Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting quick feedback re: repair costs

95 SE MTX. Needs new left bearing. Shop (Midas) says $225 total. They also told me yesterday that car needs major rear suspension work - new left spring, new struts left and right, new strut mounts left and right. I'm not sure why they never mentioned this before, but whatever. For all the work, including the bearing, the quote was $1,400-1,500.

Also, the advisor (maybe the store mgr.) said his technician does work on the side and he could probably do the work for around $900-1,000. I'm leaning toward this option.

Do these costs sound reasonable? I know some things on Contiques are pricey to fix, but this was much more than I was prepared to hear. I'm just trying to find out if this is a fair price, before I authorize the work.

I always advise to get a second opinion from another qualified technician.

I just put all 4 struts (Monroe, life-time warranty) and two front wheel bearings on a 95 Mystique. I did the labor myself, and ended up with less than $300 invested. I did not replace the strut mounts or springs.

There is a recall on some of the 95 Contours for defective springs. Don't know if your particular model qualifies or not. You should be able to run your VIN # through OASIS, and see.

The rear struts aren't all that hard to replace, and if you're replacing the struts, putting new springs and mounts would not take any extra labor at all. The front struts are a PITA, but the rear ones only took me about 2 hours each. I'm not a mechanic, so anyone who knows what they're doing can probably do it for less.

I'm not trying to talk you into or out of anything...just adding some information that might help...

Midas guy said most of the cost was in the parts (he wasn't specific), not the labor.

I wanted to get the car fixed right away so I could sell it to an interested buyer, but I think I need to have someone else look at it and give me an estimate. I'll probably get an estimate from a dealer, on the off chance that their price is lower than Midas'.

If the $225 is for a front 'new left bearing', that price is a bit high but still reasonable for a front wheel bearing. I agree with the above responses about the rear suspension.

yes, that was a front left bearing.

I called Suburban Ford in Waterford (formerly Flannery). They're gonna call back and give me their estimate on all the stuff Midas is recommending.

As far as price goes on struts, you can get a set of 4 from tire rack for 259 plus shipping. If it needs springs you can get new roush springs for 120 plus shipping. Strut mounts will run you close to another 100 bucks so you could have a new lowered suspension for less than 500 in parts. as for getting them installed, check the regional boards, you can probably find someone who knows what they are doing who will give you a hand or do it for cheap.

I think that 1400 - 1500 is a bit steep, and that the estimate of the guy that works on the side is a little more realistic.

I suggest getting estimates from a few other service centers.

Suburban Ford came in at about $1,250 for parts and labor for all of these new parts:

front left and right sway bar links
front left and right bearings
rear left and right springs (Midas quote excluded right rear spring)
rear left and right struts
rear left and right strut mounts
vehicle alignment

About half the estimate is labor and half is parts.

I'd rather $200 extra for a Ford dealer to do the work, give me official documentation, etc. vs. some guy doing the work on the side.

As a friend has said to me in the past "spend that money and you will double the value of the car".

If wheel bearing noisey it must be replaced, but not necessary to replace in pairs. Two hours labor the norm plus part ($40. ?).

You don't say, but is rear left spring broken? If so it must be replaced, but again not necessary to replace in pairs unless right is sagging.

Rear struts, mounts ??? Again you don't indicate bouncey, leaks or squeaks.

Front bearing or link replacement should not automatically require alignment, but of course periodic alignment good practice.

Didn't see mileage of car. Also, did dealer inspect car or was this a telephone quote?