Thermostat Replacement Quote

[Chaosbunny]

So when I heat up my car, it only goes about 1/2 way to the midpoint of the thermometer on the dash. I figure it must be the thermostat and my local independent shot quoted $90 to do the job. (including parts) Is this a fair price?

I'll have it in the shop anyway to have winter rims/tires put on, so they might as well do it I figure.

[Chaosbunny]

Also - Is it almost certian this is a problem with the thermostat?

[bbmuzicboi]

well the work takes about 45 minutes to do...as for the part if it is just the thermo -n- o-ring thats bout $35. so looks to me that they charge a little much for labor like 55 bucks or so, try and talk their labor down a lil to like 40/hour that sounds more reasonable (^_^)

[jg727211]

If it's in the shop anyway, have them do it.
Figure $35 for the t-stat like bbmuzicboi said and add another $20+ for the coolant.
The extra $ is worth it to not have to deal with the mess of draining / flushing the coolant and the PITA it is to bleed.

[Zaks]

replacing t-stat and waterpump, draining coolant and topping off takes about 30-60 mins depending on your skill level and what tools you have handy... (this is on a 6cyl engine though, although it's probably easier on 4cyl, cuz of more room)

idk where you guys are buying t-stats for $35 but everywhere online they're $18-20...

imo, if they're charging $90 for parts and labor INCLUDING coolant and replacing, then it's worth it... if it's just the t-stat then topping off coolant, that's way too much... $70 in labor which will take maybe 30 mins...

[Bimuh007]

haha I had mine done by a BMW mechanic and he quoted me $154. However, I didn't pay for it.. phew.

[LAs1stMod]

go for it...
i just spent $47.63 for new thermo and $6.40 for o-ring...$54.03 together not including..$125 per hour labor charge...and they suppose to charge no more than 1.5 hours for thermo replacing normally...
i think $90 is very good quote.

[baghram]

go for it...
i just spent $47.63 for new thermo and $6.40 for o-ring...$54.03 together not including..$125 per hour labor charge...and they suppose to charge no more than 1.5 hours for thermo replacing normally...
i think $90 is very good quote.
Damn dude, reading another of your posts, you seem to spend way too much on labour :rolleyes

[LAs1stMod]

Damn dude, reading another of your posts, you seem to spend way too much on labour

yeah i kno...im going after the dealer and disputing charges w/ creditcard company....report and file complaint to BMW of North America.

[schwarzII325is]

where is the engine thermometer supposed to be ?

my car is always half way ...right between blue and red...

i always thought thats where it was supposed to be? is that wrong ?

[Emory]

I replaced my thermostat on my now-departed 1995 325i in December 2005. Same thing, the engine wouldn't heat up fully. There was a broken bracket on my old t-stat, leaving it stuck open.

Here's what it cost me: About $18 for the thermostat, a few bucks for the asymmetric gasket, and (what others have failed to tally) $25 for a gallon of BMW blue coolant. It's a fairly easy job, but it is messy. Draining the coolant from the radiator is easy - the plug is on the driver's side of the radiator. Draining the coolant from the engine block is not - it is impossible not to splash the fluid all over. The drain plug on the engine block is high up, and the fluid cannot avoid hitting a crossbar when it flows out, thus the mess.

If your independent shop is asking $90 total, grab it. The parts (T-stat, gasket and coolant) alone are $45. $45 for labor is worth avoiding the mess. I wonder - does the shop realize they're undercharging? Or are they not realizing that the coolant has to be changed?

[fun2drive]

90 bucks is a fair price, period.
I just pulled mine due to my temp gage pegging and I measured all the temps using an Infrared tool and they were fine.
Temp coolant sensor is bad.
You never said, do you have adequate heat?
If the car is running too cool then the t-stat is the problem.
The gage is a buffered affair and that means it varies a good deal from 192 degrees or whatever stat you have in there.
Since yours is 1/4 of the way over like close to the blue section, it is most likely the t-stat.
For the record how many miles do you have on this car and was the water pump ever changed? If your car has the original water pump and has 70K miles or more consider having the water pump done too so you don't have to pay for some labor later. Water pumps are a high failure item on this car....