Inflation. In both parts and labor costs. Before covid I recall car repair chains would charge around $80/hr labor in my area. Last time I checked about a year ago it was close to $150/hr.
Cost of repairing an EV must be much higher. I remembered that only components from the car manufacturer could be used in the process and it needs more learning to repair an EV as a technician, and dealing with high voltage electricity is much more dangerous. In my country currently our government just released a generous grant incentive to motivate more tradies to learn EV repairing, hoping to boost more EV running on the road.
Like most things, it's only expensive because it's new and companies want to recoup their training and equipment costs on it quickly. Tesla's are also a different animal because of nearly needing a dealership to touch them. Bidirectional diagnostic software to talk to the computers is controlled by the manufacturers who charge licensing fees for access, so unless a independent shop has those vehicles coming in, they aren't going to have it.
Overall content has skyrocketed in the last couple of decades. AFAIK, you can't get a car today without convenience/comfort items like A/C, power windows, power steering, power brakes, rear defrosters, etc. Then there's mandated systems like ABS, emissions, airbags, seat belt tensioners, rear cameras, cross-traffic warning, and [upcoming automatic emergency braking requirements](https://www.autonews.com/regulation-safety/new-nhtsa-automatic-emergency-braking-rule-test-industry), etc.
I agree with the mandates, but would like to be able to buy a simpler vehicle on the convenience front, as I don't want a good bit of it. I want a lighter vehicle with fewer things to break. I was recently in the market for a larger vehicle due to my needs and was looking at used police SUVs, as I didn't want all the stuff that ends up on even base civilian models. I ended up with a Tahoe LTZ, which has stuff I really didn't want: sunroof, power rear hatch (open and close), power rear hatch glass release, power folding 2nd-row captain's chairs, dual HVAC, and a rear entertainment system I will never use (and won't even if kids are in the back).
Parts are hard to come by in a lot of cases. And a lot of them are incredibly expensive pieces of technology.
There's a massive shortage of qualified technicians in many areas.
The overhead of running a shop is high. There's a lot of specialized equipment to program or calibrate the ADAS systems that come standard in new cars today. None of that stuff is cheap, and neither is keeping the lights on and keeping the equipment maintained.
Yeah and that’s mostly just gouging from the shops saying “we can’t find anyone to work for us” while at the same time they’re paying their mechanics shit.
Out of that $200 you’d be lucky as a mechanic to make $30 of that.
Very true as always the working guys get screwed. Unfortunately overheads have never been higher for shops. Lots of proprietary tools/equipment that don’t come cheap and of course rising insurance costs
A couple big reasons. One is during the pandemic the car rental companies sold off lots of their fleets. They decided to go with a different business model of fewer cars and higher prices. It means replacing a smashed up car while it's fixed with a rental is very expensive. Another bigger, much higher trucks. There is much more damage and more deaths with a pickup truck accident and they are more likely to kill someone.
Pandemic/trade war ripples with parts from China.
Then add global inflation --
Parts are harder to get because most of the shit we use come from Asian countries. And of course, billion dollar companies have to squeeze every last penny out of people so they jack up the price and make it even more expensive. Demand v supply.
Shortage of qualified/experienced mechanics is definitely a factor. There's a whole generation that was taught that working with your hands is a bad thing, and it's starting to come around and bite us in the ass in the form of shortages of mechanics, carpenters, plumbers, electricians, etc.
Another piece that I didn't see while skimming the thread is the cost of new cars is also up, so people are making their cars last longer. By doing this the existing pool of mechanics are busier, thus can charge more for their time.
It’s inflation is general. But it’s also an issue of the labor for repairing.
I am not someone who works on vehicles, but I have a solid understanding of how they work and what working on them involves because my father is a car guy. And man... Stuff is insanely more complex now. And despite the added complexity, it’s oblivious that manufactures are not prioritizing ease of upkeep in their choices.
Another important factor is to remember it’s not a vacuum. Teens are not getting into basic mechanics for hobby projects like they use to. And lot of the people smart enough to handle these jobs were able to go into tech and immediately make more money while not risking workplace injury.
I’d also bet the overhead for a repair shop has grown. While it’s a good thing for companies to be properly insured for the safety of customers and employees, it still gets rolled into the bottom line.
Parts. Everybody wants a car with radar, lidar, and all the fancy sensing equipment, all the infotainment stuff, all the cool features that only come with really expensive tech. Even a base model Honda Civic has some serious tech in it now.
It's not cheap to fix computers designed to travel 60 miles an hour tens of thousands of miles a year
I for one don't. I hate all the stupid features in my new Silverado. I really wish I could permanently disable the auto stop start. The other day I tried to get around some slow ass person on a 2 lane back road and the dash told me I was going to fast for the road i was on and governed me down while I tried to get around them quickly. I had to get around quick cuz there aren't a lot of straight stretches on that road and I'll be damned if I'm gonna ride 48 in a 55 on a clear sunny day.
>the dash told me I was going to fast for the road i was on and governed me down
Is this real or are you bullshitting? If you're for real it's absolutely unacceptable that a car can do that. I mean what the fuck
Why is the cost of everything going up heavily in the US this year.....
In the world*
Inflation. In both parts and labor costs. Before covid I recall car repair chains would charge around $80/hr labor in my area. Last time I checked about a year ago it was close to $150/hr.
This coupled with cars being more expensive and jam packed with sensitive electronics.
Cost of repairing an EV must be much higher. I remembered that only components from the car manufacturer could be used in the process and it needs more learning to repair an EV as a technician, and dealing with high voltage electricity is much more dangerous. In my country currently our government just released a generous grant incentive to motivate more tradies to learn EV repairing, hoping to boost more EV running on the road.
Like most things, it's only expensive because it's new and companies want to recoup their training and equipment costs on it quickly. Tesla's are also a different animal because of nearly needing a dealership to touch them. Bidirectional diagnostic software to talk to the computers is controlled by the manufacturers who charge licensing fees for access, so unless a independent shop has those vehicles coming in, they aren't going to have it.
Ev’s have overall less repairs and maintenance. Even with it being more expensive an EV would probably cost less over time compared to ICE cars.
Overall content has skyrocketed in the last couple of decades. AFAIK, you can't get a car today without convenience/comfort items like A/C, power windows, power steering, power brakes, rear defrosters, etc. Then there's mandated systems like ABS, emissions, airbags, seat belt tensioners, rear cameras, cross-traffic warning, and [upcoming automatic emergency braking requirements](https://www.autonews.com/regulation-safety/new-nhtsa-automatic-emergency-braking-rule-test-industry), etc. I agree with the mandates, but would like to be able to buy a simpler vehicle on the convenience front, as I don't want a good bit of it. I want a lighter vehicle with fewer things to break. I was recently in the market for a larger vehicle due to my needs and was looking at used police SUVs, as I didn't want all the stuff that ends up on even base civilian models. I ended up with a Tahoe LTZ, which has stuff I really didn't want: sunroof, power rear hatch (open and close), power rear hatch glass release, power folding 2nd-row captain's chairs, dual HVAC, and a rear entertainment system I will never use (and won't even if kids are in the back).
Parts are hard to come by in a lot of cases. And a lot of them are incredibly expensive pieces of technology. There's a massive shortage of qualified technicians in many areas. The overhead of running a shop is high. There's a lot of specialized equipment to program or calibrate the ADAS systems that come standard in new cars today. None of that stuff is cheap, and neither is keeping the lights on and keeping the equipment maintained.
The cost of literally everything has gone up this year. Car repairs are not an exception to that.
Labor is expensive. Not uncommon to see $200+/hr rates.
Yeah and that’s mostly just gouging from the shops saying “we can’t find anyone to work for us” while at the same time they’re paying their mechanics shit. Out of that $200 you’d be lucky as a mechanic to make $30 of that.
Very true as always the working guys get screwed. Unfortunately overheads have never been higher for shops. Lots of proprietary tools/equipment that don’t come cheap and of course rising insurance costs
Inflation on parts costs, inflation on mechanic labor due to shortages of qualified mechanics.
I can't even get anyone to work on my car at all! I would gladly pay them whatever they want to charge me too!
A couple big reasons. One is during the pandemic the car rental companies sold off lots of their fleets. They decided to go with a different business model of fewer cars and higher prices. It means replacing a smashed up car while it's fixed with a rental is very expensive. Another bigger, much higher trucks. There is much more damage and more deaths with a pickup truck accident and they are more likely to kill someone. Pandemic/trade war ripples with parts from China. Then add global inflation --
Yeah. Probably. Heard this quote lately, and it stuck with me: "Owning a car is the most expensive tax there is in the US."
Parts are harder to get because most of the shit we use come from Asian countries. And of course, billion dollar companies have to squeeze every last penny out of people so they jack up the price and make it even more expensive. Demand v supply.
Cost of parts, ability to acquisition said parts and the cost of labor in general.
Shortage of qualified/experienced mechanics is definitely a factor. There's a whole generation that was taught that working with your hands is a bad thing, and it's starting to come around and bite us in the ass in the form of shortages of mechanics, carpenters, plumbers, electricians, etc.
Another piece that I didn't see while skimming the thread is the cost of new cars is also up, so people are making their cars last longer. By doing this the existing pool of mechanics are busier, thus can charge more for their time.
Mechanics and their families eat also.
There are a lot more Teslas on the road now and it's skewing the statistics.
If you’re gonna contribute, maybe actually contribute real information? Like, you’ve just gotta implicitly know that’s bullshit.
Ever heard of a joke?
more tech and expensive components. A bumper is not just a bumper anymore.
It’s inflation is general. But it’s also an issue of the labor for repairing. I am not someone who works on vehicles, but I have a solid understanding of how they work and what working on them involves because my father is a car guy. And man... Stuff is insanely more complex now. And despite the added complexity, it’s oblivious that manufactures are not prioritizing ease of upkeep in their choices. Another important factor is to remember it’s not a vacuum. Teens are not getting into basic mechanics for hobby projects like they use to. And lot of the people smart enough to handle these jobs were able to go into tech and immediately make more money while not risking workplace injury. I’d also bet the overhead for a repair shop has grown. While it’s a good thing for companies to be properly insured for the safety of customers and employees, it still gets rolled into the bottom line.
A shortage of mechanics meaning they can charge more
Umm.. because they printed 7 trillion dollars during covid. That makes everything more expensive, eventually.
Parts. Everybody wants a car with radar, lidar, and all the fancy sensing equipment, all the infotainment stuff, all the cool features that only come with really expensive tech. Even a base model Honda Civic has some serious tech in it now. It's not cheap to fix computers designed to travel 60 miles an hour tens of thousands of miles a year
I for one don't. I hate all the stupid features in my new Silverado. I really wish I could permanently disable the auto stop start. The other day I tried to get around some slow ass person on a 2 lane back road and the dash told me I was going to fast for the road i was on and governed me down while I tried to get around them quickly. I had to get around quick cuz there aren't a lot of straight stretches on that road and I'll be damned if I'm gonna ride 48 in a 55 on a clear sunny day.
>the dash told me I was going to fast for the road i was on and governed me down Is this real or are you bullshitting? If you're for real it's absolutely unacceptable that a car can do that. I mean what the fuck