RedLine

Thanks for your help. Project for tomorrow if its dry

Well turns out maybe I can't I noticed on everyone else's pics that (aside from your engine bays all looking much cleaner than mine! ) the hose from the BOV goes directly onto the intake - mine connects to a pipe: So to do this mod, I take the hose off that the arrow is pointing to below, bung the hose and the T inlet that it was connected to, and I'll have more vroom?

Hankook Ventus ... something something ... asymmetric.

Nice, that looks like a mod that even I can do! Will report back on the results this weekend.

I'm with State. They were the only ones who would insure me in my first car (Lancer GSR) when I was 15, and have been there since. I'm 24 now, and the annual premium on my 01 B4 RSK is around the 600 mark. Never had to make a major claim though, which is obviously where the value of an insurance company is tested... worth a phone call though.

Yeah from what they said yesterday, they took it out.

Yeah it was the rocker cover gasket that drove the bill up... turns out he discovered it was badly leaking and he replaced it ($258.18) and spent just over 4 hours on it ($363.40). He's "pretty sure" he would have called, but it "needed to be done anyway." I made it clear I wasn't happy about finding out about a $600 piece of work on my invoice, and they agreed to deduct 2 hours labour... Lesson learned - ask for a quote, always tell them to call if something unexpected needs to be done that is more than $100, and don't go back to that garage! Parts were apparently all OEM from what they said, but they don't have the packaging anymore since it was done a few weeks ago and they only just billed me now. My main confusion was about the need to replace the rocker covers... he said that they begin to leak onto the exhaust and burn off, hence no sign of oil on the driveway after parking. He did say it would (obviously) cause smoke though, which I have never seen or smelled from my engine... odd. In the end, I think its a fair result... I wasn't going to refuse to pay the full amount, as it is nice to have it replaced preventatively (even if the severity of the leak was embellished) while the engine out, but also nice of them to acknowledge their stuff-up. Still not going to take my car back there. I'm not going to publish their name on here either... PM me if you're local to the Hutt and you desperately want to know. Thanks again guys. You know your stuff!

Marky, I'm aware I should have gotten a quote beforehand, and like I said, I have learned my lesson for next time. Not looking for a reason to rip him off either, just checking with the experts here that it is a fair price since it just struck me as quite high. Thanks for the feedback all. I'm going to query the rocker cover gaskets and head plugs since they weren't requested / authorized. Will share the result.

Good idea - I will ask about packaging. It was just a run of the mill, non-franchise mechanic.

Thanks, will ask about the rocker cover gaskets. Lesson has definitely been learned...

Thanks! Yeah it must be OEM parts... Either way, I'm heading over to the DIY section now!

Thanks guys - looks like I might have to suck the kumara on this one and get a quote next time!

I'm going to hold short of going on a rant here until I get some opinions, but the story is that I took my 2001 Legacy B4 to a mechanic (name withheld for now) to to get the cambelt, water pump, tensioners and sparks replaced, along with a service and WOF. That's all I asked for. Nothing more. No recommendations were made to me to do further work. I was prepared for a decent bill (high $1000 to $2000 I thought was reasonable), given that boxers are notorious for getting to the belts on, and there would be labour costs associated with it. What I wasn't prepared for was a bill of $2,855! I've itemised what was on the invoice... can someone with a bit more nous about cars than I have tell me if this seems reasonable for what I requested (there seems to be a few things I didn't ask for, but may have been required - I don't know. I was never asked.) Also 11 hours labour for this seems ridiculous. I mean, I know its not an easy engine to work on, but I thought 7-8ish would be more likely. [table] [tr][td]Item[/td][td]Qty[/td][td]Unit[/td][td]Subtotal[/td][td]GST[/td][td]Total[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Warrant of Fitness[/td][td]1[/td][td]$56.52[/td][td]$56.52[/td][td]$8.48[/td][td]$65.00[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Proflex GT1 5W-30[/td][td]5[/td][td]$19.90[/td][td]$99.50[/td][td]$14.93[/td][td]$114.43[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Oil Filter[/td][td]1[/td][td]$17.50[/td][td]$17.50[/td][td]$2.63[/td][td]$20.13[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Oil System Flush[/td][td]1[/td][td]$14.85[/td][td]$14.85[/td][td]$2.23[/td][td]$17.08[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Window Washer / Grease / Brake Fluid[/td][td]1[/td][td]$3.49[/td][td]$3.49[/td][td]$0.52[/td][td]$4.01[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Spark Plugs[/td][td]4[/td][td]$18.85[/td][td]$75.40[/td][td]$11.31[/td][td]$86.71[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Drive Belt[/td][td]1[/td][td]$36.30[/td][td]$36.30[/td][td]$5.45[/td][td]$41.75[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Cambelt Kit[/td][td]1[/td][td]$635.00[/td][td]$635.00[/td][td]$95.25[/td][td]$730.25[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Cam Seal[/td][td]4[/td][td]$19.50[/td][td]$78.00[/td][td]$11.70[/td][td]$89.70[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Oil Pump O Ring[/td][td]1[/td][td]$8.70[/td][td]$8.70[/td][td]$1.31[/td][td]$10.01[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Water Pump Kit Incl Thermostat[/td][td]1[/td][td]$199.50[/td][td]$199.50[/td][td]$29.93[/td][td]$229.43[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Rocker Cover Gasket Kit[/td][td]1[/td][td]$224.50[/td][td]$224.50[/td][td]$33.68[/td][td]$258.18[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Cylinder Head Plug[/td][td]4[/td][td]$14.00[/td][td]$56.00[/td][td]$8.40[/td][td]$64.40[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Antifreeze[/td][td]2.5[/td][td]$13.35[/td][td]$33.38[/td][td]$5.01[/td][td]$38.38[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Radiator Cap[/td][td]1[/td][td]$26.60[/td][td]$26.60[/td][td]$3.99[/td][td]$30.59[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Freight[/td][td]2[/td][td]$12.00[/td][td]$24.00[/td][td]$3.60[/td][td]$27.60[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Sundries[/td][td]1[/td][td]$25.00[/td][td]$25.00[/td][td]$3.75[/td][td]$28.75[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Labour[/td][td]11[/td][td]$79.00[/td][td]$869.00[/td][td]$130.35[/td][td]$999.35[/td][/tr] [tr][td][/td][/tr] [tr][td][/td][td][/td][td][/td][td]$2,483.24[/td][td]$372.49[/td][td]$2,855.72[/td][/tr] [/table] Am I being unreasonable, or is this steep? Either way, I think its time to learn how to do this myself! Appreciate any feedback.