Repairs... Arghh

[FAT_X5]

Hello,

I took the X5 (2001 4.4i 80k mi) to the shop because of a check engine light intermident, and some anti-freeze on the garage floor - along with a coolant low message.

The water pump was bad. They replaced it, and at the same time said I should do the thermostat while they were in there. I said go ahead and do it. $850 was my total for that...

I also told them to check into a whining noise coming from the engine, it seems that some tubes/hoses were all burnt up (something on the top end of the engine) and they said I had to replace those. They cut me a deal on labor as they were already in there and instead of 3 hours, they charged 1.5. That was another $200 to the bill..

The next issue they found when plugging in the diagnostic was an aux fan for the a/c.. He said that was a $500 part alone and that it'd be another $300 to install. He said that the aux fan helped the a/c condensor cool and perform. As it's near the end of the "cooling" season, I think I will hold off on that...

Anyone else have these troubles? I am baffled about the aux fan being that expensive...

What can I expect next out of this cash cow?

Thanks,
Dominic