I took my 2000 gxe to the dealer for a bunch of problems and after $330, this is the list of things they say is wrong and need to be replaced, for an additional $3300.

front and rear brakes $328
ECU program(?) $70
radiator $365
rear thermostat $160
Both strut mounts $351
Trans pan gasket $115
Collector valve $484
Plus labor

Now I dont know a lot about all of this, but the dealer told my husband a few weeks ago that the thermostat would cost $94 if he wanted the to order it for him. My husband also found a radiator on line for $198. And what are the strut mounts? My husband, again, is going to replace all four shocks. does he have to do the mounts too? how much money can I save by having my husband do the work, except the internal stuff, and trying to find some of these parts online or from you guys? I would appreciate any help you can give me. Thanks

 

Dealers makes most of their profits from their service department, I would just bring the car to a privatly owned auto shop or a trust worthy mechanic to do the job, it would be atleast 50% off the dealer price (From my persona experience).

If your husband is good with cars, then there's no reason why he shouldn't do it himself, except i dunno know he's gonna do the ECU without the proper equipment.

 

isnt that a lot of crap thats wrong with it? wouldnt this be warranty work unless you're over 36000 miles?

 

just FYI, the car has 170,000 miles on it. My husband tried to reset the ECU by disconnecting the battery and letting it sit all night. we'll see how it feels when i drive it today. Does anyone in southern california know of a good, reputable shop to refer me to? I'm close to Riverside/San Bernardino area. Thanks

 

damn, thats a lot of miles for a 2000!

 

on my 2k, I had a leaking transmission gasket (2x). You'd see the leak in your driveway.

The strut mounts were covered by the TSB for them. this only affected early 2k's. You would hear clunking if they were bad.

radiator? with 170K, unsure.. seems early for a 4 year old car. If any big service intervals were done w/ coolant flush, you'd probably not need this. fishy

Collector valve? huh? fishy to say the least.

ECU programming is for O2 sensors, you'd see a service engine soon light and also probably need a new sensor. alittle fishy..

 

there is/has been a clunking sound in the suspension. my husband thought it was the shocks. how do i find the TSB for that and do i need to take it to the dealer to get them to fix them for nothing? if thats even what i do. do i just have the O2 sensors replaced then, if the ecu thing is going on? i did have the check engine light on for a long time. now that you mentin it, there isnt a spot on the driveway. hmmm. and please tell me about that collecter thing. i know nothing and am at the mercy of the dealer. i know enough to realize that is not a good place to be. thanks, tim and all, for your feedback...

 

Wow, that many miles. Amazing that's a lot of work that is needed. I never heard of a rear thermostat. Since all cars only have one thermostat that is connected on your engine block to the radiator hose. The only way you know if you need a new thermostat is if your temp gauge is going towards H instead of between H and C. That's when it needs a new thermostat. Replacing a Termostat is relatively easy.

 

That's a bunch of miles. don't see going with factory parts at this point.

Struts is another term for "shocks", if you want to think of it that way. With that said, you could go to any chain, like Midas, to have all four put on (front struts and rear shocks) for probably less than $350. I have aftermarket struts and shocks and I paid $400 for everything shipped to my door.

As for the "rear thermostat", there is only one thermostat. Has the car been running hot? If so, this would explain the need for a thermostat or radiator replacement. Otherwise, I wouldn't think any change of the thermostat or radiator would be needed.

I would think the brakes would need changing. If your husband is mechanically inclined, he could probably do it. Parts alone are probably $200 ish. Or, again, think about a chain.

I looked through the Service Manual and saw no mention of a collector valve. So, not sure what they are talking about.