If you had walked into one of the shops I managed with that box of parts you would have been thrown out. We had a strict rule that we would not install customer supplied parts.
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First of all, if you think this job is so easy, since you already bought the parts, why not DIY? Even though I have done major engine/mechanical work myself at home, suspension work is something that I’d rather pay someone else to do. The reason is because doing this type of work on a dirt surface with a floor jack and jack stands is too dangerous. (And yes, I have thick metal plates which I put under the jack stands to prevent them from sinking into the earth.) A professional mechanic with a proper lift can do the job faster and safer.
Second, since the shop which is willing to use your parts isn’t going to make any money on the parts, they still have to charge enough money to make a reasonable profit. Remember that it costs a lot of money to run a licensed business, and every job has to pay toward the business’s overhead. I am not a professional mechanic, I only work on my vehicles at home as a hobby, however I am a professional HVAC technician. The company I work for will happily install new parts or new equipment provided by a customer, however we are going to charge additional labor to cover our overhead costs.
Third, I am as cheap as the day is long, and I think the quoted price is reasonable. To put this into perspective, earlier this year, I had a professional mechanic replace all of the suspension components on my 2002 Daewoo Lanos. Due to the fact that their supplier could not obtain the necessary parts for this vehicle, I ordered all the parts online, several of which had to come from overseas. I paid about $1500, and I thought that was a reasonable cost. He did an excellent job, and the car drives and handles very well now. I also used this mechanic to rebuild the suspension on my 2000 Chevrolet Silverado, which was completely worn out, and that cost over $3000 with them supplying the parts, and I thought that was reasonable. The truck drives and handles very well now.
Fourth, I hope the parts you are supplying are decent quality (at least as good as OEM). I hope you’re not putting cheap no-name parts into your car, and planning to pawn this off on someone else, before the parts quickly fall apart.
That is your right, but it’s not so cut-and-dry. For a common vehicle, using commodity-type parts, maybe that attitude is reasonable if the customer is simply a cheapskate. For a rare or enthusiast-type vehicle, it may be difficult to obtain suitable parts, or the customer may want specific parts to be used…and they may be perfectly willing to pay for the privilege. Turning away that business is obviously your right, but also your loss.
It’s not my loss, I don’t want to deal with the fact that there is a very good chance you have the wrong or defective parts, and now my bay is tied up with a car I can’t move out of the way.
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a good shop knows which customers to turn away
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Think about what you’re saying. If I have 30 years of experience and all the tools I’ll ever need, I can probably do a job in 2 hours that might take an average guy 4 or 5. So I should charge less? I might as well just remain a youtube hack and make some real money.
If by scamming you mean making a profit, perhaps. But then again I go to work to make money, not make friends. I have plenty of friends, I wouldn’t say I have plenty of money…
Shops will quote high prices for work they don’t want to do. Hopefully the person walks away.