MustangSarah

I'm not car savvy, so I can't fix this stuff myself.
I have over 52k miles on my 2004 mustang
I went to my dealership and was quoted:

FRT. BRAKES 3MM-PULSATION -255
LUBE OUTER TIE ROD ENDS -220
REPLACE BATTERY -130
POWER STEERING FLUSH -125
INDUCTION SERVICE -155 (not sure if I really need this?)
REPLACE AIR AND FUEL FILTERS -160

Do these prices seem right?
If anyone has a info that could help me, I would appreciate it.

FlamingoGT

Even for Kalifornia that seems awfully steep...
Most of those you could most likely get done even at JippyLube for a fraction of those costs.
Autozone will usually change your battery for you, and a battery from them runs less than $100... prolly even Sears would do it less than the stealership.
Now the brakes depends on what all that covers... if that is just pads you are definitely getting royally screwed, but if that includes rotors and calipers that isnt too bad for somebody else doing it for you.

Most of those jobs are not that difficult. Do you have a friend, or maybe even a coworker or acquaintance, that is mechanically inclined and you can save a fortune off of those prices even after figuring in a good tip to the person that helped you.

ryan1994mustang

yeah...your first mistake was going to the stealership.... their prices are almost always very high. as said before...battery shouldnt cost more than $100. it takes less than 5 minutes to change. air and fuel filters shouldnt be more than about 50 in parts and wont take more than half an hour ($37.50 at normal $75/hr rate). if you are just getting new pads then it shouldnt be any more than $100, but it will be a little more if you are getting your rotors surfaced. you can have your tie rod ends replaced for less than what they are wanting to lube them for so that sounds like a ripoff. and not sure what they mean by induction service. flamingoGT pretty much hit it on the head with trying to find a friend that knows their way around a car or taking it to a smaller shop and getting a quote there. and im assuming, by your name, that you are a chick and they like to try and take advantage of that.

MustangSarah

Yes, I'm female so I feel like anywhere I go they get that look :::cha ching, here comes the sucka:::
I'm trying to learn more about cars so I don't get ripped off. Thanks for all the tips.
Where would you go to get your brakes done? (midas/Big-o etc). The reason I got a quote from the dealership was because I thought they would do a better job because they only work on fords and they use quality products.

Jfsram

Define lube outer tie rods.

volcomchester18

yeah. Never take it to dealer unless you have warranty. I used to work with the bastards, the quality of the work is not any better or worse than independent shops (well depends on dealer, not all are crappy). Try to find a decent shop which you can go to everytime you need something. But shops will bul**** to girls alot too, so gotta shop around.

volcomchester18

the lubing of the outer tie rods using a lub gun placed on the nipple of the out tie rod.

What I am trying to figure out, what the hell is INDUCTION SERVICE! Never heard of it. I guess cleaning throttle body and stuff.

MustangSarah

As far as I know Induction service cleans out the deposits on the intake valves, injectors, ports, etc. It supposed to help you get better gas mileage, I don't think it's really needed if you're not having a problem with that. Sounds kinda gimmicky to me anyway

Update: It's really strange, I went to a couple of reputable independent shops and they quoted me a bit more than the dealer?? One wanted over 300 just to do my front brakes and about 300 to replace my tie rod ends! Maybe the recession has to do with this? I thought they would be at least somewhat cheaper. So depressing.

volcomchester18

Well I used to be a mechanic let me tell you that usually more than half of the things they tell you to replace are not necessary. Your tie rods most likely dont need replacing. When tie rods get dry they make a special squeeking noise when you turn, its very easy to tell. The dealer wanted to lube them, so they obiosly dont need to be replaced unless they are wrong.
Here is my suggestion:

FRT. BRAKES 3MM-PULSATION (The price for front brakes is not too bad, you can try saving by buying brake pads from autozone).

LUBE OUTER TIE ROD ENDS -220 (way too expensive just to lube them, try to find a shop that will do this for under 100)

REPLACE BATTERY -130 (you can buy this from autozone)

POWER STEERING FLUSH -125 (not necessary, you can do this at a later time. Just make sure its topped off).

INDUCTION SERVICE -155 (This one is useless, if you car runs good there is no need)

REPLACE AIR AND FUEL FILTERS -160(air filter is cheap to find. The fuel filter is probably not necessary, a clogged fuel filter will cause the car to buckle when accelerating up a hill for example).

I dont know the mileage of your car and symptomps, so I am sorta giving you my best guess.

good luck

btw lubing the tie rods is extremely easy! They have a lube gun that they place at the nipple of the tie rods and it takes a few seconds.

MustangSarah

That was really helpfull! thanks for all the info! I changed my air filter myself. I thought the fuel filter wouldn't need to be replaced for long time, especially on newer car. I have almost 53,000 miles on my car. I'm not going to bother with it, I don't foresee any problems by not replacing it. Are car batteries pretty cut and dry when it comes to installing them, meaning if they put it in for me at autozone, can they screw up my car in any way?