On Tue, 4 Oct 2005 21:10:01 -0400, "Michael J. Delaglio"
> wrote:

>

>Hey, Spike. Thanx for your detailed explanation of how the rates work. I'm
>up on all that myself because I worked full time hours as a certified
>mechanic for a VW/German car repair shop for just over two years back in
>1986-1988 while I was in my first two years of college. When the college
>work got to heavy in my third year, I stopped working at the garage. We
>specialized in air cooled German cars, including vintage Porce models. We
>also did all the four cylender fule injected VW's like the Rabbit. I did
>general maintenance/repair work as well and engine and trans rebuilds. We
>had a fixed labor rate there per hour.

You mentioned the prior employment, but that does not mean you
understand how the accounting is done. I know a number of mechanics
who can tune a race car at Indy by ear, but have no idea what it takes
to keep the team on the track.
>
>The area that I live in, northeast NJ is an expensive area as far as rates
>go. The Ford dealer that just did the repair on my 2000 GT has a labor rate
>of $94.00/hr. They got a code on the problem. Even if there was no code,
>and there were codes, that problem should not take any great skill or
>experience to figure out. I mean, come on. It was taken in for an idle
>problem. The car would stall dead unless you kept on the gas. The first
>thing to check is the bloody idle control valve.

The symptoms you described were, on my 91 TransAM GTA, a mechanic's
nightmare. No matter what the computer said (when it could detect a
problem) corrected the situation. In the end, it was not the idle
control, but both cats had gone at the same time. New cats, problem
gone... a few thousand dollars later.
>
>Given that they had codes, and that it was an obvious problem with an
>obvious solution, I cant see them calling it more then one full hour to
>correct the problem. I'd pay $94.00 or may be at the most twice that. Not $
>567.00 in labor !!!

Labor, not unusually, can run more than parts. It's pretty hard to
stand and look over the mechanic's shoulder with a stop watch, and I
have yet to see a shop where the mechanic uses a time card to begin
and end each task.

But, the schedule should give you an idea of what they billed for. As
you should know, there is also "down time" while waiting for
whatever... parts to be delivered if not in stock, a lift to be freed
up, the union required coffee break/meal break, etc. It all adds up.
And $94, that's not too bad in a lot of areas, but it does add up.
>
>I know when I worked as a pro it was twenty years ago and systems werent so
>fancy and all, but I'd equate diagnosing and changing the idle control valve
>on a 2000 GT with diagnosing/replacing an air flow sensor on an old fuel
>injected VW. It isnt too tuff of a job. I couldent imagine charging over
>five hours of labor for a fifteen minute job.

I no longer have the GTA. You can see what I have gone back to... a
car from my early 20s that I can actually work on without the need for
a $10K computer to tell me what is wrong. And today, I even looked at
a VW Bug. I can follow a flow chart to trace down a problem. Then,
when in doubt, start replacing parts with the cheapest thing to
replace. Too often people get a $400 radiator when all they needed was
a $6 thermostat. And the "dumbing down" I mentioned is a growing
problem. Go to a parts store and the clerk has no idea what you want
or what it does but he/she can look it up in a book. I saw it in my
step son. He could do the work as long as he could use his
calculator. Ask him how and why something works a certain way and he
has no idea.

Colleges and technical schools (not all, of course) are turning out
mechanics who can turn a wrench and change a part... as long as the
computer tells them which part needs the work. Even my sister
believed that the only way to do accounting was exactly as she was
taught in college. When she went to work she kept losing very good
jobs. And it's all part of the "throw away economy". Cars are headed
the same way as cell phones, computers, etc. When it breaks, toss it
and get a new one with new bells and whistles.

Again, I'd go back to the service manager, and politely but firmly
inquire how they figured $200 in parts was going to total over $700,
for what should have taken about a half hour for any skilled mechanic.

I lived in upstate NY, and Cape Cod. The NE ain't cheap. Good luck.
>
>Michael
>
>
>

Spike
1965 Ford Mustang fastback 2+2 A Code 289 C4 Trac-Lok
Vintage Burgundy w/Black Standard Interior; Vintage 40
16" rims w/BF Goodrich Comp T/A gForce Radial
225/50ZR16 KDWS skins; surround sound audio-video.