Thread: $600 for an oil change?

Must be some proper mechanics in here with garages. Maybe we can start supporting our members bussiness.

Originally Posted by Trout

Thats a bargain with cam belt and water pump included.

Gibson Auto in Oamaru. Most of the farmers around here use them

Originally Posted by Ryan_Songhurst

Gibson Auto in Oamaru. Most of the farmers around here use them

Handy to know them.Cheers

Will never own a new vehicle so just always use the local mechanic, my services on my older Ranger are between $4-500.

I have no interest or inclination to do it myself.

The reality is that dealerships make their money in the servicing these days. The sales margin on new cars isn't that great apparently.

If youve got a workshop in auk try doing some calcs. Youve got wages holiday and sick pay rates ( moon beams) a couple of different insurance policys building wof the fire guy that comes around regularly just had a building audit from council we had to pay for intrest on loans tyre disposal equipment upgrades paye etc and the list goes on. Youve got to make a bit of money before you get some your self. Its a wonder thetes not more workshops as anyone can be a mechanic right....

Everyone's a mechanic until you tube runs out of how to actually fix things . Then half the shit is well beyond the everyday diy guy. I've self trained myself over the years watching the old man . Sure I've built engines rotary ones. And changed gearbox clutchs cos etc etc. But most new cars are that techky that you really need some sort of proper training and the right tools which most of us diy mechanics don't actually have. Like anything anyone can attempt to fix stuff but actual trained mechanics know the proper procedure of installing and fixing things properly. As you get older I think time is if the essence amd I'd rather leave fidly shit to the proper mechanic. Finding a decent one these days is the key amd staying with them building a customer relationship. I've been taking my cars to the same mechanic for 25 years . It's not the closest but I always give him my business.

I do all my own servicing on all my vehicles, nothing is new/under any sort of warranty tho. I use good Penrite oil and usually costs around $120-150 for oil and filter (depending how much oil I need).
I suggest learning to do it yourself if it’s not under a warranty, or if your not confident then find a local mechanic ( or a mate that’s good with spanners) that will do it was a perky on the weekend. He’ll be happy to make $100 for 20 mins work.

best to do your own, years back i bought 2x 4l packs of oil from repco and did the scratchy cards attached to the bottles.
2 months later i was driving round the west end of route 66 in a mustang convertible all paid for by mobil oil

Yea makes me laugh some of the shit you see on you tube theres a difference between a parts fitter and an actual mechanic. Love watching some people saving money fixing their own cars half the time they have fuked something themselves making the problem more than it was in the first place

Actually had one last week some guy didnt want to go to rip off mechanic repaced injector pump injectors fuel filter and housing glow plugs and it was still not right, knew straight away what it was. Had a pin hole in one of the fuel lines

Originally Posted by GlennJ

Shit what a rip. I do it myself so have no idea how much they charge. But for me, in our diesel Prado, It's about $100-$120 for oil (and that's buying it at whatever price Supercheap sell it at not in bulk) and about $20 for a filter and I can get it done within half an hour if I tried. Maybe add find tools and tidy.
Even if you say $150-$200 of materials including disposal, that means if it's minimum hr charge your paying about $400per hr. Even with 15% going to the crooks at IRD that's sitll another.

I should've become a mechanic instead...

Yeah, I would have thought that one hour labour at $120 and about the same amount for oil would have been about fair enough.
They charged me 2 hours at that rate and waste disposal fees etc then gst and you were at around 600.
It just doesn't feel much for the money, in the past the same job was only costing me half that.

Originally Posted by blip

What type of vehicle is it.

Isuzu dmax

Was it a dealer

Any service worth paying for they should be also doing a once over inspection for condition and function - brake pads, wipers, air filter condition etc. Labour costs are a small way to make money, selling parts is much more reliable. The markup on oils, filters etc is staggering, never mind other parts. I can source quality engine oil and genuine filters for a suzuki escudo at cost price and it's only about $75 - retail that would be nearly double. Any mechanic worth using to do a service should not only be checking for ways to make himself a little extra but giving the customer a list of things he's had a look at for their piece of mind. A little effort taken to whip the wheels off and grease your brake caliper slides looks like going the extra mile on an invoice for 4 hours of labour plus a service kit.

I've serviced my own cars, and I've paid for servicing for multiple cars. If I sent a vehicle in for a service and all they did was splash oil and spin a filter I'd never pay a cent - that takes 15 minutes in my driveway with a set of ramps and every mechanic has a hoist, even faster for them. The way I see it, I'm paying you to do a decent job because I don't have the time.

Originally Posted by blip

Was it a dealer

No it wasn't, ironically I stopped going to the dealership because of their outrageous costs, and on top of that they stuffed the wheel bearings up when they worked on it and they failed the next WOF. So you can't exactly trust the dealership either.