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

Crabman

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".

That sounds like a remarkable deal, but how did you not get thrown out of the dealership when you put that offer down? Please don't say it involved favours

Mr_Thrifty

3. Free services and MoTs for as long as I keep the vehicle - this includes all the consumables, oil, filters, belts, etc.


Seriously???
If so, that is worth a small fortune.
I expect that each service will identify all sorts of 'issues' that need resolving for several hundred £££ each time, however.
Sometimes dealers use a 'service' as an excuse to fish for work.

76rosie

I went to have my first service on my new picanto in N. London. I have done 3900 miles. My service was 175 and was told i needed a new pollen filter. Well as they called it a 12000 mile service i guessed mine couldn't be that bad and said no thankyou.

Anyway checked it myself this morning with a friend and hoovered it out. By the way i did check on ebay and a 35 pound filter costs 12 pound. My plan is to keep hoovering it out and checking it. I was thinking I would put a new one before the next service and see what they say.

Kia are nice simple cheap cars but after sales is B*****.

Glad i didn't let them get the better of me. And I don't want them to try it on others. Can't wait for them to call me up and ask how my service was.

Strider590

76rosie wrote: »

Anyway checked it myself this morning with a friend and hoovered it out. By the way i did check on ebay and a 35 pound filter costs 12 pound. My plan is to keep hoovering it out and checking it. I was thinking I would put a new one before the next service and see what they say..

It's not that simple, most pollen filters are carbon impregnated.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_filtering

It absorbs chemicals and impurities (not just dust and pollen).
Helps to stop smells and gases (including exhaust gases) getting into the vehicle.
Hoovering cannot undo the chemical reaction that occurred when the carbon filter absorbed impurities in the air.

It's well worth replacing the pollen filter every 12months, just don't go near the dealership for it.

And when you check it, make sure it's not damp/wet. This is a sign of blocked water drainage channels, which eventually leads to water inside the car.

thescouselander

Dealers aren always bad value. For example I can take my Audi to get an Oil change for £99. Granted its not the cheapest but its not that much more expensive than an independent and the main dealer will throw in extra services like pickup and collection or a courtesy car. I could also wait for it in their very nice waiting area where I would be given unlimited drinks and biscuits and have access to their free wifi. You just don't get that sort of thing at an independent.

Then there's the re-assurace the dealer will properly record the maintenance being done which could help if anything goes wrong.

patman99

My mechanic is an ex-main dealer mechanic. He worked for two dealerships over 20 years and quit because he was fed-up with the way they screwed-over the customers.

My BiL bought a diesel Focus 2 years ago and took it to Colchester's Ford dealership a year later to enquire as to how to check the power steering fluid levels. They told him he would need to book a 1/2 hour slot so a mechanic could show him. Cost would be £75. On the way home he popped into a local garage and the mechanic was quite happy to tell him for free that it used a fluid-free system.

On the other hand -

I took my van in to All Trans 2 years ago for an MOT. It failed on kingpins, rear suspension bush and a couple of minor things. They repaired and re-MOT'ed it for me.
1 year (and only 1200 miles) on and back it goes for another MOT. Again, 5 items on the failure sheet, including kingpins. The conversation went like this -
Me-"how long should kingpins last when replaced ?"
Gill (the co-owner) -"Oh, 20k easy if new parts used"
Me - "but these were done 1200 miles ago"
Gill -"well, that's the trouble with using cowboys who fit 2nd-hand parts I'm afraid"
Me -"But it was your mechanics who fitted them. Does this mean you consider your own staff to be cowboys ?"
Gill - walks-off into office and slams door shut.

3 days later, van passes MOT at local Council workshops. MOT tester looks at failures from All Trans and comments that they must be fishing for work.
Coincidentally, today, the van went back to the Council depot and got a nice new MOT. Still not replaced the kingpins.

peteb74

I use my local garage, always have done ever since I got my first car 13 years ago. It's a family business, my dad used them ever since he moved into the village and we trust them. There have been times I've popped in with stupid things that I should be able to do (like get their air hose to work) and they've sorted me out for a couple of quid

Guesthouse

John51 wrote: »

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.

Like this one, makes god sense. Used a couple of locals through the years who deal heavily with taxis.

Guesthouse

Had a Fiat Marea : Indifferent dealer servicing with problems that seemed to never completely go away or led to another - maybe it was the car, though it was fine in every other respect. Independant servicing cheaper and certainly no worse.

Had a brand new Citroen C4 a few years after Fiat on a PCP deal - main dealer serviced and it certainly felt expensive each time I dipped into my wallet to pay. Murder getting hold of service desk to book/enquire and the ambience was....well.....car showroom. Handed it back after contract ended.

Now in an old VW Bora - because we only cover around 5-6k a year and can't justify paying crazy money for a new motor either outright or contract. Timing belt/water pump replacement quotes - very similar between dealer and independant specialist, dealer could do it on day I was free.
Lost locking wheelnut adapter : Local garages/tyre fitters sucked in breath and whistled before pulling some large numbers out the air.
Independant specialist very busy and needed to prebook but could do it for a moderate price (basic price quoted) plus new nuts - depended if they could get old nuts off easily. Drove into dealer yard and they did it on the spot for same basic price I was quoted - included new nuts and a tasty coffee while I waited.
Basic servicing: done by me. Oil & filter 6 monthly when I put on summer/winter wheels, air filter yearly, pollen filter, spark plugs & leads 2 yearly. Castrol or Mobil 1 oil from Costco or Euro Carparts, NGK/Bosch?Champion plugs and generic filter from Euro Carparts or Halfrauds.

Shop around, main dealers are sometimes as cheap or cheaper.

forgotmyname

Blimey is it 2008 already.