What do home mechanics charge per hour?

[CarLuver]

in Cali i would charge $100 an hour. if your work is good, honest and timely, you should have folks out the door. Finding a good mechanic is hard .

when i do some light handyman stuff for friends property i charge $80 an hour. they are happy to pay it . should charge more now that we have the highest gas in the nation

 

[Dave9]

I'm always afraid the kids are using city water to make the lemonade.

Hey now! I water the city drink one bit not effecteeed me!

 

[Hall]

I think charging a "job" price might be easier, i.e. oil change = $25, brake job (pads only) = $100/axle. Obviously the price of parts is on top of this.

If you want an hourly rate, check what independent shops charge and get an average, then charge 50% or 67% of that.

 

[Soft Cars]

What I do is agree on a price before I ever start the work. If it ends up taking me twice as long, that's on me.

 

[MalibuRam65]

I do work for friends & coworkers sometimes. Nothing extreme, just day jobs like brakes, oil changes, radiators etc. I charge $50-60 an hour. They usually say "that's it? You sure?" Not sure what a fair rate is. I want to give them a break but I also don't enjoy spending all Saturday greasy and sweaty. What do others charge? Shops in my area are all over $100 but even though I have all the tools, it's just my house... A miserable drum break job made me start thinking

Charge $150-200 a HR

 

[doitmyself]

When dealers and shops charge $120 - $150 per hour labor, the mechanic is not getting all of that. I don't know how much pro mechanics make working in a shop. I have a friend that is a MOPAR mechanic at a local dealer and he does work at home. On the rare occasions I use him, we agree on a price before hand. Sometimes he lets me buy the parts (always high quality), but if it is something like a timing belt, he (usually) insists on OEM parts and usually buys them himself at discount. He did my Caravan timing belt 13 years ago for about 60% of shop quotes. I guess about $50 +/- per hour paid in cash is fair. We are very open about pricing and I usually give him more than he suggests.

I'm a shadetree DIYer and I no longer do work for friends, and only rarely for my adult kids. It gets old, just like me.

 

[2strokeNorthstar]

When dealers and shops charge $120 - $150 per hour labor, the mechanic is not getting all of that. I don't know how much pro mechanics make working in a shop. I have a friend that is a MOPAR mechanic at a local dealer and he does work at home. On the rare occasions I use him, we agree on a price before hand. Sometimes he lets me buy the parts (always high quality), but if it is something like a timing belt, he (usually) insists on OEM parts and usually buys them himself at discount. He did my Caravan timing belt 13 years ago for about 60% of shop quotes. I guess about $50 +/- per hour paid in cash is fair. We are very open about pricing and I usually give him more than he suggests.

I'm a shadetree DIYer and I no longer do work for friends, and only rarely for my adult kids. It gets old, just like me.

Nice. I actually prefer the person buys the parts or I tell them what to order for me to pick up. I'm not running a business just getting some spare cash. I know where I work mechanics have left dealerships to be fleet mechanics and get around $35-$40hr salary with benefits. They said they may be making less but no worries about consistency.

 

[2strokeNorthstar]

Hey, I'm just going by

@2strokeNorthstar I think it's great you are helping friends and family out. I do simple stuff like oil services for family who can use the savings, but I definitely have limits on what I will do and which cars. Honda Toyota Nissan is about it. And the occasional BMW i8...

I do prefer older vehicles or what I am familiar with. I don't when consider getting deep into stuff I dont know about. I often get additional business repairing or servicing lawnmowers / small engine stuff. The "can you fix this?" They should teach carb cleaning in school.

 

[Chris142]

Per Hour?

Yes. Often more if I do a complete ac job. I'm still cheaper than the shops in town that mess up ac work.

 

[vavavroom]

I will assist friends and family for free if they ask me for help. I won't refuse a wagyu steak dinner. I don't work on the cars of acquaintances or strangers for free or for money.

 

[The Critic]

If you really insist on charging (which I advise against), I think a fair price would be your hourly wage at work, but billed at flat-rate warranty time.

 

[wlk]

$50-60/hr for a family and friends rate that seems fair. Have done it in the past for about that

 

[fisher83]

The guy that works on my stuff from time to time is pretty reasonable. He charged me $450 to put a new radiator in the Trailblazer. That included the radiator, coolant (17 qts), and labor. I'm assuming roughly half of that was labor and the rest parts and fluids. He also did a throttle body cleaning for me for $40 recently. I've done a fair bit of free work for friends and family but have decided not to work on their cars anymore.

 

[Dave_T]

To quote Scotty... to estimate a fair charge hourly you need to pay attention to how many shade trees a home mechanic is standing under, then price accordingly!

 

[Lubener]

Do you have a comercial insurance policy? What if their car catches fire and burns your house down? You homeowners policy will probably reject the claim. Or what if after a brake job a wheel falls off and the customer crashes. What will you do when they sue you for a million bucks?

Accept cash and deny everything...

 

[himemsys]

I do work for friends & coworkers sometimes. Nothing extreme, just day jobs like brakes, oil changes, radiators etc. I charge $50-60 an hour. They usually say "that's it? You sure?" Not sure what a fair rate is. I want to give them a break but I also don't enjoy spending all Saturday greasy and sweaty. What do others charge? Shops in my area are all over $100 but even though I have all the tools, it's just my house... A miserable drum break job made me start thinking

Keep in mind you don't have to pay employees, overhead on a building, and other fees which are built into the shop rate. Find out what shops in your area charge per hour and reduce it by what you'd consider a fair amount. Based on what what I quoted above, it sounds like you're already being pretty fair. I might go up to $65-75 per hour. Just my opinion.

 

[Trav]

If I do work I charge by the job.

 

[skyactiv]

How much per hour do you guys make at your day job?

 

[Slow Car Sport Mode]

I do work for friends & coworkers sometimes. Nothing extreme, just day jobs like brakes, oil changes, radiators etc. I charge $50-60 an hour. They usually say "that's it? You sure?" Not sure what a fair rate is. I want to give them a break but I also don't enjoy spending all Saturday greasy and sweaty. What do others charge? Shops in my area are all over $100 but even though I have all the tools, it's just my house... A miserable drum break job made me start thinking

Don't pay them in advance or they'll take your money and never be seen again like "Semper Fi Mechanic" in ________ Ohio (he may be other places.) I left a negative review and he may have done the FBM and deleted it, I don't know don't care, I did what I could they may just keep deleting so I left it twice I did what I could . Warning to all.. don't be gullible, like me.

If talking about reputable mechanics.. I believe they would charge something like what @Chris142 stated.

If you're talking about a known quantity ethical person that won't just say they can do anything and then want payment and disappear and not respond to phone calls, it's that simple.. I think the general public "expects" about half the rate @Chris142 said. Which means your post just about nailed it.

Depends on the job and the person, of course.

Watch this video if you work on other peoples crap at your house or as a mobile mechanic.

@skyactiv's post with a video Midway up Page 1, Post #9

His (not skyactiv's) entire channel is basically fabricated, he is lying. He is one of the three YouTubers I no longer deal with and do talk about... states he won the judgement "On Court on Saturday." I have dealings with him and he is a scammer. Brief spats of seeming to "get it together" but it is the same M.O. Please beware of mobile mechanics such as himself. There are too many good ones.

Such as Brian's Mobile Mechanic a.k.a. Roadside Rescue. ACTUAL content of ACTUAL working on cars. Not a scam/money grab, with no work and stories .

Here is a rags to riches guy with no scam.



Other good ones are out there.

 

[atikovi]

How much per hour do you guys make at your day job?

Sometimes it seems like $5.