I was going thru the old maintenance records that came with my car and after looking at what the dealer charges, I'm glad I do my own wrenching.
Here's a few examples (amounts are parts & labor not including tax):

Timing belt replacement $369
Catalytic converter & O2 sensor $1434
Front brakes & rotors $565
Blower motor $492
Drivers window regulator $630

I guess some people just go to the dealer for every little thing. I only go if it's a computer part that needs re-programmed. Glad somebody else had this stuff done.... less I have to worry about.

 

some people just go to the dealer for every little thing,and so do I

 

Heck, just imagine what is cost to run that service center for just 1 day. The only problems I have is when they charge $140 per hour just because they are the only dealer in town or when they don't fix things.

 

Over a variety of brands my experiences have been very positive with dealers. High price but good work. I used to do alot of my own work but now live in a condo where it isn't allowed.

Dealers have their purpose as do independant garages, but independents worry me more - some of them put crap parts in or don't know the cars well .

 

Heck, some of the dealers do not know the older models well. Most of their work in on the newer cars, especially with warranty work (their cash cow). Some dealers tell older car owners high prices just so they'll leave and take the car somewhere else.

The one here told a lady that her radio light bulbs could not be replaced. They sell the bulbs for $22 each. Heck, I replaced all 5 bulbs for $18 (bulbs) and $25. They tried to sell her a NEW stereo.

 

Warranty work is NOT our cash cow. Customer pay work is always better. If you look around on the internet, you'll find horror stories about the dealer and about indy shops. In a lot of cases, I would bet the person posting the story doesn't know the exact situation (how things work, etc). I won't get into the whole dealer vs. indy shop debate, as I am certainly biased. But I will say I have seen plenty of terrible work done at indy shops.

 

+1 to what ES6T said. If anything dealers will try to avoid warranty work because they will get paid the flat rate for the job plus maybe straight time for diags. I.e. they're getting paid by volvo, much more difficult to inflate the bill and get away with it.

Been out of the pro wrenching game for some years now but i've worked at both indys and dealers in my past life. Trust me; there are good and bad techs at both!!

Best value: find a good indy shop and/or do your own work. If your car is under warranty then take it in for the warranty work, but if you let them do the services, you're wasting your money. Sorry ES6T, but you know it's true. If you're a really good tech and honest (or not), you'll either move up the corporate ladder, or start your own shop.

 

I had a customer that works at our local dealer and a friend that works at a dealer in a nearby town and they both say that they do more warranty work than anything. They claim they prefer warranty work because the customer doesn't whine about the cost and they don't get crazy when they replace a part that doesn't fix the problem. Maybe they don't know what's really going on.

I have actually seen a couple of dealers recommend indi shops for older cars. I know a couple have sent me away. I know that would not have happened if my car was under warranty.

 

Yes. Warranty or recall, go to the dealer. It's their problem.
And do your own work if possible. In my original post, I listed the blower motor. On the receipt I found, it says, "Customer states blower motor will not shut off.... Replace blower motor." In another thread, "Hudini" posted a cheap fix for it by replacing the transistor on the resistor. (Think it's a $5 part from Radio Shack.) If you're not good at soldering then go to NAPA. It's about $60 and has a 3 year warranty. Either one is better than paying the dealer $492 +tax.

 

Doing a lot of warranty work doesn't make it a cash cow. We make less on warranty work. I can't imagine a tech ever saying they prefer warranty work. And no, it isn't because we can "inflate the bill" with customer pay work. There are standard times guides that dictate how much labor should be charged for a job. It isn't like we make it up. (Some dishonest techs may not follow this, but that can happen at a dealer or independent shop alike).

I am a good tech and would never want to move up the ladder because I wouldn't want to deal with customers. I would open a shop, but it isn't cheap and is quite risky. I do just fine and don't cheat the customers. Being able to beat book time doesn't mean I'm dishonest.

The blower motor example is a good example of people not understanding how it works at a dealer. We do not take things apart to rebuilt them electrically because we cannot give a warranty for a repair like that. Furthermore, if the blower motor would not stop and the fix was to replace it, that has nothing to do with the blower control unit (resistor). It would mean the motor was shorted internally.

Its more about finding am honest tech than where you find them. I have seen so many cars come from independent shops that were royally messed up you wouldn't believe it. And I have seen dishonest guys or guys who don't know what they are doing at the dealer level. It is also important to ask questions. If the tech is recommending something be replaced, ask to see why. I have had plenty of skeptical "the-internet-says-the-dealership-is-a-ripoff" customers have me show them what's wrong and I have no problem doing so. I wish every customer would do that because not only do they normally buy the work, but I want them to buy the work knowing it was actually needed.

 

Again +1, and well said too!!

 

That would be nice if you had access to the tech's. Most dealers have a buffer between the tech and customers, I think they call them service reps. They call you and bla bla bla and you have to decide. I enjoy showing people why something needs to be repaired or replaced. I also believe an educated customer is happy to pay to get something fixed. I probably posted 20 YouTube video's explaining things about car maintenance and problems and posting them on FaceBook (just me sitting in a chair talking) and a week after I stopped I got blown up by several people asking "where's the next video". I didn't realize that anyone was watching.

I picked up a Nissan Maxi once with 61,000 miles on it. It was older but pretty nice. I was handed the maintenance / repair folder and was shocked to what I seen in the folder. Two or 3 water pump replacements within years of each other and several other things that I found real hard to believe a Nissan would need in those miles. The shop (indi) was less than a mile from my house. I was so disappointed in the things I suspected were rip offs that I wanted so bad to stop by the place and give someone a piece of my mind (likely a piece I could NOT spare).

 

Oh yeah, all dealers have service advisors. I don't personally call the customers. But if a customer asks the advisor to see what is going on, I have no problem if he brings them back so I can show them or explain to them what is going on. They almost always buy the work when I show them what is wrong and explain why it needs to be replaced. Once in a while I get a customer who comes back with an attitude (because he read something on the internet that doesn't apply to his car in some cases), which can be tough to deal with. But most of the time, if they aren't too hard headed, I can explain to them how it works/why it is bad/ how I known it is bad/ whatever and cool them down.

 

There are dishonest people in every trade from doctor to brick-layer and everyone between....

Ive lived in the same city for many years.....easy to weed out the garbage-vendors...in any trade.

Easy to stick to the honest vendors even if they do not offer bargains/deals/kickbacks/toasters.....

Pay quality and pay once.

btw I use an indy shop in business for volvos only for the past 30+ years.

 

Exactly. I've seen tons of hacked up cars come in from indy shops. I've had plenty of customers come in asking to double check what an indy shop recommended and found they didn't need most of the work. On the other hand, I've seen bad and dishonest dealer techs come and go as well.

Ask questions, ask to see what's wrong and get a second opinion if you don't believe them and you'll have a better chance of finding an honest tech.