Reasonable Labor Charge

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: ram_man
At 110 an hour they'd pay 1265 dollars. Charge them 400 and be done with it . I'd charge 400-500 for it but I wouldn't voluntarily work on a bmw either. Doesn't matter what a tech usually makes that's irrelevant . They would pay x amount to have it done at a shop charge 40%- 60% of that is fair. That's how techs make good money on the side . What I always do is look up the total amount of hours it'll take for the job and charge them 60 per hour. A little less if ots a car I like and can definitely beat the time on of its a car I think I'll break even I charge 60 if I think I may lose a little time on I may round up my estimate. And if the cars a beater and rusted up I charge more clean nicer car a little less. I certainly charge based on the aggravation of the vehicle.


I agree with this. Person getting the deal pays for parts and tools that you keep, and you charge a low labor rate because there is no associated overhead.

 

[Traction]

Are you working for cash, or reporting it as income???
I install tires privately, but what really kills the deal is, I pay over $2000 a year on insurance too. I do not charge enough, trying to be fair, but some months, I go backwards, and all my hard work ends up being a tax deduction, instead of income. Sometimes I wonder why I even work on other peoples cars. I like doing it, but sometimes whatever money I do make, I end up having to buy more tools too. After doing it for 14 years, I do have a lot of cool tools though, which are deductible.

 

[SeaJay]

I would not want my car fixed by someone who was not confident enough in his abilities to charge at least $50 per hour.

 

[Panzerman]

I use a local garage. He charges $85 a hour. I wish he would charge by how long the job actually takes though. He uses pro-rated hours system from manuals. I am fine with that, except when he has trouble he adds the hours, when it goes smooth, he never subtracts. He even stated on recently changing a oil pan gasket how fast it went. He thought it would take longer.

 

[IndyIan]

Originally Posted By: Panzerman
I use a local garage. He charges $85 a hour. I wish he would charge by how long the job actually takes though. He uses pro-rated hours system from manuals. I am fine with that, except when he has trouble he adds the hours, when it goes smooth, he never subtracts. He even stated on recently changing a oil pan gasket how fast it went. He thought it would take longer.

That's how the stealerships work too though. I wonder if there is some legal language somewhere that if a job is to be billed by time at a specific rate, its illegal to over state the actual time taken for a job?
I guess the shop could always include the "administration time" or something to claim their hours are correct.

 

[bdcardinal]

Originally Posted By: Mamala Bay
An ASE Tech $75 p/h if not $40 p/h.


Why does being ASE certified make any difference? All it means is you can pass a multiple choice test. I had mine and let it lapse because it was holding me back from jobs.

 

[Hootbro]

If you were just doing the work at your leisure to help a friend, I would just call it at $500 and be done with it.

 

[KrisZ]

A reasonable rate is one that the person performing the work can make a living doing it. As far as the actual amount, it will undoubtedly vary from one place to another.
"Side" type jobs by default should have a lower rate.

 

[crazyoildude]

If you and the owner are on the same page then it is already agreed. I find from years in the engine business most people that drive those cars are driving them to look like they are all cashed up but in reality they are working one or two low paying jobs and can't really afford upkeep on their vehicles.. Sometimes its all show i see it every day.

 

[Silverado12]

I usually work for food and beer. If I actually charged someone for my labor, it would be about 20 bucks an hour. Co-workers and friends get the free labor discount, but they gotta buy the beer.

 

[DoubleWasp]

Originally Posted By: crazyoildude
If you and the owner are on the same page then it is already agreed. I find from years in the engine business most people that drive those cars are driving them to look like they are all cashed up but in reality they are working one or two low paying jobs and can't really afford upkeep on their vehicles.. Sometimes its all show i see it every day.


Marine business has been pretty much the same for me. Makes me appreciate my commercial clients a lot more.