Alpha Auto Center, we are conveniently located in Dallas, GA. Our shop is staffed with expert technicians who provide quality repair and maintenance service. Call or email us to set up an appointment today. Alpha Auto Center, we are conveniently located in Dallas, GA. Our shop is staffed with expert technicians who provide quality repair and maintenance service. Call or email us to set up an appointment today.
I contacted the place a day or two before our scheduled appointment and advised them that we'd be bringing ALL our own parts. The service writer I spoke with advised me that they were pretty busy and she'd get me an updated quote before us dropping off the vehicle. Sure enough, the day comes and my wife drops off the vehicle, but the quote wasn't ready, so they told us they'd call us before they started the work. When they did call, I was now quoted roughly $400!! When I asked why so much and inquired how much they were charging for labor, I was advised that "they were a business and still had to make money" and that the labor was $129/hr. Aside from going to a dealership, $129/hr is already on the extremely high end of labor for auto repair. I know many auto shops have computer programs or guides that estimate labor costs, but I have no idea how they got that number for labor costs because my research was nowhere near the amount of time quoted.
...and here is where the double dipping on labor costs comes in...
When I asked the service writer to break the labor costs down for me, I decided to hold off on a bit and requested a quote for just the tire rotation and swapping the spark plugs; as these aren't exactly easy for me to do at home. I was quoted roughly $350!! Again, we brought ALL our own parts. It was my understanding that the tire rotation was about $20, so they were basically estimating over two and a half hours of labor to swap out the spark plugs. Even the manufacturer's website only estimated approximately one hour for the service requested. Moreover, when the service writer was breaking down the costs for me she quoted $38 to swap out the air filter. I reminded her we had provided our own, and she told me that was the cost of the labor to install it. When I informed her that the technician literally has to remove the air filter housing to access the spark plugs anyway, she advised me that "we have to pay our technicians." Hence, the double dipping on labor costs. FYI, the air filter is extremely accessible in this vehicle and it only requires you to pop two tabs, open the housing, and swap it out. It would take a layperson less than two minutes to do it themselves. I figured it wouldn't be a big deal for them to toss it in when they were putting the air filter housing back in.
After getting off the phone with the service writer I was so annoyed I just decided to take the time out of my day to do it all myself. We went and got the vehicle and I brought it home. I gapped and swapped out the spark plugs in roughly an hour. Again, they were going to charge me two and a half hours' worth of labor just for that. I am not super mechanically inclined either and I assure you my garage is not nearly as equipped as their shop. In total, it took roughly an hour and a half for the tune-up and oil change at home. The place we initially bought our tires from performed the brake inspection and tire rotation for free. They have to pay their technician too. ;) Oh... not to mention when I brought my truck in for an oil change months back the technician smacked my side mirror on the pillar backing out of the bay. He essentially shrugged it off when it happened. My truck was brand new, three months old at the time. The damage buffed right out, but still quite careless with other people's property. Everyone has a hustle, but this is price gouging at its finest. Buyer beware!