Borla Header installed for $800 - Reasonable? rip off?

George J. McFadden did pass the time by typing:

I think it's reasonable for having someone else do the work. Maby about 75$ high, but in the ballpark for a few hours work.

Did the header myself, it's not hard if you are reasonably good with a wrench and the part is a drop-in replacement (OEM). Aftermarket may require a few mods or fabricating a new down-pipe. That might be where the extra cost is coming from.

Go OEM and your probably looking at a higher cost part but loads less time to install.

Sounds OK from where I sit. That's about 5 hours of shop time at $70/hr. But I don't bend wrenches for a living, either.

I just asked my local 4WD shop/bone yard for an estimate on replacing my cracked exhaust manifold on my `89 Cherokee's 4.0 (I looked at it and thought "Ohhh, I don't want to do this.") The reply was "Last time I did one I swore I'd never do another -- I lose money on them." I was OK with that, I like an honest answer.

I was just quoted $400.00 for a replacement manifold on our 88.

Mike

86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's

Lee Ayrt>

That's what keeps guys like me in business, the fact that most people don't want to make their own repairs. Get the checkbook out..

Jerry

For the part? That's curious. The guy I was talking to quoted me US$190 for the manifold. A local discount retailer quote me about the same, plus or minus $30 or so.

I checked with some other shops and a sample of the quotes are $600 (local shop), $675 Mineke, $760+tax Midas, $800 Hi Tech 4x4.

I called back to Hi Tech and asked how long (labor hrs) they were quoting - they said 5.5hrs. I told them I have been seeing a 4hr labor in my searching and told them that if they keep it to 4 hrs I would go for it ($68/hr rate) - should end up to be around $730-$750.

Son of a Diddly! these things are expensive. The other diff is that the three cheaper places were for a direct replacement manifold, and the Hi Tech was for a Borla.

I think I am going to quit my IT job and become a mechanic!! ;-)

George

90 Wrangler 4.2L 98 Ram 1500 5.9L 00 SV650

Lee Ayrt>

Oh, and by the way, Mike. Once this header is installed I will begin my quest to get my money back for the unnecessary carb repair. I quizzed them yesterday on it again - the fact that a new carb made no change to the way the jeep ran - and they again said they "had" to replace it due to the "bend air horn". I have the pic you sent so I plan on confronting them with the "evidence".

Logically it makes sense that the Carter carb was fine. Assuming it runs great once the manifold is replaced the following is true.

Jeep runs bad, has exhaust manifold leak. Taken to shop to adjust fuel air mix. Carb diagnosed as prob and replaced. Exhaust manifold leak still present. No change in how jeep runs. Exhaust manifold replaced. Jeep runs fine.

Logic says that problem was not with carb but with the manifold leak. Carb did not need to be replaced.

Does this sound right?

George

90 Wrangler 4.2L 98 Ram 1500 5.9L 00 SV650

Mike Roma>

Sorry, installed.

Mike

Lee Ayrt>

Yes.

The 258 is notorious for having that long manifold come loose. This really messes up the carb mix....

It will need a retorque in a few 100 miles likely also.

You can spray carb cleaner along the manifold gasket and if the idle blips it is leaky.

Mike

"George J. McFadden" wrote:

Sure Bill.

The status of the intake gasket is in question too. As long as it has cracked, things have shifted and they share bolts. The crack also makes a lot of heat movement of parts.

Mike

"L.W.(ßill) Hughes III" wrote: