[MrSteak]

Contacted my SA over a half engine light, and when I brought the car in mentioned a rattle (maybe wastegate). I was told it would be $150 to check the engine light, and another $150 to diagnose the rattle.

Is that normal?

[idrift4wd]

yeah normal.

just know what is covered under warranty (if you have a warranty) and they will take it off.

B.S. I know, but every mechanic has that charge.

[MrSteak]

Seems weird.

If I were vague and said the car felt "weird", I'd be charged once, but pointing them in the right direction(s) gets charged per issue.

[Meeni]

Are you warranty or CPO ?

These charges should be waived if the work is done (paid or CPOed), though.

[MrSteak]

Originally Posted by Meeni

Are you warranty or CPO ?

These charges should be waived if the work is done (paid or CPOed), though.

Out of warranty. Although, brought my car in for potential extended warranty issues (HPFP or Wastegate). I was told that if issues found were covered, charges would be covered under the warranty extensions.

So if its not covered, does that mean the diagnostic fee ($150) is taken out (or waived) of the price of the repair?

[unrealii]

Yes, it's normal. The dealer needs to get paid for the time they spent diagnosing the problem. If the repair gets covered under warranty, then the warranty pays the diagnosis.

If its not covered, every mechanic/dealer I have ever been to will take that diagnosis fee and apply it towards the repair. You should ask the dealer if the diagnosis fee is applied towards the repair.

[tony20009]

It's hard for me to say what's customary for there are literally thousands of car dealerships and I've only had dealings with three of them over the course of the past 25 years. I do know that they, like every other time and materials based service provider, expect to be paid for their time and materials. That's not really something to which one can object.

I can say that if the adjectives "money grubbing" and "price gouging" were fit to apply to any single type of business, a car dealership would be that one to which it applies. Let's face it, regardless of the capabilities of competing car service facilities, there's no way to deny that a consumer can feel confident that the car dealer has the trained techs, all the parts, and all the equipment needed to diagnose and repair what's wrong with the brand of cars the dealership sells. And, though they do sometimes screw up, most of the time the get it right. But dealers know that and it's what they count on and they make you pay for it.

So as a consumer, you know what you are in for if you go to the car dealer. You decide whether you want to pay for that level of comfort/surety. What I can offer is that as my cars age and get outside their warranty period, I tend to go to the dealer and pay them to diagnose the problem(s), it's cause and provide me with a plan and a price for rectifying it. If it's something that isn't "right now" urgent, I will take their diagnosis and plan and ask other service shops what they would charge to execute on the same plan. If the price is significantly different, I'll call the dealer and ask them to beat the price. If they won't, I let the non-dealer do the work. If the dealer beats the price, I let the dealer do the work. If the price difference is negligible, I let the dealer do the work.

I don't try too hard to get the best price, but neither do I just bend over, close my eyes, grit my teeth, and let them shove it.

All the best and good luck.

[MrSteak]

Originally Posted by tony20009

It's hard for me to say what's customary for there are literally thousands of car dealerships and I've only had dealings with three of them over the course of the past 25 years. I do know that they, like every other time and materials based service provider, expect to be paid for their time and materials. That's not really something to which one can object.

I can say that if the adjectives "money grubbing" and "price gouging" were fit to apply to any single type of business, a car dealership would be that one to which it applies. Let's face it, regardless of the capabilities of competing car service facilities, there's no way to deny that a consumer can feel confident that the car dealer has the trained techs, all the parts, and all the equipment needed to diagnose and repair what's wrong with the brand of cars the dealership sells. And, though they do sometimes screw up, most of the time the get it right. But dealers know that and it's what they count on and they make you pay for it.

So as a consumer, you know what you are in for if you go to the car dealer. You decide whether you want to pay for that level of comfort/surety. What I can offer is that as my cars age and get outside their warranty period, I tend to go to the dealer and pay them to diagnose the problem(s), it's cause and provide me with a plan and a price for rectifying it. If it's something that isn't "right now" urgent, I will take their diagnosis and plan and ask other service shops what they would charge to execute on the same plan. If the price is significantly different, I'll call the dealer and ask them to beat the price. If they won't, I let the non-dealer do the work. If the dealer beats the price, I let the dealer do the work. If the price difference is negligible, I let the dealer do the work.

I don't try too hard to get the best price, but neither do I just bend over, close my eyes, grit my teeth, and let them shove it.

All the best and good luck.

That's a excellent way of looking at it, and I try to do the same. After my initial warranty/service expired at 50k, I found on here and they've been awesome. This particular case potentially involved BMW recalls and extended coverage so I went to the dealer.

I just find it odd (and wrong) that I'm charged for EACH diagnosis, rather than to inspect my car. So, if I had mentioned five issues with my car, would I be charged $150 five times? That's absurd. They should inspect the car under their hourly service rate, or a diagnostic fee, and actually INSPECT the car as a whole... not charge me to look at one or two things I think are wrong with the car (especially since I'm not a mechanic, and may be way off in my assessment of the problems.)

[tony20009]

Originally Posted by MrSteak

...
I just find it odd (and wrong) that I'm charged for EACH diagnosis, rather than to inspect my car. So, if I had mentioned five issues with my car, would I be charged $150 five times? That's absurd. They should inspect the car under their hourly service rate, or a diagnostic fee, and actually INSPECT the car as a whole... not charge me to look at one or two things I think are wrong with the car (especially since I'm not a mechanic, and may be way off in my assessment of the problems.)

You are entitled to feel that way; I feel the same way. I just know that the only thing you or I can do about it is look for a place that is just as qualified but that also does business the way you described.

All I can suggest is that if/when you take your car to the dealer, say to them something like the following:

I'm bringing my car to you so you can evaluate it and tell me what is wrong, what needs fixing and what the urgency is for each thing that needs fixing. I also want you to give me an itemized estimate for each repair as well as one estimate for doing them all at once. Before you start, tell me what you will charge me for the just the assessment portion of what it is I've requested of you.

Possibly such a broad request will achieve what it is you desire. If it won't, they'll surely tell you so before they start doing the work. At the very least you'll know up front how they intend to handle the matter and you can then decide how you want to proceed.

What I'm getting at is that what you ask for and how you ask for it can often determine what you get in return. In most business dealings, the burden for knowing what is desired rests with the customer. The service provider, try as they might, can't always know what the customer wants.

As a a provider of business consulting services, I know first hand what it's like to have a client not all that clearly ask for what it is s/he really wants. My clients are all Fortune 200 (or the equivalent) companies, and one'd think in dealing with folks who are C-level or one tier, or at most two, below C-level, that that wouldn't be a challenge, but it is, and it's not all that uncommon. I hardly think the incidence of it would go down when dealing with the "worker bees" in an organization.

Anyway, if you do apply my suggested approach to offering your business to them, you will at the very least establish for yourself a basis upon which you control the direction of the relationship and the actions that follow. You'll know what the playing field looks like, you'll get what it is you desire, you'll know what you have to pay for it, and the information will be presented in a way that lets you decide what course best aligns with your wants, needs and ability to pay.

All the best.