What's the most expensive car repair bill you have ever had?
Discussion
While I know that supercar owners will come along shortly and blow us all out of the water, I figure Bentley ownership (proper Bentley not VW stuff ) has got to be up there....
When I bought my new (to me) car I knew it needed a few service items that had been neglected doing, but I didn't expect the £10690.13 bill that I ended up with! Front suspension cost £4.5K alone (£124 plus VAT for a bit of wire 3 feet long with a plastic connector on either end! It needed two of them...) front brake pads cost £450 plus VAT and then fitting, 3 engine mounts were about a thousand quid.... it just went on and on.
To be fair, it did drive rather better after all the work
My older Bentley spat a valve guide out (unheard of but it had to happen to me
) and the repair for that was nearly 8 thousand quid. I did cry a bit...
When I bought my new (to me) car I knew it needed a few service items that had been neglected doing, but I didn't expect the £10690.13 bill that I ended up with! Front suspension cost £4.5K alone (£124 plus VAT for a bit of wire 3 feet long with a plastic connector on either end! It needed two of them...) front brake pads cost £450 plus VAT and then fitting, 3 engine mounts were about a thousand quid.... it just went on and on.
To be fair, it did drive rather better after all the work
My older Bentley spat a valve guide out (unheard of but it had to happen to me
) and the repair for that was nearly 8 thousand quid. I did cry a bit...
Even thinking about this makes me cry, but here goes......
3900 quid for a rebuilt twin spark engine on my alfa romeo 916 gtv spider.......3 months after paying a well known alfa specialist 1500 quid for a rebuilt twin spark engine that turned out to be complete and utter garbage.
Ridiculous but i just couldnt face scrapping her
3900 quid for a rebuilt twin spark engine on my alfa romeo 916 gtv spider.......3 months after paying a well known alfa specialist 1500 quid for a rebuilt twin spark engine that turned out to be complete and utter garbage.
Ridiculous but i just couldnt face scrapping her
£6.5k on my RX-7 - engine rebuild, mild porting, new turbos (cracked manifold), etc. The largest in a series of four-figure bills.
I didn't feel _too_ bad, it's not as if it's unknown on rotaries. And I'd had a few years of fun since getting the car.
My mum drove our new Previa into a flood, I think that was £5.5k for a new engine airfreight from Japan - but doesn't count as was covered by insurance :-)
I didn't feel _too_ bad, it's not as if it's unknown on rotaries. And I'd had a few years of fun since getting the car.
My mum drove our new Previa into a flood, I think that was £5.5k for a new engine airfreight from Japan - but doesn't count as was covered by insurance :-)
We lost a PD pump on our Audi A4 TDI V6. Audi quoted 5 grand !! ( this was about 8 years ago and car was 4 years old !) for a replacement pump as it needed coding with the immobiliser or something similar. Mate who strip the front of the car out, which you have to on V6's in Audi's had a mate at Lucas diesels, who did the job for £1100 . Apparently there wasnt much salvageable in it when he stripped it down. Plus all the cambelt and idlers, while it was all out, plus service was about £1600 mates rates, which made me wince .
When calling the Audi breakers, no one had these pumps, so obviously a weak link as they sold them quicker than they got them. We got shot a couple of months later when the clutch was doing silly things..........
When calling the Audi breakers, no one had these pumps, so obviously a weak link as they sold them quicker than they got them. We got shot a couple of months later when the clutch was doing silly things..........
I don't strictly comply with the op thread but I'm sharing coz it still brings a smile when I get reminded.
Vw t4 transporter, knakered auto box, 4.5k to replace. Just about to book it in and was looking in the service book and found a extended warranty purchased by the previous owner, phoned vw quoting ref no on form and it still had 2 weeks before it ran out, happy days.
Vw t4 transporter, knakered auto box, 4.5k to replace. Just about to book it in and was looking in the service book and found a extended warranty purchased by the previous owner, phoned vw quoting ref no on form and it still had 2 weeks before it ran out, happy days.
Just before I went to live in Crete 10 years or so ago, and as I was taking it with me, I put the Evo in for an 18k mile service. It's a fairly big service, all fluids,etc. It also had 4 tyres and an MOT. Fair bit of work, but £1800 for basically routine maintenance gave me my first proper introduction to the world of financial pain that involves running an Evo as a daily.
I've got a rear main seal oil leak on the 928. Its also looking like the clutch could do with changing, and its coming up to a belt change too. It can all be done with the engine in the car, but the head gaskets are also 30 years old, so probably time for renewal. Need to save up for this one.
On the bright side, just had a new expansion tank fitted, custom made aluminium jobbie was AU$350 - relative bargain in 928land
On the bright side, just had a new expansion tank fitted, custom made aluminium jobbie was AU$350 - relative bargain in 928land
Not, strictly speaking, 'mine' but,min 2001 I bought a Bentley Mulsanne Turbo R for £18k. Less than a year before I bought it, it's previous owner, a TV production company, had thrown it into a well known RR/Bentley dealership in the SE and said 'service it and sort out any faults you find'. The final bill was £17k.....
£1800 on new turbo and a few other bits on a fabia vrs at 45k miles, Lasted 3 weeks then the turbo went again.
Alfa gt 2.0 petrol Bought for £4.5k cash with only 55k and 9 months later with over 5k spent on repairs I got rid (everything from suspension to new cats/exhaust think the wife still has the list somewere because she keeps bringing it up tbh) I still see that car around the area and know I had it sorted but wife could/would not let me take the gamble that the last repair was the last
20ish years ago I once spent £300 buying a r21 and left it into my local garage with the brief to get it running and as good as new mechanicly...........over 2.5k( yes I do have a problem as the wife keeps reminding me) later I had prob the cleanest and best r21 on the road in the uk........Someone run into it wrecking it the week I got it back of the garage.
I have lots of form buying a lemon and not stopping until I have broke the bank getting it perfect before seling it to rinse/repeat.
No I am not the usual ph member with high powered job but it does seem I fit in well with the more money than sense section.
Alfa gt 2.0 petrol Bought for £4.5k cash with only 55k and 9 months later with over 5k spent on repairs I got rid (everything from suspension to new cats/exhaust think the wife still has the list somewere because she keeps bringing it up tbh) I still see that car around the area and know I had it sorted but wife could/would not let me take the gamble that the last repair was the last
20ish years ago I once spent £300 buying a r21 and left it into my local garage with the brief to get it running and as good as new mechanicly...........over 2.5k( yes I do have a problem as the wife keeps reminding me) later I had prob the cleanest and best r21 on the road in the uk........Someone run into it wrecking it the week I got it back of the garage.
I have lots of form buying a lemon and not stopping until I have broke the bank getting it perfect before seling it to rinse/repeat.
No I am not the usual ph member with high powered job but it does seem I fit in well with the more money than sense section.
Running interesting, old or performance cars can always throw you a financial kick in the gonads.
I have got used to expecting the "unexpected" four figure bill for a couple of jobs at the garage - £1600 pounds to you sir - and that's from mechanics I trust.
I will not forget the first four figure bill I was surprised by.
Managed to get a Black Porsche 944 in the late nineties that had a recent engine rebuild. Being young and stretching the budget caught me out when a nylon roller snapped just after I had the belts changed as a sensible precautionary measure - at a decent specialist. They helped me out after I bent all 8 valves on my recently purchased porker by getting me a second hand cylinder head. The bill was £1100 after just getting the belt work and other bits done.
It stung for a while but It strangely hardened me up for further car adventures, despite limited financial resources.
I have got used to expecting the "unexpected" four figure bill for a couple of jobs at the garage - £1600 pounds to you sir - and that's from mechanics I trust.
I will not forget the first four figure bill I was surprised by.
Managed to get a Black Porsche 944 in the late nineties that had a recent engine rebuild. Being young and stretching the budget caught me out when a nylon roller snapped just after I had the belts changed as a sensible precautionary measure - at a decent specialist. They helped me out after I bent all 8 valves on my recently purchased porker by getting me a second hand cylinder head. The bill was £1100 after just getting the belt work and other bits done.
It stung for a while but It strangely hardened me up for further car adventures, despite limited financial resources.
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