Information

INFORMATION, You the CUSTOMER Should Know

For You The Customer

Total Cost of Auto Repairs

Across the US, car owners spend an average of $75 to $340 on

auto repairs per incident. The overall national average of auto repairs is $179. Now keep in mind repair cost is broken into two categories: Parts and Labor. Each are billed separately on your invoice. Now the average auto shop charges $47 to $215 per hour, and this is according to Automobile Association of America (AAA). Shops calculate labor hours "book time" the number of hours a job will take. This is done by Manuals and Software like MITCHELL 1 or ALLDATA and others.

            If your vehicle requires a DIAGNOSTIC TEST such as a check engine light scan to find the problem, auto shops will generally start with a one-hour charge for labor. after having the diagnosis, a shop will request additional labor hours and parts from you as needed. Some shops will waive the fee for the diagnostic if you have the shop complete the repairs.

Breakdown of low-cost, moderate-cost and high-cost

Low-cost repairs are generally a simple fix. These take about an hour or less. "REPAIRS" mean failure beyond general maintenance. so oil changes, replacing air filters, tire rotation and transmission fluid exchanges are not included.


Moderate-cost repairs are a little more serious issues. These repairs can take 1 to 3 hours to complete and cost a few hundred dollars.


High-cost repairs usually come later in a car's life, after 75,000 miles. This kind of repair can take many hours or even days to complete. It could range from $500 to thousands of dollars once repairs are done.

Cost Factors

Your automotive repair cost can vary greatly for many

reasons, including:




Dealership VS an independent shop: The higher of these two you may ask. Well its happens to be the dealership.


Part costs: OEM parts are more expensive than aftermarket most of the time. Used parts are ok and cost less most of the time. At times sourcing parts can be difficult due to location. Also supply chain issues can affect of cost over all.


Repair difficulty: The more difficult repairs take more shop labor hours to complete. There for the cost goes up.


Vehicle make and model: Luxury and rare vehicles often have higher part costs and require special care the cost too.


Additlonal issues that may arise during the repair: A repair can brake other parts. It can lead to the mechanic finding more problems with your vehicle.


Existence of a valid car warranty: Does your car has a factory or extended warranty? If so, they may cover some or even all of the repair cost.

How to save money

on auto repairs

Use coupon: Check online, newspaper and your mailbox for savings. They are for common service like replacing the brakes, oil change and belt changes.


Get multiple quotes: Prices very between auto shops. Get 3 or 4 quotes from reputable shops.You could find one shop way lower than the rest due to lower overhead cost.


Bring your own parts: Some smaller shops will let you bring your own parts.Then all you have to cover the labor. Some of the smaller shops will not offer a warranty on the repairs if you bring your own parts.

FAQs



What is a fair price for labor?


Anywhere from $75 to $125 an hour for a independent shop is fair. Now, if you go to the dealership. Fair labor would be $125 to $175 per hour.


Dealership or Independent shop?

Overall the skills a mechanic has depends on themselves.

Dealership often pay higher than an independent shop.This attract more

mechanics. Dealerships have all of the data for their makes of vehicles. Dealerships might have all the technical information and service bulletins that some independent shops do not have. With that being said any shop that has ASE-certified mechanics should do quality repair work. They are fully trained and regularly retested.


Aftermarket or OEM parts?

Original Equipment Manufacturer or (OEM) parts will help you comply if your vehicle's manufacturer warranty. But aftermarket parts fit same as OEM parts sometimes better. Also aftermarket companies can fix any problems or design flaws in OEM parts. When there is a consistent issue with OEM parts, and if aftermarket companies can fix it. Then aftermarket parts would be superior to OEM.

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