My car's service bill

noClue

Thanks guys, I got what I posted here for... thank you all for taking time replying!

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Just did my car's mot and service today, got the bill, it's excluding the mot and servicing charge

I am far from any handyman or diyer. I guess I am asking is this normal? The car is 4 years old with 16000+ miles 

this is first time servicing with an independent garage, the previous 3 times were with main dealer's free servicing service...



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updates

thanks guys for the comments.

Yes, the mot and full service is about 175 if I remember correctly, think full service include normal/standard oil etc and they did mention if need special oil will charge extra when I book...

went there, left the car, they called later telling me which needed to be done and gave the full price, not knowing much about car at all, i said ok, then they called once it's done, the bill is exactly as they told me on the phone...

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update 2

guys, I am still processing your replies. Thanks, think i will learn a bit of things from them lol

meanwhile, the car is a peugeot 208 automatic.

It's neither Kwik-fit or Halfords. It's a popular garage locally (still a chain but would rather not given name unless absolutely necessary). A friend recommended it to me. last year, I did MOT with them only and all good (freely serviced first at dealer's).

I just found last year's servicing record, seems front brake was already quite worn?

I think yesterday they did tell me they changed brake because manufacturer's recommendation etc etc. (I didn't pay too much attention, as really know 0 about car orz)




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more updates

I should've uploaded the other two notes. One is what included in the master/full service, the other is extra notes.

flashg67

Did they give you a quote based before hand for the service? if so, I'd have expected them to quote for all the service work due, ie including the plugs/pollen /brake fluid, which will only be due every 'x' miles or years
Without knowing the car, it's hard to say whether the work was needed at this mileage (spark plugs/pollen filter/brake fluid change) but it's sounds likely/possible at  4 yrs old.

16k doesn't sound a lot to need brake discs,( but not impossible)and replacing brakes is not part of a service and I'd have expected a call  first with a quote.

So, for me, no, not all normal, but doesn't necessarily mean they've overcharged you 

angrycrow

That is a very odd invoice. Just looking at the bottom line figure assuming major service and discs and pads it's an utter bargain. 

Then the detail gets very odd. 

They charge £16.47 for oil, that's proper bargain basement oil for an average 4l oil change. 

What happened to the oil filter, they have not charged for one.

Pollen filter and spark plugs changed but not the engine air filter. 

£218 for a pair of discs and pads feels like daylight robbery unless it's something exotic. That should get you front and rear even on a prestige car.

Price for brake fluid change is right if it includes labour. It's also the right age to change brake fluid. 

Ultimately the main concern is what happened to the oil filter and what cheap nasty oil they put in. 

ontheroad1970

The oil looks like an upgrade on top of the normal charge, rather than the charge for oil - "Specialist Oil Upgrade".  so their standard service charge might include 'standard' oil.  

KimJongUn88

angrycrow said:

That is a very odd invoice. Just looking at the bottom line figure assuming major service and discs and pads it's an utter bargain. 

Then the detail gets very odd. 

They charge £16.47 for oil, that's proper bargain basement oil for an average 4l oil change. 

What happened to the oil filter, they have not charged for one.

Pollen filter and spark plugs changed but not the engine air filter. 

£218 for a pair of discs and pads feels like daylight robbery unless it's something exotic. That should get you front and rear even on a prestige car.

Price for brake fluid change is right if it includes labour. It's also the right age to change brake fluid. 

Ultimately the main concern is what happened to the oil filter and what cheap nasty oil they put in. 

As the OP has stated, this is a separate invoice over and above the charges for the standard service and MOT. So the charge for the oil and filter will be on the other invoice.

noClue

thanks guys for the comments.

Yes, the mot and full service is about 175 if I remember correctly, think full service include normal/standard oil etc and they did mention if need special oil will charge extra when I book...

went there, left the car, they called later telling me which needed to be done and gave the full price, not knowing much about car at all, i said ok, then they called once it's done, the bill is exactly as they told me on the phone...

wild666

Where did they get the service done Kwik-fit or Halfords? The only time a full set of brakes want changing might be if the driver is using it to rally on public roads hard braking, more wear on discs and pads plus the fluid will only need a top up rather than fully replacing. 

KimJongUn88

wild666 said:

Where did they get the service done Kwik-fit or Halfords? The only time a full set of brakes want changing might be if the driver is using it to rally on public roads hard braking, more wear on discs and pads plus the fluid will only need a top up rather than fully replacing. 

You don’t know enough about the OP’s car to make such statements. 

Maybe he’s already had a set of pads changed on the past and now it’s time for both pads and discs to be changed. Do you never change both pads and discs?

Regards the brake fluid, it gets contaminated by water and the boiling point drops which can lead to loss of pedal pressure in extreme circumstances. It’s recommended that this is changed every other year.

daveyjp

I would probably have wanted to inspect the brakes.  However at 16,000 miles over 4years it is possible for brakes to get badly corroded through to lack of use.

We had an early Aygo that was built to a price.  After three years and 12,000 largely low speed town miles the front brake disks were badly corroded and needed to be changed.

The other items on the list are generally part of a four year service which can be more expensive as spark plugs etc are often changed,  However it is worth checking your servicing schedule before dropping the car off so you know what needs doing.

[Deleted User]

My questions would be what car. Was everything as per manufacture service schedule.

Did you see the reason for the disk change, that is warped, worn, cracked? The indies I use keep the parts back for the show and tell when I collect the car. They also use OEM and yes there are cheaper ones on the net but I rather let the garage fir the bits they buy (many will refuse user supplied anyway).

What oil and what manufacturer specifies what on its service. The local indie that does the Ecotek has bought in Ford approved oil in bulk to satisfy warranties for example.

Also what rep has the garage locally. That is I trust mine when they say something is bust, been using them a long time and the work is always good and honest though not the cheapest.

Bendy_House

The cost of the MOT and service, at £175, is perfectly reasonable - good, even. The cost of the parts replaced is - to me - absolutely top-end. Unless there's a good reason for these prices (what car is this?), then I'd personally be looking elsewhere from now on.

Did the brake discs need replacing? We can only assume 'yes'. As pointed out above, premature wear can ironically be caused by a 'lack' of use as it can by excessively heavy braking. I think the main indicator of the need is the fact the car is 4 years old - I suspect natural corrosion of the disc.

A 'good' (from a relationship pov) garage would have known that new discs&pads at only 16k miles would come across as 'unusual' to many informed customers, so would have made a point of keeping the old ones to show their client to remove any suspicion. This lot didn't, so cannot be surprised if there's some suspicion.

Unless this is an intrinsically 'costly' car to maintain, I think I'd be exploring alternative venues before the next service. Far more important, tho', is having a garage that you trust to do a good job, so perhaps don't dismiss this current place without a good alternative.

If you shortlist a couple of recommended alternatives, then perhaps you can call them up and say, "I have a 2017 Ghuh with 16k miles, and I've been told the front(?) discs/pads need replacing - can you give me a quote for this and a fluid change, please?" Based on these quotes, you'll know where the current garage stands.