Paculdo

.. just a quick question on this topic.. say, i need a break job - a brake pad install (labor only), mechanic/shop charges more $$$ than say, replacing a brake pad of a honda or a toyota.. why? because its a benz? are there any huge technical difference on these 'similar' jobs?

cyberorth

It's the same as burgers from Wendy's vs Morton's. (I verified; they have it in their lunch menu). I also think it is much less of a "tax" than the likes of Ferrari and Lamborghini.

CoolBDPhenom03

Yeah, a friend told me that the oil change on his Gallardo cost $1300. I can't believe that oil and labor should really be much more than our cars.

chrisridebike8

Some things seem ridiculous to me. For example: the lower mesh grille on my bumper got cracked by some debris on the freeway (don't get me started on how easily this happened) and I asked for a quote from my SA when I brought it in for a service A. She called back and said the part was $90 with $300 in labor! I ordered the part and did it in my garage in an hour, never having done it before on a Mercedes. $300 for an hour of labor?! Are they curing cancer or something? Needless to say I earned a beer that night.

tomespo

You also have to realize that more work is required to actually get to the oil filter/drain on a lamborghini. Underneath the car is completely covered and also the actual COST of the parts to do an oil change on my friends murcielago is around 400.00

KIS007

The burgers are better at Mortons.

CarHopper

Believe it or not it isn't just the hour of labor to actually install it. Example, an ecu FLASH is 2 hours of labor... 1 hour to order the flash and be on the phone and 1 hour to flash it... $100/hr in labor = $200 to flash a car.

Mikegpr03

If your remotely mechanically inclined you can you this brake job in less than one hr ( pads only ) rotors would be 1.5hrs a retard can do this job. Pads alone done even require tools! Just a punch to pop out the pins and they slide out. Put the new ones on, put your wheels back on and your done. If the rotors need swapping its 2 bolts and they are out. It makes me sick how they tax is for crap like this!
That's why I offer the power pipe at a decent cost and that's me giving back to charity. I honesty get insulted how they mark up the prices and look you in the face. Sorry nothing wrong with making a buck but don't bend me over and rape my wallet for something so simple to do. Build a realtionship with your clients will take you father in the long run.
Ok I vented lol
I have to buy a side AC vent for the car and they want an eye ball for it

Have a great day guys and gals

CoolBDPhenom03

Yeah, but if the dealer labor rate is around $150/hr, you're telling me an oil change would take 6 hours to make up the $900 labor cost?

jvanbrecht

While I do think the costs are rediculous.. just remember, most dealers (honda, MB, nissan etc), all have around the same hourly rate, typically about $140 an hour. That rate may vary here and there, but probably not by much (and it depends on the location too, metro centers tend to be more expensive).

That said, the cost of the job is not just the mechanics time and the part, there is alot of overhead, cashiers, service staff, facility costs. All of that is built into the price they are charging you.

The bigger issue I have is the cost of the parts. That is not an MB or BMW, or any other premium brand problem, that is an across the board bend the customer over the barrel and do bad things to them.

example, the third brake light in my vw jetta (back in 2001), $110 for the part.. it was a 50c circuit board with 12 leds, even back then, taking into account economies of scale, the leds probably cost a few cents a piece. The cost of that part was absolutely rediculous. That is just one example.

Our rotors are another example, at one point the dealer charged $700 a rotor.. that far exceeds the cost to make the part, by probably 1000%.. That is where we are being ripped off

mvp2765

If you can afford a lambo, you probably can afford the maintenance. Why not charge 1,300 for an oil change. Are you going to sell your lambo because you dont want to pay for an oil change? That's when you learn to push a penny and do it yourself. I do agree, labor prices at a the stealership are just insane and definitely jacked up for higher end cars.

Paculdo

while dealerships would charge based on their rate, what about the independent shops (i guess, excluding those that you personally know), but most shops would charge you an arm and a leg just for a simple job (e.g. changing brake pads, replace a bulb, etc) - i mean, i remember looking for a shop to do an oil change for my cayenne and most independent shops i went to either charges the similar amount or more than actual dealers. is it because people assume that we have so much spare money because we drive AMG's or Porsche's? I was told, you pay to play.. but c'mon man!

Now for the Lambo, I guess $1300 wouldn't hurt that much no? (I guess if you can afford a $100k + car, they can charge you 10% of that for an oil change? is that the going rate now?)

CoolBDPhenom03

On one hand, I see your point. But the fair part of my brain nags, why such a disparity? The car itself is a master of engineering and performance, which is why it commands the price tag it does. But what is it about an oil change, for example, that justifies the cost? I don't mind paying for things if they make sense. Some high-end watches are made of exquisite materials so they're more expensive. Fine. But some designer sunglasses are made by other companies so it's really just a brand markup for the sake of the label.

I don't buy luxury items for their names, I buy them for their reputation and quality.

For the record, that guy did sell his Gallardo for a v10 Audi R8. However, he kept his Gallardo Superleggera.

CoolBDPhenom03

Indy shops in my area, including SF, run anywhere between 50% and 60% of dealership costs for just about any service.

1%?

Paculdo

Yes sir.. 1% (i feel like a dealer already! marking it up to 10%)

Paculdo

these indy shops - do they look up the rates to charge per hour on a site or mechanic rates database or something? and then tell you - here, i charge you $50 to replace your bulb, if you take it to the dealership they'll charge you $100 (now you feel like you aren't getting raped)

CoolBDPhenom03

LOL.

I'm not sure how they charge their rates. All I know is that they're 40-50% less expensive than the dealer. Maybe because they have less margin on wholesale prices and maybe because their labor rates are less. Either way, I've cross referenced services with 4 shops (2 general mechanics and 2 German auto mechanics) and they've all come in less than my local dealer.

moosejaw

Theres a mobile service in the LA area that does it for $550
OEM parts and fluids included. Lambos use 5w40 oil btw and use 11qrts. The manufacturer recommends Agip which is I think is proprietary to Lamborghini.

Staff@WORLD

To get to the Lambo oil filter requires that you remove quite a few things as it is located under the intake manifolds and behind the throttle bodes. There are some people that have made a custom tool for the job that allows you to do it without removing the throttle bodies but it is a big job considering it is only an oil change.

On top of that, the liability of having some high end cars such as Ferraris is very high. When you start removing expensive carbon fiber to get to things there is a very high liability involved. If you crack one of those panels it will cost a lot to replace it so you better make sure that you take your time and make it worth your while to do that stuff.

CoolBDPhenom03

Sounds like Audi - putting serviceable items in hard to reach places.

cyberorth

You are complaining about a brake job? If you hang around the service dept at the mb dealer and watch unassuming customers with 10-12 year old cars come for service, your jaw drops of the kind of bills they get. It's on a supply v demand basis as well. As long as they are able to charge 1300 for an oil change and owners will pay it, the cost will remain at 1300.

cyberorth

I hope you all know this already:
http://www.getmercedesparts.com/

jvanbrecht

That is actually my dealer

The parts department there is pretty damn awesome, and I have a good relationship with them. I tend to get all my parts from teh dealer as I do my own services and basic work (warranty stuff still goes back to them though). By purchasing the parts from the dealer, they keep a record of my purchases.. so when it comes to MB corp *****ing about the car not being serviced, I have proof (at least from a parts standpoint), that the services were done... (or I am just crazy and buy stuff and pretend the service was done). Still better then a notebook that you just write stuff up in.. that can be forged easily.