Apples to camels

Most factory rebuild kits for automatic trannies are under $200, and some are under $100. What you're getting is the clutch pack, seals, gaskets, o-rings, etc. What you're talking about is an entirely different job. Building a transmission that's bullet-proof takes much more durable hard parts, a different valve body, servos, etc. and that's why your rebuild cost you $3k rather than $800. You can get heavier duty clutch packs for a little more money, but unless you're towing, or constantly hot-rodding, most people don't need it. But we're talking an extra $50 or so, and it all takes the same amount of time to install, whether it costs a buck or a grand.

 

Called a few more shops and basically it looks like the average kis 2k to 2500 one place will give an occupational discount and another claims they will build it better than the factory and i have been finding out some more things about them so idk

 

"Better than factory" could (and probably does) just mean a heavy duty clutch pack, which would still bring the cost of the rebuild kit to less than $250 using top quality parts. And the time to do the job is the same, no matter what kind of money you put into the parts. You could spend $1500 on parts that would make your transmission *******ly indestructible with anything less than 1500 horsepower....it still only takes a few hours to put those parts in.

Some people buy their own kits, and ask the shop to use those instead of what they normally install because most shops, whatever they may claim, use the cheapest parts they can find. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, in some cases the cheapest parts are as good a quality as the higher priced stuff. You could do this yourself, you know. They may get a little annoyed, but at the prices they're charging, they'll get over it. Before I did that, I'd ask them what portion of that 2k to 2.5k would be spent on parts, and what portion on labor, and get it put into the written estimate. I'm sure they'll over-estimate what the parts cost and downplay what they're charging for labor, and when you bring your own parts to install, they'll be obligated to do the job for the labor costs quoted in the estimate.

Admittedly, this is a little underhanded, but far less so than charging someone over twice what the job should cost in reality.

The other alternatives are to either just pay what they're asking and try to never think about it again, or just sell your Durango as-is and write it off as experience. Honestly, you could probably buy another Durango for little more than what they're asking to rebuild the tranny. Seriously, I'm tempted to drive out there and rebuild it for you, at those prices

 

Hell, for those prices,a steak dinner, and a few beers ill meet ya there and "assist" you..lol

Seriously, I know how the OP feels. I recently went for a state inspection and was told that i needed inner tie rods on both sides and a front end alighment to pass. I was also quoted $500 to do the job and was told that i would have to "leave my rig" as it would take them most the day to do it.

I knew that they where trying to hose me so i told them that i was gonna have to talk it over with the wife before i spend the money and that i would be back the next day to let them know.....

For there i went to Autozone and picked up both inner tie rods for about $80 and installed them myself in about 40 mins!

the next day i took it back to them with the work done (free re-inspection) and they must have thought i was gonna pay there bill as i got serious looks as they had no choice but to slap on my sticker

 

Dude im a ways away i bet lol

 

I have found a local

 

I did find a place that has a trans for 650 with 68k miles.

 

Yes I know why mine cost that much. It was fully custom, of course it costs more. But we don't know what these shops are doing to them with exchange or rebuild. To make a simple claim that it should only be this much or that much is an irrelevant term.

 

I don't know about it being irrelevant. I understand your point, of course, but I have to disagree that a transmission rebuild shouldn't cost X amount of dollars. The only difference should be in labor rates, because the parts all come from the same place, and cost the same amount no matter where you live in the U.S. If I buy a kit for a TF727 for $70 in Texas (and actually, I bought one this last summer for $39, with extra heavy-duty clutch-pack), I can buy the same kit in Montana for the same price, for roughly the same shipping costs (plus or minus a few bucks). It doesn't take any longer to rebuild the transmission in Utah than it does in West Virginia, and again...the only difference should be labor rates, and should be billed at around $100 per hour in the most expensive areas, to around $65 in the less expensive areas. So, considering the transmission takes 6 hours to rebuild (that's being extremely generous, in reality it takes about 4 if you're taking your time) and about 8 hours to remove and replace (again, being very generous, 6 is more accurate), no shop in this country with ANY experience at all should be billing for more than 14 hours, plus the cost of the parts (about 200), for a maximum total of $1600.

The only variable is whether hard-parts are needed, and they rarely are unless the transmission is scattered, but even these parts don't usually total more than another couple of hundred.

Seriously, you don't think these shops are out to screw this guy?

Anyway, it's none of my business, really, what anybody pays for anything, I just don't like seeing crooks have their way with people.

 

No the parts do not come from the same sorse. It depends on the accounts that the shop resources has. Occasionally you get a great deal on rebuild kits and you jump on those deals, but shops cash in on those savings, they simply don't care and see it as a simple cash.

Your right, in Utah it takes the same time as Virginia, accept for getting hard to find parts if needed? This is where I think they take a lot of people to the cleaners and claim they need all when they only need basic rebuilds.

Regardless, I see your point. I agree that it should be cheaper, however what we think is different to reality, and when generic people shop for price well that's different to "us" people that know better. Shops prey on people wold wide and we both know that. This is why we are here to help inform people when they are getting taken, however dictating a certain price is hard to state in any place.