This is a very tricky issue. Since they are on the clock to look for your trouble they will charge you.

Companies like Pepboys, I think, can absorb that cost finding the problem and fix it. I think a dealer has a small economy of scale.

My story 1:

My ’93 850 used to stall intermittently. The dealer could not find any error and they billed me $65 for looking at it.

I went to an indy Volvo mechanic and he guessed it to be the fuel pump relay and replace it. My problem went away. However, a good dealer will not do this type of guess and if they find the problem they would have adjusted that $65 towards parts and labor.

After it was fixed I went back to the dealer. After a major tug of war (yeah for 65 bucks! Isn’t that amazing?) he settled for a free oil change. At that time I was used to oil change but not transmission fluid change. So I counter offered that and he agreed. He could have denied my request and was not obligated to do any favor.

Labor cost:
Labor cost will vary from place to place and you agree to it when you accept their service.

Dealers:
They have to make money either selling cars or servicing them. On top of service/labor they will make major dollar on selling parts at a higher price.

Wrong diagnosis:
If your problem did not go away after replacing parts then you can get all your money back given that someone else looked at it and fixed the problem.

My story 2:
My ’85 Prelude used to stall during stop and idle. A indy mechanic charged me few hours of labor looking at it and said it may be vacuum related. I took it to the dealer, they replace the distributor cap and rotor and the problem was fixed. I went back to the mechanic and he reimbursed the labor he charged me ($120).

Parts:
You can verify parts prince and see how inflated your dealer prices are:
www.eEuroparts.com
Swedish Engineering (800-928-6586)

Strategy:
If I were you I will negotiate and try to work with them without being aggressive or make them offended. You need to resolve the matter not release your frustration and leave the scene. As they are there, not to loose too much money, you are there, to work out a deal. It may not be the best one but you can accept a decent one.

Suggestion:
My indy store Volvo mechanic do not mind looking at my car for free since he works on it. You may try to find a non-dealer Volvo mechanic.

Ronjon
'93 850