The problem at hand isn't that shops charge 'a lot', the problem is the fact that s14 5 speed parts are hard to come by and are not cheap.

What I dislike is the fact that people call around lowballing and claiming other shops will do it for a certain price. Prices has leveled out a lot over the years, a minimal labor cost is added, but majority of the cost are from the parts needed to get the job completed.