Re-Gear Cost - Houston

I'm looking to re-gear my Tacoma to aid in off-roading as well as pulling a travel trailer a bit easier. I've called a few shops in the Houston area and was either told they didn't work on foreign vehicles (Pyle Brothers) or were charging outrageous prices (Duggy's). I was quoted $5500 by Duggy's for 5.29's and an Eaton E-Locker. Shop rates (high end) are ~$80/hr last I checked. I think it's a 12 hour job for a re-gear and throw in some extra for the Eaton...not sure ~$2,800 in labor is fair or even in the ballpark, frankly. What do you guys think?

Any one in the Houston area know where to get this done?

 

Is that for both axles?

 

Wow. My regear to Yukon 5.29s was $2600 including tax, labor and parts. Though that was in West Virginia.

 

@Texoma did a great job installing my 4:88’s. He’s near Lake Travis (Lago Vista). I drove from Corpus Christi to get Chris to do my install. Great dude and has done a ton of Toyota re-gears!

 

I actually called him too. He quoted my $960 (IIRC) for labor, I bring the parts. Which is perfectly in line with book labor rates. That's why Duggy's quote surprised me.

Being in Houston, that's a few hours of drive time, which I don't mind, but it creates a bit of a hassle doing the break-in on the way home.

 

I suggest calling ECGS. They will ship you the front and rear fully built and then you take yours out and ship the "core" back to them. I've installed 5.29's built by them and had no issues at all! Plus they come with a 5 year warranty on all parts. I think I paid $850 for the front and $1250 for the rear with a spartan locker in it.

 

Yes.

 

Interesting...How long did it take you to swap them out? I've done a lot of wrenching in my day, but differentials is something I haven't messed with other than axle seals.

 

A several hour drive home is definitely doable after getting re-geared. Just makes for a LONG day.

I live 3 hours from ECGS, I showed up to their shop at 8am, they had me out by 2-3pm. I planned my first stop to be able 20 miles away (lunch) where I stopped for an hour. Afterwards, I was able to drive about 50 miles before stopping for 45-60 mins. One of these was a nap in a parking lot. It wasn't too bad just need to remember to vary your speed quite a bit.

 

Depending on the kind of work, shop rate mid range is closer to $100hr. High end shop rate is $150+. Go to someone who does these frequently like myself. Yes Duggy's Garage is one of those. Also in Houston is Jeboost Sobe with TEQ Auto Solutions. If you haven't contected him yet, tell him Chris from Triple C sent you. For regear, I'm currently booking February weekends. It takes me between 12-16hrs to do full regear by myself. If done correctly, the installer with thoroughly clean the inside of the diff prior to building it which is one of the more time consuming things.

 

You doing front Eaton elocker? If you don't have a switch panel, then you'll want to purchase a custom switch like CH4x4 has to fit in one of your switch blanks.

 

Dang I think it was $1700 for front and rear 5.29s including labor two years ago in CA and our labor cost is stupid high. Even with the inflation it can’t be $2000 more. If I wanted air locker it was another $1200 since it’s almost the same labor since they were already working on the front diff. I think the quote on electric locker was $900.

 

I second this opinion as it will be what I do when I get around to the re-gear. @ClassyTacos did the same thing and documented his work (vid below).

 

Make sure you test your new front e-locker in 4wd and not 2wd or you will spend a couple hours chasing wiring that is perfectly fine. Don't ask me how I know.

 

Parts and labor? I say not bad. Especially if its a reputable shop. Tools and brains come at a cost, and its worth it knowing it was done be a good place

 

$1000 usually for a guy on a weekend to do it.

$2000 for a shop to do it. Anything higher just depends on the shop and how much you are willing to pay. I've seen quotes as high as $5000 in labor

 

I bench test when I do it. You can watch the pins engage.

 

+1 for ECGS regears where you send your cores back. Cost me around $1800 and a few afternoons in the garage for 5.29 gears.

 

They also have 5 year warranty.

 

Ya ECGS did my gear install, but I wanted to wire it up myself. They wanted 3 hours of labor plus cost of a switch for their wiring option. I have a switch pro so it was an hour to snake the harness away from anything properly, and wire it up.