Have we been totally ripped off or what???any one with car knowledge?

[~clover~]

I don't know. I do know the reason I've really only owned Holdens, Fords or Toyota's is because alot of other makes are complicated to pull apart.
Eg - I had a Ford Explorer (Ford, but imported). The slave & master cylenders went in it (owner before us screwed up oils). Because of the way it was made, the whole 4wd gear box had to come out before they could be replaced. We were quoted upwards of $2000, but with after market parts we were lucky & it only cost us $800.
Mitsubishi's are commonly expensive for this reason.

I'm not a car expert, but I have an idea of whats what & where things go. DH & I have almost always done services & repairs on our own cars. Til now, we have an 05 commodore & it beeps at us for a service! If we could shut it up we would!!

In saying that though, I don't have much experiences with mechanics & their prices. I do know we were quoted at one about $500 to do a job that I probably could've done alone, for about $50! (DH ended up doing it, just thought since it wasn't huge I'd ask them, thinking $50 & saving DH the effort!)

What to do next time? Take it somewhere. Tell them its making an odd noise & where, & ask them to check it over for you. Someone will usually come out of the workshop & look then & there to give you an idea.
Then ask what it would involve (ask for a list) & how much they reckon it'd cost you. Then tell them you have to discuss it with DH.
When you are home, ring around everywhere you can think of to see how much they'd charge to do the same job. Ask hourly labour rates as well.

DON'T leave it for them to look at! I did that once for a stuffed auto gear box they told me they could fix. I asked them to ring me with a quote BEFORE touching anything. They ignored that request & charged me $500. I was a single mum at the time! I was annoyed, but paid. Went to pick up my car & it started slipping gears again 40 KMS down the road!!