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Am I getting hosed?

F

fenian'98

New Member
Joined
Sep 14, 2006
Messages
623
Location
Hudson Valley, NY
I drive a '94 Geo Prizm, which has been giving me some problems lately. I had it towed to a mechanic I have used in the past, because it wouldn't start yesterday. It has almost 70,000 miles, about 50k put on by me. I have regularly changed the oil, but never have gotten a "tune up". I was quoted $500 for this, which he said would include plugs, wires, distributor, maybe something else I can't quite remember. He said these cars were a little on the pricey side for this procedure. Also take into account it was towed 2 miles. Am I getting a fair shake? It seemed a bit much to me, but since I am in sales, and drive all day everyday, I told him to just fix it.
 
fenian said:
I drive a '94 Geo Prizm, which has been giving me some problems lately. I had it towed to a mechanic I have used in the past, because it wouldn't start yesterday. It has almost 70,000 miles, about 50k put on by me. I have regularly changed the oil, but never have gotten a "tune up". I was quoted $500 for this, which he said would include plugs, wires, distributor, maybe something else I can't quite remember. He said these cars were a little on the pricey side for this procedure. Also take into account it was towed 2 miles. Am I getting a fair shake? It seemed a bit much to me, but since I am in sales, and drive all day everyday, I told him to just fix it.
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Little on the high side for plugs, wires and a distributor, but then again it could be pricey for a geo I dunno... Also depends on his hourly rate?
 
fenian said:
I drive a '94 Geo Prizm, which has been giving me some problems lately. I had it towed to a mechanic I have used in the past, because it wouldn't start yesterday. It has almost 70,000 miles, about 50k put on by me. I have regularly changed the oil, but never have gotten a "tune up". I was quoted $500 for this, which he said would include plugs, wires, distributor, maybe something else I can't quite remember. He said these cars were a little on the pricey side for this procedure. Also take into account it was towed 2 miles. Am I getting a fair shake? It seemed a bit much to me, but since I am in sales, and drive all day everyday, I told him to just fix it.
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Sounds a bit pricey to me. Don't know what your abilities are, but you can replace all those things relatively easily yourself, picking them at your local auto parts shop for a fraction of the cost. But, the part about "something else I can't quite remember..." might make all the difference here. That might make it worth it.
 
Without even readn the post, yes, you are getting hosed. It's what mechanics do.

That being said, you have to take into account a couple things - how well do you know him? Does he do all your work, and do you keep him busy? Then it might be a slight hosing. Is he some regular guy that you have no relationship with? Then it's a full-out fire hose.

You also do have to take into account the towing. Up north, if the tow rates are anything like they are here, probably a good $150 of that is towing, something along the lines of $100-125 just to put the car up on the truck.

And why did they have to tow it? Is it not running for some reason? THen the tune-up is not the answer. I had some guy at a shop tell me to do that. My car died right in front of his shop. I pushed it into his lot, and explained what happened. He said "Let me do a tune-up, and it will run again." No it won't. A tune-up does not fix problems, it only help prevent them from happening. If there's already something wrong, take it somewhere else for them to check for the real problem.
 
The something else is probably driving the price up. If it has to do with the fuel injection and associated parts the price is about right for parts and labor. If the car is dead, I'm sure he hooked it up to the computer and got the diagnostics code and used that as the basis for his estimate. Really stupid question what is the book value on a a 1994 Geo Prism and is it worth that kind of money to you to repair?
 
Machanics have this book that tells them how many hours certian fixes take (Tune ups)
In my experience they charged you the book amount even if it takes them ten minutes
 
fenian said:
I drive a '94 Geo Prizm, which has been giving me some problems lately. I had it towed to a mechanic I have used in the past, because it wouldn't start yesterday. It has almost 70,000 miles, about 50k put on by me. I have regularly changed the oil, but never have gotten a "tune up". I was quoted $500 for this, which he said would include plugs, wires, distributor, maybe something else I can't quite remember. He said these cars were a little on the pricey side for this procedure. Also take into account it was towed 2 miles. Am I getting a fair shake? It seemed a bit much to me, but since I am in sales, and drive all day everyday, I told him to just fix it.
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Tune up: $129, Towing: $100, Something else: $271. Total $500, sounds about right to me. '94 Geo Prizm book value ~ $925, so it is probably worth fixing. ;)

DT
 
(In best geezer voice)...Nowadays, with all the electronic components and plumbing under the hoods of cars it's not as easy or as simple as tuning up a good old '67 Chevy 350 engine.
Parts are pricey-er and more mechanical expertise and diagnostic equipment comes into play. Some of those tune up parts are relitively easy to replace yourself but might rely on more tweaking of other components for proper operation.
That might be just a little pricey, but short of learning how and having proper equipment and doing it yourself...
waddaya gonna do?!
(Geezer voice off)
 
Hi, fenian'98! All things considered, $500 sounds about right. Might be just a tad high, though. Unfortunately, most vehicles reach a certain point and then require repairs of one kind or another. I wish you the best, fenian'98! Regards, knightlaird
 
Most cars these days don't even have a cap and rotor anymore but this Prizm does. Your tune up parts (cap, rotor, plugs. wires) go for $110.00 and the reason he told you that it was a little "pricey" for this procedure is because usually a set of spark plug wires for a 4 cylinder only cost around $30.00 but for your car, for some reason my NAPA store told me they go for $60.00.

Some times, a shop will change the oxygen sensor as part of a "tune up" (even if the check engine light isn't on). The oxygen sensor for this car goes for about $60.00. It only needs "something else" if the check engine light is on and whatever the "something else" is for that car (MAP sensor, oxygen sensor, EGR valve, TPS sensor, etc...) are all less than $100.00

This is a repair that an average guy with basic tools CAN do himself and something that the shop should only be charging an hours worth of labor for. Labor rates here in Connecticut are ridiculous at $80.00 per hour so I doubt yours are more than that.

Your tow was probably $100.00 - $150.00, they usually charge about $100.00 just to hook up these days plus mileage.

The big problem is why didn't it start? Was it a rainy, wet day and the engine turned over bout would not fire up? If so, then your spark plug wires, cap and rotor are the likely culprit. Also, if it was turning over and not starting it may be a bad electric fuel pump which is located in the gas tank. For your car, these go for about $200.00. I highly doubt that's the problem but it could be. Labor to drop the gas tank and replace that pump is pricey, at least two to three hours.

I think he's hosing you......

Your car is very low mileage for that year so I would recommend that you pay to have it fixed even if the shop absolutely, positively confirms that it's the fuel pump.
 
davew0670 said:
go to your local parts store and purchase the haynes manual for your vehicle. Best $15.99 you will ever spend.
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I've done the minor repair stuff on my cars before. You know, brakes, oil change etc. The apartment complex I live in now forbids working on cars in "their" parking lot. Silly, but those are the rules. Same place that charges $20 extra a month rent, because I have a dog.
 
fenian said:
...It wouldn't turn over just about every time it was wet out.
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It could have been as simple as a hairline crack in the distributor car. Moisture will accumulate on its underside preventing it from starting (or at least giving an awfully rough idle). But with that many miles, I'd say you were due new wires and a complete tune-up. I'm sure it wasn't money wasted.

Plus, higher repair prices have a lot to do with labor. For instance, I can change all eight plugs in my Mustang in about 20 minutes. They're all right there in front of me. But our '96 Explorer has to have its front wheels and splash guards removed to access 4 of its 6 plugs. Takes forever. If I were a mechanic making this repair, I'm afraid I'd have to pass the costs on to the customer as well.
 
Castaway said:
They charge $60 just to read the trouble codes... :angry:
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On General Motors cars up until 1994, you can read them yourself by jumping two terminals in the diagnostic plug connector under the dashboard, turn the ignition switch to "ON" and count the number of times the "Check Engine" light flashes. It flashes a "12" code three times first, (light flashes on once, a pause, then two short flashes), then flashes a code three times, that corresponds to whatever is wrong. If the oxygen sensor is bad, I think the code is "14" but ya need a chart to decipher the codes.

From 1996 and later, just about every car can be diagnosed with a hand held unit that anyone can buy for less than $200.00. Some are even less than $100.00.

I haven't bought one yet because the newest car I own is a 1992. :laugh:
 
fenian said:
... but since I am in sales, and drive all day everyday, I told him to just fix it.
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Like you, I too, am in outside sales and put 40-45k per year on my car. I bought my car new in '02, a "leftover" '01 model that last week turned 200k on the odometer. Other than checking my tires' air pressure every time I fill it up, I can't tell you the last time I looked under the hood. I have a several shops I use for various repairs, ie. oil changes, brake work, exhaust work, tune ups and the like. I trust them all. They were all referred to me by friends, co-workers, etc., and I make sure they all offer a warranty on their work. I will admit that when I have to spend my hard earned money on repairs, I don't like it a lot, but figure it's part of the "cost of doing business". No car = no sales calls = no commissions = NO CIGARS!!

I figure that I sell my products at a price that assures me a decent commission, makes a profit for my company, and does the job that my customers expect from it for a price with which they are happy. I can hardly expect the companies I do business with to not make a profit on the services that they provide, including car repairs. The point is, check them out! Get references from friends, co-workers, and even your customers, because auto mechanics don't seem to stay in business for a very long time if all they do is rip people off, word spreads. So take advantage of that same theory and only use mechanics that someone whose opinion you trust recommends.

Of course, you can buy any one of the numerous publications available, take an auto mechanics class, buy a few thousand dollars in specialty tools, and do the work yourself. Personally, I would rather spend my free time on something other than playing around with the mechanics of my cars, but that's me! I have a friend who spends a great deal of his free time working on his, his wife's, his kid's, and several of his neighbor's cars. He claims it relaxes him and he loves doing it, and I don't doubt that a bit. He thinks it's a bit odd that I can "burn" a 5 or 10 dollar bill smoking a cigar and make the same claims of relaxation and enjoyment.

So find yourself a mechanic that you trust, realize he does this for a living and profit is not a dirty word, get your car fixed, make a couple extra sales calls next week, enjoy a great cigar, and keep the economy flowing!! :D
 
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