Kwik Fit servicing bikes

[Bollo]

Ooh, can I now pay to pointlessly have nitrogen in my bike tyres without being asked too?

Drop your bikes off at mine and I’ll fill them with 78% nitrogen for 50% of the price. Bargain. Form an orderly queue please.

 

[sevenfourate]

Drop your bikes off at mine and I’ll fill them with 78% nitrogen for 50% of the price.

Your claims are just hot air……

 

[DRM]

Ooh, can I now pay to pointlessly have nitrogen in my bike tyres without being asked too?

And a wheel balance with new valve!

 

[DRM]

We had to use them for our work vans at the insistence of the leasing company about 13 years ago, I heard them them quote a bloke £240 for front discs and pads for a Renault Megane, I couldn't believe it, at the time we had just had our Galaxy serviced at the Ford main dealer, they did front discs and pads iirc, for £140, using genuine Ford parts, not the aftermarket carp Kwik Fit use

 

[DRM]

I can see it now. Go in to have a puncture fixed (for anyone who doesn't DIY) and get told you need new chain, cassette, tyres, wheel bearings, bottom bracket, and headset. All of which can be done but you'll need to leave the bike for 2 days as it's in such dangerous condition, and it will only cost you a lot more than the bike is worth!

I think you've nailed it in one, I can't see it lasting, reading the article their chasing Cargo & E-bike delivery fleets

 

[T4tomo]

there is also added advantage of getting left hooked by a motorist visiting kwikfit as you drop your cargo bike into fettle!

 

[Alex321]

I think Kwik-Fit must be a bit like Halfords in the sense that they vary considerably between branches, given all the comments here.

I can honestly say I don't think I've ever been overcharged or had unnecessary work done or suggested, and the Bridgend Kwik-Fit is definitely my preferred place to take my vehicles for work doing on them. I generally had decent experiences in the one in Cheltenham when I went there as well, though I usually only used that one for tyres.

 

[Fastpedaller]

Funny that someone just mentioned Kwik Fit. I was looking for a car park in the city centre for tomorrow and realised there's one of their places near where I need to get. Turns out it's actually cheaper to drop of the car in the morning, let them do the wheel alignment, and pick it up in the afternoon, then it would be to pay for parking. Win-win.

But surely they'll ruin the wheel alignment? Be cheaper in the long run to pay for parking.

 

[PaulSB]

If Fettle, a company I don't know but seem well thought of, want to set up or franchise in someway in the same building as Kwikfit it seems a very good idea to me. There are many plusses.

If Kwikfit are as poor as people suggest, far from my experience, then Fettle would need to be clear it's independent from Kwikfit. If Fettle have anything about them this will already be planned because I wouldn't go to Kwikfit for cycle maintenance but might be attracted by Fettle.

Rubbishing a good idea because the operator is hoping to take advantage of a nationwide chain of outlets and share a roof is a poor attitude in my mind.

 

[Drago]

I fear that meagre associating with the KwikBodge name may be enough to sink them.

 

[Fastpedaller]

I worked at Ford during the 90's when Jac Nasser (known as Jac the knife) was the senior guy, and Ford bought Aston Martin, Jaguar, Volvo amongst others. To our disbelief Kwikfit was also bought (I think the idea was to direct exhausts/tyre trade from Main Dealers to kwikfit.)
Ford reputedly bought Kwikfit for £1 Billion and then later sold it for £1 million - not a good business decision.

 

[chris667]

Why anyone would go to a chain is beyond me. Local businesses have so much more to lose if things go wrong. Look for someone with a decent reputation.

True story about Halfords MOT centres. They once had a look at Mrs667's Micra and came up with a list of "faults" that weren't anything like MOT failures. She told them to go ahead and paid £1000 instead of the £200 or so it would have taken for an MOT and routine servicing. I looked at the quote and the work they did and immediately thought they were chancers.

I took it to my local garage, got a proper list of MOT work required and came back to them with a list of the work that wasn't MOT related and that if I didn't get a full refund I'd contact Trading Standards and VOSA about their quoting for unnecessary work. They gave me a full refund.

 

[CXRAndy]

I find Kwik fit fine, I guess it's down to the branch

 

[simongt]

Does make you wonder why a firm that to date, has dealt only with motor vehicle related 'servicing' since it's inception in 1971 suddenly wants to include cycles in it's profile.
Struggling for business, or getting a bit too smart for it's own good - ?

 

[Drago]

I worked at Ford during the 90's when Jac Nasser (known as Jac the knife) was the senior guy, and Ford bought Aston Martin, Jaguar, Volvo amongst others. To our disbelief Kwikfit was also bought (I think the idea was to direct exhausts/tyre trade from Main Dealers to kwikfit.)
Ford reputedly bought Kwikfit for £1 Billion and then later sold it for £1 million - not a good business decision.

They did the same to Volvo. Ruined the product by using cheap Ford engines and components which brought about a marked drop and qua,ity and, consequently, sales, then sold it a few years later for barely a quarter what they had paid for it. 5 minutes later the Chinese have turned it round and are making the killing that Ford didn't have the nouse to do.

Ford have dropped big money clangers like this regularly since the 50's, so it always amazes me they managed to remain in business.