Car and Truck Repair Skyrocketing Costs

[sandman2234]

Wife came home with a serious noise coming from the engine compartment. Said She heard it, and it got louder the closer to home She got. Car is a 2012 with 153K on the odometer. I rented a car dollie and hauled it to Hyundai dealership.
New motor is in the works. The dealership gave us an estimate of things that needed to be done while the engine is out. However, in calling other Hyundai dealerships, it appears their prices are equal to or more than what the same work would cost with the motor still in it. Things like coolant hoses and heater hoses where the only additional labor is a single hose clamp. Some of it is expensive and it decreases the amount of labor required! Still not cheap!
The current rate is $210 an hour to a high of $265 was the admitted rates, until I called one of them back to clarify something and the $265 was corrected to $295! Before I presented my findings to the dealership, I was informed that their current rate is $330 and hour. 4 fuel injectors can be bought at their competitors for $1025 but my dealership the same 4 injectors are over $1600!
David from jax

 

[dodge man]

You owe that body shop guy a hamburger, WITH fries!

That's spectacular and unusual customer service.

That was nice of them. I did give them business twice in the past but the guy that found me the tailgate didn’t know that.

 

[Hay Dude]

Ready for this?
My IH 7500 9.3L diesel (HT570) was pressurizing the coolant system. Went through everything and determined head gasket failure. When a modern diesel loses a head gasket, so much has to be unbolted: exhaust manifold (all bolts rusted, broke off) turbo, egr cooler, etc. Head was not cracked and was resurfaced. Needed new gasket, bolts, exhaust manifold kit, turbo mounting gaskets, etc. I was busy and took it to the most affordable shop I could. I got “good buddy” labor rate of $130/hr.

And it was still $9,000

I remember rebuilding an entire engine for $3,000. I must be gettin old.
Owning heavy equipment ain’t for the faint of heart.

 

[Blue Mule]

Well, inflation caused the costs of everything to double in the last 4 years. So obviously parts are going to be higher but labor is also much higher because those people have to pay for items to live on like we do. So it's a double whammy. To add insult to injury, here in KY they changed tax law a few years ago and now we have to pay tax on labor AND parts.

It is wise to learn how to do as much as you can at home. I try to do all the work I possibly can do. I do have access to a 2-post lift and that makes life easier. But a guy just can't afford to pay to have work done anymore unless it's a critical necessity.

 

[pmsmechanic]

If you are looking for used parts I've found car-part.com to be a good resource. The site is quick and very easy to use. Automobile recyclers from all over North America post their parts availability.

 

[R134a]

I do most of my own work, have not had anything major done in a while, the last was condenser coil on 2015 Silverado for $900. I must be out of touch from what I'm hearing. Same truck at 124k miles and their telling me ticking time bomb for the transmission to fail.

Some recent horror stories from coworkers using local reputable shops:
2017 Tahoe transmission 145k miles, $4500
2017 Ford Escape transmission $5000, it's front wheel drive!
2008 Ford Explorer water pump $5000, must drop engine?

Share your experiences if you wish.

Some Ford engines have an internal water pump. Labor intensive job to replace a $40 part.

 

[ultrarunner]

Heard a clunking yesterday when I took the Range Rover in for smog check…. Smog Check ok and cost $59.95.

Left front air strut failed so it was almost like a 3 wheel vehicle with the left front wheel carrying almost no load.

Dealer is $2800

I’m thinking after market parts for $600 and swap in the driveway.

Labor plus the added shop fees ain’t no joke.

I use to rebuild my own motors and replace axle and transmission bearings, clutches, timing chains and painted a few cars.

Not so much to save money more so it would not get screwed up like missing oil plug, snapping wheel studs or using the wrong transmission fluid…

 

[Hay Dude]

Well, inflation caused the costs of everything to double in the last 4 years. So obviously parts are going to be higher but labor is also much higher because those people have to pay for items to live on like we do. So it's a double whammy. To add insult to injury, here in KY they changed tax law a few years ago and now we have to pay tax on labor AND parts.

It is wise to learn how to do as much as you can at home. I try to do all the work I possibly can do. I do have access to a 2-post lift and that makes life easier. But a guy just can't afford to pay to have work done anymore unless it's a critical necessity.

I try to explain this to customers when I try to raise my prices.
They look at me like “I thought inflation was like 5-10%”

 

[LD1]

I try and do as much mechanical work as I can as well....obviously shop rates are expensive.

Problem is so much electronics and computers. I'd say the vast majority of "problems" (not maintenance items like brakes, battery, belts, etc) is electrical.

And one cannot even find wiring schematics for vehicles anymore unless you pay big $$$ for a subscription service like mitchell or alldata.

Gone are the days of a full wiring schematic in the back of a chilton book.

And to make matters even worse....lots of proprietary computer crap that even good scantools like autel or snapon cant access or get through without paying a manufacture for the rights.

 

[Tinhack]

Two years ago I put a full height, vertical crease in the tailgate of my beloved Taco Wagon. Dead center.

So into the body bender shop. Figured they would strip it down - pound it out - repaint. NO WAY. Brand new tailgate. Needed to be painted, all the electronics installed and all new decals. The word - RAM - $300. The two words - Power Wagon - $50 per letter.

Almost fainted when I saw the bill. $2800. Insurance company didn't even flinch. What is this world coming to.

The age of replace and paint started many years ago. Not only is it hard to find competent metal-work employees but also the new steels make it impossible to straighten or do metal work. In most cases, damaged panels have to be cut out and new panels welded or glued in. That's why insurance keeps going up. You can just about count on about $1000 per fender, $2000 per door, $3-4000 for a quarter panel, $1200 per air bag, and there could be as many as 15 going off in a rollover. And that doesn't count mechanical damage. Insurance companies would rather total a vehicle rather than repair it.