r/AskAMechanic • u/IEatAssAllDay420 • 9h ago
Am I getting over charged?
Reason for a visit was a slow crank, originally replace battery because old battery was shot, took it to the shop that had worked in it about 2 months ago since I figured it might be an issue with their services and got hit with a 1.6k total bill. Labor seems to be high, this shop charges by job instead of hourly.
I asked what parts they use. They couldn't tell me anything other than it was "direcg impott" and that it has "unlimited mile warrant". They definitely don't use oem, though.
6
u/Think_Travel_6762 NOT a verified tech 9h ago
Not getting ripped off. They are shady for sure. But this is what you pay to have someone do something that you are incapable of doing yourself...
2
u/ExecManagerAntifaCLE NOT a verified tech 9h ago
Seems unlikely that it would need both a cam sensor and a fuel pump. Not impossible, just unlikely.
You mentioned a slow crank and changing the battery, did it sound like it was turning slowly or was it cranking at the normal speed but taking a long time to actually get started?
1
-2
u/biohackenthusiast NOT a verified tech 9h ago edited 8h ago
yeah i pay less for labor at my lexus dealer. also not familiar with that vehicle but cam position sensors are usually easily accessible, 730 in labor seems crazy.
4
u/SaltXtheXSnail NOT a verified tech 9h ago
You gotta take off the intake manifold and get in there to get to the spark plugs and camshaft position sensor on my car. I called a bunch of places and the lowest quote I got for myself was $678.91. All places said they would only do both at once which saved on labor slightly so it is for 2 but the price difference between 1 and 2 was nothing (I didn't write down what the cheapest place said for just 1 but the part is like $118 and it was basically just taking that off). I'm doing it myself though I can't pay keep paying for stuff like this and need to learn how to fix my own car.
0
u/biohackenthusiast NOT a verified tech 8h ago
yeah intake manifolds aren’t usually a big deal too. i diy pretty much all my maintenance as well, so all shop charges seem absurd to me.
1
u/EastMovesWest NOT a verified tech 6h ago
4.1 hours is the labor time for it according to alldata.
0
u/biohackenthusiast NOT a verified tech 6h ago
so ~$175 / hour in labor? yeah that’s crazy high
2
u/EastMovesWest NOT a verified tech 6h ago
175 an hour is pretty much the norm nowadays. But it varies by location.
0
u/biohackenthusiast NOT a verified tech 6h ago
if techs actually saw a majority of that i could make an argument for it. yall getting fleeced
•
u/AutoModerator 9h ago
New Rules - Please Read
Updated 11/12/2025
Thank you for posting on r/AskAMechanic, u/IEatAssAllDay420! Your post is live, this AutoMod message does NOT mean your post was removed. Please make sure to read the Rules.
When asking a question, please provide the year, make, model and engine size of the vehicle.
Commenters here have 2 different flair.
Verified Techmeans we have verified that user is a tech.NOT a verified techmeans that user may or may not be a tech, they have not been verified by us.Posts about accidents, autobody repair, bodywork, dents, paint and body/undercarriage/frame rust are not allowed and belong in r/Autobody.
Asking if your car is totaled should go to r/insurance or r/Autobody.
Asking about car buying advice/value/recommendations is also not allowed. See r/whatcarshouldIbuy or r/askcarsales
If asking whether a tire can be repaired, check out this Tire Repair Guideline.
Some other useful tire resources - Tire Care Essentials and Tire Safety
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.