Some thoughts on the way car places do things...
When I had my car worked on Wed, they had to replace three different suspension parts, because they said that the bolts that mated the three parts together were rusted bad, and the parts needed to be replaced anyway due to bad bushings.
See, most suspension parts bolt to the body or other suspension parts using something called a bushing. It's a rotational joint encased in rubber and steel and helps dampen vibration and bumps. So basically it's a chunk of rubber. Obviously the rubber wears and breaks far faster than the steel part it's encased in.
Now, they may have had a legitimate reason to replace the entire part rather than just the bushing. Maybe they would have had to cut through the part just to be able to remove it.
But I've noticed it's standard practice to replace the entire steel part rather than just the bushing. This includes my front control arms.
So rather than replace just a bushing that's $10 they replace the entire part that's, in my case at least, $70-$100. The repair shop claims this makes it easier and faster. They may be right in a way, as pushing bushings out often requires a press machine, but many shops already have presses. So it may take more time to get the bushing out, but it saves money.
I almost think it's a giant conspiracy between the parts companies and the repair shops. The parts companies get more money, because instead of selling a $10 bushing they're selling a $100 part, a part that doesn't even need to be replaced. And the auto repair shops make money, because instead of wrestling with removing a bushing, they just swap parts, which means they can get more customers in and out and make more money. The only person getting screwed in this case is the customer with having to pay more, and I hope they brought lube.
Well, that may be going off on a limb but I still think it's bogus. I even did the math real quick.
$100 part + $40 half hour labor = $140
$10 bushing + $80 hour labor (assuming time to push the bushing out, which may actually be a half hour) = $90
It's cheaper for the customer but more work for the shop who has lots of cars to work on. And it makes the parts company happy because they're getting money.
See, most suspension parts bolt to the body or other suspension parts using something called a bushing. It's a rotational joint encased in rubber and steel and helps dampen vibration and bumps. So basically it's a chunk of rubber. Obviously the rubber wears and breaks far faster than the steel part it's encased in.
Now, they may have had a legitimate reason to replace the entire part rather than just the bushing. Maybe they would have had to cut through the part just to be able to remove it.
But I've noticed it's standard practice to replace the entire steel part rather than just the bushing. This includes my front control arms.
So rather than replace just a bushing that's $10 they replace the entire part that's, in my case at least, $70-$100. The repair shop claims this makes it easier and faster. They may be right in a way, as pushing bushings out often requires a press machine, but many shops already have presses. So it may take more time to get the bushing out, but it saves money.
I almost think it's a giant conspiracy between the parts companies and the repair shops. The parts companies get more money, because instead of selling a $10 bushing they're selling a $100 part, a part that doesn't even need to be replaced. And the auto repair shops make money, because instead of wrestling with removing a bushing, they just swap parts, which means they can get more customers in and out and make more money. The only person getting screwed in this case is the customer with having to pay more, and I hope they brought lube.
Well, that may be going off on a limb but I still think it's bogus. I even did the math real quick.
$100 part + $40 half hour labor = $140
$10 bushing + $80 hour labor (assuming time to push the bushing out, which may actually be a half hour) = $90
It's cheaper for the customer but more work for the shop who has lots of cars to work on. And it makes the parts company happy because they're getting money.