Quote:
Originally Posted by recklessspyder
butt dyno? maybe....but i'm sure gunky plugs decrease performance (although, i never saw what condition they were in).
The itemized break down went like this...using rounding....
Oil $70
Filter $20
Plugs $145
VC Gaskets (2) $180
O Rings (3) $20
Spark Plug Boot (8) $250
Seal $10
Guide Tube $30
Labor $500
I would have liked to have do it all myself.....I love to turn wrenches, but I have no time...and would have needed to buy a torque wrench (which isn't a bad thing and I'll probably buy one anyway at some point)
|
Were all the bolt seals included with the $180 for VG gaskets? They generally have to be purchased seperately. I hope so, as that's crazy expensive for those gaskets, especially if the seals did not come included. I paid $99.84 for these gasket AND all 22 seals from the dealer, (with a 10% BMW CCA discount), and that's more than you'd pay at mail order places, I just did not want to wait. You need 16 rubber seals for the VC nuts, and 6 for the VC bolts. I hope those got changed for your car. It's impossible to get precise torque on these VCs without new seals....and begging for another leak. Also, $250 for spark plug boots is highway robbery. These should cost less than HALF what you paid, assuming you needed them (or even got them,) at all. I think it's time to start questioning the honesty of this particular shop. $500 is not TOO bad for labor on this job, but even as an amatuer, I'd bet I could do these VCs now in under 3 hours now that I've done it once. I think this shop is padding a lot of prices in various areas, and in a big way, especially on some of the parts prices.
BTW, speaking of torque wrenches, I'd take a look at CDI. I used my Snap-on 1/4" Flex Head Digital Tech Wrench for this job which was perfect, but CDI makes these for Snap-on and their version can be had for about $100 less.
I do appreciate not having the time to do jobs yourself. Plenty of times, I have weighed what I would have to pay, vs. what my time is worth, and also what my free time is worth. But I do love to work on my cars. I'm just getting to the age where I don't enjoy working on my back on the floor anymore. There are other jobs that are just no fun, or there is no time.
But even if you want to pay someone to do the work, it's definately worth it to become an educated consumer, look up some prices on Realoem.com or elsewhere, and basically make sure you're not getting taken. You can look up the area of concern on this site's search function, and read up a bit.