Bringing FJ60 to dealerships... bad idea?

[PescaBaja]

When I see a dealership "labor rate" that low ($50/hr), they will usually make that up by overcharging for parts or try to put on parts you don't really need but convinced you that you did. I go into today's dealerships the size of airplane hangers and see all the employees running around and realize why they charge $120 - $200 /hr.

 

[Elbert]

I would be suprised if the dealership would work on the older truck. Many of the parts are N/A.

 

[g-man]

The parts guys in my dealership did not know what an "FJ60" was. Just sayin.

 

[lcwizard]

They probably wouldn't know where to connect the OBD II reader

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That's awesome! How fun would it be to install in an OBD port in a conspicuous location , wired to nowhere and bring it in for
once over. I wonder what they'd recommend based on their OBD readouts..... random misfire, cylinder 7?

 

[Seth S]

when I was driving my 60 home from Colorado I needed a new T stat and gas cap. I stopped in at the dealer in Fort Collins and there was another 60 parked in the lot along with a similar vintage pickup. The parts guy found me a Tstat and gas cap and had them for me the next day at normal prices. So I think it all depends on the dealer. Dealer cost will almost always be higher because they have a lot more overhead in their business compared to the independent shop.

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[2mountainfish]

Unfortunately, if you can't work on one of these machines yourself, you are always going to be at the mercy of any shop you take it to. I have found that private shops usually have at least one older mechanic that has knowledge about vintage vehicles, but those shops are getting harder and harder to find as us old guys are retiring and dying off. Mechanics at dealerships only make good money if they can turn a lot of volume. They don't want to get bogged down with some old , labor intensive vehicle that is hard to get parts for. If I couldn't work on my 60/62 I probably wouldn't own one. With that being said, if you can find an independent shop that can do the work, just be happy and get your wallet out.