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Posted: 5/4/2024 12:55:51 PM EDT
[#1]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Chaingun: I have a local mechanic who is honest. Recent name brand shops, like Pep Boys, seem to over recommend. Yeah, I think it should be added. I too have a local shop that I use when I can't do my own work. They are fair and I trust them. |
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MN, USA
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Posted: 5/4/2024 1:06:49 PM EDT
[#2]
buy a hellcat with brembos, then 500 seems like a deal, dealer quoted 4500 for brakes...lol
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Posted: 5/4/2024 1:07:04 PM EDT
[Last Edit: Aimless]
[#3]
I've told this a million times. I went to a Toyota dealership in NY that wanted $1,500 for repairs so my wife's car would pass inspection. I was suspicious because she always came back with a bunch of "change blinker fluid" charges. I took it to the next closest Toyota dealership and they admitted it didn't need any of that work.
But I've had good luck in Utah with honest and skilled mechanics. My sunroof broke, which isn't the kind of thing the guy I use knows anything about, although he was willing to try. The local Ford dealership was booked out for weeks. I couldn't leave the sunroof open for weeks so I went to Las Vegas. That multi brand dealership had a huge Ford repair shop. I'd never seen anything like that. I told the guy I'd rent a car and leave it if I had to and come back another day. It's a two hour drive one way. I was sure this was going to be a big bill. He came back a little while later and said that the sunroofs are kind of fragile (not his word) and it could be a multi thousand dollar job. They just got it to close and he said "Don't waste your money, just leave it closed." They charged me $180. |
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Posted: 5/4/2024 1:07:34 PM EDT
[#4]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By icecold1: buy a hellcat with brembos, then 500 seems like a deal, dealer quoted 4500 for brakes...lol Surprised it wasn’t stolen before it needed a brake job. |
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Posted: 5/4/2024 1:07:50 PM EDT
[#5]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Foxtrot08: Price is not directly related to cost. Price is what the market will bear. If you don’t like the price, shop it or do it yourself. This is basic economics and business. I’m not sure I get the hate for capitalism on arfcom. Very strange that people who are supposedly freedom loving hate when other people make money. I do most of the work myself. I have no problem paying someone money to do things that I cannot. I dont hate capitalism either. What I do hate is dishonest people that prey on those that don't know any better or are weak, and easy to bully. Perhaps I do a bad job of putting my feelings/beliefs into words on here. Again, I am not by any means saying that every person who works on cars is a scumbag, but I have had dealings with enough bad apples, to be very skeptical of most in that industry. |
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Posted: 5/4/2024 1:08:48 PM EDT
[#6]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By NotIssued: yep I get the "can you look at this?" At every family function. Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By NotIssued: Originally Posted By HurtzDoughnut: If you’re a doctor, lawyer, mechanic, or in the trades, you’re ALWAYS going to have people coming at you for discounted or free work or advice. It got so bad for me having people wanting me to work on their cars for a few beers (I don’t drink) or a lousy pizza on my time off, that I just started handing people my business card and said “make an appointment at work.” I’ve had friends and family that would call at all hours, even as late as midnight on a work night for free advice or “could you possibly come over and look at it?” It’s just something you get used to, which reminds me I need to get the parts ready to work on my granddaughters car this weekend. I get the "can you look at this?" At every family function. Try being a former home inspector... 
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Posted: 5/4/2024 1:12:44 PM EDT
[#7]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By 69rrdriver: I like my profession and make good money doing it. And I have no problem raging about or at bad mechanics. I don't do a lot of what people here are complaining about. The problem is in gd there is usually no middle ground. The simplest way for me to explain it is let's say I need to make 500 on a job. Does it really matter gore the money is split up. 200 from parts and 300 from labor, or all 500 from labor. The price of the job is the same to you. If you don't like the price of legitimately needed work you are free to check elsewhere. That's capitalism. I get very angry at people in my profession who try to sell unnessary work. There is a difference between the two situations though. And automotive repair isn't a commodity that can always be compared apples to apples. I only use premium or oem parts unless there is no other option. Others use the cheapest parts and can work cheaper. Or they skimp on the service, ie not cleaning and lubing brake hardware. Others still use cheap parts and still charge more than me. It's almost like auto repair is a huge industry filled with a multitude of different people. I appreciate your honesty, and agree with almost all of what you said. My problem is numerous bad experiences makes it difficult for me to trust anyone that I do not personally know. The last guy I used for stuff I could not tackle, had a pretty high labor rate. But I was happy to pay it, because I trusted him, and I know if he said it needed to he done, it needed to be done. He too used premium parts every time he could, and stood behind his work. Unfortunately, he has stepped away from fixing other people’s stuff and just works on his and his buddies’ hot roda now. |
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Posted: 5/4/2024 1:15:08 PM EDT
[#8]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By 3BP: I do most of the work myself. I have no problem paying someone money to do things that I cannot. I dont hate capitalism either. What I do hate is dishonest people that prey on those that don't know any better or are weak, and easy to bully. Perhaps I do a bad job of putting my feelings/beliefs into words on here. Again, I am not by any means saying that every person who works on cars is a scumbag, but I have had dealings with enough bad apples, to be very skeptical of most in that industry. Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By 3BP: Originally Posted By Foxtrot08: Price is not directly related to cost. Price is what the market will bear. If you don’t like the price, shop it or do it yourself. This is basic economics and business. I’m not sure I get the hate for capitalism on arfcom. Very strange that people who are supposedly freedom loving hate when other people make money. I do most of the work myself. I have no problem paying someone money to do things that I cannot. I dont hate capitalism either. What I do hate is dishonest people that prey on those that don't know any better or are weak, and easy to bully. Perhaps I do a bad job of putting my feelings/beliefs into words on here. Again, I am not by any means saying that every person who works on cars is a scumbag, but I have had dealings with enough bad apples, to be very skeptical of most in that industry. I think it’s more so a miscommunication here. Don’t get me wrong, I get there’s bad apples. But it’s every industry there are bad apples. Whether it’s automotive, the oil/fuel industry, or my SO’s profession - medicine, etc. If someone is using the best of the best parts, has a clean shop, gets things done promptly/timely manner, and does things to a top tier level. I expect to pay more, probably significantly more, than someone who half asses things. But I don’t go out of my way to bitch about the bad apples really. I just try to learn to avoid them. I market every day against this. People selling cheap ass oil, that is sub standard. Me sitting there trying to tell a customer “yeah you’re just buying crap oil” doesn’t do any good. I tell them: I sell a quality product, at a competitive price, with excellent service. Why? Because my name is on every drop that is delivered. And I expect my customers to be treated better than I want to be treated. Most of the time? That works better than trying to price fight or knock someone else down - whether it’s deserved or not. Even if they’re liars and dishonest, or even borderline criminal. |
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TX, USA
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Posted: 5/4/2024 1:35:12 PM EDT
[Last Edit: tsg68]
[#9]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By mr_o: I'm probably going to catch hell for this but marking up the price of parts is bullshit. If my mechanic and myself can get the same Napa part for $150 then don't charge me $300 for the damn thing. Charge $150 with maybe a $30 delivery fee. If you're a great mechanic and a great shop I'd gladly pay a labor rate of $150-$175 an hour. Am I wrong dude? Am I wrong??? My parts charges are similar to theirs. The mechanics get a wholesale price without warranty. I get a retail price with a warranty. My mechanic gives me his own warranty on parts and labor. I’ve compared the quote against retail and it’s always very close for quality parts. |
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Posted: 5/4/2024 1:37:24 PM EDT
[#10]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By 3BP: I appreciate your honesty, and agree with almost all of what you said. My problem is numerous bad experiences makes it difficult for me to trust anyone that I do not personally know. The last guy I used for stuff I could not tackle, had a pretty high labor rate. But I was happy to pay it, because I trusted him, and I know if he said it needed to he done, it needed to be done. He too used premium parts every time he could, and stood behind his work. Unfortunately, he has stepped away from fixing other people’s stuff and just works on his and his buddies’ hot roda now. Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By 3BP: Originally Posted By 69rrdriver: I like my profession and make good money doing it. And I have no problem raging about or at bad mechanics. I don't do a lot of what people here are complaining about. The problem is in gd there is usually no middle ground. The simplest way for me to explain it is let's say I need to make 500 on a job. Does it really matter gore the money is split up. 200 from parts and 300 from labor, or all 500 from labor. The price of the job is the same to you. If you don't like the price of legitimately needed work you are free to check elsewhere. That's capitalism. I get very angry at people in my profession who try to sell unnessary work. There is a difference between the two situations though. And automotive repair isn't a commodity that can always be compared apples to apples. I only use premium or oem parts unless there is no other option. Others use the cheapest parts and can work cheaper. Or they skimp on the service, ie not cleaning and lubing brake hardware. Others still use cheap parts and still charge more than me. It's almost like auto repair is a huge industry filled with a multitude of different people. I appreciate your honesty, and agree with almost all of what you said. My problem is numerous bad experiences makes it difficult for me to trust anyone that I do not personally know. The last guy I used for stuff I could not tackle, had a pretty high labor rate. But I was happy to pay it, because I trusted him, and I know if he said it needed to he done, it needed to be done. He too used premium parts every time he could, and stood behind his work. Unfortunately, he has stepped away from fixing other people’s stuff and just works on his and his buddies’ hot roda now. The type of mechanics you are referring to make my blood boil for exactly this reason. Because after someone goes to them they may distrust me. That said when people deal with me after being screwed by them I get longtime customers. |
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OR, USA
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Posted: 5/4/2024 1:39:59 PM EDT
[#11]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By smashedminer: Thing is , paying the 149.00 for an oil change at a oil change shop, shouldn't have been a problem. And because it was doesn't really justify the 249.00 for your shop as only reliable place. 13 quarts of Mobil and a filter is more than $149. They’re doing the work for free, in addition to using shit parts. It’s a work truck, even if the oil change guys pay for the engine they’re out a van for at least 2 weeks, probably 4. You’re paying for experience and an expectation that the job is done right. The guy doing roofs for 25% of the name brand probably doesn’t have the best reputation either. |
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OH, USA
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Posted: 5/4/2024 1:57:50 PM EDT
[#12]
Shop rates are stiff , getting charged list price for parts is getting it hard.
Replaced a coil pack on daughters Escape only to have a 2nd one go bad about a week later. Three coil packs & plugs ( Motorcraft ) from Rock Auto is WAY less than dealer list. List is $120 per coil / online for the same part is $60'ish. Seems like the new thing is anything you pull into the dealer service area they charge $130 diagnostic fee to plug in IDS or whatever they are using. That's a pretty good moneymaker just pulling in cars , plugging them in and giving them a quote. Fortunate I can do my own stuff , when/if I have time. |
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OH, USA
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Posted: 5/4/2024 2:02:01 PM EDT
[#13]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Idpapaperoperator: Honestly, the best option for people to can't fix stuff is to shop around. Lease is attractive for people that cannot fix or repair a vehicle. Its under warranty and turned in before you will need any major wear / replacement items. |
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Posted: 5/4/2024 2:49:59 PM EDT
[#14]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Detached: Go price out pads and rotors from your local parts store. What if you're doing rears and need the scan tool to release the emergency brake? Tool set for twist in calipers? Do you want a pad slap or silicone grease on your slide pins, new pad clips and the rust cleaned off the caliper so the clips fit right and the pads move correctly? And don’t price out the cheap stuff. decent pads start at 50 bucks and rotors are like 70-80 a piece. |
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WY, USA
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Posted: 5/4/2024 3:28:11 PM EDT
[#15]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By usmcdean: hhhaahaahaaa! Try spending 13-14 years being a gunsmith! "Wow, that much? I saw a youtube video and it looks easy." Glad I left the biz. No one, and I mean no fucking one is a bigger squeak than the average gun owner. I remember when I took one of my rifles in for a buffer tube replacement because I just moved and didn't have a bench set up or any of my tools to do it and when I just asked how much he wanted and handed him the cash he said "You aren't going to argue with me about the price?" People don't understand that a business exists to make money. |
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USA
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Posted: 5/4/2024 3:30:53 PM EDT
[Last Edit: Clockwork138]
[#16]
Originally Posted By mr_o: I'm probably going to catch hell for this but marking up the price of parts is bullshit. If my mechanic and myself can get the same Napa part for $150 then don't charge me $300 for the damn thing. Charge $150 with maybe a $30 delivery fee. If you're a great mechanic and a great shop I'd gladly pay a labor rate of $150-$175 an hour. Am I wrong dude? Am I wrong??? Yeah, I recently replaced an oil pressure switch on my beater EDD. $20 part from AutoZone and 5-minutes of work. After that didn't solve my issue(intermittent low oil pressure light), I took my car to the local shop. They then claimed their code reader indicated the issue was a faulty oil pressure switch and that it would be $250 for them to replace it. I get that a business has to have a mark-up and make a profit, but $250 for a $15-20 part and 5-minutes of work!? FWIW, after I informed them that I already replaced the switch, they stated I wouldn't owe them anything that if they determined that was not the issue. So I figured "Why not?" and let them swap it. The issue remained. They quoted me $300 to further diagnose. I declined and paid nothing. I guess they have to have quite a mark-up to make money if they're conducting a lot of that kind of "business". 
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Posted: 5/4/2024 4:06:02 PM EDT
[#17]
As a shop owner, I let my partner run the shop. I like cars to much to work on them all the time. My partner has a kinder heart than I do. To put up with people
 My answer is..."well, you could always walk" |
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Posted: 5/4/2024 4:13:20 PM EDT
[#18]
They aren't doing themselves any favors when they recommend replacing the dirty cabin air filter in my Jeep for the bargain price of $90, when I replaced it myself the prior month with a $6.95 filter from Amazon and 5 minutes of labor. And the Lexus dealer tried the same thing with my wife's vehicle not long before. Markup is one thing, but just straight out lying about the need for a repair or a particular maintenance item is likely why many people do not trust people in the profession.
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Posted: 5/4/2024 4:22:34 PM EDT
[#19]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By mr_o: I'm probably going to catch hell for this but marking up the price of parts is bullshit. If my mechanic and myself can get the same Napa part for $150 then don't charge me $300 for the damn thing. Charge $150 with maybe a $30 delivery fee. If you're a great mechanic and a great shop I'd gladly pay a labor rate of $150-$175 an hour. Am I wrong dude? Am I wrong??? Working capital for inventory cost money, the place to put the part costs money, the process of procuring the part costs money. That's why you are wrong. |
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Posted: 5/4/2024 4:41:37 PM EDT
[#20]
Went to the dealership for the 'complimentary' oil changes. Every time my cabin air filter needed replaced. The last time I went for oil change, the mechanic came out and said it again. I asked him what he did with the K&N washable lifetime filter that was in it. He says ohh wait a minute, I am talking to the wrong person. I meant to talk to that gentleman over there. Me saying to myself, uh-huh. Never went back.
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Posted: 5/4/2024 5:34:59 PM EDT
[#21]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By SteelonSteel: Ha, a local school employee came in to my friend’s shop with a self diagnosed problem of what was causing her car to run poorly. IIRC it was spark plugs and wires which didn’t fix the issue. Of course it wasn’t that and they called her that there was an issue with her valves and had gone so far to pop the valve cover off and identified the problem and called her before proceeding. She went on a tirade of them trying to screw her over and refused any further work. Wouldn’t listen. Wouldn’t pay for the work on the plugs and wires either......she brought her own parts along with her self diagnosis. Since the problem wasn’t gone, she refused to pay. My friend that owns the shop is in his eighties, He told her to drag her fat ass out of his shop. He doesn’t care. Same guy that fixes cars of widows and doesn’t charge them for the work except a token amount to keep their pride payment for a “minor adjustment” and eats the parts and work or simply says not to worry this time. Firing customers is sometimes a good thing. This thread is full of whining fat assed nancies who know so fucking much about what other people do. As to the farmers, they are the same everywhere you go, experts on everything, yet their stuff is always broken! You want to know why it costs so much to fix a car? Because we have to deal with the vehicle owner. People are the very worst part of this business, by a large margin. Sheesh. |
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Posted: 5/4/2024 5:37:46 PM EDT
[#22]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By BillofRights: We’ve had a number of threads on this. Pretty common for Mechanics to make $250,000 and more. Lie. |
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Posted: 5/4/2024 5:42:26 PM EDT
[#23]
A while back my dad and I replaced the AC compressor in my grandfather’s Accord and told him to take it into a real AC shop to have it charged to spec rather than us wing dinging it with cans and a kitchen scale. The Honda dealership told him the AC didn’t work because “the compressor clutch is missing.”
lol what |
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Posted: 5/4/2024 5:43:40 PM EDT
[#24]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By cmw: That's a comfortable rationalization - however most people would think it more reasonable to set the rate accordingly rather than use a If you use that vast experience only to make more profit on the jobs without passing some of the benefit on to the customer don't be surprised when they take the work to someone else to save $2. Commit to an equal or lower estimate with a better warranty -based on your higher hourly rate- and I'll believe you believe you're better and "worth more". So what happens when you’re rusted out, beat to death, piece of shit shows up and every bolt is rusted to the point of breaking off? You never took care of the care but now I should do the job for half of book rate, because your friend said it doesn’t take that long? What a fucking joke. |
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Posted: 5/4/2024 5:44:03 PM EDT
[#25]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By nandoz: This thread is full of whining fat assed nancies who know so fucking much about what other people do. As to the farmers, they are the same everywhere you go, experts on everything, yet their stuff is always broken! You want to know why it costs so much to fix a car? Because we have to deal with the vehicle owner. People are the very worst part of this business, by a large margin. Sheesh. Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By nandoz: Originally Posted By SteelonSteel: Ha, a local school employee came in to my friend’s shop with a self diagnosed problem of what was causing her car to run poorly. IIRC it was spark plugs and wires which didn’t fix the issue. Of course it wasn’t that and they called her that there was an issue with her valves and had gone so far to pop the valve cover off and identified the problem and called her before proceeding. She went on a tirade of them trying to screw her over and refused any further work. Wouldn’t listen. Wouldn’t pay for the work on the plugs and wires either......she brought her own parts along with her self diagnosis. Since the problem wasn’t gone, she refused to pay. My friend that owns the shop is in his eighties, He told her to drag her fat ass out of his shop. He doesn’t care. Same guy that fixes cars of widows and doesn’t charge them for the work except a token amount to keep their pride payment for a “minor adjustment” and eats the parts and work or simply says not to worry this time. Firing customers is sometimes a good thing. This thread is full of whining fat assed nancies who know so fucking much about what other people do. As to the farmers, they are the same everywhere you go, experts on everything, yet their stuff is always broken! You want to know why it costs so much to fix a car? Because we have to deal with the vehicle owner. People are the very worst part of this business, by a large margin. Sheesh. Incidentally, the inverse is also true. The absolute worst part of taking your car to a shop is dealing with the people that work there. |
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Posted: 5/4/2024 5:55:26 PM EDT
[#26]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By mr_o: I'm probably going to catch hell for this but marking up the price of parts is bullshit. If my mechanic and myself can get the same Napa part for $150 then don't charge me $300 for the damn thing. Charge $150 with maybe a $30 delivery fee. If you're a great mechanic and a great shop I'd gladly pay a labor rate of $150-$175 an hour. Am I wrong dude? Am I wrong??? You are wrong. I have to pay the parts supplier a subscription fee to get warranty periods longer than 90 days. And I have to figure in the cost of replacing shit parts for free when your brat teenager decides to drive the shit out of the car, and you show up telling how your kid is a safe driver. Oh and my union dues to the international brotherhood of crooked mechanics. |
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Posted: 5/4/2024 6:01:52 PM EDT
[#27]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By HurtzDoughnut: If you’re a doctor, lawyer, mechanic, or in the trades, you’re ALWAYS going to have people coming at you for discounted or free work or advice. It got so bad for me having people wanting me to work on their cars for a few beers (I don’t drink) or a lousy pizza on my time off, that I just started handing people my business card and said “make an appointment at work.” I’ve had friends and family that would call at all hours, even as late as midnight on a work night for free advice or “could you possibly come over and look at it?” It’s just something you get used to, which reminds me I need to get the parts ready to work on my granddaughters car this weekend. Sheeeeeeit. I’m an upper level manager in tech. People hear that and want me to help them sort out their phone or get some malware off their computer or recover some photos or ask “what’s the best XYZ and how do you set it up?” Sure I can do that. But not for free unless you are family. |
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Posted: 5/4/2024 6:15:12 PM EDT
[#28]
AC went out in my 2015 Mustang GT. $1800 for new compressor and labor. $900 was the compressor. I’m a little upset over the cost of the compressor, not the labor. I’ve done this in the past. It’s a pain in the ass.
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Posted: 5/4/2024 6:19:26 PM EDT
[#29]
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Posted: 5/4/2024 6:39:44 PM EDT
[#30]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By AgeOne: Youz guyz and your $500 brake jobs  https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/317810/1000007207_png-3205575.JPG You know, that’s a whole lot of WTF right there. Like my buddy that was quoted $15,000 for new cats on his old BMW. |
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Posted: 5/4/2024 8:43:48 PM EDT
[#31]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By DayandNight1701: We don't unless you approve the work. Generally it's based on the schedule provided by the manufacture; which we show you up front. Yes, you have to change your spark plugs. We go by the manufactures suggested interval. We're all just working. I'm not going to pull a coil and plug to try and sell you plugs. Stop taking your car to Jiffylube. Really. What manufacturer you working for? I’ve been at Honda for about two years now. Will probably stay there for the life of my career. |
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IN, USA
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Posted: 5/4/2024 8:51:03 PM EDT
[#32]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By HurtzDoughnut: If you’re a doctor, lawyer, mechanic, or in the trades, you’re ALWAYS going to have people coming at you for discounted or free work or advice. It got so bad for me having people wanting me to work on their cars for a few beers (I don’t drink) or a lousy pizza on my time off, that I just started handing people my business card and said “make an appointment at work.” I’ve had friends and family that would call at all hours, even as late as midnight on a work night for free advice or “could you possibly come over and look at it?” It’s just something you get used to, which reminds me I need to get the parts ready to work on my granddaughters car this weekend. Holy shit, this. I'm glad I do restoration work now. I can say "ehhh, I'm not sure about these newer cars..., might need a scanner...nope,...don't have one of those...they're like 10 grand to buy" |
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MN, USA
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Posted: 5/4/2024 8:54:19 PM EDT
[#33]
This may have been mentioned in the last 6 pages but…
Why does everyone think health care should be a “right.” |
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OK, USA
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Posted: 5/4/2024 9:14:40 PM EDT
[#34]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By DayandNight1701: But you're good with the $3000 water heater job that you could install yourself for $900 all in? Fuck it. Go get some jack stands and a jack from harbor freight. Oh, you're doing rear pads? That requires at least some kind of scan tool that can retract the calipers. What's that cost? Say Autel? The cheapest of the cheap. $1500, min. Oh, we can get it done for you in a few hours because we have a $14,000 hoist so we don't have to drag a harbor freight floor jack across the shop. I thought it would be easier to use an air compressor...that requires a plumber to run the air lines from the compressor to the shop. Oh, I had to pay the electrician another few thou to wire up that air compressor and the rest of the shop. I loves telling clients like you to DIY and good luck. You drive a 70 Camaro or 2014 Camry? Then why are you commenting in the post? Why do you seem so butthurt? I think in general people just don’t want to get ripped off. Most people have no idea how much your profit margin is, and you aren’t your books to show them so they’re going to be a bit leery especially given auto shops don’t have the greatest reputation. |
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Posted: 5/4/2024 9:29:24 PM EDT
[#35]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By MK3110: Why do auto mechanics want to charge $70 to open a cabin air filter box and replace the one they’ve already removed? To Make up time for all the jobs they get fucked on. There has to be a balance otherwise your mechanic would never make any money and quit. How can you tell a flat rate mechanic he’s going to get paid 8 hours to put a set of rings in an engine on a car that’s in an extended warranty from the manufacturer, then bitch he’s making too much money on the jobs that’s are simple. |
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Posted: 5/4/2024 9:44:46 PM EDT
[#36]
Shit, $10.80 labor for my last brake, actually the last few brake jobs.
Oil change and rotate, same, but I give him a $20 with the $10.80. Front quick struts, $10.80, but I gave him an $80 tip on that job. He’s always doing my shit for $10.80 here, $10.80 there. Funny, those Costco pizzas are a damn good form of payment. The Burger King bundle, 3 Whoppers, 3 burgers, and 3 fries, will get a three man tag team on your ride for a major service. |
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OR, USA
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Posted: 5/4/2024 9:45:27 PM EDT
[Last Edit: Raccoonwhisperer]
[#37]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By King_Mud: I do my own mechanic work. I do my own remodels. I do my own plumbing. I do my own HVAC. Thread fail.  Also having a Professional Engineer (PE) stamp.... "The city says I need a PE stamp on this drawing I scribbled out of my two story addition, can you just stamp it for me? The place I went to wants too much money and wants to redraw it. I know it will be strong enough, you don't have to calculate anything, I just need you to stamp it" |
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NH, USA
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Posted: 5/4/2024 9:51:12 PM EDT
[#38]
All the mechanics in this thread explaining the many reasons they're totally justified ripping customers off only makes me hate your profession more. The vast majority of professionals out there make money just fine without lying to their customers but you guys really seem to accept it as just a perk of your trade and then wonder why everyone hates you.
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NM, USA
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Posted: 5/4/2024 9:52:08 PM EDT
[#39]
You guys charge what you like, I do my own work. I have my 608 Universal cert and 609 Cert to do my own hvac repairs. I'm also a plumber and carpenter. I do my own electric, pull my own wire for sub panels. I have worked on my own cars for over 30 years and rebuild transmissions and engines, set up my own ring and pinions, brakes are simple fixes.
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Posted: 5/4/2024 10:08:09 PM EDT
[#40]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By icecold1: buy a hellcat with brembos, then 500 seems like a deal, dealer quoted 4500 for brakes...lol Yep, same with a lot of Sierra owners that pop for the Brembo brake kit. Shit gets real when they come in for their first brake job. |
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VT, USA
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Posted: 5/5/2024 1:26:17 AM EDT
[#41]
I’m a Toyota parts guy. To anyone that complained about parts markup. Think about this for a second. All the service contract oil changes that the sales department sells along with new cars, they are price fixed and it’s barely what the oil and filters cost us. Oil is our biggest mover of “parts”. Our department has its own overhead and it pays our salary and our portion of the overhead for the entire dealership comes from our own profit. So yeah, parts markup is necessary. We spend a lot of time building quotes on repairs and maintenance and only make money on the jobs that are approved, the rest of the time we’re basically working for “free” so that is also part of it.
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Posted: 5/5/2024 1:30:57 AM EDT
[#42]
I got out of working as a mechanic because it wasn't worth it.
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USA
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Posted: 5/5/2024 1:41:35 AM EDT
[#43]
I'd just like the stupid fucks to do the actual work I hired them to do.
I posted back in January about my car's power steering going out. I dropped the car off at a mechanic, asking him to fix whatever was wrong with that, and as long as he had the car in his shop, to replace the timing belt. Also, to figure out why I can't get the transmission to go into reverse, which has happened before and has always been some problem with aligning some pins which is a minor adjustment (don't ask me, that's just what the previous multiple shops have told me, and they always got it working for a couple hundred bucks, most of which was their basic figure-it-out fee). He said it would take about a week. A week later I call expecting to find out when I can pick it up. Wow, how stupid of me, he meant it would take him a week once he started working on it, which was still several weeks away. Oh, and by the way, he'd shown it to the transmission guy he shares the building with, and the transmission guy has decided it must be a major problem requiring replacement of the entire transmission.  Two weeks later, he calls me and tells me that the car isn't worth bothering with and that he's not going to do the timing belt (he sort of half-sarcastically offered to do it for 180% of his original quote), but he replaced the spark plugs and the wiring and he demands I come and pick it up immediately because he wants it off his lot, and by the way he was able to get it to go into reverse without any problem so there's nothing wrong with the transmission. So I pick it up and take it home. Still can't get it into reverse. Still has the original timing belt, which still needs to be replaced. But now it's also got a coolant leak, which only started after he took everything out to do the power steering, and which he insists isn't his fault, and which he refused to fix along with the timing belt because he thinks the car isn't worth it.
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Posted: 5/5/2024 1:53:37 AM EDT
[#44]
Another thing that annoys me is when a shop tries to upsell a new cabin air filter... on a car that doesn't have one.
Or when they put the tech that can't drive stick in charge of pulling your car in, and then tell you you need a new clutch (that was painful to watch). Or that your brake fluid needs changed 5k miles after the same shop already did the work, in order to make money on that free oil change offer they sent you. Or when they want to charge you 1k or so to replace the oil pan they fucked up when the tech over torqued the drain bolt. And then proceeds to blame the last shop on over tightening it (they were the last shop, and the one before, and the one before etc...) Or when they tell you your tie rods are seized, so they can't complete the alignment. So then they try and sell you new ones. But you just installed new ones, and that's why you are there for an alignment. If the mechanic expects you to pay for stuff that's not needed, is it not fair to expect free work every now and then?
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Posted: 5/5/2024 2:06:44 AM EDT
[#45]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Foxtrot08: I still maintain my certification from bendix on air drum and air disk brakes. I still maintain a class A cdl with all the endorsements. If I'm working on my semi trucks or driving them, then shit is in really bad shape. Paying employees is different than paying a shop as a customer. You set the rate versus them setting the rate. |
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MT, USA
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Posted: 5/5/2024 2:32:15 AM EDT
[#46]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By King_Mud: I do my own mechanic work. I do my own remodels. I do my own plumbing. I do my own HVAC. Thread fail. What makes you think the plumber, electrician and HVAC guys don't take sh*t for their bills. The thing with mechanics is they use a “time book” for repairs and then use either the book or the actual time to repair that works in their favor. If the book says 3 hours and it takes the 4 on a brake job, they bill me $600, but if it takes them 90 minutes I'm billed $450, not $225. |
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OK, USA
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Posted: 5/5/2024 2:49:53 AM EDT
[#47]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By woodsie: Working capital for inventory cost money, the place to put the part costs money, the process of procuring the part costs money. That's why you are wrong. Depends on the part, but if it’s coming from NAPA none of that applies since NAPA has already baked all of that into the cost, and probably delivers to the shop. I worked in the industry several years ago, and most shops were sold parts at a discounted rate depending on how much they were buying. For a high volume shop that discounted rate might have been 20-30%. They could sell the parts to the customer for retail, and make that 20-30% in profit. Marking the parts up more than that seems a little scummy considering there’s literally zero overhead in that case. |
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OK, USA
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Posted: 5/5/2024 2:55:49 AM EDT
[#48]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By HK-GUY45: To Make up time for all the jobs they get fucked on. There has to be a balance otherwise your mechanic would never make any money and quit. How can you tell a flat rate mechanic he’s going to get paid 8 hours to put a set of rings in an engine on a car that’s in an extended warranty from the manufacturer, then bitch he’s making too much money on the jobs that’s are simple. If he’s getting fucked by the warranty company that’s between him, his employer, and the warranty company. It isn’t fair to fuck over a random customer in response. |
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Posted: 5/5/2024 3:51:34 AM EDT
[#49]
to make up for all the times they ripped people off?
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Posted: 5/5/2024 6:30:25 AM EDT
[#50]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By scuba_steve: They aren't doing themselves any favors when they recommend replacing the dirty cabin air filter in my Jeep for the bargain price of $90, when I replaced it myself the prior month with a $6.95 filter from Amazon and 5 minutes of labor. And the Lexus dealer tried the same thing with my wife's vehicle not long before. Markup is one thing, but just straight out lying about the need for a repair or a particular maintenance item is likely why many people do not trust people in the profession. The gravy easy money where it's a quick and simple thing . Like your examples. An inflated time and high markup on parts on an unnecessary repair. |
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