4 Hours Labour for changing 2 alternator belts??

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admisi

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I've been charged 4 hours labor for changing 2 alternator belts on twin Volvo Penta KAD300 engines on my Cranchi. That seems excessive, and after questioning it, they have told me that it was for 2 mechanics over 2 hours. I have no real idea on the amount of work required to do this job, it's always so difficult for those of us with no mechanical experience and unless we stand there while they do the work, we have to hope that we are not being ripped off. I would really appreciate your views.
 
I have changed an alternator belt while bouncing around at sea in a hot engine room in about half an hour. Unless yours are particularly difficult to get at, and required significant dismantling, I would say they are taking the pee. Two blokes, two hour to change two belts. Nice work if you can get it.
 
You must have a really spacious engine room that you can fit two mechanics in working simultaneously. That or the second one was very busy handing out spanners and making brews. Ex motorway navvies perchance? HTH
 
CLB said:
I have changed an alternator belt while bouncing around at sea in a hot engine room in about half an hour. Unless yours are particularly difficult to get at, and required significant dismantling, I would say they are taking the pee. Two blokes, two hour to change two belts. Nice work if you can get it.
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If Port Solent,
Go to marina office get keys, go to boat access engine bay may need to remove other belts to access alt belts, remove alt belts fit new and tension refit other belts and tension. run up engines and check belts shut down boat. Have a look around return keys to office return to workshop fill out job cards and have a brew. Simple! four hour max two hours per fitter
 
But is it really a two person job. As mentioned above. Where is the second person. I have lost count of the number of belts I have changed, including on a KAD300, and gaining access to the engine aside, the job has never required a second person and never taken me four hours. Not saying it's not possible to spread this job out and make it a four hour job, just that it seems unlikely to have required four man hours unless there were special circumstances.
 
What model Cranchi? My Smeraldo 37 has buckets of space, making it even easier for one person to work in.

The alternator belt is the last belt to come off, I think. I work on my own engines and am certainly no professional, but i'd do all the belts (on one engine) in about 30 mins. However, that is provided that there are no tight bolts etc. - issues could have been: rounded nuts on the tensioners, seized bolts on the alternator / steering pump... any of these acting up and you could easily add 1 - 2 hours!
 
alt said:
What model Cranchi? My Smeraldo 37 has buckets of space, making it even easier for one person to work in.

The alternator belt is the last belt to come off, I think. I work on my own engines and am certainly no professional, but i'd do all the belts (on one engine) in about 30 mins. However, that is provided that there are no tight bolts etc. - issues could have been: rounded nuts on the tensioners, seized bolts on the alternator / steering pump... any of these acting up and you could easily add 1 - 2 hours!
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I agree with all of that, but I would have expected them to quantify the four man hours if there were special circumstances, such as those you mention.
 
stelican said:
If Port Solent,
Go to marina office get keys, go to boat access engine bay may need to remove other belts to access alt belts, remove alt belts fit new and tension refit other belts and tension. run up engines and check belts shut down boat. Have a look around return keys to office return to workshop fill out job cards and have a brew. Simple! four hour max two hours per fitter
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This is actually not that way out
With elfnsavety sending one man to work on machinery could be a thing of the past
 
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To echo some of the other comments and not knowing your boat it seems a bit odd to send out 2 mechanics for this type of job and unlikely that they could both work at the same time in a confined space.

I have changed an impellor on a 4.2 dl mercruiser which involves removing power steering pump and belt before alternator belt can come off. Max time 1 hour for a ham fisted gorilla?

Personally I think they are taking the proverbial ?
 
4 hours for changing 2 alternator belts - sounds like the behaviour of Solent/Hamble based company who used to work on my boat. I told them where to go in the end. Bunch of crooks.
 
thecommander said:
4 hours for changing 2 alternator belts - sounds like the behaviour of Solent/Hamble based company who used to work on my boat. I told them where to go in the end. Bunch of crooks.
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Along the line of maintenance cost, allow me to side track the thread a bit and let me tell my experience as a Volvo user living outside UK. I now live in Hong Kong where there is only one sole agent here handling all Volvo marine engines, other local mechanics dare not touch the Volvos as they do not have access at all to the Volvo computer diagnostic gadgets. I am being charged by the Hong Kong dealer HK$43,000, equivalent to approx.GBP3,600, for the routine 300 hours maintenance work on my pair of D6 as required by the factory warranty. This is inclusive of parts and labour. My last boat had Cummins and the maintenance was far less. I wonder what would be the equivalent charge in UK.
 
Just the belts or does other gear have to be replaced in order for dealer to cover his bottom when something totally unrelated fails and owners start to kick off about last person to touch boat becoming responsible for all future problems with boat.
We have curious problem in my trade that somebody will spent tens/hundreds of thousands buying an expensive piece of kit and then whinge plaintively about having to cough up a few hundreds getting something really vital serviced or fixed...:)
 
Two hours Per alternator belt is really taking the pee!!!
All you have to do is undo the tensioners and remove the belt and place on the new one!!!
I did my Kad32 alternator belt last week and it only took me 30 mins and I had to take off the supercharger belt first to ge the alternator belt off.
I had never done it before and it's not quite the same engine but an experienced mechanic who will have done it a few times before and have the correct tools with him should do it easily and quickly.
TWO HOURS PER BELT !!!!!!!!!!!! Unbelievable !!!!!!
The Marine industry in a lot of areas is a massive rip off...!! Look at the price of chandlers, marine engineers, yacht brokers fees (they don't do much for there money!!) berth fees £6500/ hamble!!! , Volvo penta parts!! £40 for a filter!! Is it made of gold??
Service on my two vp engines over £1200 !!! They are just two glorified truck engines!!!
Hence why I'm going to do as much work as I can! I don't like been bent over a barrel!!
Good luck!
 
Oh! I would get another quote for the same job from someone else so you can have an idea what a marine eng would charge time wise. Then I would ask your current eng company to explain why it took 4 hrs!? Why do you need two people on the job? They would just get in each other's way?
A car mechanic could have a car engine removed out of a car in less than that time!!
 
I
Simonc733@gmail.com said:
Two hours Per alternator belt is really taking the pee!!!
All you have to do is undo the tensioners and remove the belt and place on the new one!!!
I did my Kad32 alternator belt last week and it only took me 30 mins and I had to take off the supercharger belt first to ge the alternator belt off.
I had never done it before and it's not quite the same engine but an experienced mechanic who will have done it a few times before and have the correct tools with him should do it easily and quickly.
TWO HOURS PER BELT !!!!!!!!!!!! Unbelievable !!!!!!
The Marine industry in a lot of areas is a massive rip off...!! Look at the price of chandlers, marine engineers, yacht brokers fees (they don't do much for there money!!) berth fees £6500/ hamble!!! , Volvo penta parts!! £40 for a filter!! Is it made of gold??
Service on my two vp engines over £1200 !!! They are just two glorified truck engines!!!
Hence why I'm going to do as much work as I can! I don't like been bent over a barrel!!
Good luck!
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" Glorified truck engines " just shows your lack of knowledge on the kad series and Volvo engines in general .
Never has the 2.4 or 3.6 litre block been used for any other applications other than pure marine use.
I suggest you tread wisely working on your investment. While I don't agree with two men and 4 hours to change 2 belts , no where has travel time or location of the boat in relation to the company slagged off been disclosed . No company can travel to site for nothing .
 
Simonc733@gmail.com said:
Oh! I would get another quote for the same job from someone else so you can have an idea what a marine eng would charge time wise. Then I would ask your current eng company to explain why it took 4 hrs!? Why do you need two people on the job? They would just get in each other's way?
A car mechanic could have a car engine removed out of a car in less than that time!!
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One for lanerboy here , he runs a garage and unless it's a Morris 1000 I doubt many modern cars have a labour time of 4 hours to remove an engine . Most modern vehicles now have to have total sub assemblies dropped to allow access for clutch and alike tasks. The V6 diesel discovery has to have the body removed to allow the cylinder heads to be taken off.
 
admisi said:
I've been charged 4 hours labor for changing 2 alternator belts on twin Volvo Penta KAD300 engines on my Cranchi. That seems excessive, and after questioning it, they have told me that it was for 2 mechanics over 2 hours. I have no real idea on the amount of work required to do this job, it's always so difficult for those of us with no mechanical experience and unless we stand there while they do the work, we have to hope that we are not being ripped off. I would really appreciate your views.
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As for an itemised labour bill?? No reason why you shouldn't also ask in a friendly way why two engineers, and why four hours...?
 
volvopaul said:
One for lanerboy here , he runs a garage and unless it's a Morris 1000 I doubt many modern cars have a labour time of 4 hours to remove an engine . Most modern vehicles now have to have total sub assemblies dropped to allow access for clutch and alike tasks. The V6 diesel discovery has to have the body removed to allow the cylinder heads to be taken off.
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On my wife's Bimmer (E60), a rear brake pipe had corroded. Total cost of parts, £35 ish. Labour, £640. They had to remove the rear suspension, refit and align. After a bit of discussion, the labour cost came down to £350, to fit a £35 part. I still felt somewhat peeved, as this is the first time I had ever had to change a brake pipe, and I felt that it was not fit for purpose. It clearly had not been designed as a serviceable or maintenance part. Done lots of hoses in the dim and distant past, and would normally assume pipes good for 10+ years. Makes £400 for 2 alternator belts appear good value :)
 
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