Cost to Replace Ball Joints 1997 Toyota Previa

That seems a little high.

It's part of the steering system. As it fails, your steering gets looser and looser and then suddenly you find yourself going over the guard rail at a very high rate of speed.

I dunno, depends on the parts price, but I'd figure something around three or four hundred for labour. None of these are hard to do and they are all things that ought to be done as part of regular maintenance.

No, it's an easy thing to do. Just make sure the guy that does it uses OEM parts and you'll be fine.

--scott

Will wrote in article ...

You don't even KNOW what a ball joint is, yet you automatically assume that you have been quoted an inflated price.......

What an A$$HOLE!

People like you are the ones who come across as A$$HOLES, and get screwed due to their abject stupidity and attitude.

I hope they take you for a bundle.......

If you think the independent garage priice was outrageous, wait until you go to your "friendly" local Toyota dealer.

Tehcnically speaking, the ball joints are a part of the suspension system - not the steering system.

The smiley face means the comment is made in jest.

The point of the post was to ask humbly what is the correct price.

None of these conclusions follow from the premises. First, you cannot conclude anything about me from such superficial questions. Second, what does the sentence "People like you are the ones who...." That is virtually incoherent. Third, how do you get to the conclusion that someone is going to get screwed, or that the person is stupid, or that the person has a bad attitutude, from any premise? You are developing three different conclusions all from an unstated premise, all based on casual observation of superficial remarks. All of your comments read like wild, unreasoned, and unjustified rambling.

If you had followed the thread, the quote I received *was* from the Toyota dealer.

If the amount I was being quoted was inline with a reasonable quote, wouldn't that be a more reasonable point to make?

"Will" wrote in news:rJidnS0v4IV1REXbnZ2dnUVZ snipped-for-privacy@giganews.com:

I think the idea of the ripoff price thing is a sore point with "*"; he probably hears that all the time. I know I do, and I'm not even in the business. And when you hear the same thing all the time, it is simply an irritation and not a joke, smiley or no.

Often called the "stealership" by those same people who gripe about ripoff prices.

An anecdote: I was in the drug store yesterday where two older teenagers were trying to buy bottles of water. I overheard them talking disgustedly about how it was a "ripoff" that they should have to pay 99¢ for water. Remembering a time when you couldn't buy water AT ALL, I just rolled my eyes.

Absolutely not.

In the Napa Online site, they list front ball joints at about $45 each. Shock absorbers vary, but use the high estimate of about $70 (also NAPA)

Add about $60 each for tie rod ends, and they list both inner and outer, per side.

While you are under there, check the boots to see if they are cracked and consider replacement.

You can flush the radiator and block yourself, if you want it done.

The total of parts mentioned above add up to some money, but even with labor $2200 seems quite high. You may not even need some of those things.

Find an honest and competent independent garage and get a second opinion.

Hey, I remember when you could buy a milkshake and a sandwich at the drugstore and get the water for FREE.

--scott

No sh*^, Scott. We never bought WATER.

I believe he HAD been going to the dealership.

Dealerships most often charge very much higher prices than independent garages, and are certainly more expensive than doing it yourself.

If you cant do it yourself, and you dont want to go to an independent, then either accept the dealership price or shut up. This is a very simple logic table.

Once I had to pay a nickel for the cup, cover and straw, though.

Actually we have an independent shop here that specializes in Toyotas and their service rates are higher than the dealer. They advertise as "the alternative to dealer prices." Go figure that one out

As in presidential elections, we sometimes have "alternatives", both of which are poor choices.

Shop around.

You dont need a shop that specializes in Toyotas to do a lot of things.

service rates are higher than the dealer. They

Are they really higher than the dealer, or is their hourly rate just higher? I'll gladly pay someone twice as much per hour if he can get the job done in a third the time.

There are basically two kinds of car repairs: the ones where you know what the job is going into it, and the ones where you have no clue what is actually wrong when you start the job. It's the second kind of job where differences between different shops and different mechanics become clear.

--scott

I hate to take my toyotas to the local dealer. They do not seem to be able to repair the simple problems without taking a long time to do it. Also they have been known to not do all the work. Co worker took a car in to get the plugs changed. When it came out it had a skip in it like it did going in the shop. He checked the plugs and one had not been changed because it is very hard to get to. Dealer asked him how he knew they did not change the plug. He said because it was a differant brand than the ones they put in. Not likely you put in 5 of one brand and one of another.

their hourly rate is lower (just a tad) but every time I ask for a quote, it is higher than the dealer. Go figure that one out.

sure: there is always firestone, manny moe & crack, and a host of other indies who use high school dropouts for techs.

Is your implication that only dealership mechanics are educated, competent, and honest????? If so, you are probably going to alienate a lot of first class independent mechanics.

You may find crappo mechanics at dealerships, and sometimes you will find dealerships that are not run with integrity and honesty.

If you are not happy with the garage you are using, then find another. Or learn to do it yourself.

1. Like George Bush, I don't give a shit who I piss off

1. You read things into my post that I never said. Take an Evelyn Wood reading course

2. Do it yourself is fine if your life is an empty book and you don't have anything else to do

Have a nice day

Fuller Rath wrote in article ...

have anything else to do

I suspect if you had a ball joint in one hand and a chocolate ice cream cone in the other, you would not be able to tell which is which.......

.....yet you, somehow, feel qualified to comment on the situation.