So I believe like most on these forums I do nearly all my own work on vehicles. So I don't have a good frame of reference what certain repairs etc cost when going to a shop. Unfortunately I had an accident that rendered my left hand incapacitated at the moment. We are leaving for a trip in less than a week and the lower control arm ball joints have some play in them that I wanted to get done before this 5500 mile trip. So not being able to do it myself at the moment I went to a local well respected shop to get the lower control arms replaced. 5 hours @ $215/hr plus $964 for parts (both front lower control arms). Total over $2k! bit of sticker shock like I said as I don't use shops hardly at all. Unfortunately the parts are likely to be cheap replacements instead of OEM. they warranty whatever parts they get from their supplier (including labor to replace) but if they have to get parts elsewhere (OE or aftermarket improvements) the warranty would be whatever the mfg provided but they wouldn't warranty the labor to replace if they had issues. so I took a chance with their supplier parts to have the full warranty. The estimate references Moog RK620888 and RK620889 which are the cheap line not the problem solver line that I would prefer. Kinda stuck in place where I need it done but not able to do it myself. I feel for people that have to pay these prices on a regular basis. Glad I can (usually) do all my own work.
Repair Shop Costs!
- Thread starter BigDogYJ
- Start date
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Length of warranty and is it warrantied anywhere else in the USA? You said local shop well respected shop earns that respect if they have quality techs that they pay more to keep there. The labor fee seems high but you said local and "Earth" I heard is pricey. Does the total price include an alignment? Prices for labor and mark up on parts cover, wages, electrical, gas, haz mat fees, insurance, equipment, medical coverage, rent, taxes....etc.
Yes, it is expensive. No doubt.
Yes, it is expensive. No doubt.
Yeah local in California. I know I know....
They are local and well respected, but warranty would be local only. Alignment is additional $165. I know things cost money, just crazy how it adds up for what seems pretty basic. I'm also not sure what I think about marking up a part 250% to cover cost of running a business. I can understand if the labor rate is higher to cover that. but I would assume a moderate markup on parts to "provide warranty coverage" to be acceptable. but I don't know. I'm old school and usually do a lot of things myself. Just something I'm gonna have to get used to as I get older and busier. haha. hopefully it's still cheaper than paying $$$$ for a new rig.
Now I have to convince my wife how valuable I am with my newfound insight. Heck I just realized I was a lot more valuable. Hmmmm....
They are local and well respected, but warranty would be local only. Alignment is additional $165. I know things cost money, just crazy how it adds up for what seems pretty basic. I'm also not sure what I think about marking up a part 250% to cover cost of running a business. I can understand if the labor rate is higher to cover that. but I would assume a moderate markup on parts to "provide warranty coverage" to be acceptable. but I don't know. I'm old school and usually do a lot of things myself. Just something I'm gonna have to get used to as I get older and busier. haha. hopefully it's still cheaper than paying $$$$ for a new rig.
Now I have to convince my wife how valuable I am with my newfound insight. Heck I just realized I was a lot more valuable. Hmmmm....
Linda thanks me at least once a week for taking care of her 2002 Trailblazer. She loves it and at 78k miles, it is a great vehicle for her. I was in the shops for 45+ years. 10 as a tech and the rest, running them. I have seen labor rates and parts prices rise and rise. I have also had to see the shop expenses rise and accumulate because of city and state ordinances, taxes, fees....you name it. I was almost a partner in a shop in KC, Mo. area and then I did find out that the highest monthly expense was insurance.
May be different now but that was scary.
I do my work at home but I am not set up for some things. My age and no lift and other things can limit me. I have found a couple shops I can trust, to send my customers to and even use myself. They let my customers supply parts that I get for them, with no parts warranty. They get a discount on labor because I negotiated it. I also can supply my own parts and they give me a military discount.
If you say they make a 250% markup on parts, does that mean you know what the part costs them?
My 250% number was based on prices from summit racing. So I assume a shop gets better pricing via wholesale suppliers than what I would get from summit. But I used that as a basis instead of Amazon or rock auto which likely have better pricing.
