how do i know if a shop is over charging me?

i dropped off my xj at a shop last week to have the following done....
r.e. adjustable lower control arms
r.e. adjustable track bar
sye w/ tom woods drive shaft
currie currectlync steering
alignment
1" lift shackles
i'm getting this done for a little under $3000.00, i don't think this is to bad...

i get a call today with these sugestions...
$705.00 = lower and upper ball joints-he says that mine are shot, that's possible i guess with 150,000 miles on it.
$300.00 = lower control arm brackets-he says that the one i had replaced was put on at the wrong angle, he's probably right.
$130.00 = sepertin belt-does it really cost this much?
$300.00 = front drive shaft-he says the ds has been completey compressed due to the 4.5" lift that is on it and it is so loose that you can move it around with your hand, i got no idea if he is right or not.

all of this is installed...

so what do you guys think? is this fair?

wow. I gotta say yes...

IMO this would be more practical on Parts + Labor... but i dont run a shop so this is just MY opinion

$400ish for Ball joints
$150 for the Brackets
$75 for the belt (half hour labor at most)
$NEW DS? Replace the 3 U-Joints and call it a day?? Re-grease the shaft

and 3 grand for a Trac bar, LCA's, steering, and Shackles, and SYE,with an alignment sounds Extreme aswell, Parts should be less then half that price..

at $65-$80 and hour, it gets pricey very quickly.

I usually do most if not all of my own work, because of that.

I think the shop owner has a payment due on his Bass boat and you are it for this month.

Most of that work is non-technical and simple to perform and there are plenty of write-ups on the various Jeep Forums. A Factory Service Manual would be an excellent guide as well.

You could purchase a full set of Craftsman or Kobalt tools and do 90% of that work yourself and still save about 1/2 of the projected costs. Plus, you will have a full set of tools all ready for your next upgrade or repair.

it's 75.00 a hour labor....

all of the parts are at the same price or cheaper then any where on the web.... is 75.00 a hour alot?

thebluebuffalo said:

it's 75.00 a hour labor....

all of the parts are at the same price or cheaper then any where on the web.... is 75.00 a hour alot?

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NO,

But. how many hours is he projecting? A low hourly rate is fine, if he's not taking double the time to do the work!

Most modern shops have computer programs such as Activent or All-data that they use to compute estiments. These give the actual time it takes to do a certain job. We may sometimes add 2 or 3 tenthes if it's suspension parts. Being in Iowa, it's a given bolts will be rusted & fight you every bit of the way.

And, no $75 an hour in NOT out of line. Our shop rate is $70 an hour.

I don't know how people afford to own older vehicles if they don't do their own work. Shop prices are crazy.

at $1200-$1500 in labor on each round of upgrades.. Why not just... buy a car with a warranty and not wheel it?

Shop prices seem reasonable but here again is another reminder why owning an XJ is either a very expensive proposition or an opportunity to learn and do your own work and marvel at the savings you are "suposedly" getting by doing the work yourself. You could tackle all the items to be done with a set of hand tools and a service manual if you had lots of time. Learning on your own vehicle is hard and slow, I know, I'm doing mine piece by piece, but is so much more rewarding and enjoyable.

thebluebuffalo said:

so what do you guys think? is this fair?

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I think you are being robbed.

The prices all look high. I will only comment on the things I have direct knowledge of.

-$95 to install a $35 fan belt. I did mine in 10 minutes.
-$250 to install a $50 CA bracket. 10 minutes to plasma cut the old one off. 10 minutes to prep the axle tube. 10 Minutes to locate and weld on the new one.
-$300 for a drive shaft ? I bought a used one for $25, the local drive line shop will rebuild it with Dana Spicer parts for $150. It takes 5 minutes to remove, and 5 more to install.
-Ball joints on my CJ-7 D30 were $450 installed.
-Lower control arms can be installed in the driveway. 4 bolts off, 4 bolts back on.
-The track bar is 5 bolts.

the shop I go to (when I get lazy) charges 50 an hour and there are good and fast I also used to work there but I still dont get price breaks on the big stuff

hey blue, im glad you dont value your money. way to go supporting your local economic recovery!

in case you havent noticed it yet, most of us do most, if not all, our own work. now the only thing i havent done lately is mount tires. after i discovered how much more cost efficent it is to do your own work i havent looked back. but seriously- its just money right? your repair bills are about what i have into my jeep so far with parts and my own free labor (or tradeing someone services on the vehicle. ie: gear set up in exchange for welding etc).

Take these factors into account as well: Warranty, both for the parts and for the labor. What it costs the shop to employee the guy to do the work ( not just hourly rate but also insurance, social security, uniforms, etc.), the costs of the building and it's contents and the cost of insurance in case the job they do on your rig goes sideways and you decide to sue them. Then also realize that they are probably pricing the parts at no profit because they realize you would beat them up on that normal source of income.

Also remember that if you do it yourself or have some guy who "used to be a mechanic" do it as a side job you have nothing to fall back on but yourself. If you aren't comfortable with the prices go back and have a calm discussion with the shop, leting them know your concerns and asking for some more details. If they come across as honest and open they probably are if they seem defensive or dishonest look around for other options. The guys who actually have open honest dialog with you are the guys you want to cultivate as a trusted asset in your life.

With that said: I do most of my own work because I can't afford what it costs to have it done for me or can't find the right guy to do the work I need ( Any one here who knows how to sych a couple of SU carbs come on over!). I do pay shops for diagnosis time, AC work, and anything ABS or airbag related with out a second thought.

I'm in California, where everything is overpriced and I think you're getting screwed.

Im sure if you ask around on the forums, someone in Kentucky would be more than happy to help you out. Provide some pizza and beer and someone is bound to jump in and help you out one weekend. Buy the parts and do it yourself. Youll save a ton of money and make a few friends while your at it. If I lived closer I would volunteer to help you out. I see $3000 for what you're getting and know what you can do with $3000. Tires, suspension, armor, etc... :dunno:

I would never let anyone touch ANY of my vehicles ... Let alone PAYING them to!

It is expensive just to keep any business open nowadays. $75/hour is OK, of course $50 is better. But charging an hour's worth of labor to do a serpentine belt is kind of absurd. He's charging labor like every possible thing will go wrong, like double. XJ's are pretty easy to work on. Try to find someone who will work on it for $20/hour. There are a lot of competent, out of work, people out there right now. The way our economy is going now, people are going to have to get used to making less money.

I would also be suspicious that the parts are even bad!

Where in Kentucky are you?? With you buying the parts, I can do all the labor if you are willing to help for much less than that!!!!



See what Redneck Said above. I live about 30 mins. away from Bowling Green. I am actually about 30 miles from Ft. Campbell.

nw-xj-scott said:

NO,

But. how many hours is he projecting? A low hourly rate is fine, if he's not taking double the time to do the work!

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he is projecting about 18 hours to do the labor. it's an hour to do this an hour to do that.....