$600 to install control arms? Fair?

[i5401995]

I got quote of $600 to install lower+upper and tie rods on both sides. What do you guys think of the price?

[NikosX]

2x what it should be.

[i5401995]

In that case, anyone know a good E34 shop around New York area? I went to a few indy shops but.. they really have no clue about E34.

[russiankid]

Definitely to much. Its not hard especially if you have air tools like just about every shop does.

[Jcbe34]

Yeah I'd say that's a little high, does that include an alignment?

[Lord DRIFT]

DIY is easy. Even without air.

[i5401995]

Alignment was quoted $65 extra. I know it's easy DYI but being in NYC I have no garage :-(.

I would go to an indy shop but last time I went my control arms got messed up after 4000K and they got WD-40 on my paint. So lack of 'check-in' paperwork and inspection of car exterior steers me far away from those shops.

I'm still open to any referrals in NY guys.

[wastedincome]

Does that price quote include ALL the parts??? I know I spent Over $300 just in those parts. add that to a few hours labor and I can see the high quote. BUT I'd NEVER pay that;)

[ThreeM30s]

It's a R I P unless they are using genuine parts.

If they are using Lemforder it could be ok.

If theyare getting whatever the indy shop supplier delivers, it's a RIP. Buy theose same parts for $250 on eBay from FCP Grotons and pay $200 to have them fitted with an alignment.

I find that the arms are usually ok, just need to swap the bushes as everyone swaps arms when they die. However, the bushes often die prematurely due to bad installation, sometimes within 1 month, and this make swapping arms really painful- esp. if you supply the parts!

Best to throw a set of poly bushes in first, see if that fixes it. Easy for the shop to do, and once the alignment is done you'll know driving it if it worked. Soem shops have a press tey can use under the car, so tehy don't even have to remove the arm- ie undo one bolt and swap bush. Realign and job done.

See http://www.noltec.com.au for the bushes, they are very cheap.

[wastedincome]

It's a R I P unless they are using genuine parts.

If they are using Lemforder it could be ok

I find that the arms are usually ok, just need to swap the bushes as everyone swaps arms when they die. However, the bushes often die prematurely due to bad installation, sometimes within 1 month.

Yeah see I went w/ all Lemforder parts and 740 bushing which was why my parts cost was so high. Also FWIW I found that the ball joint on the CA's were worse then the bushings

[madchild]

I paid $500 CDN for Lemforders with 740 bushings for parts and labor.. I would have done it myself, but it was -25C outside and my garage isnt heated...

[i5401995]

I already have all the parts that are needed that quote was for LABOR to install upper+lower+tierods.

[NikosX]

Thats why the price is so high. You are supplying the parts and they cant make money on them. Consequently they bend you over on labor.

[i5401995]

Thats why the price is so high. You are supplying the parts and they cant make money on them. Consequently they bend you over on labor.

That's really retarded, I'm going to call them back on Monday and try to get quote WITH parts. They charge $80/hr for labor by the way so he is telling me it will take 7.5 hours? Going to call him out on that as well.

Will keep you posted, thanks.

[NikosX]

My indy got me new control arms and tie rods installed for 500 bucks.

[sweet e36 pimp]

drive up to albany and i'll do them for $250.00 obo

[TGreene]

I failed inspection in December and one of the things keeping me was the ball joint on a lower control arm, apparently it was giving a lot of play.

It was just over $500 for the part, OEM + labor.

I asked them why it was so expensive, that I saw control arms on ebay for $60, and the guy, one of the owners of Sunset Hills Automotive in Fairfax, VA, said that they had used "white box" materials before, and they would never use them again. The cheap stuff breaks easily he said, and it is a dangerous thing to be cheap with.

The people there have been straight shooters, so I believe what they say.

...if that helps =p

-Trevor

BTW, that was only the one control arm, so if that is ridiculous, let me know haha.

[tammer]

I failed inspection in December and one of the things keeping me was the ball joint on a lower control arm, apparently it was giving a lot of play.

It was just over $500 for the part, OEM + labor.

I asked them why it was so expensive, that I saw control arms on ebay for $60, and the guy, one of the owners of Sunset Hills Automotive in Fairfax, VA, said that they had used "white box" materials before, and they would never use them again. The cheap stuff breaks easily he said, and it is a dangerous thing to be cheap with.

The people there have been straight shooters, so I believe what they say.

...if that helps =p

-Trevor

BTW, that was only the one control arm, so if that is ridiculous, let me know haha.
IMO that's really ridiculous for a lower arm. The bushing end through-bolt/nut are totally exposed and easy to reach. The ball joint end requires unbolting the steering arm from the strut housing (3 bolts, easy to reach but can be a minor pain to reinstall). The arm is ~$100ish, maybe $130, and I would anticipate spending no more than 2 hours doing both arms.

In other news, I just helped a friend do upper control arms on his 540i this weekend. The Bentley did not mention disassembling the steering arm from the strut housing, but I found the job much, much easier that way. It was worth the 1 minute to disassemble and the 5 minutes to reassemble each side for the increased pickle-fork access (we were replacing arms, left side ball joint and both bushings were bad).

Weird things:
1) His right-side bushing had been milled down several mm; the left-side bushing was not. Old bushings looked like 750i parts. We were putting in Lemförder arms with M5 bushings, and the driver side part bolted right in, but the passenger side didn't fit. WTF? I used big ChanneLoks to bend out the flat tab that holds the bushing, but I still had to file off about 2 mm of the protruding metal at the bushing center to get it to fit. The bushings that came off were drastically different. This wasted a couple hours.

2) Do you guys have some kind of slim 22mm wrench you use to hold the nut while torquing the bushing through-bolt? I could not get a good grip on that nut to hold it. My solution was to drop the sway bar bushings (2 13mm nuts on each side), let the bar hang down, and rotate the bushing brackets by pulling the 2 15mm bolts into the frame rail and loosening the big 18mm bolt holding the crossmember to the body. Then I rotated the sway bar mounting brackets out of the way, tightened the big 18mm bolts again, lowered the car onto ramps (drove it back and forth a bit to settle suspension), and torqued the control arm bushings. Then loosen the 18s again, rotate brackets into place, install and torque 15s, torque 18s, put sway bar back up. PITA, added a lot of time to an otherwise simple job.

What was I missing? I figured this job would take 2 hours, not 4.

-tammer

[ross1]

I can do it on my back outdoors in two hours or so. On a lift with power tools this job is peanuts.
Unless the prevailing labor rate around there is well north of $250 they are asking far too much.

[i5401995]

I failed inspection in December and one of the things keeping me was the ball joint on a lower control arm, apparently it was giving a lot of play.

It was just over $500 for the part, OEM + labor.

I asked them why it was so expensive, that I saw control arms on ebay for $60, and the guy, one of the owners of Sunset Hills Automotive in Fairfax, VA, said that they had used "white box" materials before, and they would never use them again. The cheap stuff breaks easily he said, and it is a dangerous thing to be cheap with.

The people there have been straight shooters, so I believe what they say.

...if that helps =p

-Trevor

BTW, that was only the one control arm, so if that is ridiculous, let me know haha.

I already have the parts, but $500 for one control arm? OEM is under $150 from the dealer, you got raped.

Edit: Called my other mechanic... they went out of business last week, jesus.

[eightynine535]

I already have all the parts that are needed that quote was for LABOR to install upper+lower+tierods.

Call Barry at B&E Auto 718-240-4205
very honest mechanic, tell him Curtis refereed you.

[i5401995]

Call Barry at B&E Auto 718-240-4205
very honest mechanic, tell him Curtis refereed you.

Will give him a call, I just called L & M Foreign cars, they quoted me pretty much same price.

3 hours for lower control arms
2 hours for upper control arms

5 Hours * 85 = $425 :|

****


Call Barry at B&E Auto 718-240-4205
very honest mechanic, tell him Curtis refereed you.

eightynine535 is that shop clean? Do they inspect your car before you service it for visual damage and give you copy of report?

[sweet e36 pimp]

if you seriously want this job done, and would drive up here, i'd do it for a very reasonable price.

i only use german parts on german cars. there is no substitute. lemforder/ meyle is the way to go here.

[tonyroc14]

ill do it for you for 100 bucks

[i5401995]

My total receipt due at pick up? $1270.60.

I will post a scan tomorrow if I get a chance, I'm loving this.


1. Installation of upper control arms (my parts)
2. Installation of lower control arms (my parts)
3. Installation of outer tie rods and idler arms or some shit (my tie rods, idler arms $40*2)
4. Installation of my brake pads and their rotors, $80*2 rotors + $120ish labor
5. Wheel aliment
6. Brake switch

$85/hr labor rate.

Fuck me gently.

[sweet e36 pimp]

ill do it for you for 100 bucks

go for it. guess you guys are gonna meet half way across the country. it says you live in cali. i'm like 2 and a half hours away from him tops. i was offering to be nice, not to be a smartass :rolleyes

[i5401995]

go for it. guess you guys are gonna meet half way across the country. it says you live in cali. i'm like 2 and a half hours away from him tops. i was offering to be nice, not to be a smartass :rolleyes

I was thinking of driving up to you but the thing is I can't hang around there for 5+ hours for you to do the installation :-(

If you were in Brooklyn I would be there in a heart beat man.

[NikosX]

If youre not an attorney/doctor...your 5 hours arent worth $1200 unless youre dying of cancer as we speak.

[i5401995]

NikosX yes, but I have work during the week that I can't miss, and going away this weekend so I needed my car :)

I'm picking my baby up in 30 minutes and posting scan of invoice when I get home :)

[ross1]

My total receipt due at pick up? $1270.60.

I will post a scan tomorrow if I get a chance, I'm loving this.


1. Installation of upper control arms (my parts)
2. Installation of lower control arms (my parts)
3. Installation of outer tie rods and idler arms or some shit (my tie rods, idler arms $40*2)
4. Installation of my brake pads and their rotors, $80*2 rotors + $120ish labor
5. Wheel aliment
6. Brake switch

$85/hr labor rate.

Fuck me gently.


Holy smokes. Did you bang this guy's wife or something?
This is unconscionable. How long is this clown saying it took? Any mechanic that has two hands can beat book time on this job while hungover. It looks that he has charged you double that.
Why did you follow through with this place after everyone here told you not to?
I have a hard time feeling sorry for you unless there were extraordinary circumstances.

[i5401995]

Holy smokes. Did you bang this guy's wife or something?
This is unconscionable. How long is this clown saying it took? Any mechanic that has two hands can beat book time on this job while hungover. It looks that he has charged you double that.
Why did you follow through with this place after everyone here told you not to?
I have a hard time feeling sorry for you unless there were extraordinary circumstances.

I'm not looking for pity, it is what it is and I know I got fucked in the ass but there are NO good shops to take your car in around here unless you are getting raped.

I went to several indys and I really do not trust them anymore with my car as they screw up more stuff then they fix nor do they inspect your car on delivery/care about it.

Bill is attached below, feel free to point and laugh :).

http://content.imagesocket.com/thumbs/awesome30b.jpg (http://imagesocket.com/view/awesome30b.jpg)

[Atreus99]

work that 6mo/6k mi warranty. make them work for that shit man. jesus.

[ShapeShifter]

Is a euopean style alignment any different than a regular alignment?


Fancy wording to get another $10 out of an alignment?

[i5401995]

work that 6mo/6k mi warranty. make them work for that shit man. jesus.

I don't think they will honor it since they are my own parts :)


Is a euopean style alignment any different than a regular alignment?


Fancy wording to get another $10 out of an alignment?

It has lasers!

[sweet e36 pimp]

yeah, that repair order is a joke.

some of these shops are horrendous. the one i worked in wasn't half bad, i just got sick of the fleet vehicles and the b.s.