Is this repair to expensive?

I have 1975 9 HP Johnson kicker, that started giving me troubles. Took it to a mechanic and he went ahead and did the repairs without giving me an estimated cost in advance. He said he replaced both coils and wants $ 450 for it. I purchased this motor 2 years ago for $300!
Is this to much or it is realistic?

Re: Is this repair to expensive?

Crazy price for that amount of work. You should have got an estimate before authorising the repairs. Tell him to put the old coils back on, pay him for an hours work and take it somewhere else or do the job yourself. Always get an estimate for each stage of a repair job. A shark mechanic will get as much money as possible for as little work performed as possible.

Re: Is this repair to expensive?

what did you sign--if anything? I would make him put back as original and only pay him his diagnostic fee--no extra--sounds really shady

Re: Is this repair to expensive?

and then you have to wonder what he did to your motor to "punish" you for trying to "stiff" him..( his term, !!! not my view)

try to be as nice as possible in saying you cant afford that expsensive a repair....

dont go off on how over priced he is.. just convey to him you had NO IDEA this type of repair would cost so much and you just wanted an estimate ...

tell him you only invested $300 in this motor because you dont need one so bad youd be willing to parts with $800 or so

good luck

bob

Re: Is this repair to expensive?

Unfortunately in most areas, unlike cars, there is no protection from idiots like that.
Ask to see the repair bill. It should be detailed, broken down by parts and labor.
Make sure that is all he did. If he also rebuilt the carb, did a water pump etc. then the bill could get rather high.

Check before hand what the OEM coils would cost. You can get part numbers from Johnson.com. Electric or rope start? Also ask for a copy of the OEM flat rate or other flat rate manual he went by. He should be able to produce it. Here's a heads up, a complete magneto overhaul for that engine flat rates at 1.6 hours and that's a complete overhaul.
Take his hourly rate and multiply by 1.6 to get the labor cost. He should have done the points as well.
If he still won't reduce your bill then take the copy of the bill with you, tell him you need time to raise the money, DON'T SIGN ANYTHING ELSE. Make sure you have a copy of the original service order you signed and go to small claims or magistrate's court and file against him.
You will have to prove your side of the case and he will have to document his fees.
Good luck.

Re: Is this repair to expensive?

on the other side of the coin.....mechanics should not be subject to nit picking.... things take time and in a customers mind changing SOMETHING..anything...a picture pops up in the customers head of how long it will take...but it is so short sighted.


a guy needs to make space to work on the project...move stuff around to get at it... set it up securely...

get his tools ready and start to think about what is the issue and what are the possibles.

then he has to wade through rusted ,, corroded bolts and stuff that is JUST barely hanging on and if he dont baby the OTHER part he will FINNISH breaking it and have to replace it....


how many here could say how long it should take to remove and replace with a new head gasket on a head??

what 12 bolts...maybe 16...how long could it take???

but what happens when three break??

what happens when a water jacket caves in.. and there is no support for the new gasket... and the head is warped.... and two bolts strip.... and the mechanic needs to replace with a helicoil.... and find new bolts

how much is this quick and easy head gasket job now??????

good luck

bob

then he has to check the components out

Re: Is this repair to expensive?

But just because he presented you with a rather large bill, it doesn't necessariously mean he's ripping you off. Look at the itemised bill line by line.
It should document every part installed and every billable hour and fraction there of time.

Remember too that parts prices are not discounted. If you want discounted parts, you should be ready to do the repair work yourself.

The profit from parts sales is necessary for businesses to meet thier overhead. They have the same fixed monthly expenses as the rest of us-insurance, utilities, rent/mortgage, plus fees and expenses that are unique to businesses.

The parts removed are yours. Insist on having them returned. A well managed shop will make it standard proceedure to have removed parts given to the customer when the motor is picked up.

Re: Is this repair to expensive?

i assume rope start motor. to replace everything under the flywheel, and both coils, spark plug wires, and new plugs. part are right at $100.00 plus generously 1.5 hours labor. $120.00

Re: Is this repair to expensive?

Let me explain a few things.
I know the guy (mechanic). Two years ago he solved a big problem on my previous boat engine that 10 mechanics before him did not have a clue how to approach. He used to work out of a big shop but I met him when he started working from his own small shop at home.
I used him several times over couple of years and thought I built a good report with him. A month ago I just left my motor at the shop (it is a rope pull by the way) and did not hear from him for 3 weeks. Last week I called him and he hit me with this amount over the phone. All he said was that both coils needed to be replaced. When I asked him why didn't he call me with the estimate, he apologized and said that he misplaced my number.
I don't know what to do now. Pay, or just leave this motor and mechanic altogether?

Re: Is this repair to expensive?

Pay him and figure that he got an extra $300 or so from the last motor he figured out for you. He may have used much time diagnosing the coil problem and feels justified, but $450 is ridiculous, even if he replaced points, condensers and plugs. I wouldn't use him again, and in the future, ask for an estimate before repairs begin - that's just standard.

Re: Is this repair to expensive?

go down there and ask him...

ask him why it is as much as it is...

ask him what were all the parts he replaced..

I know some people are easier to talk to than others..

but you have to give him the chance to explain himself!!

then decide if you want the motor or your money or a headache and maybe one of the others as well!!

bob

Re: Is this repair to expensive?

I agree with Bob....

These posts sound like a "witch hunt"

Any good tech is going to do a compression test, plug examination and gear oil inspection before spending money on an older motor.

Then there is the verification of "no spark" and why there is no spark. Once spark is replenished, link'n sync, a trip to the test tank for a warm-up and idle adj. along with a WOT test.

Best let the tech explain the bill before hanging him, or you may lose a good mech.

Its not all about the motions of replacing the parts....They train monkeys to do that. Its the journey to that point which costs. Out here, shops charge $110/hour.

Next time, be specific about getting an estimate.....

I've been in the service industry for 35 years and have learnt to ALWAYS give an estimate even if its not asked for. No one likes surprises on their bill.
It would have been wise of him to give you one, but again......you never asked....

Cheers....

Re: Is this repair to expensive?

yonipainting said:

he replaced both coils and wants $ 450 for it.

Click to expand...

I am not sure I would be as nice about it as the rest of you. That's insane if this is all he did.

Re: Is this repair to expensive?

Tell him you didn't authorize the repair, you asked him to diagnose the problem, that's worth his labour but not $350 worth of labour. $450 to fix it is insane, you can buy running ones for that kind of money, hense the need for an estimate.