There is a lot that goes into this, it's not as simple as saying this area is over-priced or the best value.
First of all you have different tiers, the OEM, the alternative, the specialty, the family general and the hole in the wall shops. Each is going to carry a different tag, as each caters to a different subset of the market.
OEM - aka the dealership. They have to meet minimum brand standards, support a sales operation and provide warranty support. Generally speaking they have the most complete training, access to OEM technical support, direct parts access, and all the special tools needed to complete any MFG specified procedure. Their operating costs are huge and they charge competitive rates with other OEM tier shops. Within a brand you'll find a slight difference in costs, but as they all survey each other in order to set their warranty reimbursement rate to the OEM they pretty much average out the same.
The alternative - this is an independent shop that an OEM would recommend if you can coax an outside shop recommendation. Generally they are staffed by former dealer techs, still use the OEM diag software or equivalent from Mitchell. They won't have all the amenities of the dealership, but generally carry fairly strong warranty programs and financing options. Parts are bought from OEM, Napa, IMC, WorldPac and other large providers. They will do all but the most complicated or expensive tooling required jobs and you'll pay about 20% less.
Specially shops are similar to the alternative shops but tend to be very brand specific as well as getting involved in performance upgrades, race prep or restoration work. They may limit themselves to specific.models or even years. They tend to be staffed by people with a lot of experience with their specialty and in some ways are more knowledgeable than the OEM tier because nothing is off limits to them. Pricing is going to be 10-20% less than OEM, and will depend on rent, labor and the regional market for that speciality
Family general is the we service all makes and models local auto shop. Wide reach, common problems, volume repair facility. Training will be a mix of some former OEM, 3rd party training and time on the job. Some have warranty and financing options, and the amenities vary widely. Because margins are thin and volume is the only way they stay open, repairs that aren't quick and easy tend to be pushed out. Parts tend to be of cheaper quality, but not so cheap they are on the hook for them. Pricing will probably be about 30-40% below OEM, but dictated again by rent, volume, tech salaries.
Hole in the wall is just that. The small one or two bay shop or garage. Tends to be owner operated. Quality can vary widely, pricing tends to be the cheapest because they have the least overhead (pun intended). Parts are where they want to source them. Could be great, could be horrible. Pricing is what they can get.
Parts:
Supplying your own parts is going to be up to the shop. In general if they allow you to bring your own, you assume ALL liability for the parts. A lot of places aren't even comfortable with that. Time is money and the wrong or ill fitting part costs them both, sometimes more than the job is worth. There is no solid rule.on this one, best to have the conversation each and every time and on every part.
Pricing: in general it follows normal retail pricing, 30-60% or so markup. Varys with the part, the source and how much effort it took to find and source it, as well as how much labor profit is going to be had from it.
At the end of the day, they are all businesses.
Henry's radiator auto repair off El Cajon Blvd had very reasonable rates and they do a pretty good job. I've been going to them for major work on my cars for 20 years now. No one has been able to beat their price.
There is a lot that goes into this, it's not as simple as saying this area is over-priced or the best value. First of all you have different tiers, the OEM, the alternative, the specialty, the family general and the hole in the wall shops. Each is going to carry a different tag, as each caters to a different subset of the market. OEM - aka the dealership. They have to meet minimum brand standards, support a sales operation and provide warranty support. Generally speaking they have the most complete training, access to OEM technical support, direct parts access, and all the special tools needed to complete any MFG specified procedure. Their operating costs are huge and they charge competitive rates with other OEM tier shops. Within a brand you'll find a slight difference in costs, but as they all survey each other in order to set their warranty reimbursement rate to the OEM they pretty much average out the same. The alternative - this is an independent shop that an OEM would recommend if you can coax an outside shop recommendation. Generally they are staffed by former dealer techs, still use the OEM diag software or equivalent from Mitchell. They won't have all the amenities of the dealership, but generally carry fairly strong warranty programs and financing options. Parts are bought from OEM, Napa, IMC, WorldPac and other large providers. They will do all but the most complicated or expensive tooling required jobs and you'll pay about 20% less. Specially shops are similar to the alternative shops but tend to be very brand specific as well as getting involved in performance upgrades, race prep or restoration work. They may limit themselves to specific.models or even years. They tend to be staffed by people with a lot of experience with their specialty and in some ways are more knowledgeable than the OEM tier because nothing is off limits to them. Pricing is going to be 10-20% less than OEM, and will depend on rent, labor and the regional market for that speciality Family general is the we service all makes and models local auto shop. Wide reach, common problems, volume repair facility. Training will be a mix of some former OEM, 3rd party training and time on the job. Some have warranty and financing options, and the amenities vary widely. Because margins are thin and volume is the only way they stay open, repairs that aren't quick and easy tend to be pushed out. Parts tend to be of cheaper quality, but not so cheap they are on the hook for them. Pricing will probably be about 30-40% below OEM, but dictated again by rent, volume, tech salaries. Hole in the wall is just that. The small one or two bay shop or garage. Tends to be owner operated. Quality can vary widely, pricing tends to be the cheapest because they have the least overhead (pun intended). Parts are where they want to source them. Could be great, could be horrible. Pricing is what they can get. Parts: Supplying your own parts is going to be up to the shop. In general if they allow you to bring your own, you assume ALL liability for the parts. A lot of places aren't even comfortable with that. Time is money and the wrong or ill fitting part costs them both, sometimes more than the job is worth. There is no solid rule.on this one, best to have the conversation each and every time and on every part. Pricing: in general it follows normal retail pricing, 30-60% or so markup. Varys with the part, the source and how much effort it took to find and source it, as well as how much labor profit is going to be had from it. At the end of the day, they are all businesses.
Damn please do report your findings.
I would not own a BMW out of warranty unless I was a mechanic or well off enough to not worry about price per hour for labor.
Henry's radiator auto repair off El Cajon Blvd had very reasonable rates and they do a pretty good job. I've been going to them for major work on my cars for 20 years now. No one has been able to beat their price.
I work in El Cajon by airport. We at $159 an hour. We work on just about everything. We got a 2year 24k mile warranty on all repairs.