Why some people think CarGiant are overpriced rubbish

motorguy

bigjl wrote: »

I was thinking about all the times I have mentioned CarGiant and I am thanked for this advise with abuse, that I either work for them or that they are overpriced due to the fact you have to a £91 Admin Fee.

As Ill Health retirement looms ever closer I have done some research as I may go back to doing chauffeur work, as I also like to buy British if possible i did a little research into the prices of cars I would like to use.

I am not buying just seeing how the land lies for the future, best to see what is coming rather than be caught by surprise.

The is a car from the Jaguar Approved List, you will almosy certainly get a nice coffee, and have salesman fawning over you.

http://used.jaguar.co.uk/richexperience#

Can't get this link to work, but the equivalent car was £19900. At Swindon Jaguar.


But if you go to CarGiant, you have to sign for the keys, maybe they don't fawn as much as you would like, plus when you come to collect your car it is more like a Car Auction than a Car Dealer.

http://www.cargiant.co.uk/Jaguar/details-492529-Jaguar.asp?viewtype=0

This car has a 2 thousand extra miles, but is up for £17499 plus £91 so £17690, against £19900.

These cars are almost the same in every way, but personally I would rather save over £2000 and go to CarGiant.

Can somebody explain why somebody said they only sell overpriced rubbish?

After owning our Clio DCi for 16 months, similar cars at renault dealers, 56 plate 5 Dr Expressions, are still more than we paid for ours 16 months ago at CarGiant, after checking the paperwork it was £5790, or £5699 plus £91 admin fee.


Now I come to think about it, if those that slag off CarGiant continue to do so then it just leaves better choice for me.

I would be very surprised if you couldnt get £1000 off the sticker price from a main jag dealer, maybe more, so theres your saving down to £1000.

Jaguar approved used will provide a full history check on the cars, to ensure the provenance of it. They will also ensure that the car has a full jaguar history.

Cargiant wont give a monkeys what sort of history it has.

Jaguar approved used will service and MOT the car if required, and thus the car will maintain its full jaguar history.

Cargiant will charge you £100 for some 17yo chimp to change the oil and filter.

Jaguar approved used will put an 'equivalent to' manufacturers warranty on the car.

Cargiants warranty will be almost non existent.

Jaguar approved used will refurbish the car to a high standard, including alloy wheels, etc.

Cargiant wont care that their car is full of parking dings and scuffed alloys.

I guess if your going to do some taxi driving in it, then it wont matter so much, but ALL those factors above would make me think long and hard about using Car Giant, especially for something like a Jag, and particularly given your saving is only going to end up being around 5%

blackshirtuk

I bought a car from car giant 2 years ago. I had been looking for a particular type,model interior combination for over a year. I had tried to buy at auction but the price went to high.

I found one cheaper than at auction at Car giant, I had a good experience, test drive no problem, salesman fine, yes they did try to sell you add on warranty etc. but don't all garages.

From reading the other posts it would seem i have been lucky. Or maybe the other posters were unlucky?

gabitzul

I bought a 2.2 Civic (06 plate) from them on Feb. Did a proper drive test, no issues detected at the time, all ok. Good price as well, FSH, ES spec.

A week later the clutch started slipping (car had 39k miles!) in 5th gear. Contacted them and gave them a hard time, they sent a trailer to pick up the car (I was !!!!ed off and didn't want to drive it back to them although it was perfectly safe), they replaced the clutch and the fluid.

Got the car back, a few days later the EML came on, took it to Honda and they diagnosed the issue to be related to the water sensor at the bottom of the radiator (it has 2!). This time I accused them of being incompetent and threatened to bring the car back so they agreed that I fix the issue locally at Honda and paid them for it.

Since them I had to sell the car, but not before I did a very long journey to E Europe (over 2500 miles) and the car was perfect.

Bottom line: they are no better or worse than any other dealer, and if you pursue the (possible with a used car) issues they will get them fixed for you. They are aware of the customer's rights.

PS Since then I found that both issues are very common on the Hondas with the 2.2 i-CTDi engine so I don't think CG were aware of the issue(s) or had any fault.

Flyboy152

satyc wrote: »

Don't forget , that the price on the screen at Jaguar is 'negotiable' so you would expect at least £900 off, you will not get a discount at Car giant. And for all you MSE's you would get a lot more being the savvy lot that you are...making the difference a lot closer than 2k

I would gladly pay another thousand pounds to a Jaguar dealer, get the service and support that comes with it, than buy a car like an XF from CarGiant.

Flyboy152

bigjl wrote: »

I will come with the last part of the manufacturers warranty, as does the one at CG, this can then be renewed with Jaguar.

Though as most aftermarket warranties are just simple mechanical breakdown insurance policies I don't see what all the fuss is about, I would rather have over £2000 in the bank to pay for the first few years of servicing and other running costs.

It comes down to priorities I think, you can get a main dealer quality car at an Auction, but obviously it doesn't have the backup, but it is several thousand pounds cheaper.

Don't forget that a lot of the issues you may have in the first months of ownership will be fixed for free under the Sale of Goods act, Car Giant, under the old name of Great Trade Centre, had to replace the heater matrix in a Renault 25 I bought off them in 1991, it took a week at no cost to me.

At the time they didn't provide courtesy cars but they do have some now, they also have their own workshops etc.

Yes they might not give the coffee and buns service of the main dealers, but this is MSE, not croissants are us.

As an approved used Jaguar car, it will come with a minimum of a years warranty. For a car like an XF, CarGiant will attempt to charge you about fifteen hundred pounds for a years warranty.

There is no way that TGTC would have rolled over that easily. If I remember rightly, they had bouncers on the door. They would ask why you were there and if you said anything about a complaint, you would be out of the door. This was when Philip Gray (owner of Trade Sales in Slough), who employed similar tactics, was in partnership with the then owner of The Great Trade Centre. Their stock answer was always, "call the manufacturer, it's nothing to do with us."

Flyboy152

bigjl wrote: »

No, I can confirm you don't have to pay for a test drive anymore, you did about ten years ago though.

If you look at every car on there you will see clearly written next to every price is the admin fee of £91.

Seriously how clear can you make it.

Don't forget this is payment for the forms that get filled in and sent off, such as the logbook, and for a HPI check.

Every garage does these things, every garage charges for these things, they just don't put it on the invoice.

It has nothing to do with being clear, it is the fact they charge it is the issue. It is a cynical charge and is nothing more than a scam. They obviously take their lead from companies such as RyanUnfair.

Flyboy152

gabitzul wrote: »

I bought a 2.2 Civic (06 plate) from them on Feb. Did a proper drive test, no issues detected at the time, all ok. Good price as well, FSH, ES spec.

A week later the clutch started slipping (car had 39k miles!) in 5th gear. Contacted them and gave them a hard time, they sent a trailer to pick up the car (I was !!!!ed off and didn't want to drive it back to them although it was perfectly safe), they replaced the clutch and the fluid.

Got the car back, a few days later the MIL light came on, took it to Honda and they diagnosed the issue to be related to the water sensor at the bottom of the radiator (it has 2!). This time I accused them of being incompetent and threatened to bring the car back so they agreed that I fix the issue locally at Honda and paid them for it.

Honda have a special light for Mothers-in-law? WOW.

vikingaero

I don't think there is a massive saving on premium cars from Car Giant. Go to Car Giant and everyone is swarming over BMW's, Mercs and other luxobarges. They know that they are in demand and don't have to price it that low.

If you go for general cars during the week then you normally have the run of some halls to yourself. Yes the sales areas and system are a bit hectic and shabby. Top tip: Take a set of keys from an old car along for the inevitable swapping keys malarkey.

In my experience: I looked at a number of cars on their website and noted down the partial reg no. When I got there, some of them had additional signs on them noting more severe damage - dents etc. Others were in tatty condition. You soon learn which cars are Motability cars from the damage to rear bumpers and door sills.

It is a pile it high, sell it cheap (for general cars) operation. If you want a Marks and Spencers flawless experience go to a glass and tile palace dealer. If you want a cheap general car and can put up with the cosmetic imperfections and buying experience then go to Car Giant.

bigjl

Kilty wrote: »

Apologies, I misinterpreted your post. As you were.:D

FYI Central Scotland Police have an unmarked XF or two.

I think any big car like a Jag XF being use in London will be the boss's cars, not being used for undercover or patrol work.

But it is purely politics why we don't use cars such as these, we would have loved the X Type Diesel estate, but people would moan about money waste.

I am glad the plod in Central Scotland use Jags, they would have been able to source them for next to nothing, and they are supporting jobs in the UK. They are also a god car, reliable and well built, and above all they are Britsh made, why do some moan and slag of a british company when it makes a product better than the Germans, look how people on here, actually just the usual suspects, slag off Rovers, even though the Rover 75 was one if the best cars Rover ever made and used a lot of BMW's money to develop it, plus they used a fair bit of BMW engineered parts and electronics, not just the diesel engine.

I have heard that the lefty tree huggers are moaning about the LAS having some new Freelanders and some Discoverys, the fact that most have been bought under a national deal under the umbrella of HART means nothing, the fact that we managed to buy a brand new Discovery for £15k means nothing, the Freelander was also very cheap.

They are also British built, which means I would rather have one than anything made in Germany or Japan, yes I have had several Japanese cars that where really reliable, but given the choice then I would always buy British.


And actually I do venture outside London, the majority of Police cars used by the CMPG are Volvos and BMW's, you do get the odd Vectra, Range Rover etc. But lots of forces are using BMW's, this is due to the way BMW are engineering the cars for emergency use prior ro sale, this makes them more reliable, we had a BMW X1 at work of on trial for possible use in London, it was too small, and nobody liked it, though it was very well engineered.

bigjl

Flyboy152 wrote: »

It has nothing to do with being clear, it is the fact they charge it is the issue. It is a cynical charge and is nothing more than a scam. They obviously take their lead from companies such as RyanUnfair.

So, you would rather it was hidden inside the cost of the car?

No dealer in the UK doesn't charge this kind of fee, just some prefer to hide it in the invoice or the profit margin of the car.

Don't worry I am sure CG will survive without your business.