Radiator Repair Charges?

Hi - I own a 1993 Altima - 90,000 miles. Its in excellent condition but I've had a lot of work done on it. I like the car - the acceleration is fabulous still. Two weeks ago, while driving on a street, I saw smoke rise behind my car. There were no flashing indicator lights and soon the smoke was gone, but the car started stalling at every red light - started up again when I turned the key.

I managed to get it to a Goodyear Company (Gemini) where I've had repairs done before. They told me the radiator had cracked.

They replaced the radiator, a new thermostat, radiator cap, antifreeze and three radiator hoses: upper, lower and by pass hose.

Even after a 10% discount of $69.96 - my total bill was $221.62 for parts, $39.73 for shop supplies, $368.00 for labor and tax of $37.77 - a Total cost of $667.12.

The car was ready a few hours later. Everyone has been telling me I was 'screwed' - I'd like the opinions of others on this because I'm a numbskull when it comes to cars.

thanks, Perila

the price of the radiator from Autozone is $150. the thermostat is like $8, cap is $7, antifreeze is $8, 3 hoses should be around $30. the labor to do the job includes emptying out the antifreeze, removing the cooling fan(s), removign the transmission cooler lines (if an automatic), removing a couple bolts, both hoses, 3 hoses and a thermostat. and then removing and replacing the radiator plus the other stuff. then filling the radiator back, topping offf the radiator (getting the air out of the system), and then done. the parts prices isn't bad, the labor to do the whole job should be like 2 hours. their hourly rate could be very high also, and charging for shop supplies is a new one to me.. usually they put that price in the markup of the parts & hide it. I would say you paid a bit much, butyou got the car back the same day, AND, they did the job right by swapping out the hoses and thermostat, which is more of a precautionary measure...