Aircon repair £260+VAT

moonrakerz

I really don't understand some dealer's response to warranty work. I always understood warranty work to be covered by the manufacturer, the dealer having to get the OK to proceed with the work. If he got this, he would then do the job and be paid by the manufacturer.
My daughter took her car to a local (to us) Ford dealer when her heated windscreen was working in strips - looked like the side of a zebra !
The dealer said it was caused by stone chips and it wasn't covered. A few weeks later she took it into the dealer she got the car from (150 miles away from the first one) - who immediately said it was covered and fitted a new windscreen. They also said there were NO stone chips !

ukjoel

moonrakerz wrote: »

I really don't understand some dealer's response to warranty work. I always understood warranty work to be covered by the manufacturer, the dealer having to get the OK to proceed with the work. If he got this, he would then do the job and be paid by the manufacturer.
My daughter took her car to a local (to us) Ford dealer when her heated windscreen was working in strips - looked like the side of a zebra !
The dealer said it was caused by stone chips and it wasn't covered. A few weeks later she took it into the dealer she got the car from (150 miles away from the first one) - who immediately said it was covered and fitted a new windscreen. They also said there were NO stone chips !

In fairness everytime a dealer does a warranty job they need to then claim the money back from the manufacturer. Some manufacturers are tighter than a ducks backside and will often reject or downsize the claims which mean the retailer takes the hit.

This can be through faulty paperwork, lack of box ticking, failure to return the old parts in the correct boxes, returning them late, returning them early (no didnt make that one up), failing to follow the 47 steps in the correct order as sent on an email 3 years earliers etc etc.

Due to the low labour rate they receive for warranty, a lot of dealers when faced with so many clawbacks and warranty surcharges just decide that they cant risk their warranty profile going to red by being a high warranty dealer as they dont want an audit so they just pass it on down the road by saying they dont think its warranty.

It may sound like they are turning away work but if your booked 2 weeks ahead and you have a choice of £40 an hour warranty work, £60 an hour fleet work, or £100 and hour retail work what will you prioritise.

Dealers warranty systems are variable and I have seen several 100k plus clawbacks after auditing 2,3, 4 , and even 5 years of old claims.

cyclonebri1

I find it strange that the Dealer would want invoices for the servicing, is the stamp in the book not enough? Is thast totally legal?
My own experience with waranty work has been exactly the opposite, ie the dealers were eager to carry out the work and I have never been asked even to show a service book. I do know that VX dealers do not have to approach VX Uk if the total repair is under 4 hrs labour, or it was the last time I had an issue.

cepheus

cyclonebri1 wrote: »

I find it strange that the Dealer would want invoices for the servicing, is the stamp in the book not enough? Is thast totally legal?

Well the response was rather different depending on who I spoke to. When presenting the paperwork at the desk I was prepared for a good old argument, however he seemed to accept it without any problems.

Prior to this I attempted to find who it was who serviced it, found the VAT number and presented it all in a neat organised format, so perhaps this helped. I have also found this is useful when selling a car as well. I had all the paperwork whilst I had the car during the last two years.

I suppose a stamp can be easily faked, neither was it absolutely clear what sort of organisation serviced it, certainly not a dealer.

cepheus

Well the AC was repaired today at this dealer. Yes I had to book it that far in advance! They charged me £5 for the courtesy car irrespective of the amount of petrol (although I only drove it 20 miles). No paperwork involved for car or repair, perhaps I should have asked for this. The Air con is obviously working now, we will see how it does. I'm still getting an oily smell through the ventilation vent though.

cepheus

I'm not convinced the air-con is working again! If I place a thermometer at the air outlet I can't get any temperature drop. It is difficult to tell in winter though. It isn't thermostatically controlled.

I rang the dealer to discuss this problem, and asked if the work they did 6 months ago was under warranty. They were very dismissive and just kept telling me the car was out of warranty! There is no 'warranty on warranty'

It's most unlikely another fault has developed. I have only driven 2000 miles at most! Perhaps it is a fault they failed to solve in the first place, another gas leak, or they didn't tighten something up. Can't afford a bill at that place!

vikingaero

In the winter time your a/c will not work if temperatures are close to freezing. This is to prevent ice forming and entering the compressor which which will damage it. So even if the a/c button light is on then the a/c may not be engaging. Easiest way to check is to idle the engine and press the a/c button. There should be a slight drop and then rise in revs.

Did you use the a/c once a week over the winter to ensure the seals are lubed? If not you might have had a loss of a/c refrigerant.

AndysDad

cepheus wrote: »

Well the AC was repaired today at this dealer. Yes I had to book it that far in advance! They charged me £5 for the courtesy car irrespective of the amount of petrol (although I only drove it 20 miles). No paperwork involved for car or repair, perhaps I should have asked for this. The Air con is obviously working now, we will see how it does. I'm still getting an oily smell through the ventilation vent though.

Good to hear it was Normandy Garage as thats where i bought my i10 from and must say I've just had my 1st service done there and a very pleasant experience all round.Good to hear there are still some good dealers around.