tech time per hour

Discussion in 'General Motoring' started by sd100, Jan 31, 2004.

  1. sd100

    sd100 Guest

    I had some work done at the dealer yesterday after which I discovered
    that they are charging $80 an hour. How does this compare to work you
    have had done at your local dealers?
     
    sd100, Jan 31, 2004
    #1
  2. sd100

    G Klein Guest

    $91.00 New York
     
    G Klein, Jan 31, 2004
    #2
  3. sd100

    Graham W Guest

    In the UK I pay 35 pounds (63.70 US Dollars) an hour at an independent Volvo
    specialist.

    Graham W
     
    Graham W, Jan 31, 2004
    #3
  4. sd100

    Jim Carriere Guest

    Sounds about right. Remember, the guy turning the wrench on your car isn't
    taking home $80, most of that money is covering their "cost of doing
    business" (pay electricity and water bills, keep the place clean, local tax,
    pay the people working behind the service desk, maintain the heavy
    machinery- car lifts, air compressors, etc etc...).

    I agree, it's a big shock at first.
     
    Jim Carriere, Jan 31, 2004
    #4
  5. sd100

    Per Hauge Guest

    I think prices in different parts of the world can not be compared directly,
    but in Denmark the dealer would take around 135$ an hour, and for
    comparison, the mechanics earning would be around 29$ per hour.
     
    Per Hauge, Jan 31, 2004
    #5
  6. sd100

    AB Guest

    My Volvo dealer said £60 an hour.

     
    AB, Jan 31, 2004
    #6
  7. sd100

    John Horner Guest

    $90-$110 / hour at our local No. California dealers.
     
    John Horner, Jan 31, 2004
    #7
  8. sd100

    Rob Guenther Guest

    Around 80 an hour at Volvo, and 68.50 for our Volkswagens. Dollars,
    Canadian.
     
    Rob Guenther, Jan 31, 2004
    #8
  9. sd100

    James Sweet Guest

    Wow for that kinda money I wouldn't mind being a mechanic, here I think they
    earn more like $10-$13 an hour, hardly enough to live on one's own.
     
    James Sweet, Jan 31, 2004
    #9
  10. sd100

    Me Guest

    About $95/hr at a very competent local Volvo dealer, about $75/hr at a very
    competent local independent garage that repairs anything, including engines
    and transmissions.
     
    Me, Jan 31, 2004
    #10
  11. sd100

    Per Hauge Guest

    I should mention that here in Denmark we pay around 45% income taxes, and
    after that we have to pay 25% sales tax (vat) on everything you buy. The
    reason why I mentioned it was to compare that the dealer would take around 4
    times the earning pr. hour of the mechanic.
     
    Per Hauge, Jan 31, 2004
    #11
  12. sd100

    Peter Milnes Guest

    UK wise they charge about £75 (around $115) per hour (dealer) and £35 (around
    $53) per hour (independent).

    Cheers, Peter.

    : About $95/hr at a very competent local Volvo dealer, about $75/hr at a very
    : competent local independent garage that repairs anything, including engines
    : and transmissions.
    :
    : : > I had some work done at the dealer yesterday after which I discovered
    : > that they are charging $80 an hour. How does this compare to work you
    : > have had done at your local dealers?
    : >
    :
    :
     
    Peter Milnes, Jan 31, 2004
    #12
  13. sd100

    Henry Guest

    $85.00 per hour for the Volvo Dealer (not to mention the fact that they
    will replace the entire engine/drive train to fix a miss in the
    engine!!!!!)

    But my local master tech (ASE Certified Master Tech 20+ years expereince)
    good guy and honest @ $45.00 per hour and he's been keeping me in Volvos
    for 10 years and not breaking the bank. And he gets all the $45 per hour
    and he's worth every penny! Get a good local guy, they're around.

    Hank
     
    Henry, Feb 1, 2004
    #13
  14. sd100

    Patrick Guest

    $75-$94/hour depending on how far you are willing to drive...

    But more important than the hourly rate, is the quality of work
    performed. And in that category, it's a shame.

    So-called technicians race through the job so they can get to the next
    one in order to earn more money. They are paid by the job, not by the
    hour. I know 2 guys who can earn more than a $1,000/day racing
    through jobs. Attention to details is non-existent. They even skip
    some steps in order to save time. For example, applying white grease
    takes longer than applying WD-40, so they use WD-40 in spite of the
    fact that Volvo recommends using ONLY white grease.

    Bottom line, they give me taste to vommit. Either I do it myself, or
    I go to an indep. . It's not the money, it's the level of
    incompetence I can't take anymore.
     
    Patrick, Feb 1, 2004
    #14
  15. sd100

    G Klein Guest

    Yes most technicians are paid by the job but what you also don't know if you
    bring the car back for the same problem the same technician will have to fix
    again for the 2nd time but he does not get paid anything to fix it this time
    so yes it is in the technicians best interest to do the job correctly the
    1st time there are a few who race through a job just to get to the next one
    but their comeback rate is very high & usually do not last long @ the dealer
    as it costs the dealer money also to correct the screw up
     
    G Klein, Feb 1, 2004
    #15
  16. sd100

    Patrick Guest

    I had forgot about that one. Maybe it's me, but I only returned once
    to the dealer to get something re-done, in more than 20 years of Volvo
    ownership. In general, to come back to complain is not appreciated.
    You will often see them adopt an "attitude" towards you if you
    complain too too often. Sometimes just to complain once is enough for
    them NOT to want to deal with you anymore. What can you do??? Volvo
    HQ is backing the dealers, not the customers.

    Also, there is a continuous staff changes at most Volvo dealers I've
    been to. Maybe my cars have been serviced too many times by the new
    guy "learning" on the job.

    I've been given the worst excuses in the world to explain why
    something was broken as a result of a repair. I've even had to pay
    for repairs as a result of the "technician" breaking something. And
    now the imbeciles wonder why I'm not going back to get my car serviced
    by them.

    In any case, I'm done with Volvo. When my two Volvos will have done
    their time (and that could be a very long time...), I'm switching to
    Japanese. Not my favorite cars, but they do RESPECT and VALUE my time
    by not making me waste it at incompetent dealers.
     
    Patrick, Feb 2, 2004
    #16
  17. sd100

    wah Guest

    About the same here (± $10/hr) here in Seattle.
     
    wah, Feb 4, 2004
    #17
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