Auto repairs – YIKES!
Our Florida SUV has been in the shop three times over the last couple weeks for repairs. We got the oil & filter changed, the air conditioner charged, new tires, and this Wednesday it will be back in the shop for a new headlight.
Our car still looks nice, but the repairs have been pretty costly. All together we will have spent about $2,500 this Winter.
We’re not getting ripped off by the local repair shop, either. Almost all of the cost is in the parts!
Check this out below. The ‘headlight assembly’ we need for our 2017 BMW X5 costs a shocking $3,767 from the factory!
As you can see, I punched my VIN number into a “shop” on eBay and found a knock-off, Chinese-made headlight assembly for just $247. Still, with shipping ($106), the parts will be the majority of the cost.
Our new tires were similarly expensive – again, for ‘parts’ not labor. The chunky Pirelli Scorpion tires were $346 each. The cost to have them put on (which took over 90 minutes) was only $91. That means 94% of the cost was the parts.
The problem with having an older vehicle (8 years old / 104K miles) is that these repairs are popping up constantly. When we get back to Minnesota in the spring, I know my 2 vehicles there also need new tires.
I’m 10 years retired from work, but now have a part-time job running to the auto repair shop!
What ugly car repairs have you had lately? Is the cost of the parts driving the overall cost?
Images: (c) MrFireStation.com
MrFireStation 
Hey, you own it outright. Even if you spend $2500 every year it is still pretty cheap (and pretty nice) transport…D
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yeah… I thought of that as I was adding everything up. Of course, I also will have spent three half days at the shop. That’s the pricey part!!
LikeLike
Wow, $3,767 for an OEM Headlight Assembly. I checked one of my go to aftermarket brands on RockAuto and it was still $1,076.
I recently changed the Motor Oil and Filters on my family fleet’s four vehicles with six five-quart bottles of Mobile 1 Full Synthetic at $164.45 and four Motorcraft Filters were $32.11. The transmission fluid was changed with Motorcraft Mercon V for one vehicle at $120. Changed one air and fuel filter for $22.25. Replaced a starter using an AC Delco part for $114.79. Had an instrument cluster resoldered for $200 and had to replace a $18.99 headlight knob I broke getting the cluster out. Replaced a broken window regulator for $142.86. Replaced passenger side mirror that was broke after a Tesla Cyber Truck hit it for $88.43. Replaced s door latch with cables $53.54. Replaced front struts and rear shocks on one vehicle for $240.74 with a $90 alignment afterwards.
Total for the past six months was $998.16 for parts and $290 for the outside labor of resoldering the instrument cluster and alignment. I drive cars with low-cost name brand replacement parts, and I do most of the labor myself. Some might argue that I am spending too much time working on cars. My counter argument is that I enjoy wrenching in my shop while listening to my stereo and quite often I can perform the work myself in less time than it takes to get the car to repair shop and back.
LikeLike