car trouble

[caddmannq]

Yeah, that's maybe $75 worth of parts & supplies (retail, they get 'em wholesale for $45, but it'll show $100 on the bill when they mark 'em up.

Plus maybe 2 hours labor, but they charge you "flat rate" (you don't wanna know...) for 3 @ $60. Yep, that's about right.

Around here you can get the oil change for $20~$25. They probably dock you $40 & $125 for the starter + 2 hrs. labor. Yep..about $300.

BTW, I think that Isuzus are one of those cars that self-destruct if you don't change the timing belt. Don't put that off too long.

$280 not including the starter, right? Thanks for reminding me why I learned how to repair my own cars. If you were to do it yourself the parts should would run you under $100 not including the starter.



"wires (starting to bend) "? Never heard that one before, NONE of my tech manuals say anything about replacing bent wires. AFAIK this is NOT a reason to replace the wires. Usually you replace them when the resistance is too high or they are cracked. I buy lifetime warranty wires and replace them every year or so. I think they cost me $40 for a v8.



Get that timing belt done ASAP since you have almost 70k on it. I usually saw them break at 70~80k miles when I was working in a garage. Sometimes they will bend the valves when they break which then requires a valve/head job $$$$$$.


On my car the started w/solenoid cost $45 but the solenoid only cost $12. I dropped the starter and R&R the solenoid. As cad said the copped was burned/melted. Mechanics don’t do this because they loose money on the parts.


A few guestimates on the price of the parts;
Fuel filter~$.5~25
Air filter $2~20
Throttle body~ all they do is spray some carb cleaner on it and in it while the car is running. $1-3 a can, it may take two cans to get it good and clean.
Wires $10~50+
oil+filter~ 5quarts of oil $4~20+2~5 for the filter.

[NeoStarO1]

Originally posted by rh71
Also, if you guys know of any car trouble discussion boards (awesome concept, isn't it?) ... please let me know!

but I believe the car (95 Isuzu Rodeo) is due for a tune-up anyway

Hi rh1,

Got a cool site and these guys can help you out, they are strickly Isuzu dudes.

Isuzu 4x4 & SUV Tech

These guys can help you out with any Isuzu related talk, They also get together quite frequently to do some serious 4 wheeling and rock crawling. Not sure what area you are in, but its a great community there. I don't post there much but im BullDog's Friend there. Yep that is my handle. hehehe.



NeoStar

[NeoStarO1]

If it ain't the starter it could be the relay switch which if i recall correctly is part of the starter. Had that problem with my van about 2 months ago. Turns out mine was a bad relay switch.

Hope all goes well trying to resolve the problem. Let us know.

NeoStar

[rh71]

Thanx for reminding me about the Isuzu forum... I used to post there, but have since forgotten about it. I'll ask about the timing belts' life there...

Thanks again guys, for telling me how much cash I'm wasting by not being able to do this myself. Anyone need any web work done? I charge a little over $500

Seriously though, I do web work and prices are very negotiable (which is uncommon)... let me know if anyone needs anything at all! (Shameless plug, because I can).

[NeoStarO1]

Originally posted by rh71
Fuel filter
air filter
throttle body (dirty)
sparkplugs (electrodes worn)
wires (starting to bend)
oil change (I was due anyway)

Does that equal approx $280 ? Sounds outrageous to me, but you know how much I know.

I told him to do the starter (faulty - drawing too much from the battery) and the oil change for total $300 already.

280 for all that? how much of that is labor? Most of that you can do yourself for 1/4 of that price.

I would opt to do much of that yourself. the wires starting to bend? which are you referring to the battery cable wires or the spark plug distibutor cap?

Not sure what you are referring to the throttle body, not that knowledgable but that price seems steep to me. Cause i don't see how any of the listed above from mechanic can cause your rig not to start.

If you don't want to get dirty yourself I would get a second opionion on all that cause no mention of the starter or other things mentioned by prior postees on possible causes. Hate to see you get taken for a ride for your money.

Check out that link i posted earlier to the Isuzu forums those guys can give you a better estimate on the cost.


NeoStar

[rh71]

The parts I listed above don't have anything to do with the vehicle not starting. I've already authorized them to fix the starter (and oil change) for total $300. They suggested to do the other things after checking them out (with their reasons in parentheses).

I now know how ridiculously high the final cost will be mostly because of labor. My Isuzu dealer just quoted me on the following:

Fuel filter $14
air filter $23
throttle body (dirty)
sparkplugs (electrodes worn) $7 total
wires (starting to bend) $68 for pair

Then add 2-3 hours labor to that and it does seem about right, but obviously those aren't the lowest prices around... I'm not gonna argue at this point.

Compare that to Pep Boys' ~$280 and it's practically the same cost. Question is... Dealer or Pep Boys? (the questions just keep on coming). And timing belts... Dealer or Pep Boys?

I have to wonder why they did not also recommend that you change the timing belt. If a car came into our shop, even for just an oil change, I would have noticed the mileage and asked if you have recently replaced the timing belt. I think any good mechanic would too. It seems like we always got a ton of extra work after doing oil changes.




If I had to choose between the dealer and pep boys and the price was about the same I would go to the dealer. I would call some smaller garages and check their prices first or call some friends and ask them who their mechanic is.

[caddmannq]

I find that some of the very best mechanics work at small shops. They love what they do, they do it well, and they want to do it right. They could make more money at the big shops, but they don't want to deal with the hurry-hurry-hurry & butt-kissing, customer-scamming politics of the major shops.

Find one and make friends. Good advice from someone you can trust is priceless.

Also: Parts prices at a dealer are twice what you'd pay elsewhere. Nevertheless, there are some parts that I would only buy there. Import car brake pads are one. Some parts are only available there.

Nothing you mentioned so far would I consider buying from a dealer.

To me, Pep Boys (and many dealers too) are R&R shops. They just start removing & replacing parts until they find the problem. Of course they tell you that everything they replaced was absolutely necessary. This is usually just BS. A good mechanic can almost always diagnose a system & find exactly what to fix the first time.