Actual Dealer Cost to do a Carb Clean -not what they pass on

[Anonymous]

in the ongoing saga of getting my bike ready to be picked up their going to do a carb clean but are humming and hawing because they say its $200 bucks worth of work and they don't have much profit in the bike....seems to me that in the numbers i've seen floating around here $200 wasn't even come close to being mentioned....
so as i may have to debate this with the dealership whats the "real" price in your opinions ???

i suggested i'd pay for the parts if they eat the labor....so far he thinks that won't be neccessary and that he can force the work through...

[KEITH KRAUSE]

Average labor rates in California are about $60/hr. Most shops SHOULD take about 1 1/2 to 2 hours to remove and re-install carbs and synch'? In between, the actual time needed to clean the carbs would depend on how dirty they are. Also, it would depend on the # of carbs. To do a COMPLETE job, you have to remove the tops and pull out the slides or inspect diaphragms, the bowls need removing, the jets and any mixture screws need removing, then you clean and blow out everything...
It takes awhile. Some shops are faster than others.

[Anonymous]

Most places.

Most places I asked about carb cleaning wont touch them for less than $300.00. DO IT YOURSELF! Some one is selling all kinds of carb rebuild kits on E-bay. At 4 kits for $66.00 I'm thinking of picking them up just to have on hand later.

[focus frenzy]

it has averaged me, 2/ 2-1/2 hours to remove, disasemble, clean, re-assemble, and re-install my carbs, I typicaly will use 2 cans of berrymans B-12 carb cleaner (good stuff) @ around $3.50 a can.
I have done a set for a friend, that where gunked up real bad and it took 6 hours of work to get them good and clean.

the cost to a dealer, for cleaning a set of carbs that are not real bad, just need a good going over and blowing out, factoring in their labor cost at $20 a hour tops, may cost them $60, tops, without parts, cleaner included.

[Anonymous]

There is always a difference as to what the cost to the dealer is and what your cost is going to be. That is what is called profit. $200 for cleaning your carbs is not unreasonable considering that most dealers charge $60 or so per hour for labor.

Do the job yourself and pocket the money or pay to have it done. It's your choice.

[Anonymous]

Decisions, Decisions

[Anonymous]

$200.00 for 4 carbs doesn't seem too unreasonable, considering that I charge close to that for one carb on a car engine, (dealership, also). No matter who you are, or where you are, we all need to make money.

[satchmo]

it has averaged me, 2/ 2-1/2 hours to remove, disasemble, clean, re-assemble, and re-install my carbs

Wow. That's crazy stuff. Maybe it's just the 550, but it takes me 2.5 hours just to get the damn things off and another 2.5 to get them back on

It might be cheaper for me to drive down to texas and have you do them Leon

Thankfully they don't need to be done right now (hopefully)

Satch

[earlfor]

Boy Leon, you nailed that one. :-) :-) I just added up the various steps and I come up with the same time.

Earl

[quote="focus frenzy"
]it has averaged me, 2/ 2-1/2 hours to remove, disasemble, clean, re-assemble, and re-install my carbs,

[Anonymous]

thanks for the info.....

to clarify i paid $100 extra to get various work on the bike to get it running smoothly......it turns out that one of the things the bike needed was a carb clean....to me a dealership should have thought about all the potential needs before taking my money.....and whilst $200 is maybe a good price for a customer i don't belive it truly "costs" the dealer that much to do the work. anyway if they won't do it i'll do the work myself vs paying $200 (i'll also be telling the dealership exactly what i think of their professionalism but thats another discussion)

[Anonymous]

and whilst $200 is maybe a good price for a customer i don't belive it truly "costs" the dealer that much to do the work

Phil, Do you think the dealer should do the work for you at his cost?

If so, do you have a 'special' relationship with this dealer - brother-in-law, etc?

I've always had the understanding that if you take something to the dealer, he will charge you more than it costs him. After all, he isn't doing this for the 'fun' of it.

[Anonymous]

I think in Phils case, it's a bike he purchased from the dealer. Depending on how the bike was presented at the sale would determine how far to go with it. If the bike was offered as a great runner, ready to go from one end of the country and back in a day, I'd expect the dealer to take care of any issues that it had before it's put on the floor or out in the lot for sale.
If, on the other hand, it was sitting in the corner, waiting to go to auction, and was sold 'as-is, where-is', I'd expect to take the lumps that come with it.
If the dealer is willing to work with you, and is giving you breaks, it's not bad, if it was offered in the second example. If it was supposed to be a good runner when you purchased it, I would expect the dealer to absorb those costs, otherwise he shouldn't have sold it like that.

[Anonymous]

exactly....and when i bought it i negotiated the work to be done as part of the sale..

[Anonymous]

Jeckler, good explanation. You obviously know more about the situation with Phil's bike than I do. In any event - good luck.

[Anonymous]

It's not that I know more about it, I just remember him saying he had it at the dealer where he bought it (fork seal and a bolt I think).

Hey Phil, why do the carbs need to be cleaned anyway?
When was it found that they needed cleaning? Before or after you settled on $100?