November 18, 2009

Why Auto Repairs Are Expensive

A Cadillac I was driving had a warning light on the dash that said check water level. The water reservoir was full. We ran a computer scan and found out that the sensor in the bottom of the water reservoir was bad. The problem is that you cannot buy the sensor as a separate part, it comes with the reservoir. I have purchased similar sensors for $10-$20, the cost of the reservoir was almost $100.

It seems the manufacturers take a relatively inexpensive part that will fail often and combine it with a part that is expensive but rarely fails. This way they can sell more of the expensive parts.

5 comments:

aka Z said...

This is why I love old cars before all the computerization. They are a lot simpler to work on. It gets more and more difficult to do your own work as a "shadetree mechanic" as cars grow more and more complex. What you wrote about the Prius is a good example. Sure, you average in the low 40s, but you could buy a Geo Metro for an eighth the price and get nearly the mileage....

Japanese Used Vehicles said...

That's bad selling cars with defectives. If the salesperson did it in purpose for the sake of selling for sure they will lose prospect customers and also good customers.

auto finance said...

The cost of the car parts are expensive that's why you'll get to pay a lot of you repair your car.

Lance Sprewell said...

Actually, I am planning to buy a second hand car because I can't to buy a brand new car. would be okay if I am going to buy a Toyota corolla 1991 model?

Frank Sarwark said...

Toyota has done a great job building cars that last. Buying a 1991 model might be a problem. If this car was a person, it would be old enough to drink. If you have a lot of history on the car, what repairs have been made etc you might be ok, I would look for a newer one if possible, unless this one is really nice.