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Benfolio @ May 6th 2008 9:45AM
WOW these guys are idiots.
"Audis, for example, according to an Audi technician in Los Angeles, have electronic sensors on their brakes, so replacing their brake pads is more complicated and takes more time."
Um, nothing new there. Been a German standard for a decade or more.
"Wurster estimates that owners of these vehicles may pay $100 per hour for labor, while owners of normal cars may only pay $70."
$70??!?!?!?!?! Not at any dealership. Corner garage, yes.
And I think Mercedes, Audi, etc are WELL OVER $100 per hour. Here at our lowly Mazda dealer we are at $105.
"Most owners like to race their Vipers on tracks, and to help the vehicle better handle such an environment, Dodge added a front sporter that hangs low on the car and is easily damaged if it scrapes a cement parking-lot block. The cost to replace it is $1,800"
What's a sporter?? Why is this figured in? That's not a 'normal' repair. That's abuse. RETARDS!
Rick @ May 6th 2008 9:54AM
I think it's $75-$85 here in Orlando, so costs might fluctuate regionally ?
mikomi @ May 6th 2008 9:54AM
You should keep in mind that the general audience the article panders to are people who know very little about cars or ignorant people.
What they should have looked at is the cost of getting vehicles fixed after they get egged.
British_Rover @ May 6th 2008 9:55AM
Oh man I just read that part too man they are so dumb. You can still find some main stream full line brands with labor rates in the 60-70 dollar range but the norm is 90 dollars plus. In areas that have a lower standard of living 60-70 bucks wouldn't be unusual for a non-luxury brand but 100 dollars plus for a luxury brand is the norm now.
We are at 85-105 depending of the skill level of the job.
Mobius_1 @ May 6th 2008 10:13AM
@ mikomi
Forbes Auto, written by people with no knowledge of cars, for people with no knowledge of cars
And yeah, wtf is a "sporter"?
why not the LS2LS7? @ May 6th 2008 11:12AM
You can call damage like that abuse if you want. But on cars like the Viper or the C5 Vette, there is a little flap that hangs down that scrapes on even normal dips, forcing you to drive into and out of gas stations at a 45 degree angle like you have a slammed Civic. And on the Audi A6 (2000-2005), you may find the front of your car hooked on a parking stop or curb if you pull too far forward. If you don't notice and back up, it can pull the entire bumper cap off your car. Even if you do notice, figuring out how to unhook the car can be rather difficult if you don't have anything around to shove under the wheels.
Oh yeah, and on 2000-2002 models they didn't notice that when they made the bumper larger for the US regs, they changed the aerodynamics down at the headlight washers. If you use your headlight washers at highways speeds, the airflow is likely to rip the covers off. And they're of course body-colored so you have to then run back and try to find them or else good luck finding a matching one to replace it. Audi had a TSB (or at least replacement program) for this, after people on the internet figured out to just put a tie wrap around the attachment point.
Oh yeah, good old Audi. Between this and the $130/hr labor costs (and that was two years ago, I haven't taken my car to the dealer since), it's shocking I still own this car.