ekoller

I recently had a 350 built for my camaro and my mechanic quoted me 1100 to 1300 to put it in ( it was a TPI to carb switch). I had all the hardware except for the belts and a radiator hose and fluids. It's three months later and the bill is 2300 plus they said my tranny just lost 3rd and 4th. What is going on? Is there something I can do besides getting a lawyer? The car ran fine when I took it in and the tranny only had about 5000 miles on it.

KrisW

iTrader: (5)

I don't know; being on the service end of things it's hard to say. A quote doesn't mean anything unless it's in writing. They could just be totalling up actual hours and maybe it took longer.

Quotes on old cars and trucks really suck. You never know if you're gonna break every rusty bolt on the car and if half of the wiring is gonna go up in smoke. Sometimes transmissions break. Sometimes new parts fail.

One thing is for sure. If you think you are getting hosed then you should call your lawyer. You probably should try to work it out with the shop before it gets to that because lawyers also cost by the hour.

What that means is that very often the lawyer will eat up enough time to make the job worth his while. You may not save any money going to court.

Good luck...

chevyowner02

iTrader: (3)

Man that is way off a qoute but like said befor if it was not in on paper it could end up costing much more. More less your word aginst his.I have been down that road.

online170

Im sorry, i hate telling people about preventative therapy after the fact, but most places i get a quote i make it damn sure that thats what i will be paying (or close to). I usually ask, if it goes according to plan, what is the WORST/ MOST ill be paying?

Things like, stubborn bolts, and stuff dont count as interference with plans. Only big stuff like, this engine doesnt actually go with the car.

I have found, the more you try to "help" the mechanic, the more you get in their way, by giving them parts etc... If my car is in a shop, i will check up on it frequently, make sure everything is going according to plan. If he cant find a part, or if something isnt making sense to him, ill get him the part or explain how id like it done. (i usually only go to a mechanic if i dont have the tools for a job).

Car work quotes never seem to be close to what it actually is, you think a mechanic with XX years of experience would have gotten the hang of giving quotes by now.

I would suggest getting in writing exactly what he is charging you, and for what. ex: 1300 for parts and 900 for labour. Ask why its different from quoting. And if he has spent a huge amount for parts, ask to a receipt or some document of why its so much. How did you get the quote? Take the car down with the new engine? Or over the phone? or...?

If he saw EVERYTHING that he had to start with, and THEN quoted you, it should be pretty darn close. But otherwise, its a different story. I still think 180% of the original quote is a lil high though.

Just look for B.S. charges that they slap on, unrelated to hours or parts. Its the law in Quebec to pay what you are quoted (within reason ofcourse), and i got my custom 3" y-pipe, 3" cutout, and headers installed. He had a very good chance to look the car over and see that it wasnt going to be an easy job, and i let him know that.

I was told the most id pay is $350 period. Get the car back a week later, that will be $850 + tax please. I just put my foot down, and said there is no way im paying you more than twice the price. Nothing major went wrong, i supplied most of the parts, and we agreed on $350. So after a lil bit of stubborness, i got it down to $400 with no tax.

ekoller

Well I just got a quote on the tranny, so now it's $1400 more and my mechanic said the timing cover gasket is leaking so I'm sure that will be thirty or forty thousand more. I might as well plan on living in my camaro as I am going to have to take a mortgage out on it. Awesome

KYLE87

iTrader: (5)

I would talk to him and tell him thats not what he orginally said and ask him what is up and let him know you feel like u are being screwed

online170

whats wrong with the tranny? Just for putting it in?

five7kid

iTrader: (14)

I have a hard time imagining having a for-profit shop do an engine swap in one of these cars. The tranny rebuild is a different matter, perhaps, but sounds like something happened while it was in the shop.

In hindsight (as already stated), a written estimate with approvals needed to exceed it would have been the better course.

ekoller

Not that anyone really cares (I'm starting not to care myself) but it's been another two months (7 weeks after I had the tranny rebuild and brought back by another shop) and no work has been done to the car. The tranny is still sitting next to it and the timing cover and gaskets are sitting on the seat. The mechanic told me he would give me a good deal on putting in the new parts, but because I already paid for everything I'm starting to think he's just not going to do it. Is my only option to have it towed to another shop and pay someone to do the work again?

Fyrstorm

iTrader: (1)

Sorry to hear about your troubles.

For the record, I got about the same quotes for my 305 to 350 swap from two different places ($1000cdn). So that original quote isn't far off, but mine is still in the process of being swapped so who knows the final cost. Was told 10-15 hours labour as well.

I get the impression these guys that are doing mine are pretty good, while I was talking to the mechanic yesterday he even said he would clean up the engine bay before dropping in the new motor, and let me know when the motor was out to have a look at the clean up and see if I want to get it painted first.

So feels like their head is in the right place, lets hope the quote is too hehe!
(The owner has his own flock of hot rods, mostly 30's cars so it's pretty cool to go there hehe!)

karrfirebird87

iTrader: (1)

guys , i just have to add to this , your talking about one of thee easiest swaps to do , its almost effortless so im going to say thats insane to pay that much, may be you should find another shop , or thirdgenner around you thats willing to help

Fyrstorm

iTrader: (1)

Not sure what ekoller's situation is like

But I'd love to give it a go myself, but I just don't have the room to do it. The trans am barely fits in the garage as it is hehe! I just know my with my luck I'll get stuck on something while taking the motor out or putting it in and have the jack sticking out of the garage and not be able to get the door closed and have people steal my stuff while I'm at work

So for people like me, we pay someone else to do it hehe! I'd love to have a small shop/garage off to the side on a small parcel of land but I'm stuck on a matchbox/stamp sized piece of property.

Personally I've never done a swap before, I *might* have thought I could do it in a weekend - but if something goes wrong I'm screwed hehe!

ekoller

Well another month plus has passed and I still don't have my car. A couple weeks ago the mechanic told me my starter was shot so I brought a new one to him and still I wait. I did myself a favor and got three estimates from other shops on the work thats being done to it right now so if he overcharges me I can call him on it. (plus he said he was going to give me a deal because of all the trouble, so I would hope it isn't higher than the estimates but I'm sure it will be) On the bright side of things, with all this idle time I was able to pick up a lawyer.

Air_Adam

Being a former service advisor, I'd guess they quoted you an out-of-the-book engine swap time - but that assumes everything coming out is going back in the same way, and everything comes apart the same way it went together - it does not count on rusty or broken bolts, more broken parts than originally thought, problems encountered after the engine is first filled up with fluids or first fired, electrical problems, modifications required to get something apart or to fit correctly, etc etc... I know from experience that it can be very difficult to give an accurate quote on old cars like this, especially when custom work is being done. I avoided work like this for exactly this reason, when I had that job.

Theres an old restoration saying that fits well with stuff like this.... "budget out what you need to spend to have ____ done, then double it and you should be close" Sad as it is, its almost always true.

ekoller

Well if that's always true then when he told me the estimate he should have said;
"It will cost $1100 and then most likely another $1100 because it's always double my estimate" "Oh and lets not forget I always ruin starters and brake boosters so you'll have to get new ones of those, and I will most likely leave parts of your tranny lying next to the curb for kids to kick around on their way home from school so make sure you have another one of them on hand too. And I'll have that done in 2 weeks for you, no wait... I mean six months"

goomaan

iTrader: (2)

Well at least you still are finding the humor in it.

Where are you located and is this a big named shop? (Mobil or Exxon, etc..) If so tell them you are calling the corporates offices to tell them about your situation.

Find out if he is the owner or just an employee working on commission.

I had a similar issue on my rear end swap. Luckly the price was still under $900 but my mechanic did work on the car for several hours a day. We did a drum to disc swap with the new rear and well the rear brakes just were not working right. The big difference was ny guy kept me informed of the problems and had me get some parts to try to save me money.