I just called my local after reading this and they said $190 for labor + parts (not sure how much) but the tech said they will do it if i buy the parts.

Then he said how its a lifetime fluid and blah blah, dont recommend it and the story about the plates seating and so on and possibly getting shifting issues after it...

ARD, that is what I was wondering. I called an Indy shop and they told me $770.00 for a transmission service so I called the dealer just see what they charge. The dealer originally told be $500.00 which I thought wasn't to bad considering it was the dealer and cheaper than Indy shop. Then he called me back and said it was $386 for drain and fill and $740.00 for full service. It seemed really high to me so that's why I asked.

Those who advocate for "it takes only 20 mins to do XYZ", have you ever owned any kind of business? Just curious about the basis of such naive thinking.

Price, who are you talking to. I didn't say anything about 20min, and yes I do own a business.

To those who say "it takes 20 mins to drain and fill, dealer should charge no more"

With all the equipment a dealer has it must be the case. There is a "reason" for the indy shop to charge more because it will definitely take them more time, all else equal ;)

Dealer didn't get equipment for free.

They all go by the book, it could call for 2hr but a good tech does it in an hour... you're getting charged for 2hr no matter what.

I got another quote from a qualified Indy for 175.00 for a drain and fill, and full service for $650.00. This seem more realistic at lease the drain and fill does.

I like to point out the costs, in terms of parts and time. The consumer can then determine how much profit/padding they can tolerate.

There surely is overhead both on a specific job, and on running the business- to think you only pay for the time on the rack is misguided. But likewise, when someone needs a battery registered and the salespuke says "yeah, we need to program the whole car, so that is 1.5 hours at $140 per" it is good to know what the real level of effort is.

Take front brakes. I can do the front axle, pads and rotors in 45-60 minutes. (Im a civilian with a TV in the garage...;) ) Shops will routinely say '2 hours'. I dont advise someone to complain or push back. I *will* tell them how long it really takes and that adding an hour labor and 20-40% on parts is how they make their profits. Learn to wrench or contribute to the economy.