Was I just ripped off???

[shaggybill]

I went to the mechanic the other day after realizing that I needed to replace the ball joints on my '98 Mountaineer. He quoted me $65 x 2 for the uppers, and $55 x 2 for the lowers, plus $150 in labor for a total of $390.

I don't have the time or know-how to replace them myself, so I brought the truck in today under the impression that he was replacing only the ball joints. He calls me to pick it up and I return to find that he has only replaced the lower ball joints at a price of $89 x 2, replaced the tie-rod end at $65, and charged the normal labor fee for a total of $410.01

unfortunately, in a rush, I didnt look at the receipt until I got home. The truck still makes a "thunking" noise when I hit road bumps too.

Was I just screwed over?

[shaggybill]

Update.

I was ripped off. I just went and talked to the mechanic and he said that his quote for $130 for the lowers was for just one side. He conveniently couldn't remember that he said they were $65 a piece. He had the card with his price quote still there and it said:

Lowers - 130
Uppers - 110
Labor - 150
Total.....390

Why on earth would I just want to replace one side? Furthermore, even if I did replace one side, that doesn't explain why the actual price was $89/joint instead of the $110 he quoted.

Currently waiting for his manager to call me back.

[Drez7]

Haha...sorry, but you didn't need an expert to tell you that you got ripped off.

I hate corrupt, cynnical, bad mechanics. Good luck getting your money back, you should be very careful dealing with mechanics you don't know well. Make sure you get your money back!

[UncleBob]

that was extremely cheap IMO. Don't know what his labor rate is, but other than the lack of communication, the price was fair.

Your clunk still being there, doesn't necessarily mean the parts he replaced weren't bad, but then, hard to know either way now.

[2.2 Straight six]

yeah, that's a pretty good price. there's a decent amount of work involved in that kind of work. don't forget he may have had to drop lots of suspension parts.

i can tear down an long block, and rebuild it with either new or original parts in some 6 hours working at a decent rate. or i can rush it and do it in 3-4. sure, it would cost someone more if i did it at a normal rate, but working faster doesn't mean they're working "better".

labour rates are "expensive" when you don't know what has to be done. but when you work in the field you can understand why it costs so much.

[shaggybill]

I talked to the manager. He told me that when he ordered the parts, they no longer had the $65 lower ball joints, so he ordered the ones that were $89. He also said that they decided to replace the tie-rod end instead of the upper ball joints because it was worse.

Is it just me, or would everyone else also want to be told about these changes before they go ahead with it?

Either way, the actual mechanic flat-out lied to me about what happened. Telling me that the parts were $110 a piece when they actually just ordered a more expensive part without telling me.

Basically, what it looks like to me is that they quoted me a large labor price for installing both joints, and actually only installed one, and installed a smaller, easier part in it's place while keeping the same labor rate.

[UncleBob]

legally, they can not deviate more than 10% from the agreed apon quote for the agreed apon job without contacting you.

Thats your legal right anyway.

The question you are asking is, did they pull a sly one, or did they use your money in what they consider the best possible way in fixing your vehicle to make it safe.

No one can answer that. But its an important question.

There should have been better communication, no doubt. You also have the legal right to take the old parts with you, btw, and then you could at the least have something to use to judge their decision by, by having someone else inspect the parts. That might not be definitive, but its something.

If you are only looking for legal options to use against them, you have them

[bobss396]

That was no mechanic, that was a parts changer. Too bad there are too many of them out there. If you paid with a credit card, try contesting the charges through your credit card holder, because you went in with a problem, spent a lot of $$$ and the problem still exists.

Bob

[talkmoooore]

Sorry to hear about that. Be careful next time and might as well ask for a detailed quote on repair work.



_____________________
Mylene
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[INF3RN0666]

Ok bro. the best way to actually get your money back is to go to the dealers and ask them how much each of the parts cost. Mechanics get 50% off parts and they add a little extra to that price before they sell it to their customers and install it. I bought a ball joint, from the dealership, for my 2000 impala with the police package suspension, and it was only $65. So check up on that with the dealership, and bring back a quote receipt from the dealership with all the prices listed on it. The labour was fair, mind you tie rods could be a 5 minute job or an hours worth of work, depending on how rusted or damaged your car is. The ball joints can be a pain. I don't deal with bullshit mechanics that charge standard rates. If it takes you 10 minutes to change my breaks, don't charge me the 1 hour rate. Charge me half of it...

[UncleBob]

heh

[hazmat456]

replased all four ball joints myself in about 4 hours in my driveway parts were $225 from advance alignment $90 at tires plus

[goongrinch]

90 bucks for an alignment lmfao crazy shit

[UncleBob]

Originally Posted by goongrinch

90 bucks for an alignment lmfao crazy shit

As with most questions of service costs, the cost of living of the area (and thereby the labor rate) is a huge factor.

IE, the cost will be greatly higher in LA, compared to montana.

Add on top of that the machine being used is another factor. My shop just got a new alignment machine, its a bad investment, to spend $15K on a machine and only charge $30 for an alignment. In that case, you're better off not getting the machine and sending the customer off to other shops. Let other shops lose money

[goongrinch]

we charge 59.95 and have a machine from the early 80s haha, the sears around here use the new hunter camera systems same with the firestones and les schawbs, they all charge around 65. tires plus is on the east cost im guessing