Hi folks, just picked up my Z from having a major service and just thought I'd try and get an idea how well I did pricewise. My Mechanic (he's like a greasy pet lol) is a private garage but he worked for nissan for 15 years and ids fairly well Z experienced. The job was... oil, oil filter, sparkplugs, air filter, cambelt, air-con belt, pas belt and alternator belt, and front brake pads.... always keeps all the old bits to show me what he's done... £200 labour , £211 parts, inc VAT. total £411 inc vat.

 

I reckon thats ok... what do you guys think?

coolant bud is not considered a problem to the rubber of a cambelt if its only a quick splash.oil is the biggest killer.

You know that for certain then do you?

James, not thats its relevent but I have done several Z32 cambelt changes myself, watched about a dozen being done and even shown a few owners how to do it themselves !!! My Shop is in the building next door a 300zx specialist garage.

 

Cambelt and Waterpump involve the exact same labour.

 

Removal off :

 

Fan shroud & Viscous fan

Radiator

Water pipes

PAS, Alter, AC belts

Crank pulley

Cam covers

 

I've not said the cambelt needs to come off thats a 10 sec on top of the above labour for both jobs...and thats the point !

the water pipes at the front dont need to come off and the lower cover will come off with upper covers still in place,funki was there whilst it was done.how can the labour be the same???.a cambelt takes time to tension.

You know that for certain then do you?

done over a hundred cambelts in my time on different vehicles during my 15years as a fully trained mechanic.and never had a comeback on one.

the water pipes at the front dont need to come off and the lower cover will come off with upper covers still in place,funki was there whilst it was done.how can the labour be the same???.a cambelt takes time to tension.

 

Fair point about the Covers, I've only ever done the proper procedure of replacing both waterpump and cambelt.

 

But its about 10mins to tension the belt and if your going by book time then the Cam belt book time is nearly 4.5 hrs.

 

If you do water pump in 1.5 hrs....does it takes 3 hrs extra to remove pipes, top covers and tension belt ??

 

I just dont agree with the "if it aint broke, dont fix it" attitude when it comes to major service interval items.

 

Its well known that the typical lifespan of the Z32 waterpump is about 60k....if you dont replace it at the same time as the waterpump then you will be shelling out on the extra labour when it should of been done in the first place...many have suffered that mistake !

done over a hundred cambelts in my time on different vehicles during my 15years as a fully trained mechanic.and never had a comeback on one.

My brother has served similar time to you but he's been taught that any contamination of any belt and it should be replaced. however, he has worked for company that own a fleet of vehicles and are not a public facing facility so therefore profit and time isnt a factor.

 

I am not saying you are wrong.

I agree with jimmer ,with funkis engine it was already to go ,we then found the pump to be leaking ,this did only take 1.5 hours to do .

I agree with jimmer ,with funkis engine it was already to go ,we then found the pump to be leaking ,this did only take 1.5 hours to do .

I dont dispute that.....but when Mr.X has to take his car back to a garage becuase his waterpump is leaking and was'nt changed....I bet they dont charge just 1.5 hours labour !

 

Its all very well saying it only takes 1.5 hours to do it afterwards.....but whatever price the garage charges (and book time is 3 hours) could of been saved ..not to mention the time, hassle....and even more importanty - the Potential serious engine damage from overheating by doing it when it should of been done in the first place !!

not getting involved LOL :rolleyes:

Whats all this rubbish about coolant contaminating the belt, don't you drain it before hand. Sounds like a statement from another supposed well known Zed specialist here. Too many parrot mechanics on here, they have read about doing it, and can then talk about doing it, but would never dream of actually doing it in case they f**k up. Book times and actual times are very different. The book times are to ensure the main dealer or garage make a profit, it don't necessarilly take that time, as any good mechy will know. Thats your cream off the top.

Suggest Reading the thread again. No zed specialists have made any comments about Coolant contaminating belts!

 

...and you have just backed up my (obvious) point up - It may only take 1.5 actual hours to replace the waterpump afterwards...but the customer gets charged the Book time....So yes it is a big deal not to replace a part that should of been replaced along with the cambelt.

 

....and who is the abusive "parrot mechanic" remark aimed at ??

Hi folks, just picked up my Z from having a major service and just thought I'd try and get an idea how well I did pricewise. My Mechanic (he's like a greasy pet lol) is a private garage but he worked for nissan for 15 years and ids fairly well Z experienced. The job was... oil, oil filter, sparkplugs, air filter, cambelt, air-con belt, pas belt and alternator belt, and front brake pads.... always keeps all the old bits to show me what he's done... £200 labour , £211 parts, inc VAT. total £411 inc vat.

 

I reckon thats ok... what do you guys think?

 

 

INCASE anyone has forgotten this is what this thread is about.

 

Y is it that every thread started lately ends in an argument and the original question does'nt get answered.

 

Yes that was a good price. End of.

I did not mention 'abusive parrot mechanics', I stated 'parrot mechanics', thats people who read thread answers from others about doing repairs, and then quote them practically word for word in their reply to another thread, and probably have no experience of the actual work. Another aspect which comes into play with a Zed is the state of modification, i.e. it would take a bit longer to do a cambelt on a car blinged up , say like BG Vince's than a bog standard runner, book times could cost you money.

too far off topic & locked