Most over-priced parts from a Dealership....ever?

[EJH]

Speed Badger said:

I know somebody who owns a Porsche, whilst perusing the latest models in the Porsche showroom, asked for a replacement bulb as one of his had blown.

The price?

'Free, sir - it would be beneath us to charge for such an item.'

When they do charge it has more than a whiff of wounded rhino to it. Parts quotes (from ~2011) for a 1988 3.2 Carrera:


Replacement hood
£3,000+VAT

Replacement leather-covered dashboard top (vinyl is ~£800)
£3,400+VAT

[Funk]

There must be people that pay it...

Think about the footfall a dealer would get if they stopped wallet-raping though? I got a replacement air intake boot from BMW once and it was an entirely reasonable £20 so they're not all at it.

[WCZ]

RobM77 said:

One of those two statements is true though, because I already knew exactly what they cost due to an Evo article all about the option at the time. It stuck in my mind because it made me wonder how the quality of dampers varied between cars.

they were not an option on any cars.
some people went through the spares department to fit them on standard cars but were shocked at the cost.

[V8forweekends]

Funk said:

There must be people that pay it...

Think about the footfall a dealer would get if they stopped wallet-raping though? I got a replacement air intake boot from BMW once and it was an entirely reasonable £20 so they're not all at it.

Most of the grumpy ill-mannered parts folk I've encountered in Main Dealers have plainly got quite enough to do without being troubled by pesky customers so I doubt they'd welcome any increase in footfall.

[V8forweekends]

£700 + for the headlight unit on my X350 Jag was pretty steep I thought - couldn't find a second-hand or pattern one at the time.

Similarly, £750 for the small bit of exhaust where they all crack was a bit much and before specialists got wise and offered cheaper solutions

Both of the above were parts prices only - labour on top.

[carbonblack]

Funk said:

There must be people that pay it...

Think about the footfall a dealer would get if they stopped wallet-raping though? I got a replacement air intake boot from BMW once and it was an entirely reasonable £20 so they're not all at it.

I've found with BMW parts it's quite hit and miss. Some bits are cheapest at the dealers like suspension sundries. Other parts are hideously expensive for similar washers or other sundries. I've ended up buying half a recent order through BMW and the rest from eBay at half the cost. Swings and roundabouts!

That said £2 or £3 for some of the washers/bolts/nuts is still robbery even if the next cheapest is eBay at £10!

I ordered a set of hose clamps from BMW a week or two ago - it cost nearly £8 for a set. Funny thing was the dealership spent over £5 sending the order to me... madness!

[JoeMk1]

A set of roof seals for my MR2 T-Bar come in at a cool £653.52...

Thankfully there are people who sell them for less, still nearly £400 though.

[cat with a hat]

normalbloke said:

Honda S2000 VGS model. (variable geared steering for those not in the know)
Quotes from Hendy Honda were £14500. Yep, £14.5k to be clear. Power steering assistance failed, the rack reverts to it's lowest gearing, which makes it almost undriveable without assistance. Contacted approx. 15 electronic power steering specialists who said they cannot refurb the Honda's Showa units. Sold the car to a friend for a spares/repair price.

Dam!

[StottyEvo]

A single coil spring for a Clio 197 Cup was £185.

Remember, that's for a spring, for a Renault Clio.

[RobM77]

WCZ said:

RobM77 said:

One of those two statements is true though, because I already knew exactly what they cost due to an Evo article all about the option at the time. It stuck in my mind because it made me wonder how the quality of dampers varied between cars.

they were not an option on any cars.
some people went through the spares department to fit them on standard cars but were shocked at the cost.

Evo must be wrong then I guess? It's in the magazine, and I'm not doubting you, so I can only assume that they were mis-informed or the potential to spec it was withdrawn.

[anonymous-user]

VW Taureg center driveshaft $1800. My car is on its 3rd!

[RobM77]

fblm said:

VW Taureg center driveshaft $1800. My car is on its 3rd!

That's an unusual part to go and especially to fail repeatedly - tell us more?

[MJK 24]

RobM77 said:

fblm said:

VW Taureg center driveshaft $1800. My car is on its 3rd!

That's an unusual part to go and especially to fail repeatedly - tell us more?

The propshaft centre bearing on the Touareg/Cayenne is prone to early failure. It's a standard GKN part. I paid £145 to have a new bearing supplied and fitted to my prop that I removed and refitted myself. Changing the whole propshaft is madness.

[r-kid]

Vauxhall quoted me £1787.40 (exc labour) for the near side rear light cluster.

[SuperchargedVR6]

normalbloke said:

Honda S2000 VGS model. (variable geared steering for those not in the know)
Quotes from Hendy Honda were £14500. Yep, £14.5k to be clear.

The parts staff at Honda dealers must nudge each other every time someone asks for one of those....."Look, watch this guy's reaction when I tell him how much".

[colonel c]

I suppose main dealers hands are tied to some extent.

Discovery 2 leaky steering pump.
MD quoted something over £800 for new pump. Asked if they could just replace the seals? No Can't do that.
Local L R specialist. Little over £600 for new pump (possibly find a recon for half that). Asked if they could just replace the seals? We will give it a go but can't promise anything.
New seals fitted for £150. Five years on still holding up.

[RobM77]

MJK 24 said:

RobM77 said:

fblm said:

VW Taureg center driveshaft $1800. My car is on its 3rd!

That's an unusual part to go and especially to fail repeatedly - tell us more?

The propshaft centre bearing on the Touareg/Cayenne is prone to early failure. It's a standard GKN part. I paid £145 to have a new bearing supplied and fitted to my prop that I removed and refitted myself. Changing the whole propshaft is madness.

That makes a lot more sense now - I couldn't work out how a propshaft could keep going!

[AlexHat]

My rear dampers for my Alfa (Mito Cloverleaf) come in at around £600 each...so not as bad a Clio Trophy ones, but still!

[lostkiwi]

RobM77 said:

MJK 24 said:

RobM77 said:

fblm said:

VW Taureg center driveshaft $1800. My car is on its 3rd!

That's an unusual part to go and especially to fail repeatedly - tell us more?

The propshaft centre bearing on the Touareg/Cayenne is prone to early failure. It's a standard GKN part. I paid £145 to have a new bearing supplied and fitted to my prop that I removed and refitted myself. Changing the whole propshaft is madness.

That makes a lot more sense now - I couldn't work out how a propshaft could keep going!

On a 4x4 that's subjected to all manner of mud and water it's not an uncommon failure (I had a front prop fly apart on the M6 on my Defender - that was exciting...). Touaregs and Cayennes are prone to centre bearing failure even when just used on the road.

[RobM77]

lostkiwi said:

RobM77 said:

MJK 24 said:

RobM77 said:

fblm said:

VW Taureg center driveshaft $1800. My car is on its 3rd!

That's an unusual part to go and especially to fail repeatedly - tell us more?

The propshaft centre bearing on the Touareg/Cayenne is prone to early failure. It's a standard GKN part. I paid £145 to have a new bearing supplied and fitted to my prop that I removed and refitted myself. Changing the whole propshaft is madness.

That makes a lot more sense now - I couldn't work out how a propshaft could keep going!

On a 4x4 that's subjected to all manner of mud and water it's not an uncommon failure (I had a front prop fly apart on the M6 on my Defender - that was exciting...). Touaregs and Cayennes are prone to centre bearing failure even when just used on the road.

Ah, thanks. I know next to nothing about 4x4s (bizarrely I was recently hounded on a thread for not knowing what an Evoque was - people accused me of lieing because apparently "everyone's heard of them"!).