Just changed injectors

[chevy bob]

Recently I had my 90 coupe in for servicing at the local Chevy dealership.The car was running rough and had an intermitant egr problem.After they checked it over,I was told the injectors and egr valve had to be changed.Total cost for this would be a little over $1700.00! Needless to say, I was a little upset but told them to go ahead.Although this is a 1990 model car,the fact is it only has 2400 actual miles on it!My question is- how long are these injectors supposed to last? I have heard and read on the forum that the injectors used in these vehicles were of poor quality and caused many problems,but certainly I would think they should last more than 2400 miles!The work was done at a reputable dealership and the service manager suggested I write a letter to the Chevrolet customer assistance center,and tell them about the problem.Well I wrote the letter and just got the responce.They said they could do nothing for me sinse the the car was no longer under warranty.Big help!My question now is-can I write to some other G.M. department to complain about this problem?Surely G.M. should take some responcibility for defective parts like this.I'm new to the forum and am anxiously awaiting some advise.Thanks in advance.

 

[Vettelt193]

Recently I had my 90 coupe in for servicing at the local Chevy dealership.The car was running rough and had an intermitant egr problem.After they checked it over,I was told the injectors and egr valve had to be changed.Total cost for this would be a little over $1700.00! Needless to say, I was a little upset but told them to go ahead.Although this is a 1990 model car,the fact is it only has 2400 actual miles on it!My question is- how long are these injectors supposed to last? I have heard and read on the forum that the injectors used in these vehicles were of poor quality and caused many problems,but certainly I would think they should last more than 2400 miles!The work was done at a reputable dealership and the service manager suggested I write a letter to the Chevrolet customer assistance center,and tell them about the problem.Well I wrote the letter and just got the responce.They said they could do nothing for me sinse the the car was no longer under warranty.Big help!My question now is-can I write to some other G.M. department to complain about this problem?Surely G.M. should take some responcibility for defective parts like this.I'm new to the forum and am anxiously awaiting some advise.Thanks in advance.

Assuming they replaced all of them, it probably wasn't the injectors that were defective. Lack of use can kill fuel systems (along with many other things on a car)... Low miles doesn't = 0 problems, it can actually be quite the opposite good luck no matter what

 

[Edmond]

Assuming they replaced all of them, it probably wasn't the injectors that were defective. Lack of use can kill fuel systems (along with many other things on a car)... Low miles doesn't = 0 problems, it can actually be quite the opposite good luck no matter what

I echo your setiments!

The car is a 1990 model so if you're expecting GM to foot the bill on a car that's 15 years old that has 2400 miles, it ain't gonna happen.

On the other hand, you could've done it yourself for less than 1/3 of that cost. It's not hard work, more of a PITA than anything else to get to the EGR and injectors.

 

[tnovot]

I agree totally with what others have already said. And you really don't even know for sure if it WAS the injectors which caused the poor idle. It could have been the EGR, especially if the car has been started frequently and run cold for short periods of time. When you repair (change) more than one thing at a time to fix a problem, you don't know what caused the problem. Most do-it-yourselfers use good diagonostic techniques to make only one change at a time so they know which change actually caused the problem in the first place.
It could have even been a vacuum leak or something else which got fixed coincidently with the other work.
As for getting GM to help pay for this, do you still believe in the Easter Bunny? Assuming the original problem(s) is fixed, just write it off and get your money's worth of enjoyment from driving the car.

 

[Heavy Duty]

$1700.00 isn't a bad price considering the car is paid for and it is 15 years old and just like the others said, these cars where not made to just sit in the garage. Next to driving the car into a lake, letting them sit up isn't good either. I just got through spending $6500.00 for paint and interior work on my C4. Now i am fixing to move on to doing some engine work to include R&R the injectors and EGR. Since the car is running great i'll wait until the winter to do those. Don't want to miss out on the summer fun.


H.D.

 

[Vettefan87]

I want to say I got my injectors cleaned, and all the rings replaced for a couple hundred bucks, and my new EGR was not that expensive. Got to love those labor fee's huh? Around here the local Corvette shop is over 70 dollars an hour :eek

 

[chevy bob]

thought it was worth a try

Thanks for the input,I knew it was a longshot but thought it was worth a try.Although it's a 15 year old car,I,ve only owned it for a couple months and it looks and feels like a new car and with only 2400 miles on it you can certainly see why.I guess long term storage can hurt as well as help a car.Oh well,its running fine now and it will be driven.

 

[Chris Kennedy]

Thanks for the input,I knew it was a longshot but thought it was worth a try.Although it's a 15 year old car,I,ve only owned it for a couple months and it looks and feels like a new car and with only 2400 miles on it you can certainly see why.I guess long term storage can hurt as well as help a car.Oh well,its running fine now and it will be driven.

I have read and seen the most contradictory stuff on changing injectors. If it's not too much trouble, could you list the components of the $1700 bill (e.g., injectors cost $X, EGR valve $X, labor $X etc.)?

Thanks,

/s/ Chris Kennedy
Houston, Texas

 

[Edmond]

I have read and seen the most contradictory stuff on changing injectors. If it's not too much trouble, could you list the components of the $1700 bill (e.g., injectors cost $X, EGR valve $X, labor $X etc.)?

Thanks,

/s/ Chris Kennedy
Houston, Texas

Chris,

Don't most shops have a book with time estimates on how long a particular job will take? Even if they take less time to do the job, they still charge you the full time.

We're probably talking at least $80 an hour labor!

 

[Chris Kennedy]

Chris,

Don't most shops have a book with time estimates on how long a particular job will take? Even if they take less time to do the job, they still charge you the full time.

We're probably talking at least $80 an hour labor!

I suspect you're correct, but I still wonder what is being charged for parts and labor. My impression is that GM charges an ungodly amount for injectors, but that perfectly good ones are available for a fraction of the cost (I see that both MidAmerica and Corvette Central charge between $300-$400 for a complete set). In addition, I am going to check my factory manual to see what is entailed in changing them.

/s/ Chris Kennedy

 

[Edmond]

I suspect you're correct, but I still wonder what is being charged for parts and labor. My impression is that GM charges an ungodly amount for injectors, but that perfectly good ones are available for a fraction of the cost (I see that both MidAmerica and Corvette Central charge between $300-$400 for a complete set). In addition, I am going to check my factory manual to see what is entailed in changing them.

/s/ Chris Kennedy

Chris,

I agree with you. Call me a cynic, but I don't think the dealership is going to charge a customer cost for the injectors. They will charge however much it would cost if the customer bought the injectors at the parts counter.

In addition to that, most shops will not allow you to bring your parts in to have them install it.

 

[Chris Kennedy]

On the C4 Technical Forum I got into a bit of a debate with another gentleman on how it seems that the auto repair industry is the last major consumer industry due for a major overhaul. For all their faults, Ebay and the internet have revolutionized for the better many things to do with buying and selling cars and auto parts, as it is now possible to overcome the tyranny of your local suppliers and dealers and tap into a truly global market. Subject to verification, from what people have told me the price of injectors from your GM dealer is totally out of line with what you can find elsewhere, AND you are not sacrificing quality. Something which also can also be interesting to do is to compare the price that many Goodyear Tire Stores will sell you a tire at, and the price of that same Goodyear Tire over TireRack. In both cases you can get the tire warranteed, and TireRack will ship it to an installer. While some Goodyear outlets will meet the TireRack price, many don't come anywhere near it. My point is that the situation for people like us for the cars we have has never been better, as far as parts are concerned, now if someone can think of a way to similarly revolutionize the auto repair industry. Hey, look at all the information advantages provided to us by the internet in Forums such as this!


/s/ Chris Kennedy

 

[Edmond]

Something which also can also be interesting to do is to compare the price that many Goodyear Tire Stores will sell you a tire at, and the price of that same Goodyear Tire over TireRack. In both cases you can get the tire warranteed, and TireRack will ship it to an installer. While some Goodyear outlets will meet the TireRack price, many don't come anywhere near it.

Very true. And those Good Year dealerships had better watch out because Tire Rack is getting bigger and so is Discount Tire. The days of the local shops bullying people and charging outrageous prices are getting shorter and shorter.

 

[chevy bob]

price breakdown

Here is a price breakdown for all work done on my car.The injectors cost $1040.00,egr valve $83.84,gaskets $20.69.Total for parts $1144.53.Labor cost $450.00.Grand total with tax $1716.85.I did consider aftermarket injectors,and was told that they didn't have good luck with them.Also thought about doing the work myself but I'm not experienced with the c-4s.I've owned a c-1 c-2 and c-3 and have been able to work on all of them but the c-4 is a whole new ballgame for me,so I just let the dealership do the job.To be honest,I was shocked at the price of these injectors,$130.00 apiece,but when you have the Chevy dealer do the job,they will use only Chevy parts.In the future,I will try to learn more about c-4 and maybe do some of my own work.Thanks again for all the input.

 

[tntcorvette]

Here is a price breakdown for all work done on my car.The injectors cost $1040.00,egr valve $83.84,gaskets $20.69.Total for parts $1144.53.Labor cost $450.00.Grand total with tax $1716.85.I did consider aftermarket injectors,and was told that they didn't have good luck with them.Also thought about doing the work myself but I'm not experienced with the c-4s.I've owned a c-1 c-2 and c-3 and have been able to work on all of them but the c-4 is a whole new ballgame for me,so I just let the dealership do the job.To be honest,I was shocked at the price of these injectors,$130.00 apiece,but when you have the Chevy dealer do the job,they will use only Chevy parts.In the future,I will try to learn more about c-4 and maybe do some of my own work.Thanks again for all the input.

Save some money and stay away from the dealer!

You can get new ford svo 22 or 24lb injectors for ~$250 and the egr is ~$80 so we are talking ~$330.00

 

[Jeb]

"The injectors cost $1040.00"

That's outrageous!

 

[Edmond]

Are you sure they didn't point a gun at your head when they asked you for the money?:L

$1000 for injectors is ridiculous. Like TNT said, a lot of the guys here went with SVO injectors and have really liked them.

$83 for an EGR valve is $20 too much. I called the dealership last summer about an EGR valve and they wanted $60.

Don't worry about the C4 being hard to work on. I had apprehensive about working on my C4 myself but there is a lot of knowledge and experience in this forum that gave me the confidence to do the work myself. There are members here who have done the work before and their experience really helps.

Don't ever be afraid to ask how to do something here, that's what we're here for.

 

[Chris Kennedy]

Here is a price breakdown for all work done on my car.The injectors cost $1040.00,egr valve $83.84,gaskets $20.69.Total for parts $1144.53.Labor cost $450.00.Grand total with tax $1716.85.I did consider aftermarket injectors,and was told that they didn't have good luck with them.Also thought about doing the work myself but I'm not experienced with the c-4s.I've owned a c-1 c-2 and c-3 and have been able to work on all of them but the c-4 is a whole new ballgame for me,so I just let the dealership do the job.To be honest,I was shocked at the price of these injectors,$130.00 apiece,but when you have the Chevy dealer do the job,they will use only Chevy parts.In the future,I will try to learn more about c-4 and maybe do some of my own work.Thanks again for all the input.

Thanks for the info.----I understand your situation as, I too, had to get a "feel" and comfort with the car before I felt competent working on it. But that time will come for you, too! One of the reasons I asked the question is that I am approaching auto repair a little differently now, and considering sources I might not have in the past. Hence the question on costs. Take care, and enjoy and DRIVE your car!

/s/ Chris Kennedy
Houston, Texas

 

[Jeb]

http://www.fiveomotorsport.com/Injector_SetsTPI.asp

 

[Edmond]

http://www.fiveomotorsport.com/Injector_SetsTPI.asp

Cool site! Have you used them? What was your experience?