Spark Plug and Ignition Coil Repair Ripped Off?

Maintenance/Repairs
1

Hi,

I looked online for reviews and went to what seemed like a trustworthy place, although there weren’t many reviews. Anyway my engine light went on 2 days ago and I took it to autozone where they ran diagnostics and the code P0303 popped up. I went in the morning and dropped off my BMW at this shop and told them the issue and gave them everything autozone told me. Anyway midday came and I hadn’t heard anything so I called and they said they hadn’t gotten to my car yet but would call me soon. I never received a call and when I stopped in the shop on my way home the car was done, but I had never received a call stating the price at which it would be.

I got charged for 6 BGK spark plugs that on amazon can be bought for under $50- $110
An Ignition coil (not sure where to find on amazon)- $70
Shop supplies- $30

Additionally I got charged $160 for labor which almost all the guy said was based on the diagnostic check which is $120 according to him. I asked why I had to pay for a diagnostic and he said they had to check everything and the code at autozone could have been wrong or it could have been any of the issues listed such as a possible vaccum leak. He also claimed he never charged me to the spark plug labor because he didn’t call me on the phone to tell me the price.

Hazardous Matteruas- $10
Tax- $10

For a grand total of $390

My question to you- how much did I get ripped off and should I go back there and say anything. I think that it is ridiculous for someone to straight up work on your car and not tell you how much the parts are before you install them. Additionally should I be mad that they charged me $120 for a diagnostic? What exactly would be that expensive when the autozone reading was spot on.

Additionally if I were to go back what would you do in my situation?

1 more thought- he said an oil change is $120 (isn’t this outrageous)?

2

“Additionally should I be mad that they charged me $120 for a diagnostic? What exactly would be that expensive when the autozone reading was spot on.”

Think about this…Why should a mechanic trust what was found by the essentially untrained guy at Autozone? If you went to an MD with a diagnosis that had been provided by a different MD, I highly doubt that MD #2 would accept the prior diagnosis w/o doing some testing of his own.

Yes, that diagnostic charge was a bit pricey, but–then again–everything connected with BMW maintenance tends to be pricey.

As to the (allegedly) $120 oil change, I think that it behooves you to find out exactly what else might be included in that service–in addition to changing the oil and the oil filter. I suspect that there is a lot more that is included for that price.

3

BMW n00b,
what business are YOU in ?
If you charged me your usual fee and I complained that I was …’‘ripped off’’…? ?
Then I dare so spout this ‘‘on line’’ schpeil to you… ? ?
think about it.

Different businesses have different cost and expense factors and YOU would use yours to determine your pricing structure…right ?
Or matbe you work for a business that just pays you a wage , but how is it that they make their profit to pay you that ?

You can not retort about the online price…You did NOT buy any plugs on line. You bought them from a shop , who bought them from a parts supplier, who bought them from a jobber, etc, etc…called the supply chain. ( one of the embarassing reasons Ford diesel parts are so high at the dealer )

Many, many diagnostic codes are simply step ONE !
Then the complete picture must be proven with the shop’s machines that they know and can work through their diagnostic chain.
Many shops also charge a base minimum of an hour of shop time. I wonder if the 120 is that ?

4

I don’t see that you got ripped off in any way whatsoever.

You’re sadly uniformed if you think that a shop is supposed to work off of a trouble code provided by AutoZone; or anyone else for that matter. AutoZone does NOT diagnose a problem; they only provide a DTC which points someone in a general direction.

The same goes for your price shopping on parts which could be had for less on Amazon.

As to the 120 dollar oil change, break that down into pieces and odds are you will find that it’s right. You have an option here; go to Jiffy Lube. They operate on a different business model.
Another option is get an Auto Repair Made Easy book and learn to DIY.

Walk into your family doctor and need him that you need a certain medical procedure because another doc said so or that you read it on WebMD.

Tell your doc you that you can find certain medications and medical devices on Amazone.
See how well this all goes over with him or her…

Sorry if I come across as a bit crass but you’re ripping a shop because you want them to perform services for slave wages.

5

Another thing about spark plugs.
There are multiple choices of NGK plugs the all fit your car. Copper, platinum, double platinum, iriduim. All of which are different prices . Did you compare the exact same ?
Plus…
This is an instance where you should have an established regular shop for all your automotive needs. Then maybe you can get deals and talk to them about these exact circumstances.
You had the option of telling them to call you first with an estimate…do no work , estimate first.

6

Yes Ken,

I compared the exact same ones off the receipt. And what auto shop goes ahead and works on the repair without contacting the buyer first with a price. Seems a bit sneaky to me as I have never ever said just go ahead an do whatever the car needs. I have always heard an estimate first.

I understand that you need to find a regular shop, however, when you have just moved to a city you don’t have that shop lined up right away. To me the biggest issue is the fact that this shop never called me to state the price. I would have said **** no and called another shop.

7

You didn’t get ripped off. The bmw dealer I go to charges 300.00 just for plugs. No bmw dealer is going to take auto zones word for what your car needs. My Indy charges 120.00 for an oil change on my sister in laws 535 and 112.00 for my 328. When my free maintainence is up I’ll take my car to the dealer for an oil change and they charge 79.00.

It’s a BMW get used to the higher prices.

8

You still owe these guys a box of doughnuts. Honest, fair shops deserve that.
No, you did not get ripped off. You got an honest job at a fair price.

Do not make the mistake of comparing the price the shop charged for parts with what you found on Amazon. The shop deserves a fair markup for getting the correct parts and installing them correctly… and then standing behind the work. You won’t get that on Amazon.

9

BMW n00b:
It’s understandable that you’re upset over the shop’s failure to give you a phone call. But it’s important to separate that anger from the actual work they performed.

I agree with all the previous replies. Based on what you wrote, you got a very fair deal.

10

I worked in a high tech electronics factory for over 30 years. Though it wasn’t my title as such, my function much of the time was senior diagnostician. Whenever possible, if I know what the problem with my car is, I tell the writer what I want done, with no symptom. I, too, resist paying someone over $100 to ‘diagnose’ a car I have already diagnosed.

They ask me to sign the waiver and I do, happily. Their ego might not be stroked by charging for a manly diagnosis but they do get their labor for replacing the parts.

In my factory, many are called to be diagnosticians, but few are chosen. About half of the technicians would swap modules (we kept spare modules on all serious projects) to isolate the problem. Then, first inspect the module with a magnifier, hoping to blunder into the problem.

Half of the rest were somewhat better, and half again much better, until you got a few super-techs. I was mostly in the super-tech group, but even then was down the list of super-techs, as small as the list was.

Ego is a big issue on diagnostics. The worse diagnostician a tech is, the more time he can and will waste trying to find a problem with no clue as to what he is doing.

So, when I got an intermittent evap failure on my 2002 Sienna some years ago, it never occurred to me to take it to a mechanic and pay several hundred dollars for a NO TROUBLE FOUND report. Intermittents will bankrupt you quickly.

I kept watching it, and at times it would go weeks without a failure. Finally, on Sienna Chat a man reported he had two Siennas and one got the same exact problem. He swapped parts until the problem moved, and found there was an intermittent self-actuated valve on the charcoal canister assembly.

I took it to the dealer and simply said I wanted the canister assembly replaced. They had me sign a waiver and I did and after all these years it has not failed again.

I realized with extreme luck a really competent mechanic might have known what the problem was. But, the odds are greater I would burn up lots of money on NtF reports by whichever young guy was ready for the next job.

Interestingly, at that time one of the men here commented if someone brought in a car and told him which part to replace, he would hand him his tool box and tell him to do it himself. No one with that attitude is in the top class of diagnosticians.

IMO, if OK had been the mechanic, he would have replaced the canister, then come out to talk to me to ask what made me think it was the canister. And, when he found out I had worked for decades as a senior diagnostician and my reason for simply paying to have the part replaced, would have understood my viewpoint. OK also knows very well not all mechanics are good diagnosticians as he is. Nor does he suffer from the ego problem.

Just for the record, I take the same approach to doctors. At least half the time in my entire life when I went to a doctor for something, they had no clue at all. After learning diagnostics, I went to the State U. and bought medical books. As a result, at age 73, I have used Medicare for exactly one illness in 8 years. That was a parasite infection, like giardia. Now I know the symptoms, that will not happen again.

Last week i went to a local lab and requested a blood test. My triglycerides were 55. BP varies but this morning was 120/72. Average for my age in the US is 156/?

11

I do agree with you that perhaps the shop should have called you first before touching a wrench to your car, but what’s done is done. As some have noted, it doesn’t seem the prices you paid are particularly outrageous. But, you’re obviously convinced you’ve been ripped off, and there’s nothing we’ll be able to say otherwise, so let’s move on from that.

I think that to avoid this happening to you again in the future, you should buy yourself a service manual for you car, and learn to do these service items yourself. That way, you can buy the parts off of Amazon, or wherever. Also remember that you own a BMW, and as a friend of mine learned when he bought an Audi, parts and labor for these cars are NOT cheap, and never will be, no matter how old it is.

Look at the Mechanics’s Files here on this site to find a reliable garage near you and develop a relationship with them. And be certain it says on future work orders that you’re to be called before any work is done.

12

You had work done on a BMW for less than $1,000 ?? Consider your self lucky. Follow mountainbikes suggestion and take them some donuts. Yes they should have called you, but also consider their normal clients are used to paying big $$$ for repairs. You bought a high end expensive car that is expensive to repair. If you do not want to play in that sandbox get a Toyota or Honda

13

The only thing the shop did wrong was to not call you, but in their defence this is such small peanuts for a BMW repair they may have thought they didn’t need to.Also, that trouble code doesn’t say replace plugs and coil, it just says cylinder 3 misfire.

14

P0303 BMW - Misfire Cylinder 3

PDF Share Code 0 P0303 BMW Comments | Add Comment
Possible causes

  • Faulty spark plug 3
  • Clogged or faulty fuel injector 3
  • Faulty ignition coil 3
  • Fuel injector 3 harness is open or shorted
  • Fuel injector 3 circuit poor electrical connection
  • Ignition coil 3 harness is open or shorted
  • Ignition coil 3 circuit poor electrical connection
  • Insufficient cylinder 3 compression
  • Incorrect fuel pressure
  • Intake air leak
    What does this mean? What does this mean?
15

My opinions as a mechanic:

Anyway my engine light went on 2 days ago and I took it to autozone where they ran diagnostics and the code P0303 popped up. I went in the morning and dropped off my BMW at this shop and told them the issue and gave them everything autozone told me.

I would have thrown away anything handed to me from Autozone. They do not do diagnosis, they read fault codes, and come up with a list of possible and most popular repairs. Where does that list come from? From actual shops and mechanics that have seen these faults. Autozone is just going for a free ride on the backs of those that have done the work.

I never received a call and when I stopped in the shop on my way home the car was done, but I had never received a call stating the price at which it would be.

Completely inexcusable. True, I have customers for whom I am free to run up a thousand dollar bill and they’ll do nothing but thank me. But for the other 99%, and doubly so for customers without an established relationship, a price for initial check-out/troubleshooting is agreed upon, and then further repairs are authorized in person, phone, text, or email. It’s your car and your money, and nothing gets done without your OK.

I got charged for 6 BGK spark plugs that on amazon can be bought for under $50- $110
An Ignition coil (not sure where to find on amazon)- $70
Shop supplies- $30

Additionally I got charged $160 for labor which almost all the guy said was based on the diagnostic check which is $120 according to him.

Prices sound quite reasonable. Not too long ago I replaced a coil and a spark plug for a late model BMW. List price for the spark plug was close to $30. Who cares what Amazon has them for? Amazon isn’t the one fixing the car. What are Amazon’s labor rates? Where is the closest Amazon to you and can they get the car in today?

Labor rates vary widely from place to place. Autozone uses a code reader. I imagine the shop uses an actual scan tool and perhaps a labscope to do testing. I can think of half a dozen things that cause a misfire code. An hour charge for this kind of work is fairly standard. And at $100/hour it adds up fast.

I asked why I had to pay for a diagnostic and he said they had to check everything and the code at autozone could have been wrong or it could have been any of the issues listed such as a possible vaccum leak.

See my above comments.

My question to you- how much did I get ripped off

As far as the prices go, not at all. The same work would have cost just about the same here. A little more actually.

1 more thought- he said an oil change is $120 (isn’t this outrageous)?

Without knowing your year, make, model, can’t say for sure. But figure $20 for a factory equivalent oil filter element, 8 quarts of Euro spec BMW approved synthetic oil at about $10/quart, and you’re close.

16

The OP wasn’t ripped off. The AutoZone code readers are fine, but BMW shops have more sophisticated readers that are specific to the brand and can get more information.

Shops do mark up there prices on parts. The labor charges seem reasonable for a luxury car brand.

To save money the OP could buy the parts and install them as a DIY job. Likely one coil was bad and perhaps a worn plug took out the coil. Replacing the other 5 plugs was an effort to save the OP more trips back to the shop in the future.

17

My guess is that if the OP could do this him/herself, we never would have gotten the post. He/she would have done the job or would understand that it always requires more work than is obvious… and diagnosing, verifying, changing, and verifying that the problem is solved takes time and knowledge.

Even changing a coil, once the plastic shroud has been removed and access acquired, on my car requires unbolting the coil, unsecuring some wire protection, and knowing to push the connector in before pressing the little plastic lever to unsecure the clip before pulling it out requires knowledge. If you don’t do that right, you won’t be able to get the plug out and you’ll get very frustrated… and probably break something.

18

I’m going to play Devil’s Advocate for a moment.
The job of the clerks at AutoZone is to provide a DTC to the customer; nothing more. Granted, a clerk may get carried away now and then and portray themselves as an ace wrench and diagnostician but the majority (around here anyway) do not.
The fact the clerk tells the customer there’s a MAF code does not mean the clerk is saying that the MAF is the problem. Customers may simply assume they’re being given a full diagnosis.

As to the shop not calling the customer, there could be some details on that also which may skew things. The car was dropped off with some AutoZone “diagnostics”.
Dropped off with instructions to do what? Verify AZ and call the customer? Go ahead with repairs per the AZ “diagnosis”?

What would I have done if I were behind the counter? I would have headed the AZ BS off right from the start by stating that any AZ “diagnosis” is not going to even be considered during any repairs.
As to Amazonian parts, that’s also a no way in hxxx issue.

19

One thing hasn’t been covered in the responses so far - did the repair (really, just maintenance) WORK? Is the light off? Is the car running properly?

20

@irlandes

In my opinion, you are VERY jaded, at least how you think about the automotive profession

To be more blunt, you seem to have a very negative opinion about the diagnostic capabilities of mechanics, in general

I find it extremely disappointing that you believe that only a very competent mechanic would have known how to fix your evap problem . . . and only if that very competent mechanic was also exceedingly lucky

In my opinion, even a mechanic without decades of experience could have solved your problem, if he uses common sense, and is systematic in his diagnosis

Check the basics . . . power, ground, fuses, good connection, etc.
Check fault codes, current, history, pending, etc.
Check for technical service bulletins
Read and familiarize yourself with the parameters required to set the code
Test according to the factory service procedure

An experienced guy might know enough to skip a few steps

The TSB part brings up an interesting point. Even if you aren’t familiar with a system, or a particular car . . . because it’s a new model, or it’s the first time such a car showed up in your shop . . . you have to have brains enough to help yourself, so to speak. That means you have to know how to find information which will help you

Of course, there’s a lot of bad information out there, and it’s often sadly found in car chat rooms. These are usually the guys that throw 4 O2 sensors at a car, if it has lean codes.

There’s also a lot of online trade magazines aimed at pros. And they often contain case studies, which sometimes pertain to the car you’re working on. I myself have found some good stuff there.

I’m man enough to admit I don’t have all the answers, and that I sometimes go looking for them.

Anybody that claims to have all the answers is a lying POS and/or a sleazy televangelist

:tongue: