Kwit Fit nightmare

asbokid

jim22 wrote: »

yes, £38 for pair of front discs. So assuming fit are using similar discs £100 for labour and I believe that a disc swap is a very easy job. (It is on my saxo, anyway.)

The components may not be compatible with eleanor's car since we don't know her exact model, but there are reputable shops on ebay which are selling a pair of front brake discs for a 96-02 Scenic for £19. It's a very easy job changing brake discs on most cars - 5 or 10 minutes each side. £30-£50 labour would be about right. while you're down there (as my wife often says), it's no extra work to change the pads.

asbokid

rev_henry wrote: »

£30 - £60 an hour, maybe more at a main dealers. Don't know how long to do that though sorry.

you are allowed to cut out the worn region of pipe and fit a section of new pipework, which saves time but is bad practice. most reputable places would only replace the whole pipe from the caliper all the way to the cylinder. it can be a pain, probably not too bad on the scenic, however. it's not unheard of to have to drop the fuel tank to gain access to replace a rear brake pipe.

cyclonebri1

Hammyman wrote: »

Rubbish. Brake fluid absorbs water - its hygroscopic - and that causes corrosion internally. It is because of this that it is supposed to be changed every 2 years yet most people don't bother.

Garbage. Yes, brake fluid is hygroscopic and can absorb water in the extreme case, but you'd have to run it without the cap fitted to the reservoir for that to happen though even considering the bleed hole.
However, even if it did absorb moisture it simply forms an emulsion which will still will not allow corrosion.
What it does is lower the boiling point of the fluid to such a level that it can vapourise within the pipes and cause loss of brakes.

I will lay you a grand to a penny that no one here has ever seen a steel brake pipe that's failed due to corrosion without it being severly effected on the outside.

And yes, most cars never get get the fluid changed, strange how the brakes keep on working:rotfl:

Olyz

Thought I would just jump on to this thread as I too am having issues with KF although they do not know it yet!

Just wanted to get some feed back on the issue to see where I stand.

Basically took my nissan Micra in for MOT last Tuesday where I normally go each year (not KF) it failed on the nearside rear handbrake and brake reading little or no effort. And also CV boot was split

They said it probably wouldn't be much work and just needs adjusting and may be ceased somewhere, and so took it away as a friend of mine regularly works with cars.

The shoes were siezed a bit along with one side of the cylinder and after a good clean up and adjustment all parts were moving as they should.

I decided to take it in to Kwik Fit the day after the MOT to do a free brake check, just to make sure all was OK before taking it back for a re test.

Kwick Fit found that the Brake cable had snapped on the offside rear which they showed me the split in the cable and so I asked them to repair this and also change the CV boot. (£124)

The part was due in the next day, on which they called me (Thursday) and said that the Master Cylinder had gone and that I was very lucky! I went into Kwik Fit and the Manager said that after bleeding the brakes with their pressure system they proceeded to pump the brakes 3 times and on the second press of the pedal the pedal went to the floor and inverted the seal in the Master cylinder and so It will need replacing.
Now an new total of the bill is £254. I am OK to pay this but the MOT centre and other mechanics have said they shouldn't be pumping the pedal when using the pressure system and this can damage the system or the cylinder, one guy even saying this would cause the seal to invert?

I put it in writing what the Manager said and showed him saying that after the work was done and I return for the MOT test I would like to show them whats been done for my own piece of mind.

He read the statement and agreed again, but would not sign it as I asked him to which I thought would be the case anyway.

I haven't complained as yet as I want them to fix the Master Cylinder so at least I can take it for the retest, but may opt to ask them to pay for it if it is deemed their fault?

It should be fixed today as they received the wrong type of Master Cylinder Friday(due to two different models used since production of the micra) and they had a nightmare getting the right one which should be in today!

Would appreciate some feed back on whether it could be Kwik Fits fault that the Master Cylinder had gone. Also I have no idea why they decided to bleed the brakes in the first place, the manager said it was because I mentioned that the previous year I had a nightmare bleeding the brakes manually. I could understand this if they had removed or worked on the brake cylinder but there was no mention of this...


Sorry for extensive ramble, just thought id add as much info as possible!

cyclonebri1

Olyz wrote: »

I went into Kwik Fit and the Manager said that after bleeding the brakes with their pressure system they proceeded to pump the brakes 3 times and on the second press of the pedal the pedal went to the floor and inverted the seal in the Master cylinder and so It will need replacing.
Now an new total of the bill is £254. I am OK to pay this but the MOT centre and other mechanics have said they shouldn't be pumping the pedal when using the pressure system and this can damage the system or the cylinder, one guy even saying this would cause the seal to invert?


!

Sorry to play devils advocate but that statement contradicts itself in effect
Do you see what I mean, Qurkflip haven't admitted to pumping the pedal whilst pressurising the system, much as I hate to defend the robin bar stools;)

thelawnet

I used to have a Megane, took it Kwikfit because the exhaust had rusted through and was falling off/rattling.

They tied it on with a hair tie. The other Kwikfit I took it back to couldn't believe it.

cyclonebri1

thelawnet wrote: »

I used to have a Megane, took it Kwikfit because the exhaust had rusted through and was falling off/rattling.

They tied it on with a hair tie. The other Kwikfit I took it back to couldn't believe it.

"The other Kwikfit I took it back to couldn't believe it, fancy wasting a hair tye like that:eek:"

Olyz

Yeah your right Cylclone, exactly what they have now said that they checked the brakes after. Although it just confused me to say they pumped it 3 times.
Anyway it has to be done now so will have to pay! Although taking a week to do it has been a pain! Said they were struggling to get it on yesterday but will be done any minute now so they say! That was two hours ago!

leelondon_2

...Then do not use it. Repeat do not use it. You maybe like me received a reward voucher from your credit card company, please dont be like me and use it. The thing to always keep in mind is that Kwik Fit are crooks, thieving, lying, unscruplous, immoral scumbags.
Took my car to kwik fit for an MOT (a madness took me), it failed on a front shock absorber with a serious leak. I didnt beleive them, so took the car home, cleaned up the shocks on both sides. Drove the car around for a week (200 miles), not a drop of fluid from the shocks, not a smidge or a drip or a drop. Took it to another testing station, passed. Most plausible explaination, Kwik Fit sprayed my shock with WD40 or similar oily substance. Have reported them to VOSA. Just steer well clear of these garages, for MOTs, Servicing or repairs, dont use them, they are terrible! They have huge management pressures to behave dishonestly to hit targets, they are a completely unethical, 100% profit motivated to the detriment to customers and their cars and wallets. Also if unlike me you are an enviromentalist, the amount of needless repairs they must undertake with perfecty good car parts being replaced is sizeable giving the number of virus like Kwik Fit garages around! Boycott Kwik Fit, until their entire management structure and ethos changes.

rev_henry

leelondon wrote: »

...Then do not use it. Repeat do not use it. You maybe like me received a reward voucher from your credit card company, please dont be like me and use it. The thing to always keep in mind is that Kwik Fit are crooks, thieving, lying, unscruplous, immoral scumbags.
Took my car to kwik fit for an MOT (a madness took me), it failed on a front shock absorber with a serious leak. I didnt beleive them, so took the car home, cleaned up the shocks on both sides. Drove the car around for a week (200 miles), not a drop of fluid from the shocks, not a smidge or a drip or a drop. Took it to another testing station, passed. Most plausible explaination, Kwik Fit sprayed my shock with WD40 or similar oily substance. Have reported them to VOSA. Just steer well clear of these garages, for MOTs, Servicing or repairs, dont use them, they are terrible! They have huge management pressures to behave dishonestly to hit targets, they are a completely unethical, 100% profit motivated to the detriment to customers and their cars and wallets. Also if unlike me you are an enviromentalist, the amount of needless repairs they must undertake with perfecty good car parts being replaced is sizeable giving the number of virus like Kwik Fit garages around! Boycott Kwik Fit, until their entire management structure and ethos changes.

Well, surely you lost nothing by using your free voucher? Use it, if it passes, you got yourself a free MOT, if it fails, you take it somewhere else and its only cost you what it would usually cost you. Did they not change their tune when you asked for the dispute forms (or whatever its called)?