Garages trying to rip me off

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Scottish Scrutineer

Über Member
Location
Fife, Scotland
Oil change alone is booked at 0.6 hours.

An 'A' service (oil and filter, check/top up levels, lube hinges, checkstraps and locks, some 30 odd visual safety and wear checks) is 0.8 hours.

These times include getting the car, driving it in, getting it on the ramp, etc. You can tell which sad sod has a set of ICME manuals :okay:
I used to raise invoices to British Rail (yes it was that long ago), for the workshop of the haulage company I worked for. IIRC we have an allowance of +5% on the ICME job times because of the age of the BR fleet of vans and trucks. Some of the jobs could be completed within the ICME time, but many took significantly longer.
 

fossyant

Ride It Like You Stole It!
Location
South Manchester
I do most of the jobs on our cars myself, unless it's suspension related, and on an older car. OK with drop links, discs etc, but not so fussed about shocks - helped my son change his, but my car is 20 years old. Just changing an ABS sensor ring (needed a whole part) was a right bugger for my garage as none of the bolts had moved for about 17 years.
 

Drago

Legendary Member
I had to do an ABS reluctor ring on my 13 year old Volvo. Thinking it would be a corroded nightmare biatch of a job I threw the keys ate the dealer. It came apart cleanly and easily, and I had change from £130 and a lifetime warranty on the repair.
 

cosmicbike

Perhaps This One.....
Moderator
Location
Egham
I'm fortunate enough to have 2 old (29 & 24 years old) Volvo's as my daily drivers, so if anything needs doing to them I just get on with it. Being an engineer helps, but then so does the hours of YouTube and forum help. 25 years ago my first Volvo broke down and the AA towed me to the garage he used to work for, a small outfit 1 mile from home. The same man runs it now, and they have had our business for 25 years, mainly MOT's but also servicing on SWMBO motor to keep the warranty intact. A good garage is worth keeping.
 

gbb

Legendary Member
Location
Peterborough
I used to raise invoices to British Rail (yes it was that long ago), for the workshop of the haulage company I worked for. IIRC we have an allowance of +5% on the ICME job times because of the age of the BR fleet of vans and trucks. Some of the jobs could be completed within the ICME time, but many took significantly longer.
Not really relevant to the post overall but my SIL garage mechanic said they get vehicles in from some lease companies who will not pay the 'going rates' but the garage is contractually obliged to maintain the fleet. The answer is, the fleet companies vehicles are always the last to be repaired, any paying job that comes in takes precedence.
 

Drago

Legendary Member
As always on matters volvo, Cosmicbike is wise.

I've been lucky that our local Volvo dealer has proven to be excellent. I still do most stuff myself, but if there is something too awkward, messy, or generally a PITA that I don't fancy doing ot (or its simply raining) I know I can let them do it with confidence of a good job atva surprisingly reasonable price and a lifetime warranty on parts.

A good garage is a good garage, regardless of what it says over the door. This idea that pervades some car forums that dealers are universally overpriced and inept and indies are all dirt cheap geniuses is utter rubbish. There are great indies, great dealers, and sheet examples of both as well.

I couldnt care less if it says Jack the Ripper Motors or Mother Theresa Autos over the door, just so long as they're good at what they do.
 

Drago

Legendary Member
The nearest specialist up to the job of working on something as complex as an XC90 is 30 miles away, and they actually farm out some of the specialist tasks to others anyway.

That being the case Im relieved the local dealers aren't called Dick Turpin Motors :laugh:
 

DRM

Guru
Location
West Yorks
Not really relevant to the post overall but my SIL garage mechanic said they get vehicles in from some lease companies who will not pay the 'going rates' but the garage is contractually obliged to maintain the fleet. The answer is, the fleet companies vehicles are always the last to be repaired, any paying job that comes in takes precedence.
In my experience it’s every leasing company, the stupid things they try on to save money is ridiculous, one of our engineers way back when we had cars went to collect it, one shocker had been found leaking, the lease firm only wanted the leaky one replacing! on my last disaster of a van they were always trying to rip the dealer off for work, hence they refused to do anything till a purchase order number was given
 

Drago

Legendary Member
Mrs D used to have a motability car. For those that don't know Motability are a lease scheme that specialise in disabled customers in receipt of PIP.

One day she got a puncture and the tyre was, quelle surprise, declared unrepairable. Instead of replacing the original Pirelli likenfor like, or at least with a similar tyre, they shoved on the cheapest on they could find which was a Khumo M&S tyre.

Bad enough having a mismatched boot on a car, but the opposite tyre was goosed through mileage. It was down to 3mm, a point at which a tyre should be replaced as it cease to tread water at that point and becomes unsafe, so I asked if that could be replaced. They refused as it wasn't worn to the legal limit.

So a not only a badly mismatched tyre, but a brand new tyre on the same axle as a dead one. The car felt horrible to drive, and above 50 was really nervous and skittish feeling. Dangerous, one might say.

When the lease ended we told them to shove it up their arriss.

Never buy a lease car unless its new enough never to have needed a service. They skimp and cut corners to a dangerous degree in their efforts to save money and maximise profit. They know the vehicle will be off the fleet in 2 or 3 years and couldn't give a sheet if it blows up a week after its gone. When you look at a cars service history ignore the stamps in the book and carefully scrutinise the actual invoices to see what has been done.

Also lease companies usually won't pay for "sundries", so stuff like door hinges won't have been greased, locks lubed, that sort on thing. A major service is lucky to get an oil and filter and the absolute minimum safety inspection they can get away with, and stuff all the extra work and expense that should also be done.
 

DRM

Guru
Location
West Yorks
Mrs D used to have a motability car. For those that don't know Motability are a lease scheme that specialise in disabled customers in receipt of PIP.

One day she got a puncture and the tyre was, quelle surprise, declared unrepairable. Instead of replacing the original Pirelli likenfor like, or at least with a similar tyre, they shoved on the cheapest on they could find which was a Khumo M&S tyre.

Bad enough having a mismatched boot on a car, but the opposite tyre was goosed through mileage. It was down to 3mm, a point at which a tyre should be replaced as it cease to tread water at that point and becomes unsafe, so I asked if that could be replaced. They refused as it wasn't worn to the legal limit.

So a not only a badly mismatched tyre, but a brand new tyre on the same axle as a dead one. The car felt horrible to drive, and above 50 was really nervous and skittish feeling. Dangerous, one might say.

When the lease ended we told them to shove it up their arriss.

Never buy a lease car unless its new enough never to have needed a service. They skimp and cut corners to a dangerous degree in their efforts to save money and maximise profit. They know the vehicle will be off the fleet in 2 or 3 years and couldn't give a sheet if it blows up a week after its gone. When you look at a cars service history ignore the stamps in the book and carefully scrutinise the actual invoices to see what has been done.

Also lease companies usually won't pay for "sundries", so stuff like door hinges won't have been greased, locks lubed, that sort on thing. A major service is lucky to get an oil and filter and the absolute minimum safety inspection they can get away with, and stuff all the extra work and expense that should also be done.
One of our employees, in your neck of the woods had a van in for service, got a message to pick it up, he'd marked the oil filter & on inspection it hadn't been changed, his manager checked the tracker and it hadn't even been started, let alone moved, cue much back tracking and grovelling from the dealer after insisting point blank it had been in receipt of a major service.
 

Drago

Legendary Member
When Mrs D's Polestar went in for its 28 day safety check theh actually emailed us a link so we could see a video of it up on the ramp as the techie quickly went round it (it looked like the tsch was wearing a head cam) . I guess with technology like that now available the days of garages telling porkies are numbered.
 

fossyant

Ride It Like You Stole It!
Location
South Manchester
When Mrs D's Polestar went in for its 28 day safety check theh actually emailed us a link so we could see a video of it up on the ramp as the techie quickly went round it (it looked like the tsch was wearing a head cam) . I guess with technology like that now available the days of garages telling porkies are numbered.
Ford do it now. BIL had to have new pads and discs on a 4 year old, relatively low miles Kuga - he'd not been using it much in lockdown and the discs were badly scored - an italian tune up (including braking hard) probably won't have cleared it. They sent a video of the scoring.
 
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