Auto Repair Advice: How Much Should It Cost To Fix Your Car,. Auto Repair Advice: How Much Should It Cost To Fix Your Car? Copyright AA1Car The cost to fix a vehicle depends on (1) what is wrong with the vehicle, (2) the repair facility you take your vehicle to for repairs (or whether you try to fix it yourself), (3) the prevailing labor rates in your area, (4) the year, make and model of your vehicle (luxury imports are always more expensive to fix!), (5) the availability of parts for your vehicle (are the parts only available from a new car dealer or can they be purchased from a local auto parts store?), and (6) how much you are willing to pay for repairs (prices and repair options are often negotiable).
Auto Repairs are Unavoidable Sooner or later, something will break, wear out or fail on every car and truck. Parts that most often wear out include brakes, tires, mufflers, batteries, filters, alternators, starters, water pumps, belts and hoses. At high mileage, you may experience engine or transmission problems. Nothing lasts forever, so when your vehicle needs repairs you obviously want to know how much it is going to cost - hopefully BEFORE the work begins. Most reputable shops should give you an estimate that lists which parts need to be replaced, the labor charge to replace those parts, any charges for diagnostic time, and any additional charges for miscellaneous items such as shop supplies, hazardous waste disposal fees, etc. Auto Repair Labor Rates Labor is usually the most expensive item on most auto repairs. The longer it takes a technician to replace a part, the more you are going to pay.
Accessibility (or the lack thereof) is a major issue on many late model vehicles. Some parts can be very difficult and time-consuming to replace. Time is money, and most shops charge $60 to $90 or more PER HOUR for labor (note: the technician usually receives less than HALF of the labor charge!). Why are the hourly labor charges so high? Because auto repair is often hard, dirty, back-breaking work that requires a lot of training, skill and experience, and a lot of expensive tools and equipment.
The average technician has over $10,000 invested in his tools, and the shop where he works may own thousands of dollars of service equipment. Much of the hourly labor rate you pay goes to shop overhead (things like rent, utilities, equipment purchases & maintenance, employee benefits, etc.) and profit (which every business needs to say in business otherwise they go out of business). Flat Rate The labor your are charged on your repair bill is usually based on a standard 'flat rate' estimate. Repair jobs are classified by year, make and model, and the times can vary a great deal from one vehicle to another. The labor time required to perform a certain task will vary depending on how much other stuff has to be removed to get at the part, the average degree of difficulty of the job, whether any special tools are procedures are required, the age of the vehicle and so on.
Changing a starter on one car might be a relatively simple task if the starter is easily accessible, but on another vehicle you might have to remove part of the exhaust system or loosen a motor mount and raise the engine to replace the starter. All of this is supposedly taken into account when a vehicle manufacturer or aftermarket manual publisher comes up with flat rate tables for various repair jobs on various vehicles. The flat rate information is published in printed or electronic format, and is then used by car dealers and repair shops to prepare repair estimates. Sometimes a shop will add extra time to an estimate depending on the vehicle's condition, or from previous experience if they feel the published flat rate does not allow enough time to complete the job. But here's how many motorists often get screwed.
If the actual time it takes to repair your vehicle is LESS than the estimated flat rate time, you still pay the flat rate. Because life isn't fair. The shop makes additional profit on the job, and the technician who does the work often receives a bonus for beating the flat rate (a good technician can almost always beat most flat rate times). What's worse, if the actual time it takes to fix your car is MORE than the flat rate, you get billed for the extra time! Ideally, you should only pay for the ACTUAL time it takes to fix your car and not one minute more or less. But that's not the system most dealerships or repair shops use for obvious reasons. Many shops also have a separate DIAGNOSTIC fee.
This covers the time it takes to connect a scan tool to your vehicle and read out any fault codes that may be in the vehicle's computer. The diagnostic charge typically ranges from $75 to $100 or more. The cost of the parts to fix your vehicle will depend on where the repair facility buys their parts, and how much they mark them up.
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As a consumer, you usually pay the FULL RETAIL PRICE when you have a repair facility install the parts for you. They typical markup is 30 to 40%, though it may be less on some parts depending on the discount the shop gets from their supplier or distributor. Yes, you could save some money here by shopping around and buying the parts yourself - BUT most shops will NOT install parts that they do not purchase directly. It's like taking a bag of groceries into a four star restaurant and asking the chef to use your groceries to prepare your meal. Most shops have brand preferences and will only install parts they know are from quality suppliers. That cheap alternator from China may cost $50 less than the brand name OEM alternator, but it probably lacks the durability of the OEM unit.
As a rule, aftermarket parts are usually less expensive than OEM parts. But the quality may not be the same, so stick with brand name aftermarket parts. In some instances, the aftermarket parts supplier is also the OEM parts supplier and the parts are virtually the same.
Where To Take Your Vehicle for Auto Repairs As a rule, independent repair shops are generally less expensive than new car dealers. Franchised repair facilities such as muffler shops (Midas, CarX, Merlin, etc.), tire dealers (Goodyear, Firestone & independents) and retailers (PepBoys, Sears, etc.) are also very competitive with their pricing. Independent repair shops and specialty repair shops (those who only work on imports or specialize in alignments, brakes, transmissions, air conditioning, electrical, etc.) tend to be small family-owned and run businesses. You're usually on a more personal level with these people, and may even talk face-to-face with the technician who works on your car. Prices may be more negotiable than at a large new car dealership where pricing is less flexible because of high overhead.
If cash is really tight, check out the community colleges in your area to see if they have an automotive technical program that accepts vehicles for repairs. You still pay for any parts you vehicle needs, but usually there is no charge for labor. All the work is overseen by a qualified automotive instructor. See the video clip below: Getting an Online Repair Estimate is an online resource that can give you a free repair estimate and help you locate a repair facility in your area (by city or zip code). Simply go to their Repair Price Estimator page, enter your vehicle information (year/make/model) and the type of repair you think your vehicle needs.
The page will then display an approximate price range you could expect to pay at both a new car dealership or an aftermarket independent repair facility for the repair you selected. The estimate assumes (1) that you know what is wrong with your vehicle and what needs to be replaced, and (2) that the repair outlets in your area will fall within the range of prices quoted. Though it's nice to have a ballpark estimate of what a repair might cost, it is often difficult to say exactly how much a repair will actually end up costing you until the job is underway or finished. The technician may run into problems (rusty or broken fasteners), he may discover additional parts that also need to be replaced, and the labor may end up being more than the original estimate.
So keep these things in mind when using an online repair estimator. You can also subscribe to an online service information website such as AlldataDIY that allows you to not only look up factory repair times and parts costs fo your vehicle, but also the specific repair procedures, service procedures and recalls. ALLDATA currently charges a subscription fee that is far less than what it would cost you to buy the factory service manuals or access to the online.
Use the Links Below To Find A Repair Shop Near You: (find body repair shops by zip code).
The following article is just my opinion on the flat rate system. After being involved with automobiles for just shy of 30 years I have seen a lot of things change in the retail auto repair business. As a matter of fact I have seen huge changes in the world that surrounds this ecosystem. I could write an entire article on just how the automobile has changed in the last 30 years and maybe I will in the near future. But not only has the car changed but so has the people who drive them and the tools used to fix them.
The economy has changed as well. The way that businesses conduct themselves has also changed over the years. But one thing has not changed since I’ve been in the business of auto repair and that is the flat rate system.
Sure a few shops pay mechanics by the hour but by and large dealerships and aftermarket repair centers are still sticking to some type of flat rate system to compensate mechanics. What I don’t understand is in this modern environment of adapting and changing to better service customers why this antiquated system still remains. In my opinion it’s stopping this business from evolving into a customer focused and value driven service that people could embrace instead of loath. Automotive Pay on a Flat Rate Scale Just a quick explanation of how this system works. The mechanic is paid a set time for a specific repair.
Auto Repair Flat Rate Labor Guide Download
If the repair is to replace an automotive A/C compressor the shop will look the time up in some kind of labor guide. The specific repair is assigned an amount of time that is multiplied against a shops labor rate. This is where all the problems begin. If it pays two hours to replace this A/C compressor then the technician receives his hourly rate x2 no matter how long it takes him to complete the repairs.
The very nature of this system pushes the mechanic to rush the job and try to finish below the allotted time. Pushing so hard it is easy to get caught up in the money that can be made instead of focusing on a quality repair that will stand the test of time.
Another thing that further complicates this pay system for mechanics is the labor guide used to reach the labor figure in estimating repairs. When I first got in the business there were three labor guides and these are still the most popular ones. AllDATA.com repair information, Mitchell’s, and Chilton were used almost exclusively by all auto repair centers when I was a young man.
Now many chain automotive centers have their own version of labor guides. Some of these cut the labor times in half compared to the guides mentioned above. Automotive dealers also have their own set of labor times for warranty repairs.
These are also considerably less than the big 3 guides provide. As an example to replace an engine short block at a dealership can pay as little as eight hours. The actual repairs can take as long as three days depending on the situation. As the owner of this vehicle how would you feel about the mechanic’s attitude as he entered Day three and his second day of working for free on your automobile. Why Can’t We Change Automotive Retail What got me started on this subject is I was looking for a second job to help close the gap on my bills. The economy in my town is in sorry shape since 2008. I don’t know what the current unemployment rate is, but it was over 20% the last time I checked.
A local aftermarket shop has been advertising for mechanics for about two months. I was surprised the job wasn’t filled, because our unemployment is so high in this area.
When I went online and typed the name of the repair shop into the search engine I found some interesting results. A few mechanics that use to work there posted about their experience at this tire and auto center. I don’t need to include the details here, but let’s just say mechanics are not working at this place, because there is no money to be made. It’s not a lack of business as the parking lot is exploding with vehicles, sitting, waiting to be worked on. There’s also a 10 day backlog of appointments at the service center. But even though the only thing that is stopping this place for making big money is the lack of mechanics they refuse to waver from their exclusive flat rate pay system. When I say exclusive this auto Center is paying less per hour and less per job than any other shop I have ever heard of regardless of the mechanics experience or willingness to perform quality repairs to satisfy customers.
Auto Repair Flat Rate Labor Guide
In closing my point of this article is we still need qualified personnel to fix cars. The economy has changed, the automobile has changed, the customers that drive these vehicles and their lives have changed. The automotive service center has not changed the way they pay mechanics in 40 years. If other businesses are able to change and adapt to the current conditions that surround them, how come these automotive centers can’t do the same? I heard there’s a shortage of automotive mechanics in the United States. Training automotive technicians has become a big business. Many schools exist to provide this profitable service of training people to turn a wrench.
Upon graduation these students realize they have just entered a dangerous game that could shave quality years off their life, coupled with a compensation game that is hard to win. Harder at the beginning due to lack of tools, money to buy them and experience to fall back on. Maybe it’s not the experience of all graduates? I’m sure a few still make money. This is just my opinion about where the business is heading. If you doubt what I’m saying maybe you will poke around a few and read the writing on the wall. Of course you could also head back to my and read other stories about the retail automotive business.
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Automotive repair labor guides go hand in hand with flat-rate labor. This involves a standard of service in the automotive repair industry to protect the customer from being overcharged as well as the repair facility to profit from the repair. While the technology of vehicle designs evolve, constant changes in the repair industry require ongoing training in the field to keep up with new challenging types of repairs. And most vehicles-even if the model is the same-offer more than one option on engine size. The three most common repair labor guides found in most automotive repair shops are Chilton's, AllData and Mitchell. With the level of technology we have today, these manuals are now available on the Internet, but the information is expensive and most often requires monthly fees and upgrade charges for new year vehicles. Standards of service in the automotive industry makes an example of protecting the repair facility of profit loss more so than protecting the customer of being overcharged.
However, reputable shops will offer a pre-inspection of the vehicle and then present an estimate on the cost to replace and repair it by applying the labor guide. This protects the customer by showing what needs to be replaced, how long it will take to replace and the charge for the entire repair-start to finish. Flat-rate labor is applied to labor guides. A certain amount of time is involved on replacing a car starter on a certain year, make and model vehicle. If the labor guide dictates it takes 2.3 hours to replace the starter, then the customer pays for the new starter, plus the 2.3 hours of labor to install it. As long as nothing happens during the procedure where another part is compromised, the charge remains the same regardless of the amount of time it took the technician to replace the starter. This is good for the customer if it took three hours for the technician, but what if he got it done in an hour?
That's where you pay for the tuition and tools of the qualified technician. 2.3 hours of labor are still applied to the repair bill. Technicians average $10,000 in tools they have to buy themselves. Often times, there are tools available that make the job easier, or the technician has done similar repairs so often, that he has become overly efficient in replacing the part. This is where the profit of the flat-rate labor and the automotive repair labor guides keep the repair facility in business. Labor guides are almost always displayed by applying two separate categories.
Repairing cars in geographical regions that experience severe winter conditions and where sand and salt are applied to the roads for an extensive amount of the year, are much harder to work on then areas that do not. Rust and corrosion often require more tools and more time to replace the same part, regardless of where the car is located. Regular flat rate and severe-condition flat rate are displayed in the guides under the same component being looked up to replace. If you live in an area where severe winters occur, you can guarantee that you're going to be charged the severe-condition labor rate listed in the labor guide. Other unforeseen variables can occur when repairing the estimated component.
Flat Rate Labor Guide Free
When this occurs, the national standards of service are protected by law to increase your estimate no more than $100 before having to contact you. If other components are required for removal to obtain access to the part being replaced, and then they break during the removal process, instead of being charged for the estimate you approved, you're going to pay more for the additional repair to fix the vehicle. Whether is was a case of shoddy workmanship, you may never know. A reputable repair facility may have also informed you of the challenges they are facing to repair the vehicle when delivering the estimate to you based on the repair labor guide.
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