Is $450 too much?

[Kroze]

I took it to this mechanic and he gave me a quote of $450 to replace the rack & pinion, high pressure line, and alignment. This is the price without parts BTW as I already bought the parts myself.

1988 Nissan 300zx Turbo

 

[desy]

Probably not steering racks are labor intensive

 

[Kroze]

so you think that is reasonable? remember that's without the price without parts.

 

[Kroze]

so you think that is reasonable? remember that's the price without parts

 

[desy]

I was quoted bout 900 to do my car, Power steering, but the rack failed the replacemnet rack was 400 the rest was labor
But phone around, my quote was from a mechanic I trust never hurts to get a couple quotes

 

[Zenmervolt]

That's about 4.5 hours of labor where I'm from. Turbos mean that most labor takes longer (they take up space and make it harder to work in the engine bay), so this doesn't sound terrible. In fact, it sounds pretty reasonable for replacing the steering rack and performing a full alignment.

ZV

 

[lsd]

Any reason you can't DIY?
Here's a write up if you can
http://www.z31.com/repairs/rack.shtml
Take it to the shop afterwards for an alignment.

 

[JulesMaximus]

Sounds cheap to me. My Mother-In-Law spent $2,500 to have the steering pump replaced on her 740i a number of years ago.

 

[BW86]

sounds about right

 

[bruceb]

Ondemand5 lists the job at 3 hours for removal and replacement at $85 per hour in NJ .. Alignment should be around $80 at most . Hose is listed as 1 hour .. You are looking at 4 - 5 hours which is what Zenmervolt says and agrees with what Ondemand5 says.. So with alignment, but not tax it should be $420 or so ... If you are in Northern New Jersey, give Euro Tire 800-631-0010 or 973-575-0080 a call. They are in Fairfield, NJ on RT46 and can do that job and a top quality alignment .. Their labor rate is close to what I cited above.

 

[Mojoed]

Sounds about right. I had the rack and pinion (and muffler) replaced on my Accord for $929.19.

The job took a total of 9 hours. I figure the muffler was an hour labor with all the rusty bolts, so the rack and pinion + labor was ~$700.

 

[Bignate603]

Sounds like its in the right ballpark.

Also, it pays to go with someone reliable even if they aren't the cheapest. I pay a little more at the place I go but its better to pay $50 extra for something you need than $500 for something you don't.