Living costs in New York City are well-known. The high price of life in the city with the most people in the United States affects almost everything, from food to housing to parking your car. The service staff at Land Rover Brooklyn has gone to scary lengths, charging owners $499.99 per hour for labor and close to $500 for something as simple as an oil change. I learned about this are-you-serious pay through the Instagram Reel of a car customization shop in Coney Island. I called Land Rover Brooklyn and asked how much it would cost to change the oil in my 2013 Land Rover LR4. Before taxes, they charged me $452.27 for supplies and work for a half-hour. A kit to change the oil in an FCP Euro LR4 now costs $134.74. It comes with eight quarts of synthetic oil, a new filter, and a drain plug. RepairPal thinks the service will cost between $266 and $315, with work making up 43%, or $114.38, of the total cost. In this case, the labor rate at Land Rover Brooklyn would make one of the most basic tasks cost the customer at least $137 more. When you think about more complex jobs, the problem gets worse. I had a 2001 Discovery II for a short time, which was a bad idea. Because Land Rovers aren’t known for being reliable, a few hours spent here figuring out what’s wrong with the electrics could easily cost the owner $3,000 in work fees. What about time in a chain? You figure it out. Technicians who work on cars on their own and at shops usually charge between $100 and $300 per hour. Prices depend on where you live, what kind of car you have, and if it’s a specialty shop or a general mechanic. Even though there are some odd exceptions, dealerships are often more expensive than local garages. CarMD says the average work cost in the U.S. in 2022 will be around $142. However, I’ve paid anywhere from $95 to $160 per hour at different independent mechanics because I’ve bought cars that could have been better. As expected, high-end dealerships are a little more expensive. Porsche South Shore on Long Island costs $225 per hour, and Porsche Manhattan charges a shocking $349. On the other hand, the $500 rate for the Land Rover Brooklyn is more than 40% higher. So, what’s going on? The worker who works on these Rovers doesn’t make $500 an hour. The shop advertised a job for a Land Rover mechanic with an hourly wage of $20 to $85. This means that the managers and owners of the store are making a lot of money for every hour that experts work. Since dealers make a lot of money from their service centers, some may be raising their prices in response to cars lasting longer to make more money. In and of itself, rising fixing costs are a problem. Inflation is a problem in the country, new cars are expensive, and people keep their old cars for a long time. Still, it could be better than some companies, like Land Rover Brooklyn, have done things like this. What can you do when this happens? First, you should never pay $500 for an oil change if you don’t have a super-exotic car. Find out how much the shop charges for work before you bring your vehicle there. Before you agree to any job, have a written estimate and look it over carefully. When the bill comes, look at it and compare it to the estimate you were given. Inquire about any differences. Think about not buying an old Land Rover whose guarantee has run out.
