Mechanics: What would you charge?

[Chuck]

I know there's a few mechanics on board, here. What would you charge to replace the brake lines on a late-model pickup truck?

experienced "non-mechanics"...what do you think it should cost? ballpark, of course....

I was right about my brake lines: http://www.airforums.com/forum...kes-25018.html

they were rusted out.

you wouldn't believe what the dealer wants for this service.

(hint: for this price, one might think "I could get a new set of loaded axles for that")

[Condoluminum]

I'm not one of those real mechanics, but from under my shade tree.. It seems there might not be a "labor rate" published in the dealer's handbook of labor hours per job for a total brake line replacement... Under those circumstances, they might be guessing as much as you, and adding a bonus for possible re-work or liability, to perhaps shuffle you elsewhere...

I know it isn't easy, but I'd try to get truck to several different shops and see if someone is hungry or optimistic and bids lower than the rest, and has a decent enough reptation to trust them with your collective lives and precious trailer...

I think I'd also consider calling Dodge Regional Service Rep and asking about "Private Warranty Coverage", letting them know you're very disappointed with a 5 year old truck losing its brakes through shoddy materials and exposing you to life-threatening risk... Your next call should be to Consumer Product Safety Commission and DOT/NHTSA to talk about the problem in detail and propose they consider a factory funded "RECALL" of all the defective Dodge trucks before a lot of truck front ends and SOB rear ends suffer permanent damage... If Ford can recall trucks and old Excursions over Cruise Control, I don't see why you can't be pioneer to help Dodge recall trucks over potentially deadly brake defects.. YMMV..

John McG

[overlander63]

Bubble flare fittings, 50' of 3/16" brake line, new hoses, brake fluid, bleed and adjust.
Parts: $200
Labor:$420 (5 hours labor @$84/hr.
Total: $620 + tax and environmental fees.
I did this on a 2002 Ram 1500 4x4 last week.
You could probably almost pay to have the truck towed to Florida, and have me fix it, and be money ahead, not counting fuel cost going back home.

[Chuck]

Originally Posted by overlander63

Bubble flare fittings, 50' of 3/16" brake line, new hoses, brake fluid, bleed and adjust.
Parts: $200
Labor:$420 (5 hours labor @$84/hr.
Total: $620 + tax and environmental fees.
I did this on a 2002 Ram 1500 4x4 last week.
You could probably almost pay to have the truck towed to Florida, and have me fix it, and be money ahead, not counting fuel cost going back home.

...but I'd get a trip to FL out of it, which ain't a bad deal. welll...maybe not THIS time of year. and unfortunately, I can't wait 'till winter. fwiw, that's a very similar labor rate.

was that both lines, or just one?

and on an '02??? that's even newer than mine. AND not much salt on the roads in southern FL. (That's the excuse they always fall back on around here..."well, the salted roads makes things rust". well duh. sure it does. But I've have vehicles go much farther in the snow than this...I've had vehicles where everything else BUT the brake lines rotted away.) What are they making the brake lines out of these days?

[moosetags]

Chuck- I'm really curious as to what the dealer's quote for the brake line replacement was.

[Chuck]

Originally Posted by moosetags

Chuck- I'm really curious as to what the dealer's quote for the brake line replacement was.

over $1300. I don't think I heard the rest of it. "thirteen-hundred and...(THUMP!")..."

the "Thump" was me hitting the floor after fainting.


that was for both lines; they still wanted close to 800 for just 1. Thats why I'm wondering if Terry's job was for both lines or just one or two. 50' of brake line..I would think "2".

[overlander63]

Originally Posted by chuck

...but I'd get a trip to FL out of it, which ain't a bad deal. welll...maybe not THIS time of year. and unfortunately, I can't wait 'till winter. fwiw, that's a very similar labor rate.

was that both lines, or just one?

and on an '02??? that's even newer than mine. AND not much salt on the roads in southern FL. (That's the excuse they always fall back on around here..."well, the salted roads makes things rust". well duh. sure it does. But I've have vehicles go much farther in the snow than this...I've had vehicles where everything else BUT the brake lines rotted away.) What are they making the brake lines out of these days?

Chuck, that was all lines from the ABS module, to the wheels, including the rubber hoses.
Many people put their boats in the ocean with their trucks hence the rotted brake lines.

[Chuck]

Originally Posted by overlander63

Chuck, that was all lines from the ABS module, to the wheels, including the rubber hoses.
Many people put theirboats in the oceaqn with their trucksm hence the rotted brake lines.

well, thats a relief. My mechanic doesn't charge nearly that much per hour, either, so I should get out of it ok.

makes sense about the boats; I don't trailer a boat, though. And the winters haven't been that bad recently. (last year, it hardly snowed at all...everyone on my snowplowing website was cryin' like crazy...loosing lots of $$). Like I said, I've had other vehicles go through much worse winters for many more years, without their brake lines disolving.

[Tom Nugler]

Just checked AllData, one of the pro labor rate services we use, and overlander is on the mark. Parts are between $27 and $46 per piece depending on the part, and labor is .8 hours a line. Add another .5 to 1.0 to bleed. It adds up quickly and ABS drives it up even more.
2 years ago I had the rear main line go just after I had set the GT on the leveling blocks at a campsite. Pedal to the floor. We spent about 3 hours in a small independant shop, mostly waiting for a line from the auto parts place. I think that job ran about $200.
What's the door rate in Boston? Our GM rate is $108 and the imports are $112 per hour out here northwest of Chicago? I've heard the East Coast is higher than out here.

Tom.

[Chuck]

Originally Posted by Tom Nugler

What's the door rate in Boston? Our GM rate is $108 and the imports are $112 per hour out here northwest of Chicago? I've heard the East Coast is higher than out here.

Tom.

yikes. I didn't think it was that high, but I'm not actually sure. last time I saw a sign posted, it was "80-something"...but that was a couple of years ago. 100+ would be a steep increase, but who knows? That wasn't "IN" the city, but 20 and 40 miles north, if that makes a difference.

[overlander63]

Originally Posted by chuck

yikes. I didn't think it was that high, but I'm not actually sure. last time I saw a sign posted, it was "80-something"...but that was a couple of years ago. 100+ would be a steep increase, but who knows? That wasn't "IN" the city, but 20 and 40 miles north, if that makes a difference.

It might well make a difference, if there are a bunch of shops around the area competing, the labor rate may be less.

[Silvertwinkie]

Donated my 1980 Delta 88 2 years ago. It lived and was driven hard in the rust belt all of it's life. After 21 years of salt, heat, cold, humid, snow, sleet, etc, I had to replace a section of the double wall steel brake line. Cost me about $300.00. Fast forward just before I donated it, the rear axle seals were just starting to go (after a bit more 24 than years), but at 167k and not burning a drop of oil, I bet the person that got it is still driving it.

If what I'm reading here is that 00 and 02s need brake lines replaced, that's pretty unacceptable, at least in my book.

Putting into a more modern perspective, my '96 SS that used to tow the Safari still has all the original brake lines and it's now 10 years old and has 90k on the ticker, all rust belt driving all 10 years......of course, with ABS I am sure costs would be more, particularly if the ABS module got contaminated. The Oldsmobeater had manual ABS, so wasn't an issue I encountered....yet.

[Chuck]

well, here's the update:

Got the truck back last Wednesday night, just in time to go to the region 1 rally. (whew!)
In the end, my guy charged me 400-ish for what the Dodge dealer quoted 1300. I say "ish", because as it turned out, it needed new front rotors and pads, which I suspected, anyway. I was actually planning on taking it in before the rally to have that done, when the brake line blew out. So that was another 400-ish, parts and labor. (but this doesn't count against the dealership quote; pads and rotors were never discussed. they hadn't even looked at them). Throw in an oil change, and the total was $879. I don't have the actual cost "brake down" (doh! couldn't resist ) in front of me, but it was about 50/50 parts and labor.

It just seems like too much of a coincidence that the original quote was just about double what you guys stated as the "book" rate. It leads me to suspect that this place's policy is that if someone comes in on a hook, and is stranded, hit them x2, and they'll likely take it under desperation. They oughtta be charged with attempted rape.

[SafeHarbor]

Hi, Chuck,

On the Ram diesel forums I frequent, dealers are referred to with that rhyming word that starts with "steal."

I've been very lucky with mine, but I lived in a small town, and they know that one guy can spread much poison if they irk him enough.

They've called me with bad news before, but it was always, "Come down here. We need to show you something."

I really liked those guys.

Times change, and now I'm back home. The dealer is a guy I went to school with, and he was the salesman that sold me my previous truck. Now he's inherited the dealership. Gee, I hope they have a decent diesel mechanic, but I doubt he can now (or ever) look me in the eye and lie to me.

Deluded, yes, probably, but the voices in my head often make good sense.

Lamar

[ipso_facto]

I had my master cylinder go bad on a sedan, and while replacing it, I royally destroyed the brakes lines. I didn't know that you have to use a special brake lines wrench, not an open-end wrench, the metal is very soft and will strip and round-off very quickly.

Replacing the brakes lines was a bit ouf of my skills set at the time, and I took it to a small shop, which charged me $200.

These days given exorbitant auto repair expenses, I try to do as much as I can myself, and invest in the best equipment. It pays off just after one job. There is a special tool to bend the brake lines which is the most difficult part of the job, and not very complex at that. Even if destroy 2-3 brake lines in the process and just brake even, And even if you brake even, you have a certain sense of independence and accomplishment.

I only take my vehicle for stuff I cannot do without a lift, like transmission or muffler work. Brakes are easy.