Help

[dstrass]

My wife ran the Suburban out of gas the other day and apparently ruined the fuel pump. The guy that is fixing it for us is charging $450.00 for the modular pump assembly. I checked out several parts places on the net and the highest I found was $312.00 at Napa. The grand total for the job is coming to $725.00. Just wondering if anyone has had this happen and is the guy marking the pump up on me ? Thanks in advance for any help !!! I guess I should mention that it is a 2000, 1500, 4x4 LT with 5.3 Liter.

[ffmike]

sounds like a sham! that should not have ruined the fuel pump. you already found a way cheaper part too.

[Fireplug]

He has to mark up the pump how do you expect him to stay open and pay his overhead with out parts mark ups.
SHAM I dont think so running a intank pump out of fuel will fry it every time

[ffmike]

It's really simple. you found the part for $312 he's charging you $450. That's well over 25% difference. I can't say what labor costs are. I don't know how much time it takes to install. I have seen plenty of modern vehicles ran out of fuel and can't say that I have ever heard of it frying an intake pump. I could be wrong. you should question your mechanic about his labor and cost for parts and have him explain what went wrong with the intake pump.

[Fireplug]

You find the part for 312 and do you think ANY shop is going to spend the time to call all over the place to find the cheapest part ?? who pays for this time??

[dstrass]

$312.00 was the highest pump. I shopped around for the highest, the lowest was $254.00. With what is being charged for labor a parts mark up I think is ridiculous. Any way I went ahead and had him do it since a tow to somewhere else would cost me the difference anyway. Thanks for the replies !!

[mrrpm]

Maybe this will help sort some confusion - running a vehicle which has an in-tank pump low on fuel (below 1/4 tank) on a regular basis WILL cause the pump to burn up - the fuel actually cools the pump! Running the vehicle low on gas allows the pump to not be submerged in the fuel, which will make it run hot. Heat kills electrial parts. Period. As far as the markup on the part, in my shop parts are regularly marked up 25-50 percent based on the original cost of the part. You may also want to consider the fact that if this mechanic is worth his salt, he is not using discount part stores parts which are cheaper for a reason!

[GMMerlin]

Originally Posted by dstrass

My wife ran the Suburban out of gas the other day and apparently ruined the fuel pump. The guy that is fixing it for us is charging $450.00 for the modular pump assembly. I checked out several parts places on the net and the highest I found was $312.00 at Napa. The grand total for the job is coming to $725.00. Just wondering if anyone has had this happen and is the guy marking the pump up on me ? Thanks in advance for any help !!! I guess I should mention that it is a 2000, 1500, 4x4 LT with 5.3 Liter.

I mark up most parts. This mark up usually pays for all the small parts (nuts,bolts screws), chemicals, waste disposal fees and all the small charges that will kill a business. Don't forget tax!
Then I charge you for labor, this pays me for doing the work, taxes, fees and anything else.
Now, I can use a cheap part and save you money, but you may have to come back and have the job done again, and again, and again...you get my drift
or
I can install a quality part that may be a little more expensive and last you a longer time.
But most importantly, I am in busness to make money, just like you go to work to make money...while you recieve your paycheck at the end of the week, I spend everynight paying bills, calculating debits and credits and trying to make sure I can keep my business open another day.