Cost for dealer to reset CEL

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excuse my typing.

I went into the dealer for inspection of the 1998 CRV and the re-occuring cel issue. I already knew the code WAS for oxy xensor and replaced both. I got my good mpg back and was ok with it except that the light was on and I figured let the dealer try to see if there was something they could FIX to make it go away. The day before the visit I cleaned the ISV and should have disconnected the battery to get a cold reset but maybe it would reset on it's own. I told the dealer to scan it and see if the was somethign beyond the KNOWN code for the OXY they could catch.

Well, the car passed inspection ok and they gave me the info that it had a code for OXY and a bill for $80. I said I KNEW the code and TOLD them that and was basicly getting nothing for my $80. I asked also what amount of labour that represented as a scan/reset is like 2-5 min. They said "standard diagnostic fee".

Ok, but the car I bought has a computer that does "diagnostics" and it's called ironically enough "on-board diagnostics". So they are using the term loosely, as there was no actual diagnostics preformed. A diagnosois is like ...a loose wire, a leaking vacuum hose etc...not repeating back to be a code that was gleaned in 2 minutes that I already knew. I went to them for EXPERT knowledge and got none. Ok, I;d pay $80 if they said...loose wire and ANOTHER few dollars to fix it not just to get a $400+ dollar quote for a new OXY sensor. Ok, making it worse guess what...the light has not come back on....the freaking sensor is NOT bad and their "diagnosis" is WRONG and rip-off beyond the $80!!! I said I would pay $40, not free just the actual value of the work I asked for. They said ok and treated me like a lepper after making a mint on my warranty work on the new Accord.

Am I wrong? They said some places charge even more. I WILL CALL a few places and ask. I bet that is bull and I will use it against them since they offered it and an excuse. I kinda p-oed that they would even DARE put in a new sensor without going through a full re-check to see if the old (replaced a few months ago) sensor was actually ok. I explained it FULLY that it might be fine now and they were willing to instalkl a new unit THAT is SLOPPY work and not on the level I expect and recieve from Audi. btw- they never charge me a cent fro VAG 1551 scans and work WITH me on all issues inc me installing my own used ECU on their lot in a car WE were fixing. I plan on visiting the Honda dealer tomorrow and telling them they did sloppy work in trying to bill me $80 for nothing and trying to sell me a $400 sensor. Don't they have any idea who they are dealing with? I don't take this bull.
 
btw- I ended up getting out of there for $40 after arguing with the staff....my usual service guy had left already. Also, complete obd scan should have included looking at the actual output of the sensor they wanted to replace...right? If they did that they would have seen the sensor working fine and not likely to trip the cel again. Like I said, this is not the quality of work at BOSCH Center and Audi dealer as they don't throw out good sensors to save 5 minutes of scan time. I am pizzed.
 
That's just the name of the game. Standard procedure everywhere you go. As mechanics, we have to get something for checking out your car.

Hmm, so your percieved value of the service they performed was 40 dollars, not 80. Ha, I wish there were companies where I could pay what I thought a product or service was actually worth. Just doesn't happen, my friend.

Don't be so quick to blame. Maybe the mechanic did view the data list and saw something that led him to believe that the O2 sensor was bad.

I also don't believe that seeing a doctor for 2 minutes is worth 110 dollars (which is what the insurance company gets billed) but you don't hear me trying to get my co-pay reduced because I don't believe it was worth my 25 dollars.
 
ME: Doc, I have a cough, can you DO anything to get rid of it?
Doc: You have a cough...it says so on your chart, $110. It'll go away on it's own.

The service rep that was on-duty called down and asked what they actually had done to my car....just a simple reset. If the cel came back on, ok at least a good "diagnosis", but there is actually NO problem, except they were willing to throw away my good sensor for a $400 one. The ones I installed were a BOSCH and a Denso.

I have sympathy for service writers who deal w/ people who have no clue about their car and don't want to pay for work requested and needed. This is different. They need to be up-front about charges, especially when it's excessive. Sir, your bill is $1000. -I only asked for an oil change. That's what we charge. No, the charge would be out of line with the the service. Here, they did not "do" anything top the car. I recieved nothing for the money. Let's even vist the fact $40 is excessive.
 
Wow. That sucks. I guess Honda dealers aren't used to people actually knowing about cars.

And $50 or more is the cost of a scan at a dealer nowadays. I just had to pay for a scan of my evaporative emissions system. At least they smoke tested it (so they say!).
 
If you only needed a cel reset, AZ and AA will scan a vehicle for free,and give you a print of what parts may fix it. Resetting the CEL is an ez one button push while the scantool is attached. Spend your 80 on a scantool of your own. Look at obddiagnostics.com for some more info. While 80 is an absurd amount of coin for a simple function, the company I work for is king of charges. 360. for me to drive to your place, first 1/2 hour is free, 95. every 15 minutes after that.
 
FWIW, after you replaced the sensors, you should have just left the CEL light on. It is my understanding that it should go off on it's own. OBDII should shut the light off after x-amount of engine on-off cycles (temp cold-to-op temp 5 times or something similar to this) if the repair is successful.

Even after the light goes off, the ECU will still store the trouble code in memory. The stored code will eventually get written over after a while.
 
I made a few calls. Wife at work said the cel is still off, nice. I called a Honda dealer that is not down in the Valley and they said to go to AZone and have them do it....I pressed if they did it...."varies, as HIGH as $65".

I hope I made my case clear. Don't call it "diagnosis" since it's not. Don't charge as if you did somthing if you did not. Don't throw away good parts and sell the job with a lie, imo that's a fraud.
 
I could and would get my own scan tool if that's what I wanted. (I have a Ross-Tech for VAG) I wanted the expert service of a fix or a real diagnosis like "your black wire is loose", that has a value. If all that's done is a scan/reset just charge for that. I'd pay for whatever if it's fair and usefull. The "wrong" here is thinking the code scan itself is a diagnosis. If they attached a loose pcv or whatever that is a fix or telling me it's loose is a diagnosis. The reason the light is off now is that I cleaned the icv and I guess that confuses the issue, but if the DEALER WAS NOT 110% IN RIP-OFF MODE they would charge a normal amount, reset it and say come back if you get the cel again and then do a fix. Their rush to rip actually blinded them from seeing the system was actually ok. That's what is annoying.
 
Funny too, how the dealer nor anyone else argues that the "diagnostic fee" is actually a fair charge.
 
Consider yourself lucky if you got $80 down to $40. Around Chicago it's $95 to $110 depending on the stealer.

I am staring at having to shell out this kind of $$$ to just hook up the scan tool thanks to an airbag warning light and the the service manual instructions stating "further inspection cannot be completed" (without the Nissan computer).
 
My ford dealer charged $110 3 years ago just to read codes :eek:! That was 1 hour of shop time charge even though it was less than 5 minutes to actually do it. Well, I watched the mechanic bring the car into the shop and I went out there and we did a very thorough diagnostic scan. The service manager and writer were having "kittens" and kept coming out and telling him to wrap it up and for me to leave the service bay. Luckily the scan computer was at the entrance to the shop so I'd take 2 steps backwards and be out of the shop. He gave me the full hour and told me he was leaving the dealer and going to an independent shop because he felt bad about ripping people off.

Whimsey
 
In most cases, there is little time spent clearing fault codes. However the dealer's scan tool is expensive, and software support costs many times the price of the scan tool. So most dealers in my area charge an hour labor to clear codes.
 
Was quoted $38 over the phone, turned out to be $39.50 plus $1.xx "enviro charge" for what I presume was 1/2 hr labor to reset a hyundai airbag light at the dealer.

Though I'm equipped with a generic scantool, it only does powertrain stuff. The airbag controller was annoyed at an overvoltage situation from a bad alternator, but did not reset itself even after a battery disconnect.

Dealers are a lot like doctors, despite your going in there convinced it's something extraordinary they'll try the simplest thing first and send you home. I do wish you luck that that hour diagnostic can be credited to future work should you need to return as a come-back.
 
Much of the time you can read the codes and reset them yourself with a combination of ignition switch and gas pedal pumps. The key is to find out the instructions. Usually if there is an enthusiast internet message board for your car someone there can tell you how to do it.
Thats how I did it on my Sentra SE-R
 
More and more I see that some mechanics don't spend the time to do diagnosis, but rather the quick work of pulling a code and replacing a part. Eventually, they get the right one.

One dealer spent several attempts to fix my 1993 Mercury Sable that was having an issue with the ignition system. First they replaced the MAF, then the wires and finally the distributor. I was able to argue back the cost of the MAF sensor, since it was not causing the problem.

My old 1991 Explorer had an issue with the Bosch supplied motor to lock in the 4WD system. Replacement was quoted at well over $900, however removing the motor and taking an emory cloth to the contacts put the motor back in working order for many years.

On the rare occasion I find a mechanic (usually independent, but not always) I stick with him for life.
 
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Buy your own scan tool, get all the necessary service manuals, spend upteen days in annual training, now tell me what it's worth.
 
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