Price For New Head Gasket ?

[greg]

Hey everyone before I ask my question I just want to say what a great site this is and how helpfull everyone is on here, I don't think there is another site that compares to this one.

I have a EM6 300 that the head gasket is gone. I was wondering if anyone knows what I should pay a shop to have this replaced. I am trying to think of worst case senario, having to replace heads with remans. I just don't want to get hosed. If I knew something about engines I would do it myself, but pretty dumb in that area. thanks for your help.

greg

[rick harper]

I'm not at work at this time. Part # is 57GC189. It is not that expensive. If the gasket is blown it has to be replaced.

[Barry]

The gasket shouldn't be more than $30 each and includes new fire rings. Labor is a different subject. It will depend on what the shop's labor rate is.

[MACKS]

I would say at least 25 hundred for both heads, that should inclued valve adjustment and to retouque the head bolts, Good Luck!

[greg]

Hey everyone,

I got a dealer in upstate VT to do my head gasket. They planed the heads and while they where in there they might as well change the injectors. They did all that in 2 days and it cost me 2150.00. I didn't think it was too bad.

greg

[HK Trucking]

They planed the heads

I hope they shimmed the rocker arm pedestals accordingly.

There was a shop around here that was in the habit of milling the heads without shimming the rockers by the same amount, and within 5000 miles the valve guides would be wiped out.

The geometry of the rocker arm is changed because the pivot point is moved closer to the camshaft when the head is milled. The rocker then tends to push sideways on the valve stem as it pushes it open, quickly wearing out the valve guides.

If the rocker pedestals are shimmed, that prevents the problem.

I've seen reman exchange engines that had the shims under the rockers for just this reason.

[greg]

According to my paper work , they did shim the rockers.

greg

[mudslut28]

LOL When I see the price it costs to get shop work done sometimes I think Id be much better off working on them than I am trying to run them.

[greg]

Yeah , no kidding! It's pretty bad when the hourly rate to work on them is more than we can charge to make a living with.

[lucerne tractor]

Yeah , no kidding! It's pretty bad when the hourly rate to work on them is more than we can charge to make a living with.

Something I never understood, maybe too many people have a pashion for trucks. A new dump truck with body is from 90k to 135k fuel, well you know what that is, parts, just tires, 1200 a pair oil change 150, insurance, taxes, hourly repair 60 to 80 an hour. Around here the rate for owner opporated truck is 37 to 40 and hour, just can't be done. It has to be the love for trucking.

[greg]

Yeah , around here we have managed to sqeak out about 63 hour for a tandem. That is why I have a 20 year old mack. It doesn't bother me as much when I don't have work the truck doesn't cost me anything sitting. I can't imagine having a 1900 dollar payment a month to worry about. You would have to live in it 24-7.

greg

[HK Trucking]

Something I never understood, maybe too many people have a pashion for trucks. A new dump truck with body is from 90k to 135k fuel, well you know what that is, parts, just tires, 1200 a pair oil change 150, insurance, taxes, hourly repair 60 to 80 an hour. Around here the rate for owner opporated truck is 37 to 40 and hour, just can't be done. It has to be the love for trucking.

The reason for this is that the shops and mechanics are not all continuously cutting each others throats to try to steal work from each other.

They set their rate at a level where they can make a decent profit, and that's it, it's not open for negotiation.

There's no reason that trucking should be any different, the rate should be at a level where the truck owner can make a good profit, and the driver can be paid a fair wage with benefits.

We know this isn't the case however, as truck owners are whipsawed against each other by their potential customers, rates have been driven into the toilet just about everywhere.

The strange thing is that so many truck owners willingly participate in the creation of their own financial demise.

[Rob]

The strange thing is that so many truck owners willingly participate in the creation of their own financial demise.

The auto body repair industry participates the same way. There are many shops in this area that willingly negotiate their repair rates for both body and mechanical repairs. As the business owner, I experience the true cost of doing business, ie; In order: 1: Labor rates/payroll, 2: Health benefits/insurance, 3: Real estate and associated business insurance, 4: Depreciation and equipment wear/replacement, 5: Maintenance and upkeep of real estate equipment/facilities, and, 6: Failure under warrenty replacement/repair. To further this expanation I will be a bit "Open" with a couple of things.

1: The dead expense cost on my 7000 sq. ft. autobody shop including mortage, taxes, insurances, telephone(s), internet access, (a must with collision estimating software) currently runs at $156.00 per day. This cost is absorbed by the business before the first light switch is flipped, the first penny for wages is paid, or anything at all is started. Also consider that the shop is open five days per week, and these costs are absorbed seven days per week. This is why the production workflow of five manhours per work day just covers the "dead" expenses of operation. An additional one manhour covers the utilities consumed, leaving a balance of two manhours to eek out some kind of profit. The margin for profit is increasingly shrinking.

2: With being a collision repair facility, the shop rates are set by geographic area according to the major insurance carries in the respective locale. Currently shop rates are at $48.00 for body/paint and collision for automobile and light trucks, $55.00 for medium and heavy trucks. Frame rates are at $55.00 for automobile and light trucks, $62.50 for medium and heavy trucks. The material rates are currently at $26.00 per hour and have been for over a calender year, (despite a 157% increase in material cost to shops) and are reviewed annually in July.

As one can ascertain from the above figures: I, for one, cannot afford to reduce or restructure my shop rates and stay in business. There is always someone somewhere that will do the work at less cost claiming to match quality and customer satisfaction; I'm not ashamed to tell a prospective customer to "take it where they feel comfortable with". As a shop that prides itself on a reputation of high quality workmanship with a very low failure ratio, I will not negotiate with anyone on my shop rates. If truck drivers, and service providers were willing to assume this same stance, rates would be consistent and where they belong. I can only assume that it is difficult to base trucking rates when fuel costs have doubled at the pump, and negotiate your fees just to keep your truck running. Although some money is better than no money, operating at a financial loss is no good no matter how it is sliced.

I've never been a truck driver, so I have no "hands on" experience. The trucks I own are solely for pleasure. It all started with Tonka, and my grandpa's trucks, (Mack, of course).

Rob

ps: Way off topic I know, but I'm sure you'll get the gist.

[HK Trucking]

Rob wrote:

As a shop that prides itself on a reputation of high quality workmanship with a very low failure ratio, I will not negotiate with anyone on my shop rates. If truck drivers, and service providers were willing to assume this same stance, rates would be consistent and where they belong.

Amen Rob.

That is the problem, some truck owners and drivers are all too willing to cut their rates just to stay busy and take work away from someone else. But what is the point of that? The reason for operating a truck is to make money and if they operate so cheap that they're just breaking even, or even losing money just to stay busy, that just ruins the market condition for everyone else who is trying to keep their rates up where they can make a profit.

The contractors who hire the trucks are laughing all the way to the bank, depositing all that money they saved by getting the dump truck guys to work cheap.

In effect, the dump truckers who cut rates and work cheap are just subsidizing their customers profit margin, while slowly bankrupting themselves.

For 19 years when I was in the business, I tried to keep my rates where I could turn a profit. The last few years, with fuel cost skyrocketing, insurance and everything else going up, rates stayed flat, and if I tried to raise it to cover the increased costs, the contractors just said no and hired someone else who evidently didn't have sense enough to raise their rate when their expenses increased.

My company always provided good service, always on time, experienced drivers, trucks available 7 days a week etc, but none of it mattered, all the contractors cared about was price.

I'm glad I sold all my equipment when I did, because from what I've heard nothing's changed this year either, they're all just running for fuel money.

This is way off topic and has nothing to do with head gaskets, so I'll end my rant now.

[Packer]

A guy goes into the hardware store and buys 5 hammers.

A week later he's back in and buys 8 hammers.

The clerk asks him what he is doing with all the hammers.

" I'm selling them" was the answer.

"How much are you selling them for?" Askes the clerk.

"I'm getting $6.00 each"

"But you're paying $8.00 for them - - - you are loosing money!"Advises the clerk.

"Ya, I am, but it sure beats trucking!!!! (farming, auto repair, construction, etc.)

Packer

[David]

HK, Is that your CL on Ebay?

[HK Trucking]

HK, Is that your CL on Ebay?

No David, it is not.