VW Garage double standards

blue_haddock

You may well find that originally the cambelt was due at 120k miles but they had a series of the snap prematurely and so lowered the mileage at which it needs to be done to a more sensible level. Equally i've never been happy with the VW longlife service system - just because a car hasnt been driven doesnt mean things like oil and brake fluid havent degraded.

Hammyman

thelawnet wrote: »

I've therefore no idea why they are trying to get me to fork out £600 for a cambelt when the service book says it's a 120,000 mile item and doesn't even need checking till 80,000 miles.

Rather than just look at the bit you want to read, what does it also say about what age it should be replaced at?

According to the service book, the brake fluid wasn't changed at any of the three previous services - it should have been done at the last service.

No. With virtually every makers main dealers a brake fluid change is a separate item not part of a service and needs to be booked in separately.

Biketrials08

bigjl wrote: »

I have just reread your first post OP.

You have only done 3000miles!

Rear tyres on most cars would have hardly worn in 3k, the legal limit is 1.6mm in the central 2/3's.


.

Central 3/4s.

OP, your front pads are probably fine and are likely to be much better than the pesimistic/scam 75% worn stated.

thelawnet

Just had it MOTed/serviced, have done 5000 miles since purchase, the two rear tyres failed, but as it's an independent they only want £125 for them....

Also advisory on the front discs/pads, £247 for those, and front tyres advisory also.

Will get four tyres, and check about the front brakes.

VW have a fixed price £339 cambelt replacement, but maybe next year for that one.....

TamA

Just bough an 06 reg Audi a4 2.0tfsi with 80k. Got it for less than a quarter of it's real value because the timing belt snapped. If I was you the cambelt would be the first thing especially at 339 which is very reasonable for genuine parts fitted.

Tyres you can get online cheap like people have said. No point in going to vw. Tell them how cheap they are elsewhere for good brands and perhaps they will drop the prices.

I would leave the brakes till last especially if you have just had a years mot put on the car. and if your not competent enough to change them yourself then go to a local tyre fitter. Brakes don't require £100/hour labour to change them.

chunkychocky

thelawnet wrote: »

Just had it MOTed/serviced, have done 5000 miles since purchase, the two rear tyres failed, but as it's an independent they only want £125 for them....

Also advisory on the front discs/pads, £247 for those, and front tyres advisory also.

Will get four tyres, and check about the front brakes.

VW have a fixed price £339 cambelt replacement, but maybe next year for that one.....

I've had my Polo from new, and they did indeed change the interval on the timing belt as they found too many didn't make it for the original time intervals. Given that your car would be worthless if it did snap I'd get it done if I were you. Are there any independent garages near you that could change it much cheaper? I had mine changed at a garage that was set up by the guy who used to run the servicing department at our local VW garage. All the staff employed by him were trained by either VW or Audi, and they only use genuine parts. That garage is in Bristol if anyone is interested. Their price was considerably less than the official VW garage.

jkpd

wife has a 06 golf gti dsg, handbook (same engine) states 4 years or 80k for cambelt, seek advice about water at the same time, had the car 4 years not one prob it that time has done 90k and go like stink and drives like new loves shell v-power improves mpg by 5 miles, find a good indepentant vw garage

thelawnet

Well I took my car to CT Cars of West Horsley (Leatherhead, Surrey).

Bad and good aspects.

I was charged £85 for 4 litres oil (should be 5W30 synthetic, although capacity is 4.6 litres, so charging for 4 litres not a bad result), oil, air, pollen filter, brake cleaner, screenwash (£1.20) and parts disposal. This seems ok. £90 labour (1.5 hours), so £175 all-in.

Tyres were originally quoted at £125, but then £137 when I called back, which was what I was eventually charged.

I was charged £12 to do the MOT, this was done by another local firm, it failed first time, so this is not bad.

Total bill came to £825 (!) with a set of number plates - £24 (mine were an MOT failure due to space missing between the letter and number), the £49.50 for the MOT, the £548 for the four tyres, and the £175 for the service.

Bad point was that the place is next to a turkey farm and is very muddy, and my car has cream trim and cream carpet mats and there were two big mud smears left on the driver's door trim, another on the passenger door, and quite a lot of twigs and leaves that appeared to have been blown into the passenger's side. Quite annoying as I just washed the carpets and scrubbed the trim. Also brake cleaner or some other brown liquid (?) on two of the alloys. The service booklet was left on the passenger seat, and I assumed that they had filled it in, but when I got home I found that it hadn't been stamped.

I asked them about the brake fluid, which VW had told me was due a change and they said that they test it and it didn't need changing, so that's a plus.

Checked the service schedule and only thing I'm not sure about is, being a convertible there is a risk of leaking, and I'm not sure if they've lubed the seals.

Trebor16

£85 for 4 litres of oil?????:eek:

This gives you a better idea of what you should pay for longlife VW oil.

http://www.opieoils.co.uk/c-754-vw-50700-oil.aspx

£548 for four tyres seems excessive too.

thelawnet

Trebor16 wrote: »

£85 for 4 litres of oil?????:eek:

You've not noticed the comma after oil.

£85 for 4 litres of oil, filters, fluids, etc.

The oil alone was £52.62

£548 for four tyres seems excessive too.

Black circles has them (bridgestone potenza 235/45/17) at £134, and mytyres at £120/each. Fitting/disposal on top of that.