Go to a Honda dealer for an exhaust sealing ring, thinking it'll be 7-8 bucks. He says $24 and change. I say "For a sealing ring?" He says it's a more substantial gasket as he heads to get it.

He comes back with it and I tell him I'm due a discount for my small business. He finds my info on file and says: "$10.30, I didn't know"

List price was $12.70. Was he really planning to charge me double list for simple sealing ring?

Service and parts are the real money makers at a dealership.

That thing probably cost him $1.50.

Matrix pricing.

Google "auto parts matrix pricing" for more information.

I dealt with that for many years in the business, 47 to be exact. Some dealers are just greedy. Believe me it does not filter down to the workers.

quote:

That thing probably cost him $1.50.

Probably. But what did everything else cost for him to have it there? Several million I'd guess.

I recently got a air conditioning hose changed in my car. One mechanic quoted me $197 for the hose that retails for about $60. It happens. Amazon is your friend.

If they want to overcharge, then they can. However when they quote an inflated list price that is higher than actual retail list, then discount it to something that is still higher than retail list, it's bordering on fraud. Take a new car window sticker. If a dealer changed the numbers to increase the retail price to make their discount look better, it would be fraud. Honda and other manufacturers publish the list price of many parts, especially accessories. I'd consider paying list for the convenience of getting the part locally, but lying to me about the list price is a big issue.

I took my 2006 Honda Accord to the dealer for an oil change and the service writer told me I should have them change my A/C air filter now and it's only an extra $75, installed.

Nope, I said...I'll do it.

He then tried to tell me it's a difficult job, yada, yada...

I bought the A/C air filter at the parts counter for $18+tax and installed it in the parking lot.

Took about 5 minutes.

Thanks to Al Gore for giving us the Internet and advice on how to save money.

I know what you are saying. I bumped a guy who was towing my ATV after I sunk it in a stream. I bashed his back light in and he wants to take it to a Honda shop. I offered to pay for the part and install it like new at no cost to him, but was not paying for the overpriced Honda shop...same OEM part.
So, he accepted my offer and it was fixed like new in less than a week.

I put a starter in a BMW 528i this past weekend.

Starter was $160 minus core.

Shop wanted $1300 to install the starter that took me less than an hour and I charged $250 (because I had to remove the intake manifold) plus the starter. The girl was THRILLED at that repair price and I thought my price was obscene just to try and get out of it.

If you think car dealers are bad, Harley is obscene. 1300 for a small 12 volt reverse motor for a trike, installed. 85 bucks on-line, install was about 20 minutes.

I sold the trike.

After I cross reference the correct part number I run it through fleabay, Amazon, and Rock Auto to see the ballpark price.

After I get done with any ‘free’ oil changes I hardly ever go back to the selling dealership. If I need to take it somewhere, I usually go with a local, non-affiliated shop.

I guess I'm lucky. The independent maintenance shop where I go, does a search to find decent prices on parts, or they have no problem if I bring parts to them. Labor rates are reasonable.

Of course, he prefers P229 in .357 SIG, so you know that he's a good guy.

quote:

Originally posted by Fredward:
If you think car dealers are bad, Harley is obscene. 1300 for a small 12 volt reverse motor for a trike, installed. 85 bucks on-line, install was about 20 minutes.

I sold the trike.

Obscene isn't a true description, but to avoid vulgarity I'll not go there.
But, I will say that "HD" does not stand for Harley Davidson...stands for "hundred dollars".

Maybe he simply rang up 2 of them and just quickly read you the total without noticing? In any case I'll let you in on a big secret that nobody knows yet..... . Dealerships can get a little pricey.

quote:

Originally posted by Ryanp225:
Maybe he simply rang up 2 of them and just quickly read you the total without noticing? In any case I'll let you in on a big secret that nobody knows yet..... . Dealerships can get a little pricey.

I knew they charged over list at times on service tickets, this was the first time I had one pull inflated prices out of his ass at the parts counter.

Instead of a spare, my car has a air comptressor with a “fix a flat” container built into it. The “fix a flat” has gone out of date. Now, a simple can of this is under $8. The ford parts department says $52! Worse, he has to order it! Much worse, you can’t run the air compressor without the container.

I go online and find it for $32. Amazon Prime so no shipping cost. Now I’m good until 2022.

Car manufacturers seem to go out of their way to create these things. Then make more money.

quote:

Originally posted by Fredward:
If you think car dealers are bad, Harley is obscene. 1300 for a small 12 volt reverse motor for a trike, installed. 85 bucks on-line, install was about 20 minutes.

I sold the trike.

When I owned the Harley FXDL (Dyna Low Rider), I bought parts and accessories via mail order. (Zanotti, Pennsylvania) Posted prices of 30-40% discount, no sales tax and usually free shipping UPS.

I mentioned that to local HD parts man who told me, if Harley found out a dealer was under cutting parts and accessory prices, Harley would pull the franchise from that dealer.

I told the parts man he was smoking too much dope.

The local Honda dealer typically charges full retail for anything. Amazon works well for some items.

From the Honda Pilot forums, there are a few Honda dealers in other states that have very good deals on parts including cheap or free shipping. I've successfully used those for everything from radiators to brake parts.

Well...on a positive note at least they had the part. Honda doesn’t stock many parts anymore for some of my older motorcycles. Having to gamble on the aftermarket is the worst.

quote:

Originally posted by pbslinger:
Go to a Honda dealer for an exhaust sealing ring, thinking it'll be 7-8 bucks. He says $24 and change. I say "For a sealing ring?" He says it's a more substantial gasket as he heads to get it.

He comes back with it and I tell him I'm due a discount for my small business. He finds my info on file and says: "$10.30, I didn't know"

List price was $12.70. Was he really planning to charge me double list for simple sealing ring?

Sounds harmless. Perhaps he doubled the order - does the repair require two seals? When I have to get a small part at the local Honda counter, I beg for any discount. Otherwise, if my repairs are planned, I'll order online from a wholesaler and save oodles.