I have a 1999 Neon with 104,000 miles. I took the car to the mechanic because the temperture of the car was getting hot and I made sure it was not because of lack of oil or water.

These were the Labor Charges. DO THEY SOUND RIGHT?

R+R Valve Cover Gasket + Groumets --> $121.00

R+R Transmission filter + gasket add fluid --> $80.00

Major Tune-up inluding cap, rotor, wires, airfilter, fuel filter, PVC Valve set timing + clean t-body --> $150.00

Clean Engine upper + lower. Reeplace vacum hoses + tighten oil pan gasket --> $50.00

Are labor charges sound right?

Thank you for any inputs.

Major tune for $150? You got a deal. I dont know about your neck of the woods, but here most independant shops charge between $65 and 75 per hour for labor. Labor time on a neon tune up is around 1.8 hrs. do the math. Plus I would guess around 150 to 200 just in parts. ( shops gotta make money too. )
Every thing else sounds good to me. :smokin:

you did get over charged for the first 2

R+R Valve Cover Gasket + Groumets
should be around $60

R+R Transmission filter + gasket add fluid
depending on the filter, should be around $60-65 parts and labor

Just curious but what cap and rotor did they replace?The neons use an electric coil instead of a rotor cap.If they replaced the coil then you got a pretty reasonable deal on that one I think.

my shop has a labor rate of 98/hr. now, to r&r a valve cover shouldnt take more than an hour! so for you to get charged 120 for that seems a bit steep. unless tehy included a new gasket into that price, then it seems to make more sense

121.00... a liitle bit high
80.00 .... ok to me
150.00 for tune-up is bull shite fraud ....no rotor in a 1999 neon, what timing???, and what wires???? I have my harness for plugs etc fot 230,000 miles and no emi at all.
50.00 to clean engine yeh ok

I'd say 120.00 to 170.00 too much. Don't go back. and dont reccommend them.

I Dont think there is a transmission filter on a neon either....... and no it should of been very quick to replace the valve cover there is no rotor or caps its a coil and it shouldnt of need to be replaced.

the timing on a neon should not need to be adjusted either the belt can not move at all

The main reason I had to take the car to the mechanic was because the car was over heating. I remember explaining this to the mechanic. After he did all this work to the car, the car is STILL over heating. The car gets over heated after driving it for 10 minutes. IN OTHER WORDS, I PAID MONEY FOR NOTHING!

I will have to go back to the mechanic and find a way for him to fix my car without charging me more money.

Does anyone has any inputs on how to approach this situation?

Thank you in advanced.

I Dont think there is a transmission filter on a neon eitherThen what filters the transmission fluid? It is inside the transmission pan!

the timing on a neon should not need to be adjusted either, the belt can not move at allThe timing on a neon can be adjusted, but I don't think it was necessary or if the mechanic did that at all. To adjust the timing means quite a bit of work.

the car is STILL over heating. The car gets over heated after driving it for 10 minutes. Does anyone has any inputs on how to approach this situation?Are you radiator fans turning on? If not then you probably have a bad relay. After that you need to check the thermostat, then make sure the radiator isn't clogged.

After all the work he did he is now telling me that there is a problem when putting water into the radiator. Basically, we put water into the radiator and the vapor of the water tends to get outside thru the muffle.

He suggested me to use this miraculous liquid to seal what ever is broken. He wants to charge me $20 for this.

This is incredible.

After all the work he did he is now telling me that there is a problem when putting water into the radiator. Basically, we put water into the radiator and the vapor of the water tends to get outside thru the muffle.

He suggested me to use this miraculous liquid to seal what ever is broken. He wants to charge me $20 for this.

This is incredible.Did he put coolant into the radiator along with the water? This mechanic is starting to sound pretty stupid! Check to make sure your fans are coming on...Start the engine and let it sit there, after a couple of minutes they should kick on. If they don't check to make sure your relay is good. If it is leaking, you should be able to see it somewhere. Squeeze the upper and lower radiator hoses, be careful maybe hot, and see if coolant comes out anywhere.

A little trick would be to turn on the AC. when the compressor clutch engages, the radiator fan comes on, or is supposed too, regardless of the coolant temp.

What is all this engine overheating stuff!!! You'd think it was summer!

Do you have water or coolant in suffiecent volume?
Is the thermostat opening?
Is there air locks in the channels?
Does the pump cause adequate flow?
Is there flow through the radiator?
Does the radiator fan com on when the radiator is hot?
The answers need to be:
Yes yes, no yes, yes, yes.

Then what filters the transmission fluid? It is inside the transmission pan!

The timing on a neon can be adjusted, but I don't think it was necessary or if the mechanic did that at all. To adjust the timing means quite a bit of work.


welll yes I know that you can adjust the gear itself but it should not of moved all to make you need to adjust it