My wife just took her 2008 Buick LaCrosse to the shop this morning because she said the handling was a little off. Her car looks like brand new and she takes great care of it but she won't let me be involved with any repairs because she thinks I'll take the "cheap way out". Well the shop said it needed new shocks and struts and that it would cost $1,600 and she told them to fix it. I've replaced rear shocks on cars and it wasn't too hard and they were not very expensive and I know struts are a lot harder, but 1600 bucks sure seems high to me!
Car repair costs? Arrrrgh!
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MasterTech1960
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You know , I became a Master Tech. a long time ago , 35 years to be exact . The reason was , At 16 years old , I got a car and it would not run right. Took it to the shop and was told it needed a timing chain. The estimate about knocked me off my feet. So I did the next best thing , got a book , read up on how to do the job. Went to the parts store and got the parts. Two day later it was running like a champ. 
I do think some car repair places charge too much for repairs. But they will only charge you what you are willing to pay. Always shop around. If you find a honest repair shop that does good work , stick with them. 
I do think some car repair places charge too much for repairs. But they will only charge you what you are willing to pay. Always shop around. If you find a honest repair shop that does good work , stick with them. YogiBear
Absent Comrade
Aloha,
Wait until you start having electrical or computer related problems
with late model vehicles.
Then wath how fast the costs go up/
Wait until you start having electrical or computer related problems
with late model vehicles.
Then wath how fast the costs go up/
Seems high to me too. I know around here garages seem to get between $75 and a $100 per hour labor charge. Changing shocks in most cars is not a long job. To be honest I’m not familiar with your car. Struts as you said take longer but not that much to an experienced mechanic/shop
Heck even if there including realignment in that price to me its real high
Go on line and check out what the parts cost before you or your wife signs on the dotted line! Or better yet get a second opinion!
Heck even if there including realignment in that price to me its real high
Go on line and check out what the parts cost before you or your wife signs on the dotted line! Or better yet get a second opinion!
kenv1950
Member
Struts a fairly easy, I do all my own repairs for as long as I can remember. New electronics is an other story,I don't touch it.
Not to make you feel bad ,but go on Youtube to see how struts are changed,easy job.
My neighbors grandaughter just changed hers,herself
Not to make you feel bad ,but go on Youtube to see how struts are changed,easy job.
My neighbors grandaughter just changed hers,herself
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I was a Mechanic for twenty years and have always done My Own repairs when possible but sometimes I would rather pay to have repairs done. You Tube is a great place to look for how to do something on Your Vehicle because Someone always seems to have the same problem You are trying to repair.
That's true, if they supply all required info. I had a heating trouble the other day, blendoor was stuck in A/C mode, had to replace the actuator. There's a under dash cover that has to come off. The guy on You Tube said two fasteners held it in. His dropped right off, mine wouldn't budge. Turns out there were four fasteners on mine. Moral of the story, like sometimes with shop manuals, You Tube is not always gospel.
snowman
Member
Farmer17:
I replaced a set of struts on my previous vehicle and they aren't "a lot" harder than replacing shocks(By the way, did the shop people really tell your wife that the car needed new "shocks AND struts"???). A little more involved, but not that much. And if a shop gave me that price for that job, I think I would call the state attorney general, or someone.
Best wishes in finding reasonable repair folks,
Andy
Buick LaCrosse 2008 struts and shocks - $68.51 at Autoparts Warehouse.com. (Retail $262). I'd say you got the full retail price. But, you didn't get your hands dirty 
ChattanoogaPhil
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Used car repairs are no fun. New car payments can be a heck of a lot worse.
LVSteve
Member
Did the estimate include replacing the top mounts, springs and realignment? Also, does that model have self leveling shocks at the rear? You don't get those for $40/pair.
Also, you didn't say how many miles. Coming from the UK where we demand that cars handle and stop, I consider shocks to be toast after 40-50k miles, and less on high performance vehicles.
Also, you didn't say how many miles. Coming from the UK where we demand that cars handle and stop, I consider shocks to be toast after 40-50k miles, and less on high performance vehicles.
venomballistics
Member
Folks really need to get over the fear of the thunder inside the box.
Electronic controlled engines is not as hard to understand as it seems.
for example .. throttle position sensor tells the box how much foot you have in the EFI and determines a rough idea of how much fuel to tell the injectors to spit.
the Manifold air pressure sensor gives the box an idea of engine load, which the box will use to refine fuel quantity and timing advance.
Oxygen sensor takes a whiff of the exhaust to tell the box if it needs any further refinement of the fuel volume.
end result, perfect time and mixture every time, all the time, and many times per second..... and you never have to touch a screwdriver or feel for a mixture screw on a carb.
Engine electronics.
learn them. They are your friend.
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JJEH
Member
It does seem high. Not sure what kind of shocks/struts that model has but I assume that you went to the GM dealer?! I've tried Auto Repair and Maintenance Estimates | Auto Shop and Mechanic Ratings and it said $404-$1,199 for the front and $392-$812 for the rear, incl. parts and labor. If you go by that the $1,600 are in the ballpark.
What bothers me - besides that kind of cash - is the fact that the vehicle is a 2008 model... I have had vehicles that were way older and still had factory shocks that worked perfectly...
LVSteve
Member
My daughter drives a 2008 Land Rover. One headlight went out and the dealership wanted $500 to replace it. The bulb is a Xenon HID Series. I found one online for $180 and replaced it myself. Unbelievable, I remember when a headlight cost a couple of bucks.
LVSteve
Member
More and more cars have HID lights, but they are expensive compared to a H4 55/60W halogen bulb. Sometimes the cost isn't in the HID capsule, but the labour involved to do the replacement. Swapping HID capsules is an ugly job on many cars and trucks, these days.
Good news is that LED headlights are here. No filament or arc creating pieces to break, so they should last MUCH longer.
EugeneNine
Member
I learned the lesson long ago, 4 trips to a dealer at $500 a trip and the engine still stalled when it rained. Turns out Chrysler sourced the crank sensor from Mitsubishi and apparently it doesn't rain in Japan because there was no seal on the connector.
If I cleaned it out and put in a little dielectric grease every time I changed the oil it never had a problem.
I found I can rotate my own tires in less time than I can drive to a place to get it done for "free" and not get attempts to upsell. I can then see if my brakes are getting worn and order a new set ahead of time rather than having to buy whatever cheap **** places sell.
Struts are easy, only time consuming if you need a spring compressor or you can pay a little more the quick struts which come with the springs so you don't even have to do that. I helped a friend of my wife's who was quoted $2000 for new struts on a toyota corolla and then went and paid under $400 and I swapped them in a couple hours even with the stupid design of running the rear brake lines through a mount on the strut requiring the brake lines to be disconnected. Toyota is known for little tricks like that to encourage you do go to pay to have them done.
If I cleaned it out and put in a little dielectric grease every time I changed the oil it never had a problem.
I found I can rotate my own tires in less time than I can drive to a place to get it done for "free" and not get attempts to upsell. I can then see if my brakes are getting worn and order a new set ahead of time rather than having to buy whatever cheap **** places sell.
Struts are easy, only time consuming if you need a spring compressor or you can pay a little more the quick struts which come with the springs so you don't even have to do that. I helped a friend of my wife's who was quoted $2000 for new struts on a toyota corolla and then went and paid under $400 and I swapped them in a couple hours even with the stupid design of running the rear brake lines through a mount on the strut requiring the brake lines to be disconnected. Toyota is known for little tricks like that to encourage you do go to pay to have them done.
