Jones Junction Kia Gives outrageous quotes on minor repairs Bel Air Maryland

No, I definately did not mis understand 580.00. Nor did I mis-understand the work that needed to be done. 

That is correct. I went to another mecanic who charged me 50.00 to replace the part. 580.00 is obscene no matter how you try to explain it. As this new mechanic said, at the most it's 30 min worth of labor. 

I talked to the general manager of the dealership what a nice guy he actually took my phone call no we get on the consumer advocate helping consumers and helping businesses who care.   The general manager called me back and we spoke for sometime and he expressed his concerns about your unhappiness he's also well tuned in to the dealership operations and customer relations.  

 People like him are extremely hard to find in the automotive industry because mini dealership general managers only care about the bottom-line and their CSI scores.   I'm sure that there is some kind of misunderstanding.

The first rule you need to know is that the Dealer Service is generally going to be the highest cost because they have high labor rates and a huge markup on parts.  Are there some dealers that are more fair than others..yes.  But just like everything else you need to shop around.  So that quote is actually probably on par with most other dealers.

Now, as for the markup.  The prices you quoted are prices YOU can get the part for, and if you are willing to do it yourself you can  save quite a bit of money.  But if you go to a mechanic they will buy the part(s) and then mark them up a percentage.  Depending on the mechanic it could be 2-3 times the cost of the part.  The advantage to this is that if soemthing goes wrong with the part the mechanic warranties it and will replace it for free under the warranty.

If you buy your own part and find someone to install it...they will charge you again to uninstall it, you to take the part back and then charge you again to install it.  

But if you need a mechanic to do it they will charge you labor as well.  Most have a minimum 1 hour charge, and depending on where you go you could pay $70-$150/hr, I've seen a few dealers in the $180-$200/hr labor rate.  But all of this is discloed in the estimate and you did exactly what you should have done if you think the cost is too high...leave.

Think of it this way.  You go and buy yourself a New York Steak you could buy it for under $10 with all of the sides.  If you are willing to cook it.  But if you go to a resturant that same $10 steak could cost  you $40-$50 at a higher end resturant or if you go to a 5-Star top rated resturant it could cost you $50-$75.