Ls1 cam kit cost

[Simon by sv8 ls1]

hey lads and ladies,

So I recently had my vy sv8 upgraded with a cam kit including tie bar lifters, custom cam, springs, push rods, heads machined, reseated all valves, new head gasket, timing chain kit, arp balancer bolt and cam bolt set, front engin gasket kit, intake gasket, cam backing plate, tappet gasket kit, syn street track oil.

The mechanic I went to quoted me 5500 with labour to get this all done and thats what we had agreed on but when I picked my car up the invoice had not been finished and when I got it a month later it had jumped to 8500.

Some of the prices of the parts he had listed where completely out of this world I believe being that the lifters were 800 just for the part, is this completely wrong or am I wrong someone please help haha

 

[Tonner Matt]

Did you get a written/printed quote from the installer ?
If you didn't get a printed quote, unfortunately you're stuck with an $8500 dollar bill.

Morel 5290 (Street Spec) Tie Bar lifters can be had for around $550 - $600 if you shop around and find them on sale.
At $800 I think you will find he has put a very healthy mark up on his cost of the parts.
You can also get Race Spec Tie Bars as well....some of these sets can cost well in excess of $1000

 

[Simon by sv8 ls1]

Yeah when I went in and seen him I told him what I wanted blah blah blah but I haven’t received any brands of what he fitted just prices and when I research everything by price it’s all drag racing spec stuff which is way over the top for just a tough streeter,

Everything was all over phone or face to face and when I dropped my first deposit he told me it would cover all parts but when iv added the price of all the parts it’s equalled to the price of the whole 5500 job, how much is someone aloud to up marked parts?

 

[Tonner Matt]

how much is someone aloud to up marked parts?

Basically they can mark them up as much as they want or dare to.
It's how (some) workshops can make a lot more money
But if they mark up the cost too much people will eventually go elsewhere......It's a catch 22 situation for workshops cause word of mouth that you rip people off is a real business killer.

 

[Tonner Matt]

A remote workshop I used to work at years ago marked up almost everything by 40%
This is how it would breakdown:
# Our trade price...$60
# Retail price........$100....The customer would be charged retail price plus 40%
# So the customer was invoiced....$140 for part
Business has just made $80 without lifting a finger
Now that part will take 2 hours to fit at a labour rate of $100 per hour....Labour cost is $200
So business has now made $280 income in 2 hours on parts and labour

Now the business has costs to cover out of that income also:
Now pay the mechanic their wages for that 2 hours work at $25 per hour....Wages cost is $50
$280 minus $50 for wages equals $230
Business ends up with $230 from 2 hours labour and mark up on parts
Now the business still has to pay tax on this income, plus pay for running costs as well....electricity, equipment maintenance and so forth
So at a conservative guess the business may only see $150 of that money, maybe more or maybe less....Like I said, it's just a guess.


I only posted this as an example of what happens in the real world.
Mechanics/Workshops will always get shat on, it comes with the job you could say.
While there are questionable operators out there, not every mechanic or workshop out there is trying to rip you off blind and take you for every dollar you've got.








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[Simon by sv8 ls1]

That’s really helpful mate! Sorry for Thebes late reply, my next question if you know is Am I aloud to request the brands of parts and parts numbers, cam size and also oils used for my car? I have requested it all and he won’t put anything into any sort of writing.

 

[harrop.senator]

You have the right to know what youre paying for. Sounds like its time to call consumer affairs.

 

[Simon by sv8 ls1]

it’s getting rediculas it’s been nearly 4 days and he hasn’t replied to my last Email pretty much just asking for those things listed above

 

[Happydaze]

it’s getting rediculas it’s been nearly 4 days and he hasn’t replied to my last Email pretty much just asking for those things listed above

 

[Tonner Matt]

As harrop.senator posted above: You have the right to know what you're paying for, it is not an unreasonable request.

Call him again and speak to him first, explain you are unhappy because you feel like he has overcharged you (Don't say he ripped you off)
Just do your best to keep your cool, going off your head at him and calling him a thieving c#nt or whatever else won't do you any favours. Then I would send him another follow up email.

One thing I forgot to mention in my earlier posts was in regards to the quoted price of the job:
If it was a written quote for $5500...He has to honour it as it's classed as a Legal Document/Binding Contract to do the job for that price.
If it was just a verbal quote....He pretty much has you over a barrel here because he has offered his services & you agreed for the work to be carried out. It's a He said-You said type of scenario that depending on how far you want to push it could end up in court.

If I were you I wouldn't pay another cent until you receive a properly itemised invoice showing a breakdown for the cost of all individual parts used and labour charges.....But that's your call, not mine.