BMW 5 Series

Winny

Can anyone tell me realistically how long it should take to replace 2 track rod ends for a 5 series and tighten the hand brake?

Thanks

Hintza

Less than an hour. Might get charged for two hours at a push.

anewman

If it's particularly old and the track rod ends are rusted/seized it will need a little longer to lop them off the track rods and may take longer to adjust the tracking once the new ones are fitted.

Hammyman

2 hours although if they're charging by the manufacturers specified times, one hour per side for each track rod end, another hour for tracking and another 30 minutes for handbrake adjustment. Sadly many garages charge like this. I remember wanting to get the cambelt changed on my wife's Vauxhall and thought I'd get the weeping camshaft seal done at the same time. They wanted to bill 3hrs labour as the cambelt was an hour and a half and the oil seal was as well even though the oil seal is basically identically the same job as the cambelt change but you have to undo one more nut and swap the seal over.

colino

A competent mechanic has just done this work and an oil service in an hour. (Handbrakes on the 5, especially autos never feel that great). But most garages as said will use the book times for billing.
One of the benefits of working on these cars though is that you rarely find the seized/graunched bolts and fixings that lesser cars will have (unless someone with a chocolate tool box has been ther first).