Why get a car serviced at the dealer's garage?

bunking_off

goldspanners wrote: »

i would imagine they do charge you that for oil,even the best of oils will cost you half that from an independant.

From memory, it's 30 quid's worth of oil if bought from Costco (actually, 40, because it's an awkward amount).

So twenty quid over the odds. Versus the loss of value of not having a full Jag history. Plus, in my case, 500 quid saved on parts/labour to fix a fault out of warranty that they'd have laughed me out of the place about had I not been a regular customer.

Labour rate at my main dealer's £45+VAT/hr.

John51

For a car out of warranty a good bet is the place where private hire drivers get their cars serviced. At 1,000+ miles per week the cost and quality of servicing is crucial, as is limiting the down time. What often happens is that the garage uses some of the discount they get on parts to lower the bill, my brother had work done on his diesel that involved removing the cylinder head for just £20 more than the parts would have cost him.

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers!

alared wrote: »

If you service it yourself and two years down the line you need to have warranty work done,how can you prove it`s been serviced in line with manufacturer`s instructions?

By showing receipts for parts and fluids purchased and having obtained a copy of the jobsheets for that car (which I have).

moonrakerz

alared wrote: »

After reading through this thread it seems to me that if you purchase a new say,Ford,with a three year warranty,you must have it serviced by "someone" at the regular service times (stamped as proof) so as not to invalidate your warranty.

If this is correct,as far as i can see,you might just as well take it to your Ford dealer because whatever other garage you take it to can`t really be much cheaper.

I have recently bought a new Ford. I originally was going to get it from an internet broker but after a long and detailed discussion with a local Ford dealer I got it from there: for the following reasons:-

1. I got a price almost down to Internet levels, in fact cheaper than some !.
2. Standard Ford 3yr/60K warranty.
3. Free services and MoTs for as long as I keep the vehicle - this includes all the consumables, oil, filters, belts, etc.
4. Advantage of being (hopefully !) a valued customer at that dealership, leading to, if ever needed, a bit of "goodwill".

deltic_2

deltic wrote: »

If your car or van is under warranty and you use an independent, in order to ensure you remain fully covered by your warranty the independent must:

- service the vehicle in exact accordance with the manufacturer's service schedule (and these vary by vehicle, specification and model year etc)
- complete regular maintenance items outside the schedule e.g cambelt
- replace any parts with manufacturer's parts or exact OE equivalent
- use the correct grade and type of oil for any oil replacements

Alared...you have to provide detailed invoices and detailed jobsheets that can demostrate all of the above has been completed without exception.

jeannieblue

moonrakerz wrote: »

I have recently bought a new Ford. I originally was going to get it from an internet broker but after a long and detailed discussion with a local Ford dealer I got it from there: for the following reasons:-

1. I got a price almost down to Internet levels, in fact cheaper than some !.
2. Standard Ford 3yr/60K warranty.
3. Free services and MoTs for as long as I keep the vehicle - this includes all the consumables, oil, filters, belts, etc.
4. Advantage of being (hopefully !) a valued customer at that dealership, leading to, if ever needed, a bit of "goodwill".

But nothing is 'free' - gotta be a catch some where..

Smi1er

To still be covered by your warrenty then you must

• Use original manufacture parts
• Have the work done by a garage that is VAT registered

moonrakerz

jeannieblue wrote: »

But nothing is 'free' - gotta be a catch some where..

OK then; the price I paid for the car included all the services & MoTs. No catch !

alared

moonrakerz wrote: »

OK then; the price I paid for the car included all the services & MoTs. No catch !

I think you got a good deal there but it depends how close to the internet price they gave you.
Free Servicing and MOT`s for the life of your ownership of the car is one I`ve never encountered.

I got an internet price and my local dealer begrudgingly matched it.
When he seen I was determined to order from the internet he agreed saying he hoped the new plate volume sales bonus for March would make up his "loss".

Drives_Too_Much

A few months ago I bought a hyundai with 2 1/2 years unlimited milage warranty left on it. I got it serviced recently at the main dealer. It cost £300, the regular service on my old Peugeot was usually £50 (admittedly at a small probably not vat registered garage). They also say the brake pads and disk are at 80% and need replacing, which will be another £300. If there's still 80% left why do they need replacing? seems like 'make-work' to me. I drive over 1000 miles a week for work (self employed) so it seems that if this is the cost of maintaining my warranty i'm better off getting it done cheap and forgetting about the warranty. The car apparently has to be serviced every 10,000 miles (i.e. every two months). I won't sell the car on when I'm done with 'cos it'll probably be scrap in two years. Can I just use my normal guy and keep the receipts for the parts he's bought?