Thats my point an MD with 10 years of schooling and internship getting 156, to a car mechanic getting 150 is my point. Thanks for making it. Perhaps that 150 has the workship capital expense for equipment built in but still when you look at contract costs around such as accounting, finance, engineering they are all still lower than car workshops.
My doc is getting far more than 156 an hour. He gets 156 for 3 minutes/Level I. The shop gets 150 for an hour.
The doc runs 20 patients an hour through at a minimum and at the Level I rate thatās 3150 an hour. Factor in Level 2 and up and that figure rises even more.
I assure you the dealer expenses are considerably higher than you might think. If that dealer lowered the rate to 100 an hour they would be losing money and then what incentive would there be to even bring a car into the shop? None.
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The mechanic is not getting all of that 150.00 . That covers the mechanics time , the insurance a business must have , utilities for heat , cooling , water and sewer . You donāt work for free do you ?
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Pretty low, especially for California.
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What is low? Soon CA will have EV cars and what will workshops fix other than tires. As a EV venture guy said - in the next decade only tire shops will exist since there is nothing called maintenance repairs (engine, oil, brakes) etc.
Plenty of electro mechanical doo dads, Iād say.
Gasoline fueled vehicles are not going to disappear in 10 years . There are places in this US of A where an Electric Vehicle will just not be practical.
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+1
Additionally, anyone who thinks that EVs will never need brake pad replacement is delusional. While the brakes will undoubtedly last far longer than on an IC-powered vehicle, at some point(s) in the vehicleās service life, the brake pads will need to be replaced.
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And windshield wiper motors / linkages, power window motors / regulators, hvac fan motors (heck, drive motors too, I suppose, since fan motors pretty commonly fail, I suppose the drive motors will also occasionally), coolant leaks, battery replacement, probably an array of sensors that I know nothing about, electronic power steering partsā¦lots of electronic diagnostics as they ageā¦
Less maintenance and repairs overall, Iām sure, but some tend to think an EV is like a can opener where you just toss it and buy another and never have to replace anything. I doubt thatāll be the case considering the cost.
I just noticed 5 out of the first 6 topics arenāt engine type specific and would be EV problems as well. Power window, AC, suspension, etc 
Just curious why this is? does the torque of the motor slow the vehicle down more than an ICE vehicle?
Regenerative braking. I think the motors slow the vehicle some as they charge the battery. Iām not up on the specifics of how it works, similar to a generator, I guess? So youād use the actual brakes less.
Regenerative braking might be the wrong term. Donāt the motors āreverseā somewhat to slow the vehicle / charge the battery? I think I read that somewhere. I may be full of beans.
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No beans, youāre right. Full regen can almost eliminate the use of brakes in many EVs if driven to avoid the need for hard braking. The motor(s) turn into generators and partially recharge the battery.
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Of course we know most folks wonāt do that, though! Most people tend to hammer it between stoplightsā¦for whatever reason.
Regenerative braking is used by both EVs and hybrids to slow the car while also recharging the batteries. The brake pads are used, but not for gentle braking.
https://www.tesla.com/blog/magic-tesla-roadster-regenerative-braking
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Did you forget you posted this ā charges 130 - 150 for laborā, that is shop time, not actual labor charge, though the invoice lists it that way. That is very reasonable, for CA, I say low. Where I live pay scales are lower, but shop time is around $150/hr.
Do you really think shops will lower their shop time charges for service as more EVs come into use?
One of the episodes on the 70ās Bob Newhart TV show addressed this topic. A tv host asked Bob (a psychologist) what other professional charges $60 per hour [1970ās prices] but offers no guarantees. Bobās reply āwell, my plumberā ā¦ lol ā¦
The shop prices you are quoting OP seem consistent with what Iād expect for your car and your locale. That type of thinking isnāt going to get you anywhere, unless you want to do the diagnosis and repair yourself in your driveway. Better plan is to do everything you can to help the mechanic figure out what the problem is. Provide all the pertinent factual information and whatever clues you can to the shop in writing. Communicating with the shop clearly and concisely as possible is your best bet.
Your comment that auto repair shops may have a difficult time finding customers once most of the cars on the road are electric makes for an interesting discussion. However to keep us focussed on your current carās problems, suggest to post that as a separate topic , in the General Discussion category.
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In regard to my doc when it comes to that 3 minutes he spends with me; the bills always show 29 to 33 minutes spent and that has never happened Not once. No doubt this carries over to everyone.
That is no knock on my current PCP at all. He has helped me tremendously after approx. 20 others could not. Trust me on this, doctors make many mistakes when it comes to diagnoses or procedures but they seem to get a free pass for this.
And docs seem to be some of the worst (along with Air Force Captainsā¦) when it comes to complaining about auto repair billing and/or comprehension skills.
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+1
Several years ago, some organization did a survey of patients, and it found that the M.D. visits in the office averaged 8 minutes per patient. In some cases that might be adequate, but in other cases it is probably insufficient for an in-depth exam and consultation.
So, anyone who thinks that a doctor is putting only $150 per hour in his pocket is extremely naĆÆve:
The mechanic is NOT getting $150 an hour for labor, the dealership or independent shop is. The mechanic only gets a small percentage of that $150.
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I have an update. After keeping my car for 10 days and leaving me with a MB 350E brand new car rental the dealer service rep had this message for me this morning. āI had tried to clear it and drive it but light came back on, my foreman looked at is and said it definitely need EGR valve and this why the engine light is on. I just reset you estimate for this but it is a costly one also $1389.89 before discounts. Please let me know what you would like to do at this point.ā
This is for EGR valve and solenoid. This is labor plus parts No break down so far. Tell me if its reasonable.