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  #1  
Old 05-25-2004, 11:59 PM
jklmnopqrst
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Fixed my wheel bearing today

I went to Bruneel Tire Factory to get my right rear wheel bearing fixed today. Before they got started on the job, I asked them what they were going to charge me in labor and how much the bearing would cost. They told me that the bearing would cost $85, that labor would be $65/hour, and that it would be a 2.5 hour job (total=about $275). So, I said "How much is Rust-proofing gonna run me?" just kidding. Anyway, they told me to come back in a few hours and I just said that I will wait and watch. The guy gave me a weird look and walked off. I walked out the front entrance, around the building and to the garage area to see my SVX go into a minor operation. The shop was incredibly crowded (it was a beautiful day out) so they had to work on my car with the front half sticking out of the garage while the back-end was in the garage. So I stood by and held my SVXs hand, and the mechanic really didn't want me stand there and watch. "For liability reasons, we can't have you inside the shop," he said. I wasn't in the shop, so I said, "Ok, I'll just stand out here." He looked at me for a moment and then he just went about his business. After standing for 30 minutes, I went and grabbed a couple of boxes by the dumpster and made myself a chair. Moving along, a full hour and a half later he was finished with the job and I thanked him for a job well done in a timely manner. I went inside the office to pay, however, I wasn't about to allow them to charge me the full amount. I figured that with 1.5 hours of labor and with a $85 bearing, that would come out to about $175. "Your total comes to $255.10," said the worker. So I explained that the mechanic only worked for an hour and a half, and that I would pay the hourly rate plus the cost of the part, which equals about $175. Big mistake. We got into a big argument because he simply refused to look at the situation with my point of view. His argument was that it normally takes 2.5 hours to replace a wheel bearing and that the mechanic worked hard, and in a timely manner to finish the job quickly and he deserves to get paid for the full 2.5 hours. I said that I'm simply not going to pay you for an hour's worth of work that wasn't even done. He countered with the fact that if the job took 5 hours, they would still only charge me $255. It went back and forth for a while, but I got the final word in when I said,"So, I guess your business doesn't believe in the philosophy that the customer is always right." I laid down the benjamins, took my receipt, and left. As I left, I couldn't help but feel ripped off. However, once I took my SVX on the road, all the thoughts went out of my head and I just felt a great sensation that I had never experienced in my car before:"QUIET." I honestly can't remember the last time my car was this quiet. I absolutely love it!!
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  #2  
Old 05-26-2004, 06:36 AM
SVXer95 SVXer95 is offline
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You didn't get ripped off, that is just how it works. Sounds like you got a pretty fair deal. $65/hour is ridiculously low in this day and age. I usually pay somewhere btw 80-100 an hour. That is why I don't take my SVX to the shop anymore.

Don't take your hatred out on the shop. That is the way that all shops do it. They have a book, I seem to always forget the name of it, that tells them how long a particular job will take. That is what you get charged for no matter what.
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  #3  
Old 05-26-2004, 08:05 AM
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I use independent shops that charge by the hour, not the book. They have me at a higher rate because I supply my own parts, but I still save money in the long run by not paying retail for the parts.

I fully understand the logic behind their policy however, I would bet that their mechanics are paid hourly and not by the job. So the extra money paid only goes to the dealership, not the guy working hard and fast.

Its like every other business, there are businesses who take care of their customers and employees and businesses who don't.

Doug
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  #4  
Old 05-26-2004, 12:08 PM
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ensteele ensteele is offline
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I have been quoted a price for a job and when I picked the car up, it was way less than they said that it would be. I was shocked and asked why. They said that it was not as bad as they thought it would be and they were able to do it in less time. That is why I keep going back!
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  #5  
Old 05-26-2004, 12:35 PM
Green1995SVX
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As other have said, this is standard practice. It's called "Flat-Rate" billing. Some shops use it, and some dont.

Mike
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  #6  
Old 05-26-2004, 01:05 PM
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I work for a computer store and see this all the time. The way I see it is, if I quote a person for let's say 2 hours labor and if it actually takes me 3-4 hours I still charge them only 2 hours because I initially quoted them 2 hours labor. But also it depends on how much simpler a job ended up being before I cut the labor down in price. If i still worked hard I would charge the 2 hours labor anyway.
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  #7  
Old 05-26-2004, 06:44 PM
Crash
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If it is any comfort, my pass side bearing cost $389.00 at a Subaru dealership. But they did give me a candybar!

Crash
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  #8  
Old 05-26-2004, 07:36 PM
red95svx
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There are two ways of paying someone to do work for you: by the hour, or by the job. A lot of garages charge you by the job, not by the hour. If the labor manual says 4 hours for a bearing, that's what they charge....even if it only took 2 hours.....or six hours......it doesn't matter...you are paying by the job.


Lets say that you did take your car to someone who charged you by the hour, and he took 6 hours to do your bearing. Would you have been happy then? What if he went slow on purpose so he could make more money? What if you wanted someone to paint your house? Guess what...they're going to charge you for the job based on a certain amount of hours, then they are going to do the job as fast as possible so they can beat the estimate they gave you and earn some money!!

If you are going to do a lot of hard work in a short amount of time, getting paid by the hour would suck. I used to mow lawns when I was in high school. I used to get about $40 a lawn, and it would take me about an hour for each one. What if I had only been paid by the hour instead? If I worked at $10 per hour, I would have only made $10 per lawn. That's a lot or work for $10.

Another example: car reconditioning. If I pay $100 for a full recon job and they bust their asses and do it in an hour should I get upset? That's $100 per hour I just paid someone to clean my car. How come I can't get a full recon for $20? Because they charge by the job, not by the hour!

And no, the customer is not always right. I have customers flat out lie to me all the time (the guy on the phone said it would only be $15!)




Dave

Last edited by red95svx; 05-26-2004 at 07:42 PM.
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  #9  
Old 05-26-2004, 08:58 PM
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Quote:
Originally posted by red95svx
There are two ways of paying someone to do work for you: by the hour, or by the job. A lot of garages charge you by the job, not by the hour. If the labor manual says 4 hours for a bearing, that's what they charge....even if it only took 2 hours.....or six hours......it doesn't matter...you are paying by the job.

Dave
I agree that is one way to do business. I would rather pay extra to have something done with the same care that I would give it.

My shop has gone way over the estimated time before, but they always explain exactly why and I trust them. That is the big thing here is trust.

BTW: It is funny that you mentioned painting a house. I am paying an artisan by the hour to paint the victorian trim on my house.

I know I am not a typical customer, but I treat everyone fair.

Doug
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  #10  
Old 05-26-2004, 09:09 PM
lee lee is offline
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Many years ago, I worked as a part-time mechanic. I estimated jobs by the book, never charged more than the book, and almost always charged less if it took less time (only charging full-rate for the jerks of the world).

Anyway, maybe it was my appearance (long hair etc - circa 1969), but several customers of the shop complained to the owner that they thought maybe I had shortchanged them (like put in used parts or didn't do the whole job) since I didn't charge the regular & full price. So, I was told to stop doing that except for customers who knew me well enough to trust me.

Was the shop owner just jerking me around to charge full price? I don't think so since it was my Dad.
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Old 05-27-2004, 07:06 AM
red95svx
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Quote:
Originally posted by lee
Many years ago, I worked as a part-time mechanic. I estimated jobs by the book, never charged more than the book, and almost always charged less if it took less time (only charging full-rate for the jerks of the world).

Anyway, maybe it was my appearance (long hair etc - circa 1969), but several customers of the shop complained to the owner that they thought maybe I had shortchanged them (like put in used parts or didn't do the whole job) since I didn't charge the regular & full price. So, I was told to stop doing that except for customers who knew me well enough to trust me.

Was the shop owner just jerking me around to charge full price? I don't think so since it was my Dad.



Good point, Lee. When I worked in the Service Department I had a customer who couldn't believe how fast we did his oil change. He was furious, called us liars, and said we didn't really do the job. I tried to reason with him. I told him that we have a guy who only does oil changes.....day in, day out...just oil changes. How long do you think it would take you to be really fast at doing oil changes when that's all you do ALL DAY LONG? He saw my point.
Now he appreciates the speedy service


Dave

Last edited by red95svx; 05-27-2004 at 07:15 AM.
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  #12  
Old 05-27-2004, 05:45 PM
calmone
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i guess often the "flat rate" is more than the actual time to do the job. but none the less the $65/hr is reasonable. i need to have bearing work done on my car, and the flat rate was checked from 2 sources and it was a bit more than 2 hours per side. by the way, the time may not be that far off if you count the time cleaning and repacking the bearing with heavy duty grease.
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