[mechanixhorseman]

Per the dealer, they say its 13 labor hours.

I understand that you have to take off the skid plate, dps, exhaust, and disconnect the oil system that runs to them, but this doesn't seem like a 13 hour job. What am I missing?

[Juiced46]

Waterpump, tstat housing, charge air pipes, coolant lines, expansion tank, manifolds, vacuum lines, oil feed and return lines, etc etc. Plus its a tight fit, stuff is hard to get at. Warranty time I believe is 12.9 hours for both, 17.0 standard time.

[vasillalov]

17 hours times $95.00 (average labor cost in dealerships) = $1615 just for labor!

If you ever have to do this replacement you are better off at an independent shop and buying your own parts.

[David1]

I have seen it done by pulling the motor. Faster that way from what my tech says.

[chromisdesigns]

I thought pulling the engine was standard for replacing turbos. That's what I always read in the forums when somebody had it done.

[boostd92]

Originally Posted by vasillalov

17 hours times $95.00 (average labor cost in dealerships) = $1615 just for labor!

Ha! Average where? My dealership's labor rate is $142/hr, and that's about average for this area (Chicago).

Most indy shops are $90-$100/hr.

[hotrod182]

Originally Posted by mechanixhorseman

Per the dealer, they say its 13 labor hours.

I understand that you have to take off the skid plate, dps, exhaust, and disconnect the oil system that runs to them, but this doesn't seem like a 13 hour job. What am I missing?

You are missing the joy of doing it yourself! Try it, you won't feel like they are overcharging when you realize the time it takes you.

[Tiago@VRSF]

Originally Posted by hotrod182

You are missing the joy of doing it yourself! Try it, you won't feel like they are overcharging when you realize the time it takes you.

Or you will appreciate how much they charge you when it takes you twice as long

[mechanixhorseman]

Originally Posted by hotrod182

You are missing the joy of doing it yourself! Try it, you won't feel like they are overcharging when you realize the time it takes you.

I actually was thinking of doing it myself just for the fact that it would be a huge learning experience. The only thing that is keeping me from doing it, is the fear of screwing something up on it. I've got the Bentley manual, a backup ride, a lift and an engine lift. Now I just need the balls to do it myself.

[faded67]

Originally Posted by boostd92

Ha! Average where? My dealership's labor rate is $142/hr, and that's about average for this area (Chicago).

Most indy shops are $90-$100/hr.

^ yup. A "good" indy shop here is $100/hr +

[Kevin@AKMotorwerk]

its not a quick job, removing all the parts, jacking the engine up, removing the motor mount to make clearance, everything. its not something you are going to want to take on unless you are confident in your mechanical skills, or have a good friend that works for beer and knows his stuff

[BOOSTED4DR]

Originally Posted by Kevin@AKMotorwerk

its not a quick job, removing all the parts, jacking the engine up, removing the motor mount to make clearance, everything. its not something you are going to want to take on unless you are confident in your mechanical skills, or have a good friend that works for beer and knows his stuff

Hey Kevin you know your stuff and i always have beer you wanna help me out sometimes LOL....JKnnn....i was told its a big job...

[shifterboy45]

Originally Posted by hotrod182

You are missing the joy of doing it yourself! Try it, you won't feel like they are overcharging when you realize the time it takes you.

so true..

ive alway wondered why a 2.5 hour medical CAT scan costs a few thousand dollars too .. what the hell am i getting for my money ... i dont even get the spec sheets when they are done --

just a joke..

[shifterboy45]

Originally Posted by mechanixhorseman

I actually was thinking of doing it myself just for the fact that it would be a huge learning experience. The only thing that is keeping me from doing it, is the fear of screwing something up on it. I've got the Bentley manual, a backup ride, a lift and an engine lift. Now I just need the balls to do it myself.

as a tech (in my past life) I would encourage you to do the job only if you have sufficient skills -- taking on a job like this, the biggest worry is not if ... but how many broken, misplaced, or damaged parts will result from the operation. and do you have the proper special tools for the job, u will find that BMW has a lot of special tools (not saying you cant work around it), that will speed up the job and make it less of a hassle in the long run.

if you have never done a job like this expect to double the book time and then add time for additional parts runs for sh*t that happens. a tech doing this for the first time will not, unless he is real good, meet or beat the warranty time, thats why the traditional time guides add 20-25% to warranty time for independent shop.. and remember, the dealer normally has a good stock of ancilliary parts, so if something does go wrong (and it does more often than not) they can walk to the parts counter, pick up the part and continue on with the job. oil lines and fitting dont cooperate, coolant hoses are sometimes difficult to remove and some plastic parts give way to a little more stress than they are designed for.

but if you do intend to do the job, talk to someone that has done the job before (recently) and ask for some pointers, and identify all your problem areas (yeah man, i was takin off xx and yy snapped off) learn by others experience and ask which (if any) special tool made the job easier. above all if youre not familiar with the cars engine bay and accessories, take pictures of the assemblies before you disassemble them -- so you will have a refernce point if this takes a day or two to finish...

[itsbrokeagain]

I did one set while working for the dealer, and while I was new at it, I had them replaced in 15 hours. When you look at it, it's fairly straightforward, but when you get into it it's all the little bs stuff that eats up the time.

I will be doing an upgraded set come the end of this month, so it should be fun.

[GMWNashville]

it takes quite a while...getting the coolant and oil lines out is the hardest part..i swear the orings like weld themselves in there haha!

[Tman1800]

I am a Diesel Mechanic the factory sets up how long a job should take. A shop can use other places to get the labor rate such as Mitchelle, or Chilton. But they are close to what the factory sets. The job says 13 hours but if the mechanic has done a few before he will learn quick ways of doing it n may be able to do it under the time. If he does that is money in his pocket because 9 times out of 10 he is getting "Flag" time...

[Sniz]

Originally Posted by shifterboy45

as a tech (in my past life) I would encourage you to do the job only if you have sufficient skills -- taking on a job like this, the biggest worry is not if ... but how many broken, misplaced, or damaged parts will result from the operation. and do you have the proper special tools for the job, u will find that BMW has a lot of special tools (not saying you cant work around it), that will speed up the job and make it less of a hassle in the long run.

if you have never done a job like this expect to double the book time and then add time for additional parts runs for sh*t that happens. a tech doing this for the first time will not, unless he is real good, meet or beat the warranty time, thats why the traditional time guides add 20-25% to warranty time for independent shop.. and remember, the dealer normally has a good stock of ancilliary parts, so if something does go wrong (and it does more often than not) they can walk to the parts counter, pick up the part and continue on with the job. oil lines and fitting dont cooperate, coolant hoses are sometimes difficult to remove and some plastic parts give way to a little more stress than they are designed for.

but if you do intend to do the job, talk to someone that has done the job before (recently) and ask for some pointers, and identify all your problem areas (yeah man, i was takin off xx and yy snapped off) learn by others experience and ask which (if any) special tool made the job easier. above all if youre not familiar with the cars engine bay and accessories, take pictures of the assemblies before you disassemble them -- so you will have a refernce point if this takes a day or two to finish...

good post, this is the truth


tackle this job on your own only if you have at least a FULL weekend to work on the car, have access to all the tools you'll ever need AND are willing to make runs to a close dealership for parts.

you will break things or find that parts are not reusable, it goes with the territory. Go search my build thread to see why i'm saying this, it never works out smoothly.

[bdkevoIX]

13 hours is a long time!!

It takes evo about 1/2 hour to pull the turbo out. Sometimes, simpler is better!

[jpsimon]

book time for the xi is even worse, I think 17 hours! you have to remove a bunch more suspension bits including the axel etc..

[itsbrokeagain]

Originally Posted by bdkevoIX

13 hours is a long time!!

It takes evo about 1/2 hour to pull the turbo out. Sometimes, simpler is better!

You think that's a long time, try replacing the high pressure pump line for the Active Body Control on an 02 S600. Step 1 is remove engine, which they give you 25 hours to do just that. Then once the engine and trans is down on the tray, then remove the line off the engine, which they give you another 5 hrs.

I did it a faster way with the engine still in the car and it took 19 hrs total.

[OpenFlash]

Definitely not a DIY job unless you have experience AND the right tools. I'd imagine that a lot of shade-tree mechanics will quit half-way into the job

Shiv