Well known garages refusing to fit non-supplied parts?
Discussion
I thought businesses were struggling at the moment, but with the well known brand name garage chains refusing to fit tyres and exhausts that they didn't supply and smaller independents either not open at all or closed at 2pm on a Saturday, it seems that I cannot get a 30 minute job of a tyre swap and back box change done on a Saturday afternoon! 
They must have so much business that bread and butter jobs just aren't worth missing the F1 qualification for!
They must have so much business that bread and butter jobs just aren't worth missing the F1 qualification for!
MX7 said:
All garages should be open 24/7.
I wouldn't go that far, but I would expect them to be open on a Saturday afternoon.They aren't offices and I'll bet the majority of car owners work office hours, so it would make sense that a garage would be open outside of office hours. I guess that's just too much to ask though - times clearly cannot be that tough.
Garages which I've previously approached to fit my own stuff refuse on the basis that they can't guarantee the quality of the parts provided and therefore if there was a mechanical failure, it would be difficult to prove whether it was the workmanship or the parts at fault. This would obviously be easier to work out if they provided the parts as well as they would just go back to their supplier.
youngsyr said:
I thought businesses were struggling at the moment, but with the well known brand name garage chains refusing to fit tyres and exhausts that they didn't supply and smaller independents either not open at all or closed at 2pm on a Saturday, it seems that I cannot get a 30 minute job of a tyre swap and back box change done on a Saturday afternoon!
They must have so much business that bread and butter jobs just aren't worth missing the F1 qualification for!
Perhaps the staff that already work 5 and a half days a week 8 till 6 and half hour lunch want to see there family and friends at some point !They must have so much business that bread and butter jobs just aren't worth missing the F1 qualification for!
KungFuPanda said:
Garages which I've previously approached to fit my own stuff refuse on the basis that they can't guarantee the quality of the parts provided and therefore if there was a mechanical failure, it would be difficult to prove whether it was the workmanship or the parts at fault. This would obviously be easier to work out if they provided the parts as well as they would just go back to their supplier.
IMO, it's either a cynical marketing ploy attempting to force you to buy parts supplied by them at a margin or simply an idiotic policy by someone who doesn't understand what they're doing.Bear in mind that the part I'm trying to have fitted is an OEM BMW exhaust back box, which is essentially just two pipes held on by brackets.
How exactly would it be difficult to show whether any failure in it is due to how it was fitted? Not to mention it would be up to me to show that on the balance of probabilities a fault was caused by them and not due to the part if I were to take legal proceedings.
If they cannot fit in an exhaust without knackering something then they shouldn't be in business, IMO. I'd do it myself on my drive if it weren't freezing outside and I hadn't lost my tube of exhaust sealant.
Edited by youngsyr on Saturday 3rd November 13:58
loose cannon said:
youngsyr said:
I thought businesses were struggling at the moment, but with the well known brand name garage chains refusing to fit tyres and exhausts that they didn't supply and smaller independents either not open at all or closed at 2pm on a Saturday, it seems that I cannot get a 30 minute job of a tyre swap and back box change done on a Saturday afternoon!
They must have so much business that bread and butter jobs just aren't worth missing the F1 qualification for!
Perhaps the staff that already work 5 and a half days a week 8 till 6 and half hour lunch want to see there family and friends at some point !They must have so much business that bread and butter jobs just aren't worth missing the F1 qualification for!
Hammer67 said:
We`re a multifranchised main dealer in Folkestone,open til 5. Pop down with your back box and tyres and I`ll get someone to fit them. Not a problem. Assuming the box is a straightforward swap would probably cost £40ish and swapping tyres £12 per wheel.
HTH.
Great, thanks for the offer. HTH.
This is exactly how I expected any one of dozens of local garages to respond when I called them. Unfortunately, they don't seem to need my business.However, I'm a long way from Folkstone, so I'll just bite the bullet and try to drop the car in a local garage to work at some point this week.
Good luck with that one most garages run at min staffing level to maintain profit, shoot the franchise owners that make all the money not the over worked under payed techie that has no say in such matters,
How many mechanics would want to work on a Sunday or do shift work ,
I'm sure it happens but I didn't even like working Saturday mornings let alone the rest of the weekend ,
And I would only ever work shifts if there was no other way of earning a crust,
How many mechanics would want to work on a Sunday or do shift work ,
I'm sure it happens but I didn't even like working Saturday mornings let alone the rest of the weekend ,
And I would only ever work shifts if there was no other way of earning a crust,
loose cannon said:
I'm sure it happens but I didn't even like working Saturday mornings let alone the rest of the weekend ,
And I would only ever work shifts if there was no other way of earning a crust,
You need to build a relationship with a local garage. The one i go to look after 3 of my cars so get a nice income from me. In return i get half price MOTs and can drop in any time they are open to use their diagnostic computers for free.
They are also happy to stick a car on the ramps and do some checks also for free
And they will fit any parts i supply. In fact on the jag they prefer me to supply the parts as i prefer to use genuine not pattern and i can buy the bits cheaper than they can.
In return every now and then i drop a couple of cases of beer in.
They are also happy to stick a car on the ramps and do some checks also for free
And they will fit any parts i supply. In fact on the jag they prefer me to supply the parts as i prefer to use genuine not pattern and i can buy the bits cheaper than they can.
In return every now and then i drop a couple of cases of beer in.
Me too, they dont know where it's been, whether it's boxed/used and wont be able to offer any help on it, and may well have a liability that they cant get out of. Safer to say no than having people turning up with rusty old bits asking them to be fitted.
On one of the points you raised though, appreciate people might like to see some of their weekend, but I've had a frustrating morning trying to get my car MOT'd and taxed. Seems that it's a Saturday morning only job. As it happens, it passed with a bit of jiggerypokery, then the mission to find a post office that actually was open past 12.30 (despite what the post office website said) was tricky.
On one of the points you raised though, appreciate people might like to see some of their weekend, but I've had a frustrating morning trying to get my car MOT'd and taxed. Seems that it's a Saturday morning only job. As it happens, it passed with a bit of jiggerypokery, then the mission to find a post office that actually was open past 12.30 (despite what the post office website said) was tricky.
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