Sigh. The stealership strikes again

[wjburken]

Sure. Which is why most of us here do our own work on our trucks. $900 saved is $900 earned. But, I'll also gladly pay a shop to do work I either can't or don't have time for. There's an indy shop near me that does good work for a fair price, so I go there when I need something done.

Same here. I have no problem with businesses making a profit when I do business with them. I get that that is why they are in business. I deal with that everyday in my job. Like I told one business owner that I was doing business with, "I don't mind helping pay for your next boat, I'm just not going to pay for the entire thing on this purchase." Business, dealerships included, have every right to charge what they want to charge, but that doesn't mean that I can't have the opinion that they are greedy or that I have to feel bad about the fact that I don't give them my business.

 

[Geotrash]

Same here. I have no problem with businesses making a profit when I do business with them. I get that that is why they are in business. I deal with that everyday in my job. Like I told one business owner that I was doing business with, "I don't mind helping pay for your next boat, I'm just not going to pay for the entire thing on this purchase." Business, dealerships included, have every right to charge what they want to charge, but that doesn't mean that I can't have the opinion that they are greedy or that I have to feel bad about the fact that I don't give them my business.

Yes, and dealers always price things out by the book, whereas an indy shop will usually exercise some judgment and give me a better result at a better price if they know a way to do the work that's easier/faster than what the book calls for. Example: when I took my Infiniti in for inspection a couple of years ago, the LED third brake light was out. The owner of the shop offered me 2 options: replace it using the book method that required removing the trunk lid and a bunch of trim pieces to access the screws holding the part in place for $500 plus the part, or let him drill a hole in the underside of the trunk lid to get access, for $100 plus the part. It was a no-brainer.

 

[gooffeyguy]

GMPartsDirect is a GM Dealership, Flow Buick GMC.

Eh, doesn't really matter. They're still a retailer and get their parts wholesale.

I've found, well at least with Ford dealership parts departments, their prices will vary between dealerships.

The past few years I've called several local ones to get a price on a part, and the prices varied quite a bit. The one with the cheaper price always has the lowest prices on parts. Seems like dealer parts departments can set their own profit margins/markup.

Also, a good mechanic can make the dealership money by being able to get the job done quicker than the book time being charged. Allowing the mechanic to work on the next job and get them out the door.

 

[gooffeyguy]

a water pump at the local dealer here is around $250 (retail) they are $184 on rockauto, whoever is charging $411 is WAY overpriced.
labor rate at my dealer is like $150-160 a water pump done and out the door is typically around $600 it used to be a little bit less but labor rate has gone up slightly.

No shit. If I'm paying $400+ for a water pump it better be a billet one from Meziere or something like that, not an OE one

 

[Quark]

My first quote was $1100 for a water pump and flush. I balked and was able to get them down to $900.

I'm 67 and retired that means vulnerable to price hikes and unable to do it myself.

As an added bonus I notice when pulling into the garage that the tappets are louder. Wonder how much revving the engine took.

 

[fr8bil]

1.8 hours is book for the water pump. And the pump is a 150 dollar part.....so over a grand to bolt on a part?!?!

View attachment 362711

May I suggest you contact your local BBB and forward where you discovered flat rate labor is 1.8 hours and a copy of your repair invoice to them ? Most honest businesses hate being exposed by the BBB.....good luck.

 

[Rocket Man]

Parts and labor is actually what constitutes the majority of dealership profits. You would thing selling vehicles is the majority and the service department is there as a necessity for warranty work but that’s far from the truth. They make most of their money on maintaining and repairing out of warranty vehicles. Every new car sold is a gold mine waiting for them to cash in on down the line. And with the way they’re building the new ones, even owners that are mechanically inclined like us won’t be able to fix them much longer because even the most basic maintenance requires a $20k machine to diagnose and recalibrate the systems.

 

[Rocket Man]

No shit. If I'm paying $400+ for a water pump it better be a billet one from Meziere or something like that, not an OE one

*new business idea- billet water pumps.

 

[M Stewart]

Estimates like these are precisely why I use a local independent shop 90% of the time! There are very few dealerships around the country that trust to do what's needed instead of what will maximize the bill.

 

[wjburken]

Parts and labor is actually what constitutes the majority of dealership profits. You would thing selling vehicles is the majority and the service department is there as a necessity for warranty work but that’s far from the truth. They make most of their money on maintaining and repairing out of warranty vehicles. Every new car sold is a gold mine waiting for them to cash in on down the line. And with the way they’re building the new ones, even owners that are mechanically inclined like us won’t be able to fix them much longer because even the most basic maintenance requires a $20k machine to diagnose and recalibrate the systems.

When we bought our 2013 Yukon a few years ago, the salesman, trying to talk up the quality of their service department, was bragging about how their service department produced over 80% (IIRC) of the dealers total revenue. He said that if they didn't sell a single car, the revenue from the service department could more than cover all the expenses for the business, including payroll.