OldsmoBeast Posted September 8, 2003 Report Share Posted September 8, 2003 Ah....the things you miss when you're not around....Case in point: I had an appointment at the local GM dealer to get this exhaust leak checked out, but it was scheduled during school time so my mom took the car in for me...I figured I'd get out of school and walk to the dealership (happens to be rite around the corner) and find the cutty all ready to go and maybe pay no more than $100CDN. I was surprised to find the Lexus waiting for me outside of school and when i asked my mom where the Cutty was, she said it was still at Schlueter's and it was going to be there for a couple of days. Says they're replacing the whole exhaust manifold...cuz its leaking...guess how much....in the neighborhood of about $900 DOLLARS!!! THAT NO TYPO! NINE HUNDRED! Am I insane or is that WAAAY overpriced? They have to order in the part and then work on it for i dunno how long.....but $900?? I need help here people...fast....Is this a reasonable price? or am I being ripped off? Because if I am (being ripped off), you can bet that "Schuleter Chev-Olds" is gonna see some hell when I get down there! Thanks everyone! YK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topless94style Posted September 8, 2003 Report Share Posted September 8, 2003 Sounds like a rip off to me. Buy a new manifold from the junkyard for $30 and replace it yourself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AWeb80 Posted September 8, 2003 Report Share Posted September 8, 2003 Sounds like a rip off to me. Buy a new manifold from the junkyard for $30 and replace it yourself. Fuckin' A EDIT: When my head gasket went, it only cost a grand to have that fixed.....including new plugs, o2 sensor, new antifreeze......but it took 2 weeks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DOHCRagtopguy Posted September 8, 2003 Report Share Posted September 8, 2003 Wow! Ask them if they can use some Vaseline so it doesn't hurt you to get screwed so bad. Typical dealer ripoff, even with labor hours factored in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldsmoBeast Posted September 8, 2003 Author Report Share Posted September 8, 2003 ahhhh I KNEW IT......THOSE BASTARDS!!! well i'm going to hit the gym, for a couple hours, then I'm gonna pick up the pops from work and possibly raise a little hell....meh.... thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
91GranSport Posted September 8, 2003 Report Share Posted September 8, 2003 No shit, eh? $900 is way too much. Go to a junkyard and get an exhaust manifold and slap it on yourself. It might be a little tight in your engine bay but it's worth the time and effort. Exhaust manifolds are made of cast iron so they're durable. It's actually quite rare for them to leak, at least on today's vehicles. I think you got ripped dude, I'd take it back if I were you. $900 can buy you new tires or new shocks. Sounds like a rip off to me. Buy a new manifold from the junkyard for $30 and replace it yourself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
91GranSport Posted September 8, 2003 Report Share Posted September 8, 2003 Dude, you're seriously getting ripped off. I replaced my O2 sensor without anyone helping me out and it took me 15 minutes. I have the 3800 TPI V-6 and 4T60, by the way. You can flush your coolant in about 30-45 minutes if you do it properly, depending on your method and it would cost you less than $50.00 for all the antifreeze and the coolant kit. A head gasket is more difficult to replace, but you can do it in less than a day if you have the proper hand tools. Sounds like a rip off to me. Buy a new manifold from the junkyard for $30 and replace it yourself. Fuckin' A EDIT: When my head gasket went, it only cost a grand to have that fixed.....including new plugs, o2 sensor, new antifreeze......but it took 2 weeks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
91GranSport Posted September 8, 2003 Report Share Posted September 8, 2003 I don't know about you guys but dealers here charge $100.00/hour for labour. The parts themselves are already expensive, but the labour is what kills you. You can buy brand new OEM parts and slap them on yourself and save yourself a shitload of money. The best way to do things is to do the labour yourself and purchase parts from an aftermarket supplier if at all possible. I mean, hey, we're here to help, right? If you need to know how to do something simply ask. That's how I learned to do a lot of shit on my W-Body. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GPRACER Posted September 8, 2003 Report Share Posted September 8, 2003 I hate it when people shit on dealerships. I work at a dealership as a technician. You want to get screwed go to canadian tire. At a dealership, 99.9 % of the time you get the proper job done right with a warranty on both parts and labor. sure, the parts are expensive, they put food on a lot of peoples tables. You can always haggle a bit on the price of parts, there's usually about 20% give in those. I have a leaky manifold as well, the brand new part from GM is Aprox 350 CDN + 15% tax, I've priced manifolds used and I've never seen one for 30 bucks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrandPrix34 Posted September 8, 2003 Report Share Posted September 8, 2003 10 FUCKING BUXS! im assuming you have the Cutlass Supreme wit the 3.1, so the Lumina one should fit http://car-part.com/cgi-bin/search.cgi?userSearch=int&userPID=1000&userLocation=All+States&userIMS=&userInterchange=%3E%40A%3D&userSide=&userDate=1991&userDate2=1991&dbModel=55.8.1.1&userModel=Oldsmobile%20Cutlass%20(1973%20Up)&dbPart=327.1&userPart=Exhaust%20Manifold&sessionID=650&sURL=car-part.com&userUID=0&userBroker=&userPreference=&userPage=68 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrandPrix34 Posted September 8, 2003 Report Share Posted September 8, 2003 http://car-part.com/ ANYTHING you want VERY CHEAP! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GPRACER Posted September 8, 2003 Report Share Posted September 8, 2003 Add the exchange rate and shipping on a cast iron manifold and see what it costs. Then its stuck in customs on the border for a month. Take about 4-5 weeks ground mail to eastern canada anyways. and an arm and a leg to fly it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrandPrix34 Posted September 8, 2003 Report Share Posted September 8, 2003 grrrr forgot the country differences...i was thinking US of A...well its worht a try A-HOLE! j/k... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topless94style Posted September 8, 2003 Report Share Posted September 8, 2003 I called a junkyard on prices for intake and exhaust manifolds and they said for the upper and lower intake $50 if i pull and $30 if i pull the exhaust. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldsmoBeast Posted September 8, 2003 Author Report Share Posted September 8, 2003 OK....so after the gym I stopped by my dad's office and we went down to the place together and we walked in, gave them the name and the lady was like "Oh, your vehicle is finished, and the total turned out to be much less than expected. The mechanics found that the leak could be sealed with some exhaust cement and we are only charging you one hour of labour and taxes. (90.00 hour, plus 7% GST = 103.something). If you will please sign here, here, here and here. " 100 bux is still way too much for some jerk (no offense) to put exhaust cement on a flange or whatever but it sounds smoother and it doesn't hurt as much as 900. I'm DEFINATELY a fan of doing stuff myself, but this time around I didn't have enough spare time to get my hands dirty. My mom insisted to get it done with too. I'm hoping that leak was the cause of my CRAPPY fuel consumption (around 300km per tank!) because if not, i'm gonna go nuts trying to figure this thing out Thanks for everyone input/help! YK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
89oldscutlass Posted September 9, 2003 Report Share Posted September 9, 2003 I was fixing to say before you wrote that it cost you $100 to fix it that if you lived close I would give you a set for free. That cement crap they used if its what im thinking wont last long before it will be leaking again. As far as paying a $100 bucks a hour labor thats a rip off we only charge $35 a hour labor at our garage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GPRACER Posted September 9, 2003 Report Share Posted September 9, 2003 Our door rate is 70 bucks canadian an hour. that's only about 47 or so bucks USD. Does everyone here feel this way about dealerships? Where do you think all the information comes from in the first place? Maybe I should stop trying to help people here, "We" just rip you all off anyways. I'm sure there are more GM people here who would agree. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
89oldscutlass Posted September 9, 2003 Report Share Posted September 9, 2003 Im assuming that you are a Tech for GM. Dealer ships have always had a bad name for charging too much in their garages whats worse is they under pay their techs so most not all dont care whether the jobs done right its all about doing it the easiest way possible to get it done. The reason I know this is that I have a buddy that has worked for our local chevrolet dealer for some years now and he tells me how his bosses do him and the rest of the Techs on a daily bases. They rush Techs to get this that and the other done and even if they do get a job done a hour earlier then what the books call for they still charge the customers for the full time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
89oldscutlass Posted September 9, 2003 Report Share Posted September 9, 2003 Sorry I misspelled Chevrolet missed a key. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GPRACER Posted September 9, 2003 Report Share Posted September 9, 2003 Obviously all dealerships are not the same, Where I work the emphasis is on training and doing the job right. I have never felt rushed, Our service manager will put a customer in a rental rather than rushing and fooking up a job. I can remember some years ago when I did my first engine job on one of those Quad 4's took me a full week, but that car and that customer still comes back because the engine was properly rebuilt and he was treated fairly. I just hate it when people say all dealerships suck. Because they don't. I've worked in a few non dealership garages and they were like a living hell compared to my job now. Can't say I agree with the low wages either, I make almost 20 bucks an hour, depending on my efficiency every given week it can be as high as 24, That's not too bad imho.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topless94style Posted September 9, 2003 Report Share Posted September 9, 2003 They rush Techs to get this that and the other done and even if they do get a job done a hour earlier then what the books call for they still charge the customers for the full time. That is how all garages make their money. They charge you the labor for the amount of time the book says the job should be done. That is why the techs in some places are rushed because if they get the job done sooner than what the books call for they can rake in more money. The techs should push them selves to get the job done because they will also make more money. It should not get out of hand to the point there they are takin short cuts and doing poor jobs though everything should still be done right if it means sacraficing time. Even if the tech goes over the scheduled time in the book when fixing a car, they only charge the customer what the book says. So when that happens the garage looses money. That is the reason for the pushing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phantomFE3 Posted September 9, 2003 Report Share Posted September 9, 2003 welcome to the '900' club. tires plus wants 989 to fix all my brakes and put new tires on Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
89oldscutlass Posted September 9, 2003 Report Share Posted September 9, 2003 What is the deal with Quads blowing head gaskets? I think the engineer who designed it was on drugs. Dont get me wrong when there running right they are good running engines but they over heat crack heads and blocks. If they had put a better cooling system on them they would have been alright. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GPRACER Posted September 9, 2003 Report Share Posted September 9, 2003 They rush Techs to get this that and the other done and even if they do get a job done a hour earlier then what the books call for they still charge the customers for the full time. That is how all garages make their money. They charge you the labor for the amount of time the book says the job should be done. That is why the techs in some places are rushed because if they get the job done sooner than what the books call for they can rake in more money. The techs should push them selves to get the job done because they will also make more money. It should not get out of hand to the point there they are takin short cuts and doing poor jobs though everything should still be done right if it means sacraficing time. Even if the tech goes over the scheduled time in the book when fixing a car, they only charge the customer what the book says. So when that happens the garage looses money. That is the reason for the pushing. If I take less time it raises my efficiency and I make more money. If I take more time I get less of a bonus. If a tech in our shop is doing a poor job constantly for the sake of "time" he does not last long. It's better to take a few extra minutes or an hour to fix the problem correctly, than have the vehicle come back and cost the garage more money and lost time due to an improper repair. GM technology is becoming more and more advanced every day and believe me a little fuck-up can cause a lot more head aches than a little extra time, and that's for all involved, the management, the tech, and the car owner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topless94style Posted September 9, 2003 Report Share Posted September 9, 2003 The only thing i got against dealerships is the prices of parts. Ill never take my car their to get it fixed because i already have a good shop to go to if i need to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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