mrtonyn

What would be an average time it would take for a seasoned mechanic to replace a crank shaft position sensor on a 1999 E320 ?

I am hearing and reading any where from 2 minutes to an hour..

Local Indy shop wants around $200 for labor only. Sounds fair or not ?

Thanks

R2dMax

I'm not sure the time, however each job has a "book time" of how long a repair should/can take. The repair in question may have a book time of 2 hours and @ $100/hr=$200. It may only take the seasoned mechanic 30 minutes to complete, but you are charged by the book, unless you know a good Indy that will take care of you in that way.

I worked in a shop and we would have to park cars in the back or "hold" them for a while in situations like that to avoid customers complaining about the labor billed

raymond g-

just ask the $200 shop what exactly the will be doing during the procedure. if
the are ONLY R&R the CPS, the i think it is too much. flat rates are not gospel
but simply an estimate. $200 does say that they will take approx 1+ hr which
seems high. but though it has taken me 15+ mins neither am i in a position to
run an SDS after the swap, perform any verifying checks for successful operation,
etc.

case in point: colonoscopies run $1500-5000. why the diff? some doctors have
other value added services the do at the same time. but it seems to me that an
indy is REALLY REALLY going to be hard pressed to justify how much more they do
for such a simple job as a CPS swap out

Chief Wiggum

There's a YouTube video of guy replacing CPS and he explains what you're going to be faced with to do the job, including the necessary tools. He also states there are two different sensors available, single or double clip sensors.

mrtonyn

I did asked him about the time in question and he replied that it is hard to get to and if you strip the Allen bolt in the process of removing it, it can be a nightmare.
After confronting him about the time issue, he said if things go smooth then he will lower the price.

raymond g-

it's hard if you have big hands, for sure. I also don't do this by sight but,
after viewing the many pics online, have an image of the CPS unit...the
fasteners etc in my head. so it's all by touch

oh! I found (as often the case) you try to find the right tool for the job. so
i just scrounged around the toolbox for all available elbow joints but eventually
picked this up at my neighborhood Harbor Freight - flex socket extension the
wiggly one. i've since R&R 2 CPS now, each taking no more than 20 mins

kind of like this guy:

mrtonyn

BTW, are your mileage still on the low end?
I think it was you that had super low mileage on your E320..

raymond g-

pffft, mine is a bloated 64k, compared to the anorexic odometer reading of
Richard/E320's 2001 which is about 10k.

mrtonyn

64k is still very low.
I just made it over 100k not too long ago and considered that to be low for a 1999.
You were the headlight retrofit expert if my memory is correct.

raymond g-

i've done a few HID retrofits so i have intermediate experience with opening them up and
sticking something else inside to improve the useful lighting

illest

The cps should not take long I did it on my e55 (less space) in under 30 minutes and stripping the bolt should not be an issue unless you use the wrong socket.

mrtonyn

Thanks for all the input.

Russell Ormerod

If you don't want to pay a professional to replace the sensor then do it yourself. Then decide if 200 bucks is justified.