Damn Stealerships

[MTCobra]

Today, I inquired about having my oil an rear differential fluid changed at the dealership I just bought the car from.

I told them I knew the differential fluid was ~$40 and it was a simple job...removing two plugs.

They quoted me $75 for a synthetic oil change and $195 for the rear differential. I'm now going to change the oil and the rear differential fluid myself for $150 total. I really just wanted to use the dealership to get this maintenance put into their system.

The dealership's costs are criminal. They're obviously taking advantage of people who have no idea how much it really costs.

[LBreezie]

Yeah they are.. It's pretty fxxxed up

[Green Machine]

I think my dealer quoted me for $90+tax for rear differential fluid change.

But my oil change is free

Sent from somewhere on the road.

[LBreezie]

Are there any DIY on this yet?

[Matty1LE]

I also am not a big fan of the dealer but most shops in my area including mine are at $130 per hour on labor most dealers are close to $150. Thats not really criminal per say cause I get the diff fluid for close to 35 my wholesale cost including friction modifier. Its not like some little 5 minute slam bam deal unless your a dealer flat rate hacker.
I take my time and check fluid for metal/debris take for a test drive make sure no chatter before giving it back to my customer so all in all from lifting the cars to hanging the keys on the board its close to one hour.

Dont call the industry crooks thats badmouthing a profession you have no clue about obviously... have fun doing your diff service on jackstands.

[MTCobra]

Originally Posted by Matty1LE

I also am not a big fan of the dealer but most shops in my area including mine are at $130 per hour on labor most dealers are close to $150. Thats not really criminal per say cause I get the diff fluid for close to 35 my wholesale cost including friction modifier. Its not like some little 5 minute slam bam deal unless your a dealer flat rate hacker.
I take my time and check fluid for metal/debris take for a test drive make sure no chatter before giving it back to my customer so all in all from lifting the cars to hanging the keys on the board its close to one hour.

Dont call the industry crooks thats badmouthing a profession you have no clue about obviously... have fun doing your diff service on jackstands.

I will have fun...thinking about all the money I saved...and it's not a big deal to jack the car up.

There's less "labor" involved in changing the rear diff fluid than an oil change so how does it cost more? My belief is If I'm going to pay for an hour of labor I should get an hour of labor...the vehicle may sit there for an hour but there's ~15 minutes of labor and 10 times out of 10 the mechanic is working on other cars or other services.

I really wasn't calling the industry crooks...just surprised by this dealership. Sorry if I offended you.

[Angrybird 12]

So it's going to still cost you $150 to change it yourself... Well think of the labor and overhead the dealership has to pay for out of that $45 more they are charging. Paying the technician, paying the service advisor, paying the electricity, paying for uniform cleaning, shop towels and disposal fees, you see all this adds up... Then they have to make some profit on top of that... So how much are they making? Not as much as you think...

[MTCobra]

Originally Posted by Angrybird 12

So it's going to still cost you $150 to change it yourself... Well think of the labor and overhead the dealership has to pay for out of that $45 more they are charging. Paying the technician, paying the service advisor, paying the electricity, paying for uniform cleaning, shop towels and disposal fees, you see all this adds up... Then they have to make some profit on top of that... So how much are they making? Not as much as you think...

It's costing me $150 for the synthetic oil, filter, and rear diff fluid. They want $270.

Again, my point is the diff change (fluid and labor) is less than the oil change (filter, oil, labor)...so how is the cost over 2X? I guess I'm missing something...

BTW, the $75 they quoted me for the synthetic oil change I thought was reasonable.

[Angrybird 12]

Originally Posted by MTCobra

It's costing me $150 for the synthetic oil, filter, and rear diff fluid. They want $270.

Again, my point is the diff change (fluid and labor) is less than the oil change (filter, oil, labor)...so how is the cost over 2X? I guess I'm missing something...

BTW, the $75 they quoted me for the synthetic oil change I thought was reasonable.

Sorry I misread I thought the 195 was total, and thought that would have been a bargain. Anyway there is a lot of overhead they have to pay out that you don't have to plus they need to make some profit.

[Unrulie]

I just did ALL my fluids last week by a local shop down the street with a drive on hoist. He charged me for 1 hour labor ($90) and it did take an hour, I supplied the fluids. I found Moble 1 on sale for $5 a quart and Redline ATF for $11.50 a quart. But he also allowed me to hang out in the shop and re-inspect all my recent suspension mods. The biggest plus was I didn't make a mess in my garage.

[Matty1LE]

A stealership is only when they charge you for something that should be covered by warranty or wont warranty yout concerns. When going to any dealer you pay a premium over any other qualified shop. My local dealer gets us killer deals on parts and does honest business.

The other thing about doing any maintenance undocumented and not done thru a dealer/shop could greatly effect how vehicle warranty is carried out. You fudge up on your diff service(hypothetical) or not having anything more than walmart receipts for oils may have them ask you for all service records.. just food for thought