[LESS1]

Originally Posted by I`m Batman

I don't know what's not to get.

I want you to open a shop and I'll pay $25/hr for the mechanic's time for the work... with $0 left for you and your shop/business. You'll pay for the rest out of your own pocket: the shop's building lease, electricity, water, shop tools costs, lift, furniture, receptionist salary, cleaning, insurance, employee benefits, etc. The list goes on. That's a lot of $$$$$.

Now, with all that overhead, how much would you charge per hour?

A little Googling shows.

1990 E Powell Blvd , Gresham, OR 97080
Rental Rate $18.96 /SF/YR Gross Leasable Area 20,800 SF Property Type Retail Year Built 1990 Property Subtype Auto Dealership

That's $394,368 / year for the building lease alone.

Agree and you and others have made very good and valid points. You can't help someone that doesn't want to be helped. I'm sure he will continue to accuse the industry of ripping people off... aka "gouging" in spite of all the facts.

[MrChrisLS3]

Originally Posted by ZED SLED

Another thing that has been glossed over is the up front cost of the scanner. Most service depts don't just use joe bob's code reader off amazon for $199.95 Their diag machine likely cost in the neighborhood of $7-10k or more. Who pays for this? and the periodic repair, certification, or calibration that has to be performed? They don't just eat that cost for the customer. The service is priced to recoup some of this cost over time.

That's exactly right. Not to mention that a franchised dealership pays fees, pays for the field service manuals, which are almost all digitized now, so every tech needs a lap top.

Then there is manufacturer required training where lead techs are sent to various places for training. It's all overhead on the dealership side to maintain that franchise name plate. Of course, there is also the state, county, city certifications.

As to book hours, well those are mandated by the manufacturer. They are developed by corporate techs and engineers who set up and perform these procedures under pretty much ideal conditions. Hitting the book hour for a tech, in the real world, is challenging, if everything goes right. The manufacturer mandates these for sole purpose of paying the dealership for warranty work. Manufacturers are not typically generous, easy going folks when it comes to dishing out reimbursements.

Then there is the legal part of the 'simple' diagnosis, you know, that 5 min job. If someone takes the car in for a diagnosis, and all they do is plug in a code reader and call it a day, then the car blows up, who do you think the lawyers are going after? So, no, they have to read the code and follow the protocol as well as document every step of it.

[ctrlz]

Originally Posted by ItsChristianInHD

Get a scan tool my dude...

Don't think the OP is the "scan tool type," or he would not be in his current predicament.

This all reminds me of my wealthy neighbor who thought the hospital was ripping her off because the total cost for her colonoscopy was more than a few hundred dollars. "But I was only there for 2 hours!"

[BMR Sales]

Originally Posted by Petrol Head

The question isn't whether I can afford a professional, it's whether said professional is egregiously price gouging.

The demand is that knowledgeable professionals charge a reasonable rate. That is something you're not getting.

Charge for the actual time your tech spends on the job, and divide that up by his hourly rate. Plain and simple. If it takes an hour and 15 minutes to run the diagnostic and he makes $25.00/hr that's $31.00.

There is an Old saying - I can explain it to you but I can't understand it for you!

You are missing the Point - the Mechanic does not take home all the money. There are Building Leases or Mortgages to pay, Insurance, Tools & Equipment, Taxes, etc.