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["Don Bowen" <don.bowen AT earthlink.net>]

> I'm ready for mine.  I just left the Ford Diesel truck at the repair
> place for a new EGR heater manifold.  Estimated bill: $1500 to $2000.
> I met the mechanic who'll start on the thing on Monday.  My guess is
> the he'll do something very un-Republican with his wages, such as buy
> food or heat his house.

Mechanics are often paid from a flat rate manual.  If it is a dealer they
are but have to use several different manuals.  The flat rate manual tells
how long a particular job will take for example a clutch replacement on a
Corvair is 6 hours.  The shop multiplies that times the shop rate for the
estimate.  The mechanic doing the work gets a percentage of the shop time.
If the job can be done in less time than the flat rate manual says the
mechanic will get a higher per hour income but if for some unforeseen reason
the job takes longer the mechanic hourly pay drops.  This leads so some bad
reputations as the shop and mechanic look for ways to increase the estimate.

As for the other manuals, some dealers have a separate manual for recall and
warranty work.  Usually this is lower than the other flat rate manual.
Recalls can get really nasty on cutting the shop time.  This is what the
manufacture uses to reimburse the dealer.

Also the parts are marked up.  The shop buys the parts from the parts
department or parts house for a discount.  The receipt will have the cost
and the suggested retail price called the extended price.  It can be
significant.

It is around 50% - 75% parts to labor so for the above $2000 parts are maybe
$1000-1500 for parts.  I recently saw the engine compartment of a new
Powerstroke and it would not surprise me to see the ratio much lower because
of the labor needed to get things out of the way of the part needing
replacement.

All the more reason I do all my own work.  I recently replaced the rear
wheel bearings of my pickup.  Cost was $60 in parts and about an hour work.
A shop wanted $200.  I do not have all my tools so some jobs have to be
taken to a shop.  Last week I had a shop rebuild the pickup rear end.  Labor
was $250 and parts were $150.  My son could get me the parts for $120.  So
by not having the tools here I paid $280 that I would not normally have had
to.  The special tool for the job is around $80 but there is no decent place
to work on the pickup here in the dirt and cold.  Considering the time to
take the pickup in, get a ride back, get a ride back to the shop, pay for
the work, then drive back, I spent more time than if I had done the job
myself.

Don Bowen  KI6DIU
http://www.braingarage.com/Dons/Travels/journal/Journal.html