Masterfully billed
So like I said, yesterday I finally broke down and took the Tacoma to the garage to get looked at for it’s warm starting problem. I have been trying to resolve the issue myself for more than 4 months at this point and had had enough. Trying to drive the truck after a warm start had become blatantly dangerous.
I took the truck to Master Tech Imports, a place that is run by two ex-Toyota dealership mechanics so they know Tacomas. I have used them several times over the years based on a recommendation by a co-worker, a co-worker whom doesn’t use them anymore either. They are a competent garage and have always resolved whatever problem I have presented them with. The problem is what they charge to do so.
I stopped using them a couple years ago when I tired of never being able to get out of there without spending at least $500, no matter what the issue seemed to be. Since that time I have done a lot more hands on work on my vehicles and have a better understanding of what is and is not involved in some aspects of their repair. I am now the type of person that a place like Master Tech doesn’t really want as a customer since I know what stuff SHOULD cost. I will be granting them their wish. Read on.
So their garage evidently was not busy on Monday as they said I could bring the truck right over. I got a call from them a couple hours later saying they found the problem, a bad upstream 02 sensor. They said to fix it would be $250 plus $90 for the “scan charge”. When I first heard the scan charge the bullshit meter went off the charts, thinking they were charging me $90 for reading the CEL code, something I can do myself with my cheap code reader or something a place like Autozone does for free.
I later got a clarification that they actually hook the truck computer up to a dealer style diagnostic computer that not only reads codes but also shows real time status of the various engine electronic components to assist in troubleshooting. Ok, well that’s nice but making that scan a separate $90 line item seems excessive.
So I authorize the inflated repair cost, at this point I just want the issue to go away.
I get a call back an hour or two later. There is still a problem, now they show the mass airflow sensor is ALSO bad. He throws out a quote of an additional $285 to replace the MAF. That is when I threw on the brakes.
I replaced the MAF myself maybe a couple years ago. The idea that it was bad again seemed improbable. I tried to logically talk through the problem with the guy, saying it didn’t make any sense to me that the sensor would work fine if I started the truck cold and then drove until the motor was hot but not if I simply started the truck when it was hot.
The guy was not able to logically offer anything besides this is what his computer is showing him. Of course the idea that both the O2 sensor and MAF would be bad at the same time was highly unlikely as well but when I mentioned that improbability I was once again only offered, “that is what the computer is saying”.
Ok fine, but now I moved on to what they wanted to charge me to replace the MAF. I told him I was going to check on the price of the part, $285 sounded outrageous. A quick check on Autozone revealed I could get a MAF for $79.99, I laughed out loud.
I called back the garage and told them of the price discrepancy, made more egregious by the fact I was quoting a RETAIL price, I am sure the garage pays significantly less than that. They said that if I wanted to provide them the part they would install it and just charge me labor. Ok great.
So I now borrow my bosses vehicle, go to Autozone and then drive to the garage to drop off the part. After verifying I got the right thing he said he would call me and let me know the result.
It was now getting late in the afternoon. I was getting nervous that I was going to be getting another call saying the problem still was not fixed after two overpriced sensor replacements. I called back asking for a status update. The garage said that he thought they had the problem fixed, they just needed to do a another test drive to verify it, great.
So I got dropped off at the garage after work and saw the truck was indeed done and parked out front. The total bill for the repair was just under $500. The one owner quickly added up the line items, I signed off and got the hell out of there without making an additional fuss as I should have. After getting frustrated all day I just wasn’t in the mood to bang my head against the wall again. However when I got home I took the time to analyze the bill line by line. It looked like this.
Engine scan – $90
Labor to replace O2 sensor – $90
Labor to replace MAF sensor – $117
O2 sensor – $159
Misc expenses – $12.50
The $90 to scan the engine (hook it up to their computer) still seemed ridiculously expensive. I am quite sure the problem could have been diagnosed with a normal engine code reader as well.
However two other line items REALLY annoyed me.
The $159 part charge for the O2 sensor was almost double what I saw the same part go for at Autozone. Again knowing the garage probably is paying wholesale for their parts means they are marking them up to the customer by almost 100%, that is just inexcusable to me.
Second, charging $117 labor to install the MAF sensor was a joke. Again my insight into the process since I did it once myself, meant I knew it took at most 15 minutes if you are going slow. The labor charge for the O2 sensor was actually less ($90) so that was probably even easier.
The bottom line was for the repair, that probably cost the garage maybe $75 in parts, I was charged $500. Sure every business needs to make money but this sort of price gouging is offensive. On top of the large amount of dollars that were sucked out of my pocket, the interior of my truck reeked of cigarettes. Evidently whomever was doing the test drives is a chain smoker whose clothes stink from cancer sticks. I drove with both windows all the way down, all the way home to try to air the Tacoma out.
I was annoyed enough to make a follow up call this morning to the garage about the bill. Once again there wasn’t a hint of compromise from the garage perspective on the labor since they charge book rate (although of course the customer never sees the book) for repairs instead of basing it on the actual time spent on the repair.
When I asked about the inflated parts pricing I was once again told they just charge whatever the “standard” price is. Lol, yea whatever dude.
Hell I have doubts that the O2 sensor was even bad at all.
This scenario is exactly why I tried to avoid going to a garage for the issue in the first place. I knew in all likelihood I would get overcharged for whatever services they provided. Trying to get a garage to change the price of a repair based on your understanding of the true cost/time of a repair is fruitless. They are far too accustomed to preying on the automotive ignorant, charging them inflated dollars to perform repairs.
My only real recourse is to speak with my wallet and not frequent Master Tech Imports in the future. Since I moved to Florida I have tried at least a half dozen different mechanics, trying to find one that was the right mix of fair pricing and competency. My search continues.