Good M car indy near Leatherhead please?
Discussion
If anyone could help it would be much appreciated.
I have always used the services of a local(ish) franchised dealer for my E39 M5 but now that the old Service Manager has retired things are not as they were.
Last week three yellows came on at once (ABS,DSC and DBC). I left the car with the franchise and three days later, having checked on progress, I was told that the diagnostic had indicated an O/S/F ABS sensor fault, which had now been cleared.
I collected the car, paid £72 for half an hour's labour, whereupon, having left the garage the three lights came back on again after 40 sec's driving.
I am aware that I did not book the car in so have no issue with the time taken to 'diagnose' the fault but had I been given the choice I would have suggested that they replace the sensor- it is my experience that once a fault 'disappears' it will usually re-occur fairly soon. Also, some time ago the old manager cleared condensation behind one of the headlamp lenses with a couple of drilled holes (?!)and one of those moisture absorbing sachets. The other one now has the same fault, but on asking whether the same technique could be applied I was told that they couldn't do that as it wasn't BMW practice and the only solution was a new headlamp assembly...........cost- ouch!!
I think that the time has come to investigate a move to an indy- the old girl is miles out of warranty and and whilst she is cherished and in excellent order I am struggling a bit with £125 an hour labour, plus VAT, especially with an incipient inspection II and some axle oil seal and rear anti-roll bush niggles coming up in the health check. I thought that owners of older cars had a BMW scheme where bills were reduced- I always got treated very generously under the old regime, but that seems to have vanished with the advent of new management.
Where do you other 'older M' car owners recommend pse? All help gratefully received..
I have always used the services of a local(ish) franchised dealer for my E39 M5 but now that the old Service Manager has retired things are not as they were.
Last week three yellows came on at once (ABS,DSC and DBC). I left the car with the franchise and three days later, having checked on progress, I was told that the diagnostic had indicated an O/S/F ABS sensor fault, which had now been cleared.
I collected the car, paid £72 for half an hour's labour, whereupon, having left the garage the three lights came back on again after 40 sec's driving.
I am aware that I did not book the car in so have no issue with the time taken to 'diagnose' the fault but had I been given the choice I would have suggested that they replace the sensor- it is my experience that once a fault 'disappears' it will usually re-occur fairly soon. Also, some time ago the old manager cleared condensation behind one of the headlamp lenses with a couple of drilled holes (?!)and one of those moisture absorbing sachets. The other one now has the same fault, but on asking whether the same technique could be applied I was told that they couldn't do that as it wasn't BMW practice and the only solution was a new headlamp assembly...........cost- ouch!!
I think that the time has come to investigate a move to an indy- the old girl is miles out of warranty and and whilst she is cherished and in excellent order I am struggling a bit with £125 an hour labour, plus VAT, especially with an incipient inspection II and some axle oil seal and rear anti-roll bush niggles coming up in the health check. I thought that owners of older cars had a BMW scheme where bills were reduced- I always got treated very generously under the old regime, but that seems to have vanished with the advent of new management.
Where do you other 'older M' car owners recommend pse? All help gratefully received..
Hi - I presume you're talking about V***s in Guildford - I use them as well (as my car is under warranty), and know that the old SM retired a few months ago.
Its not near Leatherhead however I use Phil Crouch at CPCPE - he did a great job for me on retrofitting Satnav to my e39 M5 and knows his stuff both electrically and mechanically. I also know that he sees plenty of e39 M5's through his doors. His website is here http://www.cpcpe.com/ and you might want to give him a call. He's an honest, straightforward chap and great to deal with. I have no association other than a very satisfied customer.
Its not near Leatherhead however I use Phil Crouch at CPCPE - he did a great job for me on retrofitting Satnav to my e39 M5 and knows his stuff both electrically and mechanically. I also know that he sees plenty of e39 M5's through his doors. His website is here http://www.cpcpe.com/ and you might want to give him a call. He's an honest, straightforward chap and great to deal with. I have no association other than a very satisfied customer.
gavinbailey said:
Hi - I presume you're talking about V***s in Guildford - I use them as well (as my car is under warranty), and know that the old SM retired a few months ago.
Its not near Leatherhead however I use Phil Crouch at CPCPE - he did a great job for me on retrofitting Satnav to my e39 M5 and knows his stuff both electrically and mechanically. I also know that he sees plenty of e39 M5's through his doors. His website is here http://www.cpcpe.com/ and you might want to give him a call. He's an honest, straightforward chap and great to deal with. I have no association other than a very satisfied customer.
Yes, Phil looks after My BMW's. Highly recommendedIts not near Leatherhead however I use Phil Crouch at CPCPE - he did a great job for me on retrofitting Satnav to my e39 M5 and knows his stuff both electrically and mechanically. I also know that he sees plenty of e39 M5's through his doors. His website is here http://www.cpcpe.com/ and you might want to give him a call. He's an honest, straightforward chap and great to deal with. I have no association other than a very satisfied customer.
Bongo Fury said:
Just had an inspection II at V***s for £450 inc for my E39 M5.
Very reasonable.
That does seem very good, but it's the 'hourly labour plus parts' stuff that racks up the bills- the old service manager (JP) once told me that the 'owner drivers' were the real, loyal customer base who were to a certain extent subsidising fleets and companies where the drivers were not paying the bill but rates were negotiated down. He once presented me with a bill which had been whittled down from nearly £1,000 to under £600 as a result of 'applied discounts', whatever they were. I thought considering what he had done (investigating a steering vibration, they'd had most of the front end off the car and re-assembled it), that £1k would have been reasonable....Aside from the discount issues,he was a charming, helpful and knowledgeable man for whom nothing was ever too much trouble...(usual disclaimers)I'll see what MJF have to say and report back.Very reasonable.
i've use MJF Engineering for work on my M3. It's a small one man outfit that specialises in BMW's. he's an ex BMW technician, nice bloke who knows his stuff.
http://www.autoinsider.co.uk/local/garage-services...
http://www.autoinsider.co.uk/local/garage-services...
How the hell do BMW justify £125/hour for labour? I assume they charge the same rate for all BMWs as the facilities and engineers are the same? At those rates it must quickly become uneconomical to repair some cars.
I know BMW insist on a fancy showroom and garage, but those rates are an absolute disgrace. Goodness knows how much the chap on another thread is going to pay for a new clutch in his M6. I think finding out the hourly rate has just put me off ever buying a BMW that is still under warranty. And as for insisting they can't drill a couple of holes like they did last time and making you buy a whole new headlight assembly....
I know BMW insist on a fancy showroom and garage, but those rates are an absolute disgrace. Goodness knows how much the chap on another thread is going to pay for a new clutch in his M6. I think finding out the hourly rate has just put me off ever buying a BMW that is still under warranty. And as for insisting they can't drill a couple of holes like they did last time and making you buy a whole new headlight assembly....
SonicHedgeHog said:
And as for insisting they can't drill a couple of holes like they did last time and making you buy a whole new headlight assembly....
Ah, but the 'drillbit'headlamp solution was a product of the knowledge of a bloke who'd learned all the dodges over many years. He really saw customers as friends and wanted to help. Not sure how it went down with management. Not suggesting in any way that Vines dont do a proper job, but what we appear to have now is 'computer says no', which is why I want to give my business to someone who is interested in my car and its welfare. Used to have a Maserati Ghibli ('73) and what I'm trying to find is the BMW equivalent of Andy Heywood at Bill McGrath. Not sure such a person exists though......Gassing Station | M Power | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff