I can tell you about right off the cuff is the fuel filter.

at the GM Dealer ( this was 10 years ago)

Fuel filter $50
Labor $50
Sub Total $100
Tax $8.25
Total $108.25

That part looks great to me. - BC

[JG2000SE]

Thanks guys. The control module is due to dropping a cylinder. I was just sitting idling when the car suddenly quit. Started right back up but a cylinder wasn't firing. One of the plug wires had a little hole and they said control module was bad. Had a used one they sold me for about half the cost of new. Also, they said they charge about $40/hour for labor which I thought was good...

[J Wikoff]

So 5 hours, seems high, but it's probably listed labor times.

[harofreak00]

Almost all those prices are DOUBLE what I would expect to pay.

Coppercore plugs are $1.99 each, $12
Belden wires are $26.99
Fuel filters are $7.49
Trans filters are $13.99
Trans fluid (2 gallon) $23.99
Belt $44.99
Used ICM $30

Should have only been about 2-2.5 hours labor.

Parts $160.00
Labor $100.00

[JG2000SE]

So assuming they went by listed times, 5 hours at $40 per hour doens't seem bad but they are apparently making some back by significant mark up of parts? I'll do some checking through NAPA and Autozone and see what I could have purchased the parts for.

[00Beast]

Iridium plugs are $9 apiece haro, if that's what came out, I'm sure that's what they used. That's what the car calls for.

None of that seems out of line for a shop charge, but it isn't cheap. You'd have been better off supplying the parts yourself.

Much better than the shop that wanted to charge my aunt $1300 for a UIM/LIM job, $45 for coolant elbows alone...

[human]

I have to agree with the others. Some of those prices seem sort of steep. Last fall, I bought a set of AC copper core plugs for $1,70 each ($10.20 total) and a set of NAPA/Beldin wires for $25. I also had a serpentine belt put on for $42 plus labor.

Labor charges--and how they're calculated--are the real wild card. Around here, they can run anywhere from $40 an hour at the shop I use most often to over $100 an hour at the stealership. Some shops charge actual time and some may even set a minimum. I've known of shops that charge a half-hour minimum, even for jobs that only take five or ten minutes. Many shops charge labor based on "book time" or the estimated amount of time a job should take. This latter scenario provides an incentive for the shop to work quickly, because if they charge you for five hours of labor based on the book and they finish the job in four, they're making extra profit. Conversely, it can work in the customer's favor if they stick to the book and the job takes longer, but then some shops will charge extra if the job takes longer.

[01bonneSC]

Any shop will "rip you off". Thats how they keep the doors open. Which is why i work on my own stuff. Those all seem pretty standard that a shop would charge. They get the parts at cost and sell them at list, usually double the price.

But yeah, buy some tools and learn to turn wrenches. A car and the doctor is where you will spend most of your money in life(house excluded). Im not smart enough to be a doctor lol.

[RJolly87]

Admittedly the markup does seem a little steep, but no one item seemed outrageous.

[LeSabre in Buffalo]

That's about right for shop prices for parts. Maybe a bit high on the labor, if anything. You didn't get a great deal, and you didn't get shaken down. I'd rest easy knowing it was done.

Guys, iridium plugs are about $7-9 APIECE at the stores around me. So $60 for 6 isn't too bad, all considering.

A basic set of tools is about $200 for all the items you'd need for doing basic spark plug changes and oil changes.

[01bonneSC]

I thought the labor was low. Around here you look at about $60-$70/hr

[harofreak00]

Guys, iridium plugs are about $7-9 APIECE at the stores around me. So $60 for 6 isn't too bad, all considering.

Right, but who wants to spend $60 on plugs when you can spend $12. I run Autolite Coppercores in all my SSEi's.

A basic set of tools is about $200 for all the items you'd need for doing basic spark plug changes and oil changes.

Actually, you could probably get by with $40 in tools for just spark plug changes and oil changes.

3/8 ratchet, 3" extention, spark plug socket... 15mm socket for drain plug and oil filter wrench.

[LeSabre in Buffalo]

I don't have the time I did once to spend an hour changing copper plugs every 15k miles. So iridium can be worth it in the time saved changing the plugs, and knowing the plugs are fine for another few years.

[1oldman]

Many shops charge labor based on "book time" or the estimated amount of time a job should take. This latter scenario provides an incentive for the shop to work quickly, because if they charge you for five hours of labor based on the book and they finish the job in four, they're making extra profit. Conversely, it can work in the customer's favor if they stick to the book and the job takes longer, but then some shops will charge extra if the job takes longer.

Labor Rate Book - that way if the mechanic doesn't work efficiently, he isn't able to charge you is coffee break time. Conversely if he can do a 3hr job in 1hr, you still pay 3hrs.

Shops have to pay taxes, insurance, cost of the building the shop is in, hold back money to cover “come back” jobs and make a profit so they can stay in business, and pay the employees.. - BC

[wake]

5 hours at $40 per hour

at least your not being charged the 85$ an hour the shop wanted to charge me for my truck to get fixed

i ended up settling with the guy at 55 an hour

[Boreas]

Those prices seem fair. I dont see how anybody would charge significantly less, unless this was a backyard mechanic/hobbyist. A shop has bills and insurance to pay, not to mention the equipment he has to help fix your car cost a pretty penny. I would LOVE to live in a part of the country where someone here said that it was too much...

[1oldman]

Those prices seem fair. I dont see how anybody would charge significantly less, unless this was a backyard mechanic/hobbyist. A shop has bills and insurance to pay, not to mention the equipment he has to help fix your car cost a pretty penny. I would LOVE to live in a part of the country where someone here said that it was too much...

Exactly my point, thank you - BC

[BlackHawk99]

This:

viewtopic.php?f=8&t=23231

Specifically this:

It's a rip off in the eyes of members of this forum because 99% of us do our own car work, and the time we spend doesn't cost us anything.

Think about all the overhead of a shop:

-- Employees
-- Benefits
-- Utilities (gas, water, electric, phone)
-- Property taxes
-- Liability insurance
-- Workman's Comp Insurance
-- Marketing
-- Tools
-- Materials
-- Property insurance
-- Waste/disposal
-- Computers and/or invoices
-- That pot of coffee in the lobby
-- The nice rugs you walk on when you come in the door
-- The lawn care
-- The snow removal
-- etc, etc, etc
-- Warranty overhead

The list really does go on and on. You need to stop and give it some though before automatically assume it's a rip off. You really not comparing apples to apples when you say "it should be only this much". That might be what it costs YOU (since you don't pay yourself an hourly rate, nor have any overhead), but not what it costs them, and still manage to have a slim profit at the end of the day.