just had service £$£$£$£$£$£$£$ :furious:
Discussion
your thoughs on these prices on my latest service would be greatly appreciated. just got my s1 back from chris neill its a '99 with 20000 miles on the clock.
- initially went in for an A/B service
- opted to go for the B service which came in at £360
- ended up sayin it needed a new cam belt + alternator=£360
- next came the brakes. this was the biggest shocker!!!!! x4 pads £160. . . brake fluid 80 bloody quid!!!! plus vat plus labour
all in all came in at over £900 for what i thought was goin be a basic B service...GUTTED!!!!!
wanted the rubber strips replacing along the top of the door where it seals with the window. originally the strips themselves were £24. . add vat and labour to that and we have £180. . .for 2 blimmin strips.
i may sound like a miser but when you want new wheels and suspension this comes as a bit of a set back. has anyone fitted the above strips and if so whats involved. is it an easy job???? cheers all
- initially went in for an A/B service
- opted to go for the B service which came in at £360
- ended up sayin it needed a new cam belt + alternator=£360
- next came the brakes. this was the biggest shocker!!!!! x4 pads £160. . . brake fluid 80 bloody quid!!!! plus vat plus labour
all in all came in at over £900 for what i thought was goin be a basic B service...GUTTED!!!!!
wanted the rubber strips replacing along the top of the door where it seals with the window. originally the strips themselves were £24. . add vat and labour to that and we have £180. . .for 2 blimmin strips.
i may sound like a miser but when you want new wheels and suspension this comes as a bit of a set back. has anyone fitted the above strips and if so whats involved. is it an easy job???? cheers all
Our Elan went into a well-known independant for a 'B' service and to have a small coolant leak sorted plus the hood release mechanism freed.
Came back with a re-cored rad, a replaced cable, some meaty chips down to the gel coat round the hood release handle and a bill for £707 (plus the sarky comment "well, you are a TVR owner, so you should be used to big bills").
By that reckoning you probably got better value for money, even though your bill is numerically bigger.
Came back with a re-cored rad, a replaced cable, some meaty chips down to the gel coat round the hood release handle and a bill for £707 (plus the sarky comment "well, you are a TVR owner, so you should be used to big bills").
By that reckoning you probably got better value for money, even though your bill is numerically bigger.
"- initially went in for an A/B service
- opted to go for the B service which came in at £360
- ended up sayin it needed a new cam belt + alternator=£360
- next came the brakes. this was the biggest shocker!!!!! x4 pads £160. . . brake fluid 80 bloody quid!!!! plus vat plus labour
all in all came in at over £900 for what i thought was goin be a basic B service...GUTTED!!!!! "
well a B is usually about £250 at a specialist, your car is 5 years old so technically a cam belt change is due - that should have been £550 total ish. Lotus pads are nearly as expensive as Pagids, so could have been £170 for a full set, + fitting, + new fluid (yearly)...but that should have cost £30 ish....not £80..(or was that fluid + labour to bleed etc)...so maybe you could have got a deal elsewhere for about £700-750...less if you went to a one-man band and fitted cheaper aftermarket parts.
I just had a C service on my 2 year old car - basic service is £550 - total bill £2200...ouch
things wear out - if you fit decent pads n disks then a set all round can be £700 + fitting....then if the shocks go you may as well kiss goodbye to a grand and fit Nitrons etc...never mind about toe links, steering racks, geo check if you change the previous etc....it can all mount up.
If I hadnt have changed the suspension a couple of months ago then my std stuff was on the way out with 55K on it - that would have given me a £3K service bill on a 2 year old 55K mile car.....compared to the old Honda Prelude I had, which did 85K in 2.5 years, with only oil changes and one belt (total under £1K) the Elise is expensive to run - if driven as intended....compared to other 'sports cars' then its comparitively light on consumables - its just the dealers that take the piss..........
- opted to go for the B service which came in at £360
- ended up sayin it needed a new cam belt + alternator=£360
- next came the brakes. this was the biggest shocker!!!!! x4 pads £160. . . brake fluid 80 bloody quid!!!! plus vat plus labour
all in all came in at over £900 for what i thought was goin be a basic B service...GUTTED!!!!! "
well a B is usually about £250 at a specialist, your car is 5 years old so technically a cam belt change is due - that should have been £550 total ish. Lotus pads are nearly as expensive as Pagids, so could have been £170 for a full set, + fitting, + new fluid (yearly)...but that should have cost £30 ish....not £80..(or was that fluid + labour to bleed etc)...so maybe you could have got a deal elsewhere for about £700-750...less if you went to a one-man band and fitted cheaper aftermarket parts.
I just had a C service on my 2 year old car - basic service is £550 - total bill £2200...ouch
things wear out - if you fit decent pads n disks then a set all round can be £700 + fitting....then if the shocks go you may as well kiss goodbye to a grand and fit Nitrons etc...never mind about toe links, steering racks, geo check if you change the previous etc....it can all mount up.
If I hadnt have changed the suspension a couple of months ago then my std stuff was on the way out with 55K on it - that would have given me a £3K service bill on a 2 year old 55K mile car.....compared to the old Honda Prelude I had, which did 85K in 2.5 years, with only oil changes and one belt (total under £1K) the Elise is expensive to run - if driven as intended....compared to other 'sports cars' then its comparitively light on consumables - its just the dealers that take the piss..........
Eaton,
Best advice is to join 'Club Lotus'. Costs £25 a year and each issue includes a directory of dealers and specialists Tel 01362 691144 or 01362 694459. From the list give your local dealers and specialists a call ask for the A, B, C, and hourly rate pricing. Give us a post on Piston Heads for advice and it may be less painful.
Also have a look at your floor under the mats check for corrosion of the floor get it done now while Lotus are acknowledging the problem.
I was in the local dealer having the floor assessed (to be fixed at the end of the month FOC). The more you use the Elise the better it gets. Some poor chap was picking up his 'Y' plate S2 9,000 miles on the clock Fan packed in and the Rad gave in.
84,000 miles on the clock. Biggest bill was the 54,000 'C' service + Brakes + £100 of other stuff came in at £998 at Steve Williams. Other than that the bills are just servicing no more than £350 every 9,000 miles.
I think the more you use them can limit the problems.
Also for peace of mind go to the AA interweb site and have a look at the parts and Labour insurance costs £50 or £100 depending on the level of cover.
Good Luck.
Gary
>> Edited by garydvo on Tuesday 12th October 10:32
Best advice is to join 'Club Lotus'. Costs £25 a year and each issue includes a directory of dealers and specialists Tel 01362 691144 or 01362 694459. From the list give your local dealers and specialists a call ask for the A, B, C, and hourly rate pricing. Give us a post on Piston Heads for advice and it may be less painful.
Also have a look at your floor under the mats check for corrosion of the floor get it done now while Lotus are acknowledging the problem.
I was in the local dealer having the floor assessed (to be fixed at the end of the month FOC). The more you use the Elise the better it gets. Some poor chap was picking up his 'Y' plate S2 9,000 miles on the clock Fan packed in and the Rad gave in.
84,000 miles on the clock. Biggest bill was the 54,000 'C' service + Brakes + £100 of other stuff came in at £998 at Steve Williams. Other than that the bills are just servicing no more than £350 every 9,000 miles.
I think the more you use them can limit the problems.
Also for peace of mind go to the AA interweb site and have a look at the parts and Labour insurance costs £50 or £100 depending on the level of cover.
Good Luck.
Gary
>> Edited by garydvo on Tuesday 12th October 10:32
How many hours did they put down for doing the strips? Brake fluid seems a pisstake at 80 quid too. Did you query?
On the other hand sports cars cost a fortune to run because bits just wear out in a way they don't on you average Focus. People witter on about Porsches being bullet proof, but its patently not true, there's a guy who posts on the noble forum who had a 911 GT3 which needed a complete new set of dampers at 12k miles after doing some track days. My noble needed new drive shafts at 16k. The list goes on, and the faster the car is, the worse it gets because the mechanical stresses overwhelm the materials more and more.
Hi Marc, trust all is well 
macfair said:
Gary
are these AA warranties any good?
Please note that this is NOT a warranty, this is 'Parts and Labour Insurance' that can sit with or without a warranty
URL: www.aamembership.co.uk/breakdowncover/join/parts_labourplus_terms.asp
Thus ware and tare is covered. If a part fails then the cost of the parts and labour upto the amount of cover is claimed.
A colleague took out the £500 option, in the first month the brakes failed the cost was around £400 and he just paid the excess of £25.
Only had it 1 month and no claims. The reason I took out the insurance is to cover things like gearbox, Rad or engine problems. Cheaper than a £320 a year Warranty. When you make a warranty claim you always argue ware and tare, with the insurance no discussion its covered other than the details in the t's & c's - see the AA web!
Gary
>> Edited by garydvo on Tuesday 12th October 14:23
I am due for a service in my S1 at 16K (98 model) and am planning to use Chris Neil as all the last services by previous owner were here but he never got the book stampted for the last two of which i have invoices for, so can hopefully get them stampted too.
Think that I might get a mechanic freind to check the car out first for such things as pads / discs and get anything done by him then just get a standard A service!
Think that I might get a mechanic freind to check the car out first for such things as pads / discs and get anything done by him then just get a standard A service!
Marks 1 - why don't you consider an independent? If you're looking at Chris Neils, then you aren't a million miles from Rag Top Roadsters at Macclesfield (www.med-reg.co.uk).
I don't have personal experience of them, but will be going there for my next service + to get some mods sorted, following the very positive messages on this forum.
Quite a lot of Liz owners my way (south yorks / derbyshire) seem go to Rag Top or Paul Matty at Birmingham rather than the local (I won't name names) main dealers round here, who in my opinion leave a lot to be desired.
If anyone has any feedback on Rag Top I would appreciate hearing it!
I don't have personal experience of them, but will be going there for my next service + to get some mods sorted, following the very positive messages on this forum.
Quite a lot of Liz owners my way (south yorks / derbyshire) seem go to Rag Top or Paul Matty at Birmingham rather than the local (I won't name names) main dealers round here, who in my opinion leave a lot to be desired.
If anyone has any feedback on Rag Top I would appreciate hearing it!
CN has looked after my last 3 Esprits and I've never had any problems with them at all. I've never felt ripped off and they are always very helpful indeed.
Adrian
www.adrianmugridge.co.uk
Adrian
www.adrianmugridge.co.uk
I always praise CNs for their parts dept and sales - usually very good indeed-the guys in parts are excellent.
There does seem to be an issue with elises particularly - they seem ok on Tivvers and esprits...oddly.
The elise should not command TVR or esprit type servicing costs - simple as that.
There does seem to be an issue with elises particularly - they seem ok on Tivvers and esprits...oddly.
The elise should not command TVR or esprit type servicing costs - simple as that.
I’ve been thinking about getting an entry level S1, and noticed that loads are available with between 45 & 50 k, on the clock.
In the past I put this down to the impending C Service. From the various posts it sounds evermore that at this sort of mileage you’re looking at a major suspension overhaul aswell. As a rule, would that be the case, and are there any other £££ items which are past it at 50k.
At the minute I’m doing a S1 vs 968 vs 944S2 debate in my head, and potential four figure bills come into the equation.
In the past I put this down to the impending C Service. From the various posts it sounds evermore that at this sort of mileage you’re looking at a major suspension overhaul aswell. As a rule, would that be the case, and are there any other £££ items which are past it at 50k.
At the minute I’m doing a S1 vs 968 vs 944S2 debate in my head, and potential four figure bills come into the equation.
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