Location plays a huge part in what the market will bare as far as pricing is concerned.
I work and bill out on a t&m basis as I feel that flat rate is not fair to the customers I serve, I know that in the larger areas that flat rate rules the day because there is more money to be made.
Just the thoughts of a full service plumber that can diagnose/fix any issues that arise. I bill out $80 an hour.

 

Nope. Wasn't worth it at all if I'm being honest. Don't get me wrong, I love the AirDog II and they did a good job on the install. Here is my beef though...

1. They charged me a flat fee of $115 to "diagnose" the problem....but I already knew the fuel pump was bad, and so thats what they replaced (you'll see below why I'm pissed about the "diagnosis" charge)

2. They didn't mention any other options like the FASS pump (described above in this thread...which would have worked just as well for my application and was easier to install, less than half the price, etc)

3. After picking up my truck it stalled 4 times within the next 24 hours and was misfiring like CRAZY! When I called the guy he said "oh yeah we noticed it surging when we had it running" He then told me I would need to bring it back for further electrical diagnosis. Instead I diagnosed it myself....Banks 6-gun module bypassed = problems solved

So, in conclusion it was my Banks 6-Gun module that was freaking out and probably caused the fuel pump to fail in the first place. Shouldn't a faulty tuner have been something discovered in their $115 "diagnosis" ?? Who knows how much more money I would have been out if I brought it back.

I have respect for the work that mechanics do, but $100+/hour is outrageous and when you employ the "guess and check" method with someone else's money it's outright theft. And 21 hours to do this job? Are you kidding me? Are these 21 actual hours of work or union hours?? I installed an entire veggie oil fuel system with auxiliary tank, heat exchangers, coolant & fuel lines, fuel pump, valves, wiring harness, relays, and all the sensors in 10 hours!

I think the reason WHY I'm so upset is because I know it was something I could have repaired myself if I was not in such a pinch to get the truck back. I would have much rather paid them a few hundred bucks and some subway sandwiches if they just allowed me to use their lift and tranny jack for a day

All complaining aside, my truck is running beautifully without the Banks 6-Gun and the AirDog is a nice addition. The Banks worked well for 5 years, but my tuners days are done...just want reliability.

 

And that is exactly why I learned how to sweat my own copper pipe a few summers back when my wife got charged $425 to replace a spicket on the side of our house! Luckily I was out of town at the time otherwise I would have had to fire a few warning shots to get him off my property, lol. $80/hr is actually quite reasonable...you would not believe what some guys charge here in southern California! I've seen HANDYMEN charging $125+/hour....looks like my engineering degree is pretty worthless if handymen are pulling that kind of coin

 

Worse yet, most of those yahoos are not even licensed, or really qualified to do the work. Kinda like me turning wrenches on my own rigs, I was raised in a shop environment and am fully capable but I am far from a professional mechanic, and I don't play one on tv either.

Sites like this are truley invaluable as there are some very smart folks out here that are willing to point a person in the right direction, "mans just gotta know his limitations"