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Labor Costs

By GarveyTheGOAT,
in DRZ400/E/S/SM

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GarveyTheGOAT

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I went to my dealerships service department I have a strong feeling that they are routing me with their labor costs and it makes me sick. Here are the quotes they gave me.

 

 

$200 - to clean out my carburetor on a brand new bike.

 

$500 - to replace plastics and fit a new headlight. (I know this is sketchy because I see ppl swap there plastics on YouTube in an hour or less. Now I don't know how long it takes to fight, mount, & wire my cyclops headlight but I'm pretty sure that won't take another 4 hrs.

 

 

What is the proper amount of time it might take to do this job in hours?

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mistermotard

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I went to my dealerships service department I have a strong feeling that they are routing me with their labor costs and it makes me sick. Here are the quotes they gave me.
 
 
$200 - to clean out my carburetor on a brand new bike.
 
$500 - to replace plastics and fit a new headlight. (I know this is sketchy because I see ppl swap there plastics on YouTube in an hour or less. Now I don't know how long it takes to fight, mount, & wire my cyclops headlight but I'm pretty sure that won't take another 4 hrs.
 
 
What is the proper amount of time it might take to do this job in hours?

Do it all yourself! There has to be videos on youtube. It's not hard at all. Trust me!
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mistermotard

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I went to my dealerships service department I have a strong feeling that they are routing me with their labor costs and it makes me sick. Here are the quotes they gave me.
 
 
$200 - to clean out my carburetor on a brand new bike.
 
$500 - to replace plastics and fit a new headlight. (I know this is sketchy because I see ppl swap there plastics on YouTube in an hour or less. Now I don't know how long it takes to fight, mount, & wire my cyclops headlight but I'm pretty sure that won't take another 4 hrs.
 
 
What is the proper amount of time it might take to do this job in hours?

Dealerships are the worst... I'm telling you man you can do all of this on your own. The carb thing might be a little difficult but there has to be a video of your model carb getting cleaned/rebuilt which will make it sooo easy for you. Take the extra money you saved and buy something else for the bike(that you will install)
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Hans Schmid

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Are you sure the two aren't mixed up? 

The carb work sounds like a hellava deal! Considering all the work you have to do just to get the carb out including removal of seat, tank, plastics, subframe (unless you rotate it up), electronics and cables. Than you have to disassemble it, clean it and than reinstall it again... $200 is a bargain... 

$500 for a plastic swap seems a bit steep (like $3-350 too steep). It's not just putting 'on' new plastics, you have to take the old stuff off too. But 1-1.5hrs labour in terms of dealer labour doesn't seem out of line... But you mentioned the headlight so yes, it's could be a simple job it could be a mess. 

Paying $500 doesn't seem too far out of line but paying $700 does. For me, paying any money to a dealer is just crazy... Lol

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ohiodrz400sm

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Motorcycles and dirt bikes in particular, require maintenance and adjustments far more frequently then an automobile.

 

You will spend a small fortune if you have to take the bike to the dealer to do every little thing.

 

Don't take this wrong but the tasks you're talking about are things I figured out on my own when I was a young teenager.

 

My advice is to invest in a factory service manual and a good mechanics socket set, wrenches, hex keys, screw drivers, ect. and some torque wrenches.

 

Sent from my XT1650 using ThumperTalk mobile app

 

 

 

 

 

 

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ohiodrz400sm

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To remove the stock headlight you have to remove the forks. Then there is a big mess of wires hidden behind the light that must be dealt with. The head light is by far the bigger job ,even with a plug and play light.

 

Unless you only ride during the day or in the city, I wouldn't get a Cyclops.

 

Sent from my XT1650 using ThumperTalk mobile app

 

 

 

 

 

 

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EmpireofDerp

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Dealerships are the worst... I'm telling you man you can do all of this on your own. The carb thing might be a little difficult but there has to be a video of your model carb getting cleaned/rebuilt which will make it sooo easy for you. Take the extra money you saved and buy something else for the bike(that you will install)

He might be an apartment dweller with no tools or workspace...... or friends with tools and a workspace lol. Dude seriously, ya gotta work on your own dirt bike.

Sent from my SM-G935V using ThumperTalk mobile app

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EmpireofDerp

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To remove the stock headlight you have to remove the forks. Then there is a big mess of wires hidden behind the light that must be dealt with. The head light is by far the bigger job ,even with a plug and play light.
 
Unless you only ride during the day or in the city, I wouldn't get a Cyclops.
 
Sent from my XT1650 using ThumperTalk mobile app
 
 
 
 
 
 

I spent over an hour yesterday rewiring all the dead lighting on my brother's drz, was super fun! The older I get the more I like working on the bikes almost as much add riding them.

Sent from my SM-G935V using ThumperTalk mobile app

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usedtobefast

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So why does a new bike need the carb cleaned?

As for the estimate, you probably aren't going to convince them it is fewer hours than they estimated.  So your could try another shop. You could have this shop do less work (like if you ask them for a quote on plastic swap but not the headlight (as that would be the slightly trickier one).  But your aren't going to get them to turn a ridiculously high quote into a reasonable one.

The absolute best option is to do it yourself.  Some people assume a shop mechanic is well trained and will do a very professional job.  Is the hamburger cook at McDonalds a great cook?  I'd say 5% of mechanics are great.  And maybe 30% are a bit scary.

If you do it yourself you will get to know your bike, so in the future when the low beam light stops working you'll know more about the wiring, is it the bulb, wiring, switch, etc.  

Also, shops can't do a through job, they need to bang stuff out and move to the next bike.  For example, I installed Tubliss on some wheels that were about 5 years old.  I very carefully cleaned the inside of the rims, sanded down any rough spots, took probably 1hr or more per wheel just on cleaning them.  Then carefully installed the Tubliss system reading all the steps over a few times in advance.  No shop would have done that.  They would do a 2 minute wipe of the rim and go.  

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mistermotard

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He might be an apartment dweller with no tools or workspace...... or friends with tools and a workspace lol. Dude seriously, ya gotta work on your own dirt bike.

Sent from my SM-G935V using ThumperTalk mobile app

He could go buy a hydraulic jack and all the tools he will need for the bike and still have a good bit of cash left over in his pocket for a service manual and whatever else he wants to buy. Do the work in a parking lot if you have too it sucks but it works... I'm by far no motorcycle mechanic but I self taught myself everything I know(with a little help from the internet here and there) I have never taken any of my bikes in for work except for one time because it was a factory recall and they wouldn't just give me the part... so I'm just trying to encourage this dude to do his own work/maintenance. He and his wallet will be much better off. These bikes are pretty easy to maintain. He doesn't need to take it to a dealership he needs get a service manual and needs to get comfortable turning a few wrenches so he gets to know his bike and save his money haha
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Bm1997

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I was a little unsure about opening a carb up the first time but I used YouTube and it's actually a very simple task. The hardest part is getting it in and out lol. And plastics just require unscrewing screws. I'm constantly taking mine on and off to tweak little things here and there. You can have all your plastics off in under 20 minutes even if you're a newbie. Don't pay a dealer a fortune to do simple stuff. Learn to do it yourself and you'll save lots of money that can be used elsewhere. I've been working on my own bikes since I was 15, self taught, even my dad didn't want to tackle the carb but I did and saved myself some money. 

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mistermotard

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I was a little unsure about opening a carb up the first time but I used YouTube and it's actually a very simple task. The hardest part is getting it in and out lol. And plastics just require unscrewing screws. I'm constantly taking mine on and off to tweak little things here and there. You can have all your plastics off in under 20 minutes even if you're a newbie. Don't pay a dealer a fortune to do simple stuff. Learn to do it yourself and you'll save lots of money that can be used elsewhere. I've been working on my own bikes since I was 15, self taught, even my dad didn't want to tackle the carb but I did and saved myself some money. 
Agree 100%
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mistermotard

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To remove the stock headlight you have to remove the forks. Then there is a big mess of wires hidden behind the light that must be dealt with. The head light is by far the bigger job ,even with a plug and play light.
 
Unless you only ride during the day or in the city, I wouldn't get a Cyclops.
 
Sent from my XT1650 using ThumperTalk mobile app
 
 
 
 
 
 
Ohiodrz400sm where at in Ohio? I'm by Pittsburgh pa.
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Beta300REcat

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3 hours ago, GarveyTheGOAT said:

What is the proper amount of time it might take to do this job in hours?

 

How ever long it takes you!

Paying someone else to 'work' on your bike is like hiring someone else to climax for you.

Take your time, ask questions, and have fun!

Unlikely your carb even needs removal. Add Tectroline to your fuel.

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HansLanda

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DIY! Carbs seem complicated but just keep track of all the parts and you'll be ok. The headlight swap is simple too. You'll be proud of yourself.

Plus if you mess up, you can still bring it to the stealership and it will probably cost the same.

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