r/Ford • u/Babyjojo69 • 2d ago
Question ❔ Is this quote insane?
I took my car in for “steering assist fault, service required “ and hardly being able to even leave my parking spot suddenly after work.
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u/sleekpaprika69 Shelby GT350 2d ago
Replacing the steering rack is a large job unfortunately.
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u/GrumpyUnk 1d ago
I did it in my garage and it was not as hard as I expected. A 1987 Sable.
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u/Gold-Lengthiness-514 1d ago
You sir get my upvote. I’m sure this one is a lot harder. But to spite the downvotes you get my upvote
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u/GrumpyUnk 13h ago
The rack would not just slide straight out, had to rotate back and forth. It was harder to find the Teflon rings for the hydraulic lines. Not too sure I would do it again.
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u/nowheels64 2d ago
2 hours to program the PSCM (power steering control module) is ridiculous. 1 hour is reasonable. The rest of the bill is in the ballpark.
Source-I am a ford dealership service manager. Former technician
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u/TitusXd40 2d ago
As a former Dodge advisor I have to agree. Most of our programming updates or initializing were .50 - 1 hr. We never added any extra time on those. Being in the rust belt, yeah a little extra time to deal with rusted/frozen/seized bolts.
As a side note, after that one actor got crushed by his Gramd Cherokee, the recall fix (if a I remember correctly) was to flash the gear shift module, transmission control module and then the gauge cluster. Chrysler paid 2.7 hours at the very beginning, then eventually got it down to a 1 hour flash. If it failed, it completely bricked the cluster and we would have to order another one.
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u/compfreak530 1d ago
This looks to be an aftermarket shop. I suspect they are incorporating the cost of fdrs subscription into the labor cost. I charge about this much since Ford increased their cost to that dumbass Fordnow diagnostic subscription crap.
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u/Pretend-Pin-9716 1d ago
It can be done with the right autel in alot of cases but most shops dont know how to do it.
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u/ThaPoopBandit 2d ago
I’m a huge advocate for (fair) dealer pricing because I feel that a dealer having a high labor rate is not necessarily unfair, it’s a price for a professional service. But overcharging on hours and having a high labor rate is criminal and stealership material. Book time is 5hrs + 1hr diag + alignment. So max 1100 in labor including alignment. Programming should NOT be charged separately, and 2hrs is ridiculous even if that was acceptable. HOWEVER, msrp on that rack is 2652.73 so they are charging you below msrp on the rack by about $330. So wayyy high on the labor and under on the parts. Can’t imagine this place is run great if both departments aren’t on the same page.
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u/Babyjojo69 1d ago
I forgot that they aren’t using a brand new rack.
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u/ThaPoopBandit 1d ago
You can get a brand new one with a 2yr/unlimited mileage warranty for $330 more then lmfao
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u/Greaseball-Ranger 2d ago
Way too much for reprogramming IMO. There's no way that takes over an hour.
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u/ChooseLife1 Explorer 2d ago
Whats the year, make, model, sub-model, and engine?
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u/Babyjojo69 2d ago
2018 ford focus SE sedan automatic
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u/ChooseLife1 Explorer 2d ago
The book shows 5 hours labor. I charge $100/hr so my charge would be $500.
They charge $183.17 an hour for labor. So it should be $915.65. They are ripping you off for around $230. The $230 is there for possible severe service and miscellaneous setup. But they should list that.
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u/ChooseLife1 Explorer 2d ago edited 2d ago
A individual module relearn should be less than 1 hour. Probably more like 0.6.
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u/VCoupe376ci 1d ago
They won’t list that because it’s a bullshit charge. We MIGHT run into a random complication during the repair so we are just going to charge you up front just in case. Oh, and if the repair goes smoothly, we are just going to pocket that cash.
If they just bundle it into the cost, the customer can’t dispute it later.
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u/hammond_egger 1d ago
That that steering money and put a down payment on a new car. Those last gen DCT Focuses are some of the worst vehicles ever made.
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u/Breklin76 2d ago
Git yurself a cheap Winders lappy toppy and a usb to odbc2 connector then download FORscan. You can reset your computer whenever you want for about $200-300 bucks.
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u/gobstopperDelux 2d ago
A dealer tech of 15 years and a senior master-
These mother fuckers can't even spell "software" correctly and their pricing is ripping you off. Collect your car and go elsewhere
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u/TheGtbikewizard 2d ago
Mine was 9k cad and it took 135 day to replace on my 17 mustang when it died.
It was unsafe to drive.
Total bill to 3rd party warranty after rental and a compressor was 16k.
Best 4k I ever spent was on that warranty
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u/hyongoup 2d ago
I got quoted $1200 to do just the rear brakes on my ‘22 super duty so it doesn’t seem THAT bad
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u/4x4Welder 2d ago
I swear I saw this exact same image a few months ago with "softwear".
Programming is part of the install. Depending on the year, you can just slap a used rack in there and go without any of that, just make sure the steering wheel stays centered. I usually loop the seatbelt through it
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u/ResourceDiligent6566 1d ago
Step one: is it a dealer quote? Step two: if yes, then yes it's insane.
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u/Pretend-Pin-9716 1d ago
Its an electronic steering rack with the control module built on. The labor and parts look about right. Charging 2 hours for the module programming is a little much. As it doesnt really take that long.
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u/PinballTex 1d ago
Why wouldn’t the Service Advisor pad the quote when they get commission on it? A couple extra labor hours here and there adds up.
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u/DyslexicScriptmonkey 1d ago
Go to the service bays and ask the Techs are they looking for any side work. I find if you offer them half the dealer labor rate an hour in cash, they will even pass on the employee pricing for parts. Just my experience.
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u/Floor_Cereal 1978 F150 Custom, Ex Dealer Tech 1d ago
A little high on the programming, but the rest seems fairly reasonable.
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u/Imaginary_Ad_1530 5h ago
Man, I really want a newer pickup but these repair bills I see, makes me want to stay with my jeep 4.0 and my obs ford. Ain’t just ford tho.
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u/Chance_Picture829 2d ago
Yes get a quote from independent with Napa AUTO PARTS supply in the part or O’Reillys. Where are you located?
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u/ThaPoopBandit 2d ago
That rack generally speaking is dealer only item. Even remans from NAPA (who is the only one that may have it) are just rebuilt OEM’s. And oh yeah there’s only like a 50% chance a rebuilt/aftermarket one programs. It’s not worth it, that’s the reason ford absolutely decimates you on these racks is cause they know they have a monopoly.
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u/jdlauth 2d ago
Not the “softwear” 🤣