Screw the dealership, go straight to Ford. Ford won't like their service departments ripping people off that bad. THey want to make money not lose customers. The shop will have a book that tells you how many hours a repair should take (Even a quadriplegic could complete the repair with his teeth in this time). In most states, this is a maximum boundary for the cost of the repair. If they had to do other things to get the part off and replaced, it must be itemized on the bill showing time for each thing (i.e. dipping part to remove rust, welding, cutting, torching...) If it is not itemized and just has a part charge and then a labor charge for the entire repair, (such as
Bushings (2): $50
Align Vehicle (flat fee) $60
R&R bushings (8 Hours @ $70/hour) $560)
you could easily reclaim your money in small claims or just call the credit card company for fraudulant billing and the credit card company will take it extremely seriously. If you have more than just a few of these claims at your shop, the credit card company will revoke the shops right to accepting credit cards. If they itemized it out, they know the law and they just bent you over and stuck it in. So.......

If ALL ELSE FAILS, do what my grandfather does... He will actually sit around at whatever business screwed him and will explain to people why they shouldn't do business there, being very nice to the peope coming in. It only takes one or two lost customers before the business will give you what you are owed to get you the hell out of there. Make sure they at least have the courtesy to give you a reach around. My grandfather is a retired colonel from the military so no one really messes with him.

 

Recently I goofed and didn't check the wear on the brake pads and the metal brake pad backing scored the rotor (they needed to be replaced anyway). I took my Ranger to three different places. I explained to them exactly what I needed done...rotors and pads..nothing else. The estimates ranged from $480 to $650. Figure in the costs involved. $200 for a set of rotors and $50 for brake pads. (The average $100 fee for front brake service would be the cost of brake pads since the new rotors do not need to be turned and $80 to $100 in labour (in Sacramento, CA). Generally you would expect new pads and rotors to run a total of $300 to a high of $400. It occurred to me that since I neglected to check the brake pads they though I must be a moron and I wouldn't know any better if they "upsell" repairs. The detailed estimates included bogus charges such as $148 wheel bearing repacking fee (I'm not kidding!!) and $40 to $60 for a brake fluid flush. One place insisted that the calipers needed to be replaced because the heat from the bad rotor made it hot. I decided to do it myself for a total cost of $260.

I also called around about changing the tranny fluid and filter. I also wanted to have the extension housing seal replaced. I can't remember how many places I called, but all conversations basically ended after they insisted that 128K miles + leaking extension housing seal = I should buy a new tranny. The fact that the transmission functions without any problems was meaningless to them.

I quit working on my vehicles because I don't have to work on it on the street because I don't have a garage or driveway, and there is a total a$$ living down the street that loves to call the police if he sees someone working on their car for no other reason than there is a city ordinance against it. After having a few auto shops attempt to gouge me I am going to do the repairs myself, in the street and the neighbour will have to learn to cope with it. Actually, the police already told him to cope with it because they are tired of responding to harmless 'disturbances.'

 

Good story Fomhoire!

 

So far I have not heard anything from the dealer, and in the letter, I gave them until the end of the month and then I am going to call Ford and the Credit card company. Here is my exact bill:

A 2 wheel alignment: Total:
cpht $69.95
2 ADU $57.90

4000 Install camber bushings as old
ones were frozen, had to remove both
front spindle to install camber bushings $587.40

Customer pay shop charge for repair $30.00

Tax $41.75

For a grand total of $787

Thanks for the info, SMichaelG2, I might need it if I don't get any results.

 

This is a copy of a post I made to another thread:
I was reading a thread about professional thieves. Couldn’t help but think about my recent experience with the local Ford dealer. I have a ’96 Ranger with a 2.3L engine that suffered a broken timing belt. The Ford dealer quoted $960 to replace the timing belt. I ended up buying the belt at NAPA for $40 and replacing it myself. It took me one day to replace the belt. A couple of weeks latter I was visiting an independent mechanic and I was complaining about what seemed to be Ford’s excessive labor charge. The mechanic showed me in his flat rate manual that a mechanic is allowed three hours to replace a timing belt in a 2.3. The math is easy, Ford is charging $300 an hour for their labor. They are probably paying the mechanic about $20 per hour.

 

When I owned a 96 Chevy Caprice - the tuneup was $3500. Three thousand five hundred dollars. My mechanic showed me what's involed in a tuneup and explained the costs. First of all, most or all of the parts are dealer-only parts. The distributor alone (which you have to buy as one piece) is $900. Well, the labor is a good portion of the job. Everything on top of the motor has to come off. Belts, pulleys, etc to get the distributor off and to get the wires unrouted. Well, while your at it - since the labor is done - might as well replace that knock sensor and water pump (dealer only items again). That's another several hundred dollars because if you figure it.. if one of those goes, everything has to come off again and you have to pay for the labor twice. All said and done it was $3500. The car was totaled by some ditz on cellphone two weeks later. Ouch.

Have their been more expensive repair bills? Yes.. insurance covered hail damage to another car I had leased - $7500. I put a new motor in my truck, I put a new motor in an 88 caprice I had.. but none were as rediculous as the $3500 tuneup.

I love my truck.. certainly no $3500 tuneups!!