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Is the autoshop charging too much?

667 views 11 replies 6 participants last post by  cbrianroll 
#1 ·
Last Friday my 2003 Xterra's timing belt broke 300miles from home, yikes! Today I got a call from the repair shop that to replace the timing belt, water pump, and leaking oil pump it will be $1,600.

Is that a reasonable price or am I being scammed?
 
#5 ·
How many miles were on it when the belt broke?

I was thinking I could wait another year on mine but maybe I should do it before then.
I would do it now. I am very lucky it didn't completely mess up my engine when it broke. Also I was 7hrs away from home which made the situation so much worse. Do it when you have time, money, and transportation to be without a car for a bit.
 
#6 ·
I did mine myself last year shortly after buying the rig, so I had had no experience with it whatsoever at that point. It took several weekends, but that's because it was hot and muggy and it took the starch right outta me. It had 204,xxx miles on it and the previous owner didn't know when/if it had been replaced.

At the time I was also working from home, so even if I was tired from the weekend, Monday on WFH meant I didn't need to shave if I didn't want to, and I could sleep in a bit longer than usual.

(BIG) If you are in a position to do it yourself, you can take the extra time like I did and do the hoses, tensioners, belts, etc., which added to the time. I also replaced the harmonic balancer.
 
#7 ·
If you have a gen1 X and have never changed the timing belt, do it now. The manufacturer says 115k miles based on the average mileage they expect a person to drive per year. They are rubber parts and the rubber goes bad with time, not just use. Gates recommends replacing them every 115k miles or 5 years. Which ever comes first.

As for the cost. It varies greatly depending on what part of the country you live in (New York City is going to cost more than rural Mississippi). It also depends on the mechanic. A dealership will cost much more.

Replacing the water pump and timing belt at the same time is definitely the way to go as they are both under the same cover and the timing belt has to be removed to replace the water pump. It's a while you're in there part. I would also have the Front Crankshaft seal and both Camshaft seals replaced as well. I believe replacing the oil pump requires the oil pan be dropped, which also requires the cross member of the frame be removed due to the shape of the pan. This would likely account for the extra cost.

As mentioned. The timing belt is not an incredibly difficult job, just takes a bit of time if it's your first time doing it. If you do it yourself I recommend taking your time. Be sure to keep track of all of the bolts as they come out of the timing cover as they are different lengths and must go back in the same spots. I like to draw out the shape of the cover on a piece cardboard then push the bolts through the cardboard in their corresponding locations as I remove them and use it as a bolt holder.
 
#8 ·
You have to wonder if the "leaking" oil pump is just a add on for profit since it is located in the general area. Normal oil filter change may leave oil tracks in that lower front of the engine that provides them an opportunity to reel in some extra work and profit. Might consider requesting a revised quote without the oil pump seal change.
 
#11 ·
Could have been the crank oil seal.

When I did my t-belt, I did like @Satito suggested and replaced all 3 oil seals.
 
#12 ·
If you don't know or can't do it then the price may be fine. It seams high to me but I work on my own rigs for the most part. Skill and know how cost money, it's a hard one to figure out sometimes. It took me a day to do my belt, water pump, cam seals, crank seal, new belts. It's not hard, just gotta get a bunch of stuff out of your way. Check out YouTube to get an idea.
 
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