cheapest place to remove mid muffler?
 

Hi guys, just looking for an affordable place to remove mid muffler, and possibly install resonator. Nothing to fancy to my car, just want a bit more growl. Any advice? and how any places with experience with pricing for each removal and installation?

I'm assuming people are going to recommend Quiet Muffler or Muffler Man on kingsway

^end thread.

Strong Brake in Surrey :accepted:

So which one is better of the 2?
Quiet Muffler gave me a slightly cheaper quote, and had better customer service on the phone, telling me it should take less than an hour.

While MM said it all depends on the exhaust and car and he can't tell until I bring my car in.

That being said, if there's any horror stories for Quiet Muffler, I would rather pay more (and drive farther) to get it done at MM.

Hoegler's Muffler City

130-5711 No. 3 Rd, Richmond, BC V6X 2C9

Muffler Man's price is 60$ a pipe which is pretty good

You get what you pay for. I haven't been to those places so i'm sure they are fine but i went to a cheap place once and when i got a chance to look at the welds, they were absolutely horrible and i had to get it re-done. Lesson learned.

Just used them 2 weeks ago, pretty happy with the work.
Have used muffler man before, not bad but they're really far away from me

As I always say about threads like this, you go to Muffler Man for shit work, but its quick and cheap. They fucked up my shit twice.

I went to Quiet Muffler & Brake for a simple exhaust install because after calling a few places, they gave me the cheapest hourly rate at $80.

Before going in, I was already expecting to get charged the minimum 1 hour rate. But when it came to payment time, he charged me $120, even though he took about 1 hour to get the job done.

I was actually there in the office from start to end, watching my car being serviced, and took a picture when my car was being hoisted up on the car lift in the beginning (so I had a time stamp).

My car was up in the air for about 15 mins before any actual work began. Later, the boss tells my technician to order pizza for the staff for lunch. Then he kills more time chatting with the other staff working on the adjacent car. Felt like this guy had ADD or something. Just couldn't focus working on my car for more than 5 mins at a time before going off doing something miscellaneous. It was pretty obvious he was milking time.

I was checking the clock thinking, it is a minimum of 1 hour charge. I figured he will dick around to use at least a full hour. And I was right. After using up 45 mins to remove my OEM exhaust (which he did in about 15 mins), he took the last 15-20 mins with full focus to put on my aftermarket exhaust. I thought it was fine, at least it was done in about an hour.

When he came back to the office to give me the price, he caught me off guard as I was quoted for $120. Technically, the full start to end took about 1 hr 10 mins (estimate). I have already waited for a long time (3-hr "line up") to get my car serviced, and I didn't want to start a shit-storm and bring up the fact he was dicking around in the beginning, so I just paid it. Plus I was pretty excited about the new exhaust and really just wanted take my car and go.

But now thinking in hindsight, should I have caused a commotion? My car was hoisted up in the air for about 15 mins before it even began to be worked on. Does this count? He wasn't diligent in the first 3/4 of the time. Not to mention, I was there watching the whole process. He knew I was there, and still ripped me off in front of my face. Imagine if I dropped off the car and came back later, like what most people would do.

Or is this pretty much how it is for any car shop and something like this should have been expected? This is my first time dealing with a shop where it's open access and I can actually see what the techs are doing.

Service wise, everything was alright. I figured you couldn't really mess up a basic exhaust job, and I would have done it myself if I had all the tools. The people there were friendly and I didn't have any other issues other than the price.

Did you not get a receipt breaking down what you paid for (time, materials, shop supplies, taxe, etc)? Was the quote for $120 or $80?

Next time you should set up a camera and record the whole process to the millisecond. Also bring a megaphone to remind the employee that he is to have no social contact with anyone. Being charged for 1.5 hours instead of 1.166667 is unacceptable. Have you considered contacting Steele on your side?

No receipt. There wasn't anything to break down.
I brought my own exhaust that didn't need any modifying. He just needed to take out my OEM exhaust, and put in this new one in.

Time should be the only thing I'm paying for, which he said was $80/hr.
when he charged me $120, I assumed it was because 1.5 hr. Unless it's typical for shops to slap on a $40 "hidden fee" for them to use their shop supplies or something. I also paid "cash discount" which just means no tax, since a few people on this forum mentioned they offer that.

Yeah, you're right. Working on a customer car for 0.5 hours, milking it to 1.166667 hours, and then charging the customer 1.5 hours is absolutely unacceptable. I haven't tried contacting Steele yet, but for something minor like $40, I'm thinking just a poor yelp review should suffice.

why didnt you just go muffler man up the block?
its quick and cheap

there's always more to a charge than just time. there is shop materials that go into most any job. from heat and lube to free stuck bolts, gaskets that your kit perhaps didnt have, sealant possibly bolts to replace yours that may have been fucked and hangers. just cus you saw the time he spent physically under your car doesnt mean you saw ALL the time or supplies he spent on your car.

that is why it is prudent for you as the unsatisfied client to bring up these issues at point of payment. a bad yelp review could just fuck him when all he was doing is help you.

Lastly the cheapest place almost never quotes for these things over the phone. Thats why they seem so cheap.

Ive had experience with both and i prefer muffler man the customer service/communication is more clear and pleasant

Plus you get to watch up close and personal when they do the job i like that

Thanks, that's all I really needed to know. Like I said, this is my first time getting work done at a shop where I was able to get up close and watch (and time) it. In the past, I've always just taken my car to the dealership to get work done.

My kit isn't some cheap eBay exhaust. It had everything included, gaskets, new bolts, etc. I wasn't sure what's considered "standard" in this industry, so no reason for me to bring up "issues" unless they actually were. I don't really care for Yelp. I don't use it. Sarcastic response for a sarcastic post.

That's why I'm trying to get info in here, and based on this thread, turns out they aren't issues and being charged more is normal because:




underscore: Care to explain the fail? I'm just trying to learn the ropes in dealing with private shops. I don't think I was going to get an invoice sheet breaking down the list of services. Technically, only one job was done.
:considered:

^
Seems like you should've confirmed actual labor time that was going to be charged first, not just the shop labor rate.
Most automotive jobs aren't charged by how long technicians actually take, instead they use a standardized labor time for certain jobs. This time may vary from shop to shop depending on what they feel comfortable charging you with. Also varies a lot from car to car depending on difficulty.

muffler man for cheap

mda for quality.

Sure, since you seem like a relatively nice guy :)

You were unhappy about the price, but you didn't bother to ask how they got to it or why it was different from the quote. Instead of guessing after the fact it would make a lot more sense to simply ask when you're presented with the bill. Generally most shops won't mind explaining how they came to their cost.

In this case also consider that the bit your paid above the quote is still likely less than if you paid full price, just something to keep in mind.

Was most of the "milking it" done shortly after your car was put in the air? I can't say for sure, but I wouldn't be surprised if at least part of that time was waiting for stuff like anti-seize to work on crusty old bolts before starting. It's just a guess though as I wasn't there.

I'm guessing this isn't serious, but if it is give your head a shake.