Tom R.

You wont believe it. I think the brakes are spungy, so instead of making a big deal i picked up a quart of ATE super blue over the summer. My GM buddy came by labor day with his motiv power bleeder. the weather was too nice so we didnt do it. He offered to leave the bleeder and i could mail it back. Nah, I will have my wrench do it.

So wednesday I am dropping off the car to have the DIC (driver instrument cluster) replaced under warranty. Instead of making a stink about spongy brakes I figured I would pay them $65 for a mobil 1 oil change, get the state inspection done a few weeks early and have them bleed the brakes and put the ATE in.

So he looks it up. Warranty says it is 1.3 hours so retail is 2 hours at $95 an hour. Yes, $190 labor just to change the brake fluid.

Guess I will let the dealer change the DIC and bring the car to my wrench for a $40 mobil 1 oil change, have him get it inspected, and pay him for the 1/2 hour it takes to bleed the system. And the dealer wonders why they dont get to do any maintenance on my car!!!

$190 HA! For that money he should at least change the headlight fluid too.

Is there something i dont know about the GTO brake system?

I swear it was something like $45 parts and labor for the S2 at the porsche specialty shop.

sharky47

When I was an aircraft mech. our labor rate was $60 per hour. It is cheaper to get your airplane worked on.......

95Juan

oops, that reminds me that i need to get my halogen fluid changed. not to mention my tire fluid and electircal system fluid. wouldnt want to be caught on the side of the road without any of those.

MPD47

I could be wrong, but I think I'm out of boost juice.

dean944

Tom, Im not sure your SA knows what he/she's doing. Most GM dealers have special pricing for maint. work. I know, I was a SA (service advisor) back in the mid 90's at a GM dealer in S. Atl. They break the price down into more reasonable rates for easy jobs like oil changes and tire rotates and tune-ups.
Think about it. An oil change pays .3 hrs at your GM dealer that is charging 95/hr. That would be around $30 in labor alone.
We had a special maint. schedule that had the prices for all the routine maint. jobs. I belive a brake flush was in the neighborhood of $60~70.

$190 ? That is morronic

Matt H

We do ABS brake flushes for about 79 bucks including the fluid
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icat

Since when are "spongy brakes" not covered under warranty?

Porsche-O-Phile

That's their way of saying "we'd really not be bothered with this job".

Fishey

Yea, That GTO sure is cheaper :/

tifosiman

Do you get a kiss and a fresh tub of KY with that price?

Z-man

No, NO NO!!!! Do NOT change your tire fluid. It will release the OEM German air in the tires, and you'll be stuck replacing it with non-OEM American air, which is not of the same high quality.

That's one of the biggest issues in concours - if you can prove you have original GERMAN air in your tires, you are awarded an additional 42 points. Check it out - it's on the PCA national website - just download the official parade rules.

DO NOT TOUCH YOUR TIRE FLUID.


-Z

Tom R.

A lot of guys on the forums said the spongy feeling disappeared when the fluid was changed. instead of getting into it with the SA about whether it is or is not spongy I figured I would just change the damn fluid.

I picked up the ATE a few months ago and havent gotten around to it yet. i figured I would pay them the $40 to change it. When they told me $190 I decided not to let them change the oil, or do the inspection. I will take the whole job to my wrench next month. Who cares if there is 7500 miles on the oil? Not me, it is leased!!!

I may just bitch a bit about the spongy brakes when i drop it off to have the instrument cluster changed. maybe they will put in new fluid for free, and i will have a quart of ATE for the 944 for next season

Mike B

Unbelieveable! For that money you could buy your own Motive pressure bleeder (great tool by the way), fliud and do it yourself in half the time anf for about a third of the coin.

89magic98

There's money to be made topping off fluids (aka the bullsh|t of a "winterizing" car service), why bother actually changing them?

In college I used to laugh when other kids told me they had all the fluid levels checked that day (and everything topped off), and I'd open the hood and find an 1/4 full WW reservior. Congrats, you just paid for the service tech's clock time while he was taking a sh*t in the can at work.

Robert D

I've debated taking in my GMC for the brake fluid change as my tools are now in California with the family and I won't have them until December/January. I wish I could find a place to change the fluid and rebuild the drum brakes for under 100 bucks, call me crazy . Oh, and the POS 20 dollar "great neck" or whatever toolkits from Autozone are trash. Broke both of the ratchets the first time I used them.