- 2 cam seal sets @ $16.95 each
- an a/c belt @ $28.95
- an "alt p/s belt" (alternator/power steering, I assume) @ $28.95
- a timing belt component kit with water pump @ $749.95
- labor totaling $332.50
- environmental fees @ $39.73
This morning, I dropped the Outback off at R&L Repair just down the road from my work. They got back to me in short order, telling me the seals are fine. There's a small amount of oil that had spilled during an oil change (the Subies have a narrow neck where you fill up the engine oil, so you have to fill it slowly, lest it spill). No bad seals. No leaking oil on the timing belt. I do have a torn CV joint boot, however, which Dad and I have fixed several times on various cars. It's about $75 and maybe an hour or two.
Perhaps I'm being a bit cynical, but this leads me to the conclusion that the guys at Royal Tire are either [a] completely incompetent (they didn't find the torn boot) or, more likely, [b] the stereotypical auto mechanics that screw over their customers at every chance. Maybe I'm wrong; maybe the guys at R&L missed something. But when I asked R&L how much their assessment would cost me, they waved me off and said not to worry about it. A mechanic that doesn't charge for a half hour of their expertise seems more believable.
No comments:
Post a Comment