Most Expensive Oil Change/Rotate?

[supton]

Daughters Santa Fe broke a front coil spring Saturday. For just under $400 I replaced the front struts with Monroe Quick Struts, oil change with a Mahle filter and Kirkland oil, and rotated the tires.

I hear you, but... how many hours of effort on your part? and would you do that work for free for anyone else? Also, what if the car sustained damage while in your shop? would you blink at paying out whatever it cost for damages that you may have accidentally caused? Would you cover a callback for free?

I get it, dealerships are awful. I avoid 'em too, too costly. But I don't expect the corner garage to work for free any more than I'd offer to work for free on someone else's car. Not sure how many garages are under $100 per hour now, plus it's pretty common to have a minimum time to charge, like a min of one hour labor, no matter how quick the job really was, since admin stuff isn't free (booking the timeslot, talking to customer, etc).

 

[Faawrenchbndr]

Funny how the average dealer mechanics are paid more than the average aircraft mechanic.

Let that sink in…….think of that before you board an airliner again.

 

[Chris142]

Wonder why the Bentley owner gets a deal?

The oil filter costs the shop $80. I'm sure they double the price. Then whatever 14 qts of lubrimoly oil costs plus the labor to take all the under belly pans off etc.

 

[cb_13]

Funny how the average dealer mechanics are paid more than the average aircraft mechanic.

Let that sink in…….think of that before you board an airliner again.

So aircraft mechanics are making less than $35/hr?

If you’re willing to sell your life to the flat rate pay system a dealer tech’s yearly salary looks great. Until you find out they’re constantly trying to beat the book, working late, working Saturday and working through lunch to get that 60 hour pay check and bonus.

 

[JeffKeryk]

Ouch indeed! This is more than inflation, in that other post talking about greedflation .. that is what this really is. Be on the watch for this greed to fail, it always does.

There seem to be owners who believe taking their new car back to the dealership is better. Why? Just because.

 

[joekingcorvette]

The problem is how do you find a good indie shop? Believe social media posts by people you don't know? Trust the recommendation of people you know with no mechanical knowledge? Non-car people don't know how to find one. The BMW stripped threads thing above is a good example. I look for a one or two man shop with some local history and believable recommendations. I finally found one here last summer. I visited a few of the larger indie shops who advertise when we moved here and when I walk in and see 4-6 bays and a writer at a desk I'm in the wrong place. Same when the workspace looks like a bomb went off.

After living in the same area my entire life I have connections and know the right people to do almost any job. I have 3 mechanic shops I use. One guy does brakes, mufflers, batteries, or any easy bolt on job. He has a nice hoist and is very reasonable especially on brakes. You can even bring him the parts. I have another shop which replaced my harmonic balancer on my old 05 Corvette and he installed struts on the previous Jeep GC. This shop can do anything and is very good and less money than the dealerships. The other shop can do anything is well and is better for complete engine swaps, air conditioner repair or replacement of used parts. The other shop is owned by the owner of a huge salvage yard and they incorporate their parts. The Honda and Mitsubishi dealership we have in town are state of the art and good too. It's all about connections and who you know.

 

[JeffKeryk]

Remember the days of sticking throttles and a couple of crashes In Toyotas?

Floor mats that shifted and pressed on the throttle pedal were to blame, so floor mats are now mechanically attached to the car with plastic connectors, and they have become an inspection item.

Years back a friend asked me to look at her father's circa 2000 Accord; the brake pedal required a ton of effort for poor braking. No noise or anything. Weird...

You guessed it. OE Honda floor mat bunched up behind the brake pedal. I punched holes in the back corners of the mat and tie-strapped them to the seat frame. Easiest brake service ever!

 

[joekingcorvette]

My guess is that it's under warranty and if the dealership messes up the customer doesn't have to get involved in a "he said-she said" situation and then the price isn't all that cheaper at an Indy.

For example look at my own stupidity. I took my BMW like clockwork to the same dealership for years. Oil change are around $125-$150.
Stupid part: I wanted to try HPL so I had another shop do it. When that OCI was up I went to a different shop close by for their $88/oil service and that shop said my oil pan threads were stripped. IF I had stayed with the BMW dealership for these last two oil changes I could claim that nobody has worked on the car but them and maybe I could've haggled a discount on the repair of the oil pan or perhaps avoided this problem all together.

Yes I understand what you are saying however if I had to pay the Lund boat dealership and all the other vehicles that I have $125-150 for an oil change I would be broke in a hurry. I have a competant back yard mechanic that can do all of mine for way less however I choose to service mine myself except for the new Rav4 hybrid which is under warranty. I believe a lot of people with one or two vehicles will go to the dealerships. Especially people like yourself with a BMW which I am sure you want the best service available. Most of my Corvette buddies go to either a dealership or a really good mechanic. No quick lubes for those that's for sure. Dealerships have their niche in the service department or they wouldn't be in existence.

 

[JeffKeryk]

My guess is that it's under warranty and if the dealership messes up the customer doesn't have to get involved in a "he said-she said" situation and then the price isn't all that cheaper at an Indy.

For example look at my own stupidity. I took my BMW like clockwork to the same dealership for years. Oil change are around $125-$150.
Stupid part: I wanted to try HPL so I had another shop do it. When that OCI was up I went to a different shop close by for their $88/oil service and that shop said my oil pan threads were stripped. IF I had stayed with the BMW dealership for these last two oil changes I could claim that nobody has worked on the car but them and maybe I could've haggled a discount on the repair of the oil pan or perhaps avoided this problem all together.

I service a friend's (widow) beautiful Jeep GC with the Turbo Diesel. Once she took it to the dealer for a recall; they also serviced it. Next service required me to use a wrench all the way removing the drain plug. I was sure it was stripped. I cleaned the threads and it threaded in easily by hand. Debbie is a tough gal; she called them and read them the riot act! Ha!

 

[74DartSport]

I hear you, but... how many hours of effort on your part? and would you do that work for free for anyone else? Also, what if the car sustained damage while in your shop? would you blink at paying out whatever it cost for damages that you may have accidentally caused? Would you cover a callback for free?

I get it, dealerships are awful. I avoid 'em too, too costly. But I don't expect the corner garage to work for free any more than I'd offer to work for free on someone else's car. Not sure how many garages are under $100 per hour now, plus it's pretty common to have a minimum time to charge, like a min of one hour labor, no matter how quick the job really was, since admin stuff isn't free (booking the timeslot, talking to customer, etc).

How many hours? Figure 4.
It’s my daughter’s car , I do all the work I can on any car in the family. If I can’t I send it out. Just showing how much you can save by doing things yourself.
“What if the car sustained damage while in your shop?” Well as a matter of fact when she first bought a car about six years ago I was putting wiper blades on it and the arm slipped out of my hand and broke the windshield. Oh well.

 

[Faawrenchbndr]

So aircraft mechanics are making less than $35/hr?

If you’re willing to sell your life to the flat rate pay system a dealer tech’s yearly salary looks great. Until you find out they’re constantly trying to beat the book, working late, working Saturday and working through lunch to get that 60 hour pay check and bonus.

On average……yes
Just before I left the company I was working at, I was making $32.50 as the lead.

With that being said, there are guys making more and less. Depends on the location and the company.

When I was in Florida, a marine mechanic was averaging $42 an hour…… and this was 2014

Needless to say……….I don’t fly anymore. The current new crop of mechanics is poor.

 

[wavinwayne]

And… how many “ luxury car “ owners are going to actually go out and get their hands dirty and oily working in their luxury car ?

I'm one. There are literally tens of us.

 

[BrainThicknessVariation]

Lexus and other equal vehicles are "luxury cars" and you know what to expect going in. I have mentioned this many times-the Ford dealer's hour rate here is $250.00.

However-I believe oil change/tire rotations are around $100.00

For a Ford!? It's been a while, but last time I went to an Audi dealership it was $100/hr.

 

[BrainThicknessVariation]

I do not understand why people think they have to take their vehicles to a dealership unless the work is under warranty or the services are performed at a fair cost. There are so many good shops out there that can do the work for less.

The minute you take the vehicle to an indy, if something goes wrong, the dealer can credibly point the finger at someone else.

That being said, I've lost count the number of times a dealer has royally screwed up my vehicle. Loose oil drain plug is my favorite. However, at least I knew who to blame.

There are exceptions, and it'll be different for each owner. Eg, I happen to live near an indy that has an Audi Master Guild tech. I feel comfortable enough with Audi as a brand that if something does go wrong, I can explain to Audi USA that only Audi Techs have serviced the vehicle (with receipts, of course).

 

[CKN]

For a Ford!? It's been a while, but last time I went to an Audi dealership it was $100/hr.

Independents charge at least a $100/hr (In my area). Yes-$250/hour at the Ford Dealer in Draper, Utah.

 

[Corollaman]

Local chevy dealer is $79.99 for up to 6 quarts full synthetic, oil filter and tire rotation.

 

[Furious]

The fasteners that hold it in place which basically prevent the drivers side mat from sliding forward underneath the pedals. Kind of ridiculous but I imagine it is on there because it has happened and someone got sued.

Toyota has had serious accidents linked to floor mats that has killed multiple people. And this does go into the Lexus line as well. So this is why they have a floor mat inspection.

 

[Chief119]

What does an oil change cost on a big over the road rig? Must be pricey just for the amount of oil and multiple filters.

I had my Pete 389 done once by Peterbilt.
-10 gallons of 15w40 chevron delo
- oil filter
- 2 fuel filters
-rear drive tires rotated
450.00
This was last summer.

I have done it my self every other time
-15w50 mystic 5 gallons I can find it on sale at fleet farm for 85.00
-cat oil filter 39.00 usually sometimes I can get four and get those a little cheaper
- cat fuel filters I buy these in bulk and still have a few of each from when I bought, when I first got the truck. Can’t remember exactly what they cost.
-?I have a guy that has a garage that rotated my drive tires every 20k for 100.00.

 

[redtrucker610]

My Local Chevy dealer charges 79.99 for a 6 qt oil and filter change and tire rotation for my Colorado. I get free coffee while I wait and weather permitting its washed before I leave.

 

[CR94]

$0, in the sense that I've never hired anyone to change oil or rotate tires--other than obviously the materials and my time. My father never did either, as best I can recall.
I have accepted "free" dealer oil changes that were included with purchase of cars.