Wheel Balancing...fair price?

arcon5

I'd say the guy is more likely to sell a car with pending faults.... he knows how much work/expense/whatever is required to sort it out, he also knows the tell tale signs much better than the average joe - so is certainly is a much better position to make a judgement as to whether to sell the car and when.

gazfocus

Well if the garage report any major expenses, he'll find the car blocking his drive until I get a full refund....one of the perks of buying locally :-D

Spicy_McHaggis

gazfocus wrote: »

Well if the garage report any major expenses, he'll find the car blocking his drive until I get a full refund....one of the perks of buying locally :-D

So he'll have your cash and your car.

gazfocus

Spicy_McHaggis wrote: »

So he'll have your cash and your car.

But no keys to move the car from across his driveway and no way to get his car in or out (depending on whether he's in or not when I leave the car there)

Spicy_McHaggis

gazfocus wrote: »

But no keys to move the car from across his driveway and no way to get his car in or out (depending on whether he's in or not when I leave the car there)

You forget he'll have a trolley jack and it'll cost you £150 to have your car recovered from the middle of the road.

Please think it through before you act.

gazfocus

As I said, I don't believe (at the moment) that I've been sold a dud, so we'll just have to see what the garage say.

However, I won't take being ripped off lightly if I have been.

Nodding_Donkey

gazfocus wrote: »

Just phoned my local garage to get a price to have the wheels on my 1999 BMW 520i balanced and they've quoted £8+vat per wheel.

My local tyre place charge £7 a corner for tyre fitting, balancing and disposing of the old tyre.

colino

I don't for a second think you have been sold a dud. You are driving a well engineered, well designed, well put together executive car that is 15-16 years old, and would have cost around £30,000 new. It may well be something very simple that is causing the shake, so simple and so insignificant perhaps that the mechanic owner knew it wasn't important and wouldn't be detrimental to the future of the car.
Get it checked by someone who knows beemers (not someone who will have you replace every bush, bearing and joint that isn't brand new) and you could have an appreciating asset on your hands.

gazfocus

colino wrote: »

I don't for a second think you have been sold a dud. You are driving a well engineered, well designed, well put together executive car that is 15-16 years old, and would have cost around £30,000 new. It may well be something very simple that is causing the shake, so simple and so insignificant perhaps that the mechanic owner knew it wasn't important and wouldn't be detrimental to the future of the car.
Get it checked by someone who knows beemers (not someone who will have you replace every bush, bearing and joint that isn't brand new) and you could have an appreciating asset on your hands.

I was talking to my wife last night and I think I'm going to keep for about 6 months while I save my pennies, and then sell this and buy a slightly newer Diesel E39 (probably 525 or 530), in a better colour and I'll then keep that until it's uneconomical to repair.

colino

When you do change, don't bother with the 525D, you'll always wonder how such a small difference in engine size can take a supreme car like a 530D and turn it into an also ran.