Book time vs. actual cost

[Michael Jez]

Book time is defined in many ways, but its a average time they came up with-
the SAE, that it takes a mechanic to do the perticular job. Yes some cars
come in rusted, some come in after MAJOR accidents and alot of the shit is
bent up. I got to put a motor in a 92 SE-R for a friend of mine and the
cross member bolts will not come out without breaking apart in the body, so
I got to cut the bolts out, drill holes in the body, weld in new nuts and
then I can put in the cross member. Now what if something like that happens
on a car ya work on ? Damn straight U get pissed off, most of the time ya
get lucky and make money on the job, BUT there are cases where a old car
comes in and all the bolts that bolt up to the body of the car WILL break
off. How many of U from the snow belt area with 91 classic where successfull
in removing the 10mm bolts that hold the front bottom splash shield to the
bottom of the radiator support ??? I don't think ANY bolt even budged- the
heads just broke off- THAT is my point. FYI 1000 bux for an engine swap is a
rip off- especially since its a day affair. I charge 250 for a clutch job-
Honda Civics, Accords, Prelude- as long as its not TYPE SH- then its 600
bux- WORST FWD tranny ever, all FWD Nissans, and Some toyotas. As far as
rebuilding the tranny- like 5th gear pop out I charge 350 for it that
includes refreshining of the case- its getting acid dipped for that NEW
look, new axle seals and U pay for the internal tranny parts. Engine swap on
a SE-R I charge 550 for nowa days. DET swap I charge 600 for it- there aint
much more other than the downpipe and the intercooler to hook up over a DE
!!!  Now I agree I didn't spend 250K dollars on school and will be paying
that shit off till I die, I spend ALOOT less than that- basically a price of
a new 93 SE-R back in 93. Now yes I act like a monkey, but there are a few
members on the SR20 forum, and couple here that seen my craftsmanship, my
engine swaps don't look like Billy Bobs Back Yard Garage where they fuck
every connector up and hook up fuel lines back wards etc. No, my work looks
like it left the factory- if not better. I take pride in the work I do, I do
not like doing the same thing 2x. Cause the 2x its free. Yes I do my shit
quick, and yes I've done more SE-R swaps in diff SE-Rs than just about
anyone here on the list, I know for sure Ive done more trannies than all of
ya put togheter here. FYI I do 5 trannies a day sometimes at work each pay
minimum of  6.5 hours- and thats warranty- I work 8 hours and go home... U
figure out how much I make a year and a week, and I don't make no 5 bux an
hour.  I don't wanna be no doctor, cause when that doctor rips me of while I
go in for a check up on something, I damn straight will charge him an arm
and a leg for his POS BMW, Porsche or whatever. I reather drive a Taurus
than some 540i BMW, its more reliable than a camry ! I do not know why
everyone gives domestics a such a bad rep, try working for BMW, Benz, Audi,
VW or Porsche and see what a pile of shit those cars are. U might have paid
100K bux for your car, not only will it break down more, but that 200K mile
Taurus driver will be able to afford fixing his car atleast when it breaks
down. People who buy expensive cars tend to be cheap ass bastards who think
that by buying some German POS they can get away from everything- reason I
don't work for those car companies anymore is cause everyonce in a while I
got a cocky ass customer who thought he knew more than Einstein did- but
about his car, and when I tell him his car is a POS- cause I can only take
sooo much braging about this damn POS, my boss gets fet up and tells me to
cool it, and I leave cause I don't like dealing with ass holes who think
that I owe them something for them buying this POS from us and now breaking
down. I respect everyone in here cause we are not a buncha snobs here, we
are regular hard working americans who just want to spice up their rides a
little bit, go on a BMW forum, or Benz forum and tell them U drive a Nissan,
shit U going to get flammed like there is nooo tomorrow. Till today I work
on Audis on the side- I rebuild engines for a side job, it pays good and I
can quit my daily job and make about the same $$$ in half the time. I charge
2500 bux for a V6 rebuild and install with removal of the old engine. Which
is half of what the dealer will charge- and thats including parts.
Mike Jez
Need your car fixed and live in Chicago, give me a haller.