Car troubles

[sissy_ib]

I've never really had anything to vent on here about before...
So I guess it's my turn.
My car died this morning. Last night the battery light and break light stayed on when I started it.
I figured I would call today and get an appointment at Chevy.
Well on my way to work the car died! I managed to get it off the main road but it was on a small access road and I could get it no further! I was so embarrassed people where having to dodge my car. I was so scarred it was going to cause an accident but all the electrical was down so I could not get in back in to neutral to move and the emergency flashers wouldn't even turn on....
Ok, an hour and a half later there were no accidents (thank goodness) and the tow truck finally showed up.
Take the car to Chevy and I get a rental.
I figured out it was probably the alternator. Knew it would be a few hundred bucks...
Just got a call from the dealership...$1070 for a battery, alternator and the tow.
Also need a new timing belt and water pump. $700.
Since I have 60,000 miles on the car I also need the 50,000 mile service, spark plugs and two filters. $1000.

Total~$2700

The guy told me I could wait to get the 50,000 mile service, spark plugs and two filters, but I feel more comfortable getting it all done now. sigh

This just about wipes out my savings, but thank the heavens I have that savings. So I will be cutting WAAAAYYYY back for the next several months.

Ok thanks for letting me share.

 

[mrodgers]

That's why you find yourself a good mechanic rather than take it to a dealer. $1000 for sparkplugs and a few filters? They are ripping you off big time.

Alternator you probably could get a shop to rebuild it. Timing belt and water pump indeed could cost you $700-1000. The fun part is, parts would probably be no more than $200. Maybe a mechanic would get it done for $500 with parts.

A mechanic will charge you hourly according to how long he works. A dealer charges you by the book hour, which if it says the job is 3 hours and it only takes them 5 minutes, you are charged 3 hours labor.

My ball joint was 2.5 hours according to the book. My brother-in-law and I did it in less than 5 minutes by lifting the suspension with a prybar instead of completely disassembling the entire front end for example.

 

[sissy_ib]

That's why you find yourself a good mechanic rather than take it to a dealer. $1000 for sparkplugs and a few filters? They are ripping you off big time.

Alternator you probably could get a shop to rebuild it. Timing belt and water pump indeed could cost you $700-1000. The fun part is, parts would probably be no more than $200. Maybe a mechanic would get it done for $500 with parts.

A mechanic will charge you hourly according to how long he works. A dealer charges you by the book hour, which if it says the job is 3 hours and it only takes them 5 minutes, you are charged 3 hours labor.

My ball joint was 2.5 hours according to the book. My brother-in-law and I did it in less than 5 minutes by lifting the suspension with a prybar instead of completely disassembling the entire front end for example.

Thanks. But I don't know any mechanics. I feel more comfortable having the dealer take care of it. The spark plugs and filters are $300.
The 50,000 mile service is $700.
I guess I should not have tried to share today.
I have an un-driveable car at this point so my options are limited.

 

[daileyad]

I would do only the work you have to do to get the car driveable and then find another option for the other services. I am not handy, but I easily changed the cabin air filter, if that is one of the filters they recommended. Dealer wanted $60 I think and I bought the part for around $10. We need an engine air filter now and I'm considering figuring out how to change that if its not too bad. The dealer is always ridiculous prices. They want $50+ to rotate tires when walmart does it for $10.

 

[marlynnp]

Instead of getting a bad attitude about someone trying to let you know those charges are excessive, you should be calling everyone you know in the area to see if they can give you a name of a good mechanic.
You are being ripped off beyond belief. Filters & spark plugs do not cost $300. The total for all you quoted should be less than half what they said.

 

[dfchelbay]

I've never really had anything to vent on here about before...
So I guess it's my turn.
My car died this morning. Last night the battery light and break light stayed on when I started it.
I figured I would call today and get an appointment at Chevy.
Well on my way to work the car died! I managed to get it off the main road but it was on a small access road and I could get it no further! I was so embarrassed people where having to dodge my car. I was so scarred it was going to cause an accident but all the electrical was down so I could not get in back in to neutral to move and the emergency flashers wouldn't even turn on....
Ok, an hour and a half later there were no accidents (thank goodness) and the tow truck finally showed up.
Take the car to Chevy and I get a rental.
I figured out it was probably the alternator. Knew it would be a few hundred bucks...
Just got a call from the dealership...$1070 for a battery, alternator and the tow.
Also need a new timing belt and water pump. $700.
Since I have 60,000 miles on the car I also need the 50,000 mile service, spark plugs and two filters. $1000.

Total~$2700

The guy told me I could wait to get the 50,000 mile service, spark plugs and two filters, but I feel more comfortable getting it all done now. sigh

This just about wipes out my savings, but thank the heavens I have that savings. So I will be cutting WAAAAYYYY back for the next several months.

Ok thanks for letting me share.

At the risk of sounding obnoxious, you're getting ripped off. Those prices for that work is CRAZY HIGH. If it's not too late, I'd check around for a mechanic, not a dealership to do the repair work.

 

[MickeyP]

WHY would you feel BETTER going to a dealer? I know I would feel worse!! Dealers are well-known for charging 5 times more than a mechanic. You honestly need to call around. We aren't ganging up, we're trying to help you save a lot of money.

 

[sissy_ib]

Instead of getting a bad attitude about someone trying to let you know those charges are excessive, you should be calling everyone you know in the area to see if they can give you a name of a good mechanic.
You are being ripped off beyond belief. Filters & spark plugs do not cost $300. The total for all you quoted should be less than half what they said.

At 7:00 this morning I had no options with a dead car in the middle of the road. Everyone telling me I'm getting riped off is something I already know. I'm not a mechanic and I don't know any. Thank you all for your concern. I have a car that can not be driven anywhere. My only options are to put it on a tow truck and drive around town looking for a better price or let the dealership work on it. Maybe I didn't make the best choice this morning but I don't even know a mechanic to take it to and to me the dealership is a better plan than a random name in a phone book. I only take my car to the dealership for a reason. The cost is the cost but I trust them. Not saying you cant trust mechanic shops, my brother is a mechanic unfortunately for me he lives in another state. I just don't know any I do trust. Thanks for the concern.

 

[tar heel]

After this, why don't you try to find a good mechanic before you need something else? I go to a father and son place. I trust them totally and know exactly who is working on my car. At the dealer, not only did I get the huge upcharge, but I also may have gotten the most experienced guy or the 19-year-old who just started working there.

The last time I had my van to the dealer was for a recall, and they gave me a list of $2000 of needed repairs. I passed on all of them. Some have eventually been done, and others have not -- it's been like four years.

I had my alternator replaced Friday. Had it serviced while it was there, and the bill was a little under $500. AAA towed it, so I've made back my membership for this year. I did NOT need a new battery -- your alternator going bad does not mean your battery is bad. That battery light is letting you know you're running on the battery.

 

[BridgetBordeaux]

Help us help you..................

What is the make/model/year/engine size of your car?

Please provide as much detail as you can about the parts/labor/services they are providing.

We understand that you feel both trapped yet comfortable with this dealer, but we may be able to help you sort this situation out for less money.

Glad that no one was hurt and that no other accidents occurred.

Some dealers, for example, offer a XX,ooo miile service that contains things not called for by the manufacturer. Those extra things represent a large profit.

 

[SandrA9810]

At 7:00 this morning I had no options with a dead car in the middle of the road. Everyone telling me I'm getting riped off is something I already know. I'm not a mechanic and I don't know any. Thank you all for your concern. I have a car that can not be driven anywhere. My only options are to put it on a tow truck and drive around town looking for a better price or let the dealership work on it. Maybe I didn't make the best choice this morning but I don't even know a mechanic to take it to and to me the dealership is a better plan than a random name in a phone book. I only take my car to the dealership for a reason. The cost is the cost but I trust them. Not saying you cant trust mechanic shops, my brother is a mechanic unfortunately for me he lives in another state. I just don't know any I do trust. Thanks for the concern.

If don't have AAA, then get it. Or at least any good roadside service. They will also tow you to the closest AAA approved mechanic. You are not stuck with your car at a dealership. You have every right to point, laugh in their face, and say "yeah, right". You get a tow guy to put your car right back up there and take it to a mechanic shop.
Heck, you don't even have to be a member of AAA to use their search engine to find an approved service shop. When we got our car, I had no clue of any good mechanics in this area, and I wanted reliability of the work being done. Most people say "ohh my brother, cousin, in-law, friend, or who ever fixes cars". Well off the side of the road Joe isn't going to give me a guarantee of their work. I finally settled going to Sears automotive. Cheapest, probably not, but their hourly rate was about the same as any prior mechanic I've been to. I knew I would get the guarantee of work, and backed by a reliable company.
The guy we bought the car from, works with my b/f's mother. He of course had to go off laughing and mocking us for "spending so much money at Sears". Then his mother started in on it too. But for us, it was a car that was still within our total price range, even with the repairs. And has been really good to us since we got it.

The mechanic that did work on our car was AMAZING. He was so nice, so helpful. We stood at the car going over everything that was wrong. How to fix it, if it could be done at home. Any other suggestions that needed to be done, like a new air filter. He worked at the Volvo dealership for several years before working at Sears. He couldn't believe the amount of people would drop on a car just to have it "running perfect again". They'd go in and say, well 5 grands the max, let me know if you go over it. They didn't care about what was wrong with the car, or what needed to be done, or that the work could take a person 10 minutes at home for like 5% of the cost.

My aunt is also a "dealership" kind of person, but she's still willing to find a deal. The dealership she bought the car from were constantly saying she "needed" repairs done that didn't need to be done. Well from the customers at her job, she met the manager of another Honda dealership in the area. So now she goes to him to get her tune-ups/repairs done for half the cost the original place was charging her. And she's also not afraid to go to another mechanic shop and get a price quote. Most the time they'll price match to that quote.

 

[DisneyAndRedSox]

you should be calling everyone you know in the area to see if they can give you a name of a good mechanic.
You are being ripped off beyond belief. Filters & spark plugs do not cost $300. The total for all you quoted should be less than half what they said.

I second this!
Ask neighbors, co-workers, everyone you know for names of good mechanics. They are out there! The one I go to used to work for several dealerships and has very low turnover with his employees. Honestly I don't trust the dealers as far as I can throw them- they have such high overhead they have to cover. An independent has to rely more on word of mouth and their reputation is on line.

We own a '04 Rav and in addition to bringing it to my independent, every year I take it to Toyota for an oil change just so I can find out what they recommend for service. They wanted over $200 for a serpentine belt, my mechanic was $90. They also told me my battery was on death's door- took it to somewhere else to buy the battery and they showed me it was fine. I still have that battery two years later and will replace it in the next few weeks. We also own '05 BMW- the only thing I do at the dealer is an oil change every 15k miles. The dealer wanted over $2000 for brakes, rotors and sensors- my mechanic was $1090 and he used to work for BMW so I am totally comfortable with him working on it. The majority of the bill was parts and not very much labor.

 

[sissy_ib]

Help us help you..................

What is the make/model/year/engine size of your car?

Please provide as much detail as you can about the parts/labor/services they are providing.

We understand that you feel both trapped yet comfortable with this dealer, but we may be able to help you sort this situation out for less money.

Glad that no one was hurt and that no other accidents occurred.

Some dealers, for example, offer a XX,ooo miile service that contains things not called for by the manufacturer. Those extra things represent a large profit.

2007 Chevy Aveo. No after market parts. The guy told me it is the most expensive alternator he has ever seen and has no idea why it is so much. Almost $600 just for the part.
My fiance had 30,000 mile service done for $500 so I really don't feel ripped off paying more for 50,000 service. I know they are making a profit off of me. Anytime I buy anything someone is making a profit. But I have never had any of the fluids replaced and that is something I have been meaning to do. Being deployed all the time it is hard to get stuff done. And as far as the dealer vs a mechanic. I know I will get a warranty on all the work done at the dealer. Like I said before, I had a non moving car and did not feel comfortable picking a name out of the phone book.

 

[Jeff_G]

Ummm there is no 50k service recomendation from your owners manual:

Every 3,000 Miles (5 000 km): Engine Oil and
Filter Change (or 3 months, whichever occurs first).

Every 6,000 Miles (10 000 km): Tire Rotation.

Every 15,000 Miles (25 000 km): Engine Air
Cleaner Filter Inspection. Passenger Compartment
Air Filter Replacement. Drive Belt(s) Inspection.

Every 30,000 Miles (50 000 km): Engine
Air Cleaner Filter Replacement. Spark Plug
Replacement. EVAP System Service. PCV System
Service. Timing Belt Inspection. Brake/Clutch Fluid
Change (or 24 months, whichever occurs first).

Every 42,000 Miles (70 000 km): Engine Oil Pan
Drain Plug Washer Replacement.

Every 60,000 Miles (100 000 km): Spark Plug
Wire Replacement. Timing Belt Replacement.
EVAP System Solenoid Valve Replacement.

Every 90,000 Miles (150 000 km): Fuel Filter
Replacement.



Your alternator runs between $60 and $200 depending new vs remanufactured.

Sorry...

 

[SandrA9810]

Alternators aren't that hard to replace, or take that much time. When I had the alternator replaced on the van, the mechanic wanted $300. The part itself was only about $120-$160. We were moving out of an apartment and needed to get it moving again. Eventually we caved and towed it to the mechanic, but I already got some of the bolts off and had the part. So they charged me $50 to put the new one on. Even though they're not supposed to use parts customers bring in.

I want to say the timing belt was about $400 for replacement.

You can buy a new battery almost anywhere, and most places will put them in for free. A really high end one, probably about $60. A cheap one with 1 or 2 year warranty, probably about $30. When the alternator first started going bad on the van, I think we went through two or three batteries. We'd just take the battery back to Walmart, they test it, and replace it free if it can't be recharged. By the third one, we knew it was the alternator. But the van was rarely driven, maybe once every few months.

Spark plugs, even the high end ones are only about $3 each. It should take a mechanic only about 1/2 hr to do the labor. So I'd expect $50 for that. Wires alone are usually between $40 and $60.

I'd have to look at the work order to see the cost of the water pump and labor we paid for on this car (ford contour). But that's a major important part to the engine and can cause a lot more damage if it's not fixed.
If you are getting the water pump replaced, you should look into the cost of replacing the serpentine belt, should only be about $30 more.

Since you have a work order for what needs to get done, take that paper to any mechanic and ask them to give you a quote. They should give you a print out of the parts and labor for each part.

 

[NYCDiane]

That's why you find yourself a good mechanic rather than take it to a dealer. $1000 for sparkplugs and a few filters? They are ripping you off big time.

The dealerships will charge you double, if not triple, what you would pay in a normal mechanic shop. I would never bring my car to a dealership for service. A simple $30 oil change is $80 at the dealer. No thanks. I also have some work needed --- I had quotes from other mechanics ranging anywhere from $500 - $800. I called the dealership and they quoted me over $2K. Crazy.

 

[Sadie22]

Our auto insurance covers towing, so that may be something to look into in the future. We do not have AAA. DH maintains our multiple Chevies which have over 100,000 miles on each one. For major repairs we have a local shop we trust which was recommended by several friends.

A battery for my Chevy Blazer was $100 recently.

OP, it sounds like you may not have been used to taking your vehicle to Jiffy Lube or another such place for regular fluid maintenance and that possibly the car was driven some distance the prior evening and today with warning lights on. Some lights can be ignored for a short time but others, as you learned, can indicate a dangerous situation. With the battery light on, if the alternator was bad, the battery gauge was most likely showing discharge only which should have indicated to you not to move the car.

 

[NYCDiane]

At 7:00 this morning I had no options with a dead car in the middle of the road. Everyone telling me I'm getting riped off is something I already know. I'm not a mechanic and I don't know any. Thank you all for your concern. I have a car that can not be driven anywhere. My only options are to put it on a tow truck and drive around town looking for a better price or let the dealership work on it. Maybe I didn't make the best choice this morning but I don't even know a mechanic to take it to and to me the dealership is a better plan than a random name in a phone book. I only take my car to the dealership for a reason. The cost is the cost but I trust them. Not saying you cant trust mechanic shops, my brother is a mechanic unfortunately for me he lives in another state. I just don't know any I do trust. Thanks for the concern.

Don't you have co-workers? Neighbors? The guy at the coffee shop? I mean, come ON --- you're getting seriously ripped off by the dealer. He's even telling you that you need a service (50K mile) that you don't need.

Tell him to do what has to be done to get the car driveable. Then drive the car home and start making phone calls to people you know. If that doesn't work, look around your neighborhood for mechanics. Or, yes, pull out a phone book and call and get quotes.

Why would you want to pay a dealer 3 times what it should cost you!?????

 

[01spirit750]

Here is why I don't goto the dealer for repairs

5k mile on new car, during recall work, service writer informs me I need the 15k mile service for $300. I looked at his screen and saw this was an oil and air filter change and then just look and check stuff. I declined.

Wifes taurus needed a new water pump. Dealer quoted $600 ($90 for the part). Service writer informed me that the engine had to be partial removed to replace. I got the ford brand part number for a new water pump and bought in online for $40. I had the new water pump installed in less the 90 minutes on a Saturday morning (this included stopping and going to the store to get some gasket sealant).

Ford explorer in for warranty work on rear differential and dealer informed me that the vehicle was not driveable due to worn front brakes and was not safe. I declined and drove it home, pulled the front tires and checked the brakes, they were like almost new. It was obvious that the dealer has a milage chart with recommended replacement parts. It is called "upsales". I replaced them 20k miles later only because we were going to the mountains and I wanted new ceramic brakes.

Whenever I buy a new car I purchase the factory service manual from Helm publishing.

I do all my own repairs (except transmission rebuilds).

 

[tlh0726]

OP
The posters are just trying to help.
You had to do what you had to do due to the car not working.
No one is faulting you for that.
What they are trying to point out, and you seem so against doing, is once the car is fixed, explore other options and research for other means to deal with any future problems.

I take my 08 van (no longer under any warranty due to high mileage) to the dealer for oil changes buy 3 and get the next one free. So even if they overcharge, I feel it kinda washes out getting the 1 "free".

Anyhow, They changed a filter during one of the suggested service recommendations.
About 4 months later was back in for something. They called back with an estimate and then said such and such a filter should be changed every X about of miles. I said okay no problem. Got to thinking, pulled out the paperwork from that previous visit and called back. The guy was speechless when I said wait that filter was just changed just X miles ago.