Help! Did I just get screwed by the shop????

[on-ramp]

Some of you may have read my earlier post on my transaxle woes..... car is an 83 sc (euro)

915 Trans. on 83sc , SNAP CRACKLE POP!!!! WWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Well, I picked up the car from the shop tonight and was going over the bill, it's as follows:

PARTS:

CV Boots (2) $74.77
CV Joint Gasket (2) $28.88
Axle Assembly $350.00
CV Joint (2) $204.52

TOTAL PARTS = $656

LABOR:

Install New Axle assembly = 1/2 hr , $32.50

Remove, clean, inspect, repack and reinstall
passenger side axle assembly assembly, 2.5 Hrs $162.50


TOTAL PARTS & LABOR = $850.


Now I'm thinking, wouldn't it have been cheaper and better just to install 2 brand new axle assemblies???
Parts would be 2 x $350 = 700
plus labor (1 hr) $65.....total parts and labor = $765

WTF!!???

[ipapilot]

Yep. Sorry. Just another reason to DIY. Think of it as quality time with your other love.

[J Smith]

Brand new axles from Pelican about $280, complete with everything

Says it all right here: "Replace your bent or damaged axle with a brand new one! Includs new CV joints and boots on both ends ($180 value). Save yourself a tremendous amount of labor by purchasing a complete bolt-in axle. Spend more time working on all of those other problems!"

Axle page

That's shady. Give them s**t!

[Jim Sims]

$14.44 for a $1.25 gasket!

Depends what your time is worth per hour; if you earn more than $83 per hour, then no.

Rough economics:
$850-$600 (parts from Pelican) divided by .75 (to account for the taxes you'll pay on your earnings) equals $333 divided by four hours to purchase parts plus be inefficient because you are a DIY equals ~$83 per hour. One actually will "earn" more per hour because one doesn't have to waste the time taking the car to and from the shop.

Even making mistakes one can save large amounts DIY. Jim

[gr8fl4porsche]

I purchased (2) CV boots from a local Euro parts house for about $35.00. 130% markup on parts does sound a little high.

[on-ramp]

well, I already gave them a check and signed the paperwork (invoice and copy).... what are my options now?

[niner11]

It is more than just the dollar figure for me. 83 dollars and hour is secondary to the point of overpaying. I had a similar experience with an A/C job on my 911. I now do just about everything myself. I don't think that most shops are out to screw you----------it just works out that way sometimes.

(I'm with ya Jim, Just a slow reader I guess)

[surflvr911sc]

At thier prices for both axle replacements it would have been...

CV Boots (4) $149.54
CV Joint Gasket (4) $57.76
Axle Assembly (2) $700.00
CV Joint (4) $409.04

TOTAL PARTS = $1316.34

LABOR:

Install New Axle assemblies = 1 hr , $65.00

WAY TO MUCH!

You could have done it for under $500, had two New axles, new bolts and washers, and it would have taken maybe half a day. That's why I'm here.

[larry47us]

Originally posted by on-ramp
well, I already gave them a check and signed the paperwork (invoice and copy).... what are my options now?

On-Ramp, your options are very limited to:

1. Never go to that shop again.
2. Say bad things about the shop to all of your Pfriends.
3. Call them and tell them that you think that you were asked to bend over without even a kiss and see if they will do something about it

Sorry for the sad news.

larry

[on-ramp]

surflvr911sc (Ryan),

the complete axle ($350) already includes the boots, 2 cv joints, and gasket....so both axles would cost $700 in parts (2 complete axles) and 1 hr labor. ($65)

That comes to $765
(see original post)

am I missing something?

[surflvr911sc]

Originally posted by on-ramp

CV Boots (2) $74.77
CV Joint Gasket (2) $28.88
Axle Assembly $350.00
CV Joint (2) $204.52

TOTAL PARTS = $656

LABOR:

Install New Axle assembly = 1/2 hr , $32.50




TOTAL PARTS & LABOR = $850.

I don't get why they charged you for

Remove, clean, inspect, repack and reinstall
passenger side axle assembly assembly, 2.5 Hrs $162.50

if they installed new CV joints on the right side. Seems very fishy. It looks more to me like the left side axle assembly was ordered piece by piece and the right one was just inspected, cleaned, repacked, and reassembled. But who would do that, and how could the left cost that much even in pieces?

[on-ramp]

surflvr911sc (Ryan),

The new complete axle assembly was installed on the driver's side .....Everything else was done on the other side (they kept the old shaft and replaced the 2 cv joints, gasket, and boot with new). Hope that makes it a bit clearer.

[surflvr911sc]

Then I ask again, why did the labor cost so much on the right side? Old stuff off, new stuff on, some grease, and slam it on.

You are right though, if the right side needed all of that why didn't they replace the whole assembly, or just screw you on the left side as well, at least it would have been even. Did the right side axle shaft break or something? Doubt it. I'm sure it's very rare that they are ever replaced, other than it's cheaper to do the whole assembly, unless you're doing the work yourself, of course.

[on-ramp]

Originally posted by surflvr911sc
Then I ask again, why did the labor cost so much on the right side? Old stuff off, new stuff on, some grease, and slam it on.

.

that's exactly my point.....they could've just replaced the whole damn axle for 350 and be done with it.

I brought it to their place last week hoping for a recommendation from a professional shop that knows these cars, to get a fair assessment of the problem and recieve good service. what i got was this..... but that's not the whole story.

I also asked for a 4 wheel alignment (car needed that) and paid an additional $200 for it.
After i picked up the car, however, i noticed that if I have the steering wheel EXACTLY
centered, the car vears off to the right. I called them about this and they offered to have the car brought back on Monday to re-adjust the wheel to center position. Other than that, the driveability from alignment is fine.

[jmohn]

Although I'm opposing what is, apparently, popular opinion here, the answer to your original question "Did I just get screwed by the shop???? " is NO. You paid what I would consider average shop labor rates and average retail price for parts. The shop did what you, presumably, wanted them to do, and they charged the going market rate. As others have advised, this is one of the reasons so many of us "do it ourselves" (two other good reasons are: we can make wiser decisions on where and which parts to buy, and we have the satisfaction of knowing the repair was done correctly).


Jerry M
'78 SC

[surflvr911sc]

I would politely talk to them about it and see what kind of answer you get. If you get the feeling they are betting on you not knowing any better than the best you can probably do is never go there again. Maybe JW or somebody w/ a shop might be able to point something we're missing but it seems like BS to me.

Have you messed w/ your steering rack lately? Other than that I would say they screwed up the alignment and that would be danger sign number two. If things don’t change, I would want to try for three if I were you.

Good luck w/ it, I know some guys don’t want to wrench their own cars for many different reasons. That’s another reason this board is important, so guys can help others out on where to go. Don’t be afraid to post the name if things don’t turn out right, and shoot, post the name if they end up really taking care of you, guys need that info just as much.

[Early_S_Man]

I agree with Jerry ... I assume you wanted it fixed quickly, so you paid a LOT for that quick service and the satisfaction of getting the car running again in a hurry ...

I don't recall anyone on this board suggesting that you have it towed to a shop, or having it fixed there! You made that decision alone.

[surflvr911sc]

I agree w/ you guys that he didn’t get “screwed”, but I think he might have been taken advantage of a little bit. Some will see that as very different, others will say there is no difference.

If I decide to get breast implants and the Dr. decides to charge me 100k instead of 5k because I’m a guy and don’t know any better, I’d be screwed!

[GrindingGears]

I recently had to get mt CV joints replaced. They quoted me $109 for each. I told them I had a source (Pelican) that could get 'em cheaper and wanted to use my own parts. They were more than happy to let me bring my own parts in. So what I'm saying is that $204 for the joints isn't uncommon.

[sundaypunch]

Whether it's a mechanic, plumber, electrician, etc. there is always a premium when you pay to make the problem go away. It just seems much worse when you understand what's really involved and how cheaply some parts can be found if you shop around. In hindsight, you probably should have confronted them with your numbers after getting their estimate and prior to them doing the work. We've all been in the same boat at one time or another.