advice on a price from a mechanic

Boooourns

Hi, I just got my 04 Opel astra back from a new mechanic and he charged me 180 for a new alternator. Just wondering what's peoples opinions on this price?
Thanks.

colm_mcm

Seems a little pricey to me, but it depends on how much needed doing to get it reconditioned, whether he fitted a new part ( unlikely)or got it reconditioned, whether a new belt was fitted, and how labour intensive the job was. (Changing one on my old car was a nightmare, needed to remove drive shaft etc)

sf80

I'm seeing them online priced from £50 - £150 for different conditions (also different opel models..just for a rough idea of the price). €180 seems ok, especially if that's including the price to fit it.

djimi

Sounds about right tbh; I cant remember exactly how much I spent to get the alternator reconditioned in my Accord but I think it was around €150ish.

Boooourns

Thanks for the replies, just collected it last week and I just wanted to make sure I wasn't getting ripped off before Xmas!

sean1141

All depends on what work was done on it really.. I got one fully reconditioned with a new clutch pulley and that cost 200 plus fitting.

JP 1800

What is it with this forum and people who obliviously have no clue about cars complaining about potentially being ripped off. If a person feels that the price of a job is unjustified bring your custom else where. The automotive repair industry is always treated with suspicion in this country, more so than other professions. There will always be bad apples in every industry but all the mechanics I deal with are good honest and hard working guys.

sf80

JP 1800 wrote: »

What is it with this forum and people who obliviously have no clue about cars complaining about potentially being ripped off. If a person feels that the price of a job is unjustified bring your custom else where. The automotive repair industry is always treated with suspicion in this country, more so than other professions. There will always be bad apples in every industry but all the mechanics I deal with are good honest and hard working guys.

The OP wasn't complaining about being ripped off, they just wanted some context for the pricing. They have no experience of the price of parts or labour for this type of work, they're just looking for some reassurance in the absence of their own experience.

You don't know why they need that support, they could have been stung before, or maybe they know someone who was stung.

This is the same for anyone in an unknown domain; go buy yourself some surgical equipment and have the thought that it will cost you a couple of hundred in your head. See what you do when you are quoted 15k. It might be reasonable, but your expectations need to be adjusted and talking to other people helps with that.

Also, bananas.

dgt

For a brand new alternator without exchange that seems about right

JP 1800

sf80 wrote: »

The OP wasn't complaining about being ripped off, they just wanted some context for the pricing. They have no experience of the price of parts or labour for this type of work, they're just looking for some reassurance in the absence of their own experience.

You don't know why they need that support, they could have been stung before, or maybe they know someone who was stung.

This is the same for anyone in an unknown domain; go buy yourself some surgical equipment and have the thought that it will cost you a couple of hundred in your head. See what you do when you are quoted 15k. It might be reasonable, but your expectations need to be adjusted and talking to other people helps with that.

Also, bananas.

That is a fair rebuttal, but the op is asking after the job has been completed and not shopping around as you advocate, like my original post. Also the op did mention not wanting to be ripped off before Christmas

"Thanks for the replies, just collected it last week and I just wanted to make sure I wasn't getting ripped off before Xmas!"

sf80

JP 1800 wrote: »

Also the op did mention not wanting to be ripped off before Christmas

I can see that, but I see it as something different. I don't think it means they felt ripped off, instead to me it seems more like a lack of confidence in their own understanding of the situation and a call for support.

djimi

JP 1800 wrote: »

That is a fair rebuttal, but the op is asking after the job has been completed and not shopping around as you advocate, like my original post. Also the op did mention not wanting to be ripped off before Christmas

"Thanks for the replies, just collected it last week and I just wanted to make sure I wasn't getting ripped off before Xmas!"

Whats wrong with wanting to check that you are not being ripped off? I have no idea how much it costs to get a boiler serviced for example, so if I get a quote I am going to ask around to see if it is reasonable. The OP was unsure if the quote they got was reasonable, so they sensibly came to a place where there are plenty of motor enthusiasts and some who work in the industry to see if they have been given a fair price.

I have no idea what your problem with that is?

JP 1800

djimi wrote: »

Whats wrong with wanting to check that you are not being ripped off? I have no idea how much it costs to get a boiler serviced for example, so if I get a quote I am going to ask around to see if it is reasonable. The OP was unsure if the quote they got was reasonable, so they sensibly came to a place where there are plenty of motor enthusiasts and some who work in the industry to see if they have been given a fair price.

I have no idea what your problem with that is?

As you said you shop around once you got a quote, not after you paid for the job.

djimi

JP 1800 wrote: »

As you said you shop around once you got a quote, not after you paid for the job.

The OP had an alternator go in their car over the Christmas period. Its entirely probable that the job needed to be done on the spot and shopping around was not an option. I know I wouldnt have managed for even a day without my car this past week or so.

And even at that, they are only asking a question. Its not like they have named the mechanic and are looking to shout slander about them at every opportunity.

JP 1800

Basically before we run off on a tangent, the crux of my argument (being a discussion forum) is the somewhat unfair assumption some people have with the automotive repair industry and being ripped off.

djimi

JP 1800 wrote: »

Basically before we run off on a tangent, the crux of my argument (being a discussion forum) is the somewhat unfair assumption some people have with the automotive repair industry and being ripped off.

People are suspicious of any trade that they do not know/understand; the motor industry is no different. You can thank the cowboys that love to try and rip people off for giving the rest of the industry a bad name.

Motoring is expensive; I dont think many people actually get that. There seems to be an assumption that you can buy a car and drive it happily without ever having any problems, which is why people starting getting so moany when something goes wrong and they are hit with a bill of hundreds to fix it. To most people a problem with their car might seem simple and to them it should be cheap to fix; they dont appreciate the cost of the parts or more importantly the labour involved in actually doing the job. As I said, this is not unique to the motor industry. If you work in any kind of a trade you have to have a thick skin to people being suspicious that you are trying to rip them off. Its not personal; its just human nature.

Boooourns

JP 1800 wrote: »

What is it with this forum and people who obliviously have no clue about cars complaining about potentially being ripped off. If a person feels that the price of a job is unjustified bring your custom else where. The automotive repair industry is always treated with suspicion in this country, more so than other professions. There will always be bad apples in every industry but all the mechanics I deal with are good honest and hard working guys.

I asked as I was ripped off before so I was just enquiring about the price as he's a new mechanic to me, its that simple.

George Dalton

Nobody can answer your question with the info you have provided. We don't know if your old alternator was repaired, if you got an exchange rebuilt unit or a brand new unit. If it was a brand new alternator then in my opinion it was a good price you got. If repaired or exchange recon then less so.

BostonB

JP 1800 wrote: »

As you said you shop around once you got a quote, not after you paid for the job.

+1. Don't really get the point of the thread tbh.

Del2005

Boooourns wrote: »

I asked as I was ripped off before so I was just enquiring about the price as he's a new mechanic to me, its that simple.

Ring around a few other local garages for a quote. That's the easiest way to see if they are ripping you off.

But as with a lot of things, sometimes the lowest price isn't the cheapest.

Mar4ix

actually, alternators are very simple devices, all, what worn in most of times are brushes, which cost 10 eu for set, ... some times alternator bearings getting worn, could diagnose, when car is running, weird sound going from motor bay. ... and 1 million miles on clock :pac:
simply to replace also ...

link - http://www.ebay.ie/itm/NEW-BRUSH-KIT-TO-FIT-VALEO-ALTERNATORS-FOR-ALL-MAKES-1999-2012-SVX7-FREE-POSTAGE-/150797624638?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item231c3d253e

naughtysmurf

djimi wrote: »

People are suspicious of any trade that they do not know/understand; the motor industry is no different.

This is right, lad looking at a car for me today that I haven't used before, I haven't a clue, he could have told me the issue was banana juice in the oil & I can't really dispute it because of my own lack of knowledge, best you can do is go with a personal recommendation from someone you know but sometimes stuff happens and you need to get it sorted straight away by someone you don't know & I'm often suspicious in that case even though the guy could be 100% sound, just human nature especially when the bobs are scarce

Boooourns

Thanks to all of those with answers and good advice.
To the rest, stop taking the internet so seriously.