Mechanic $$ per hour

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Luigi

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Luigi
Just picked up my plane from annual. My mechanic is now @ $80.00 per hour, what are you folks seeing?
 
In TX rates are around $80-100 at bigger shops. I pay my old guy $60, and lots of beer.
 
Paid my mechanic $450 for my annual last week. Had maintenance done at another field last year and the FBO shop charged $65 and hour.
 
Luigi said:
Just picked up my plane from annual. My mechanic is now @ $80.00 per hour, what are you folks seeing?
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Where are you and what kind of shop is this, dealer, large independent, tailgater?

I use a dealer and pay $85 in DFW.
 
$50/hr just and outside a Class C ring.
 
I had my lawn mower looked at and the shop rate for that place was $84 an hour.
 
The average auto shop rate is what, around $100/hour? And folks want to pay less to their aircraft mechanic? What's wrong with that picture?

My shop charges $75 and keep telling them to raise their rate. Number one, I want them to stay in business. Number 2 is I want them to be comfortable with their earnings.
 
Clark1961 said:
The average auto shop rate is what, around $100/hour? And folks want to pay less to their aircraft mechanic? What's wrong with that picture?

My shop charges $75 and keep telling them to raise their rate. Number one, I want them to stay in business. Number 2 is I want them to be comfortable with their earnings.
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The primary difference being the auto shop gives an estimate for repairs where the plane shop does not (at least mine didn't until we took on an A&P as a partner).
 
Just paid $600 for annual. My guy is $50-60 hour.
Total bill was $1,100 but included:
Annual & 100 hour inspection
--all parts --
Improved grounding system installed
New spark plugs
Oil, filter, and oil analysis
New coolant
Transponder re-cert
new ELT Batteries
Exhaust header wrap
Drip tray reinforcement
 
I've generally seen $75 to $90 in the Balt/Wash area at the shops I've worked with... there may be a few cheaper. For non-major work I've sometimes done most of the labor myself and gotten a sign-off for lunch.
 
I've been paying $75/hour for about a year now so I expect it to go to $80 on my next visit. My annual is due in July.
 
Clark1961 said:
The average auto shop rate is what, around $100/hour? And folks want to pay less to their aircraft mechanic? What's wrong with that picture?
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Been wondering that for years. They think nothing of paying $120 an hour to service their Lexus and scream about $75 for their plane. Go figure.

Labor rates are going to vary. Plan on them being considerably higher in major metropolitan areas than out in the boonies.
 
$90 if I take it to the brand name FBO on field, $60 for the guy that does hangar calls.
 
Clark1961 said:
The average auto shop rate is what, around $100/hour? And folks want to pay less to their aircraft mechanic? What's wrong with that picture?
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Aircraft mechanics typically make less than auto mechanics, carry more liability, get to hassle with stingy owners. Why do we do it? I know of aircraft mechanics that have gone to work for truck and bus shops. More money, less pain.

The simple fact is that too many aircraft owners can't afford to own airplanes. The guy that has an old 172 owns an airplane that now costs $400K to replace, but aside from the fancy panel, it's no different than the old one. What does it cost to maintain a $400K car? Why should it cost less to maintain an old 172?

Dan
 
Wide range at KTMB $55 to $95 is what I have seen.
 
Alexb2000 said:
I saw a sign at the VW dealer, shop rate $115 an hour. Proving once again that pilots are out of touch and love to *****.
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I've never understood that either. Labor is much more expensive in other fields and nobody seems to complain about that.


For what it's worth, our shop rate here is $65/hour. Every shop in the area with the exception of a few repair stations on the bigger airports is within $5 of each other.
 
Dan Thomas said:
Aircraft mechanics typically make less than auto mechanics, carry more liability, get to hassle with stingy owners. Why do we do it? I know of aircraft mechanics that have gone to work for truck and bus shops. More money, less pain.

The simple fact is that too many aircraft owners can't afford to own airplanes. The guy that has an old 172 owns an airplane that now costs $400K to replace, but aside from the fancy panel, it's no different than the old one. What does it cost to maintain a $400K car? Why should it cost less to maintain an old 172?

Dan
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bnt83 said:
Sad but true...
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mondtster said:
I've never understood that either. Labor is much more expensive in other fields and nobody seems to complain about that.


For what it's worth, our shop rate here is $65/hour. Every shop in the area with the exception of a few repair stations on the bigger airports is within $5 of each other.
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Aircraft owners feel that since this is their hobby it should be the mechanics as well.

Aircraft owners being notoriously cheap is another reason you see so many "flying basket cases".
 
How much car maintenance requires 20+ hours of inspection and maintenance every year?

Perhaps one reason aircraft owners are sensitive to the hourly rate of mechanics because of the total bill.

but, don't get me wrong, I have never complained about the rate my mechanics charged me.
 
I wasn't complaining, just curious. Located CO, western slope.
 
$90 an hour at KCMA. For the most part the working stiff that are just getting by pay quick. The ones that have a good amount of money take a month or so. Not all but for the most part it's true with the shop I use.
 
Bob Noel said:
How much car maintenance requires 20+ hours of inspection and maintenance every year?
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How many cars crash and kill their occupants if their engine quits?

Dan
 
Bob Noel said:
How much car maintenance requires 20+ hours of inspection and maintenance every year?

Perhaps one reason aircraft owners are sensitive to the hourly rate of mechanics because of the total bill.

but, don't get me wrong, I have never complained about the rate my mechanics charged me.
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This is all irrelevant. Automotive shop prices are not adjusted due to the amount of inspection and repair work a car does or does not need annually.

If you'd like to compare an airplane to a car, the best correlation I could suggest would be to compare what it takes to restore and keep a 1960s car on the road today in a condition that would allow you to take it on a road trip from coast to coast without a breakdown. I'd bet that the costs would be similar.

I expect my 1955 and my 1969 model year airplanes to run me around the country as I please without leaving me stranded or trying to kill me. Very few people out there expect the same thing out of any other type of vehicle that old.
 
The hourly rate is somewhat of an arbitrary figure that is used to justify the cost of basic jobs. It's very common with your typical 40 or 50 year old General Aviation aircraft to run into snags with simple tasks such as removing frozen inspection plate screws or having to subsequently replace the nutplates but you don't normally get charged for the time.

The bottom line is what is it going to cost in the end for a basic inspection or to have a new starter installed. It's kind of like insurance, some people are going to have issues and get a deal while others have no issues and pay the same. If you become a regular customer due to feeling you got a square deal those frozen screws and bad nutplates are a wash, the cost of dealing with them gets spread out in the pool over time and everybody's happy.

If you have a mechanic or a shop who is punching a time card the minute your airplane rolls into the hangar you should find a new shop.
 
$75 and $74 per hour, at two different service centers for the brand, neither of them near a big city.

I think it is a fair rate, and I do like the mechanics.

What I wonder about is why the rate seems to be the same whether the mechanic is an AP or not, since there are both in the shop.
 
CT4ME said:
Just paid $600 for annual. My guy is $50-60 hour.
Total bill was $1,100 but included:
Annual & 100 hour inspection
--all parts --
Improved grounding system installed
New spark plugs
Oil, filter, and oil analysis
New coolant
Transponder re-cert
new ELT Batteries
Exhaust header wrap
Drip tray reinforcement
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Coolant, Mooney Porsche?
 
Clark1961 said:
The average auto shop rate is what, around $100/hour? And folks want to pay less to their aircraft mechanic? What's wrong with that picture?

My shop charges $75 and keep telling them to raise their rate. Number one, I want them to stay in business. Number 2 is I want them to be comfortable with their earnings.
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There's a lot of electronic subscriptions you have to keep up these days as an auto mechanic for the good plug in boxes. Working on cars is more complex and difficult these days than working on planes. The most cramped Mooney or Beech cowling, heck, even helicopters, aren't as bad and modern cars.
 
Luigi said:
Coolant, Mooney Porsche?
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Most likely Rotax lol I don't think any of the PFM engines are left, for that matter I haven't seen a TSIOL Continental around in over a decade either, and I saw a lot of 414s get converted back in the day.
 
Dan Thomas said:
How many cars crash and kill their occupants if their engine quits?

Dan
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The importance of the maintenance wasn't my point. (see below)


mondtster said:
This is all irrelevant. Automotive shop prices are not adjusted due to the amount of inspection and repair work a car does or does not need annually.
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I don't believe I was clear. My point was that when the number of hours of maintenance is large, the impact of higher labor costs are magnified. Just for the required inspections, my old old old old airplane required many times the hours of labor than any of my cars.

2 times $100/hour for labor vs 2 times $50/hour for labor, $50...not that big a deal.

20 times $100/hours for labor vs 20 times $50/hour for labor, that's 1 AMU.

And, once again, I'll repeat that I have never complained about the cost of the guys working on my airplane.

I was merely pointing out that the shop rate for cars doesn't have as big an impact on the annual household budget as the A&P rates.
 
My labor rate is $110.00 per hour. Labor rates should reflect some value. Still booked solid.
 
Dan Thomas said:
How many cars crash and kill their occupants if their engine quits?

Dan
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More than you'd think. That's the point of the GM and Toyota debacles. Without the engine, the power steering (& airbags in GM's case) stop working and cars crash. Unfortunately(?) NTSB doesn't investigate every auto crash so we don't know for sure.
 
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