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Old 11-23-2018, 06:54 AM   #57
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Quote:
Originally Posted by zcaptain View Post
It was a first year service, inspection, plus chassis lube and filters.

waste disposal $91.82
shop supplies $19.95
Waste disposal and Shop Supplies! Rich. and we meekly pay it. What is next, pro-rated electric charge? Christmas party fee? Nothing legitimate here. These are plain and simply part of overhead. Fortunately I have never owned an engine on which I was not able to do these low level maintenance tasks. I am somewhat envious of those who can afford to be so free with their money. Sour grapes I suppose.
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Old 11-23-2018, 07:22 AM   #58
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6 gallons of Rotella oil from Walmart roughly $80-something, $35 Fleetguard filter, 30-45 minutes later I'm done. Less than $120 and I'm set.
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Old 11-23-2018, 09:55 AM   #59
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Mobile oil change guy is $200. Chassis lube and oil change filters etc. $400.
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Old 11-23-2018, 10:24 AM   #60
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service costs

I guess I will be q bit different on this, I dont think the overall fee is all that bad! Just parts alone is over $425 online. Good labor is expensive anywhere.

Many of the posters talking about cheaper, and do it yourself, have a 300-500K vehicle and they do the maintenance themselves??? I personally feel that if I had a 400K vehicle I sure as hell would not do the mtse myself!

I did a complete service on my 01 Diplomat in May of '18, and the cost for parts, air and oil filters, separators, oil, transmission filters and fluid was about $500 ordering from online places. I replaced EVERYTHING even though I have less than 40K miles on it. It took me about 7 hours total and in retrospect I would probably have been better off paying to have it done. It was a pain in the rear to get to some of that stuff, especially the belts (hanging upside down from the bedroom hatch) and all the under, and out, and back under work!

If you buy something that costs that much and dont maintain it you just whizz away the money. Yes, the 'disposal fee', unless it was somehow state mandated, was a total ripoff! 'Shop supplies' - you could have loaned him a roll of paper towels and some latex gloves. That was, and is, theft!

Some of the folks with new expensive rigs all want to save money but how did they get the money to buy that rig in the first place? Save their pennies, or charge $200 an hour for their services?

With the economy booming it is very difficult to hire anyone that is good and will work, that will not ask a premium for their labor!
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Old 11-23-2018, 12:40 PM   #61
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Over the last 8 years of RV driving, I have had the usual experiences getting maintenance done. Try to set up appointments, being bumped by truckers coming in, etc. But I always got the quote up front, never paid outrageous prices (a bit steep sometimes, but within reason).

After years of that, now, I have an RV Tech service come to my campsite, while my wife sits in air conditioned comfort, I watch a guy or two, change all the filters, fluids, lube the chassis, engine and generator, all done in an hour or less. I pay around the $300 point, test run the engine and generator before they leave, to recheck fluid levels.

The guys are usually ex-truck shop mechanics who now specialize in RV's, no griping or quibbling, they just get to work, and get done. They are happy to answer questions, and offer suggestions.

I used to do all my own lube jobs, but after 50 years of that, I am happy to observe.
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Old 11-23-2018, 01:29 PM   #62
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Never go to a Dealer. I know my father was one.
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Old 11-23-2018, 02:44 PM   #63
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jas415-1942 View Post
I guess I will be q bit different on this, I dont think the overall fee is all that bad! Just parts alone is over $425 online. Good labor is expensive anywhere.

Many of the posters talking about cheaper, and do it yourself, have a 300-500K vehicle and they do the maintenance themselves??? I personally feel that if I had a 400K vehicle I sure as hell would not do the mtse myself!

I did a complete service on my 01 Diplomat in May of '18, and the cost for parts, air and oil filters, separators, oil, transmission filters and fluid was about $500 ordering from online places. I replaced EVERYTHING even though I have less than 40K miles on it. It took me about 7 hours total and in retrospect I would probably have been better off paying to have it done. It was a pain in the rear to get to some of that stuff, especially the belts (hanging upside down from the bedroom hatch) and all the under, and out, and back under work!

If you buy something that costs that much and dont maintain it you just whizz away the money. Yes, the 'disposal fee', unless it was somehow state mandated, was a total ripoff! 'Shop supplies' - you could have loaned him a roll of paper towels and some latex gloves. That was, and is, theft!

Some of the folks with new expensive rigs all want to save money but how did they get the money to buy that rig in the first place? Save their pennies, or charge $200 an hour for their services?

With the economy booming it is very difficult to hire anyone that is good and will work, that will not ask a premium for their labor!
Did it ever occur to you that after spending $300 k on a motorhome there's nothing left over for oil changes? 😁😱😋
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Old 11-23-2018, 03:24 PM   #64
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Pass up tx

A few yr ago my check eng light came on. I know it was not anything bad. Went to my local cummings dealer. His quote to turn off the light was $250.00 + taxes. Whoooo! When i ask why so much. His reply we are bussy and if you dont like it leave.
And that is what i did. Now i bought a very good scan tool for $120.00 and turned off my own light.
We in west tx are in a oil glut. And every thing is exp. And labor is somting we canot control. But parts are some what the same all over so local labor is crazy. Adverage labor rv dealer $160.00 at a deisel servicing center $250. Per hr or more
this dont mean you have to put up with it. Either learn to do your own or look around and ask maby you will find a local mechanic willing to do some extra work for far lower than normal. On the weekend
and as far as if you got taken. Yes yes yes.i have a rdp cummings with a 7.5 onan. Total cost for oil and filters [ oil, and fuel but not air] is only $286.00 oh and one grease gun$6.90.
Before i go back to cummings or any other rv dealer i would look around for a fleet oil servicing dealer. They do a large volume and only oil changes.
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Old 11-23-2018, 03:52 PM   #65
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DON'T WANT TO WORK ON RV'S!!!!!!!!

Just did.

High prices say what they do not want to work on.

Same as the construction business. Have seen many times HIGH BIDS that said we do not want to do that work.

Go elsewhere.

Someone else will want to do your work at a reasonable price,
Regards,
JimB
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Old 11-23-2018, 04:18 PM   #66
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I agree that the charges on that invoice were very high but I will take exception to all the comments about disposal fees and shop supplies. There are very few states (I'm only aware of one remaining) for where you can sell your waste oil any more. Most shops have to pay a company to pick up their waste liquids - after they have been stored in environmentally safe containers. It's time consuming and takes up valuable space. And those shop supplies? Yes, they are a cost of doing business but would you rather see it as an extra amount on the invoice or pay a higher labor rate? The facility needs to cover those costs. This is not a high profit industry and, in most cases, it's the parts that makes the money - not the labor and ancillary charges. Those shop supplies do include a few rags and gloves but they also cover the mats the guys stand on, the rug you walked on when you came in the door, the service work order form, etc. It's a small charge to help offset the huge overhead involved in operating a garage and keeping your employees current on technology. Do some shops abuse it? Of course, just like some charge $250/hr. for labor. Shop your services (we do) and get a written estimate before anyone touches your unit - but expect to see shop supplies and disposal fees on your bill. They are there for a reason and it's rarely about making extra profit.
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Old 11-23-2018, 05:17 PM   #67
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Expensive oil change

Quote:
Originally Posted by JBDISCOVERY View Post
DON'T WANT TO WORK ON RV'S!!!!!!!!



Just did.



High prices say what they do not want to work on.



Same as the construction business. Have seen many times HIGH BIDS that said we do not want to do that work.



Go elsewhere.



Someone else will want to do your work at a reasonable price,

Regards,

JimB


You are correct in saying this...
unfortunately right now in our landscape install business we are practicing this philosophy... we call it the “ go away price”
It’s the economy being so boom right now..
I hate to even say that but what else can you do when you’re overwhelmed with work... And I am sure this tactic
Is in all trades right now...even changing oil in motor homes apparently...
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Old 11-23-2018, 06:16 PM   #68
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I've experienced issues with getting my coach worked on. Especially when living and working in small towns. And I can tell you it sucks when you know more about hydraulics and what not than the tech or owner coming out to look at it! Im lucky the son of an engineer/mechanic.

Which brings me to your point. I found that because I have a custom freightliner chassis with a Cummins engine that it's best (for me), to take it to a freightliner service center I know and trust. I took it to larger RV shops that claim they have a freightliner certified tech. Turned out they never lubed the front end right. A critical joint was dry and had been for sometime despite my recent PM.

I ask a lot of questions and often by breaking the rules by crossing lines and talking to the techs in person. Always kindly of course. The service managers are there for lip service. Nothing more. Believe me its not just my 2 cents talking, it's been experience and nightmares!

BTW: Freightliner of Tolleson, AZ runs about $150 an hour. And I think there might be a price increase coming. I think they are Called Velocity now.
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Old 11-24-2018, 08:38 AM   #69
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When Coach selection time came for us we did not have a chassis option, well actually we did but the Coach we really liked was 1,000 miles away and featured the Spartan brand. Being newbies and hearing that the Spartan was then a Newmar option and upgrade for their "high end" Coaches we went with it. And, so far it has been doing us well. I will say that knowing many Dealers are not fully authorized for chassis warranty and or service issues we had our chassis serviced while our Coach was in for warranty repairs at the FL dealer. Their charges and fees were ridiculous but we just thought that was just the price of life when owning a $400K Motor Coach? We live in Charlotte, NC, home of nearby Freightliner so shame on us for not supporting them. So, naturally after we got home I stopped by the Freightliner and Cummins Service Centers to hear how much they would have charged. What I found was that with the latest Service rates, fees and surcharges it was all pretty close. For those who are considering a Spartan, I would first personally call the Spartan headquarters in Michigan and speak with their National Service Adviser. I found that they are really not "Coach friendly" and you will find that their authorized Service Centers are more interested in working on Fire Trucks, Dump, Cement and Logging chassis instead of Motor Coaches owned by cranky slit-eyed and wary owners. Plus their annual inspection and service fees are even higher. There is only one Spartan option for us here near Charlotte so I will be looking for alternatives during our national travels. The Loves Speedco option sounds better for preventative maintenance but what about the Spartan warranty and other potential chassis issues. Extensive inspections and hidden Zerks are not something that I really want to study up on. We also really don't want to plan our trips through Michigan. And by the way, I am pretty handy and could probably do most of this myself...but why? We are trying to enjoy this new lifestyle, are willing to pay fair $$$ for some of the heavy lifting. Like most I and am also busy fixing and servicing everything else on the Coach including servicing the 7K Generator for around $45.00! Anyone else also service all of their batteries? Talk about time consuming...
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Old 11-24-2018, 10:31 AM   #70
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Expensive oil change

X2 on Speedco! It’s like Walmart for truckers. [emoji106][emoji122][emoji2]
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