Is it worth it

[oldagepensioner]

I am currently running an 11 plate 1.5 scenic diesel very low mileage think less than 89,000 miles when i bought it last year.It threw up a brake fault and had a very heavy clutch pedal.since it was over due a service but is overall in very good condition with all bells and whistles working except the aircon doesn't blow cold but still works as an efficient demister i decided to get the service done and the faults diagnosed.This has resulted in a rear brake overhaul with rear pads and discs and one caliper,track rod ends and a clutch pipe which was the cause of the heavy pedal which itself aggravated a medical condition.
The Renault dealer supplied the wrong clutch pipe twice in spite of being given the part number from the old part.It turns out that the one pipe is replaced by a three part superseded pipe which is in excess of £200.On a purely financial level its probably not worth it but if i were to go out and buy something else for cash because at 70 yrs old i have no desire to take out finance i could easily end up with something with just as many issues where as this may be old but still in very good condition and low mileage.

[Ussrcossack]

Can the pipe be bought from Euro Car parts at a more competitive price

Also what labour will you be paying?

[66HFM]

Were you getting the car serviced at a Renault dealer or a local garage and Renault supplying the part? I certainly wouldn't even think of going to a main dealer for a car of that age.

There must be an original part available from someone like GSF etc

[oldagepensioner]

oldagepensioner said:

I am currently running an 11 plate 1.5 scenic diesel very low mileage think less than 89,000 miles when i bought it last year.It threw up a brake fault and had a very heavy clutch pedal.since it was over due a service but is overall in very good condition with all bells and whistles working except the aircon doesn't blow cold but still works as an efficient demister i decided to get the service done and the faults diagnosed.This has resulted in a rear brake overhaul with rear pads and discs and one caliper,track rod ends and a clutch pipe which was the cause of the heavy pedal which itself aggravated a medical condition.
The Renault dealer supplied the wrong clutch pipe twice in spite of being given the part number from the old part.It turns out that the one pipe is replaced by a three part superseded pipe which is in excess of £200.On a purely financial level its probably not worth it but if i were to go out and buy something else for cash because at 70 yrs old i have no desire to take out finance i could easily end up with something with just as many issues where as this may be old but still in very good condition and low mileage.

The pipe is a Renault only part unfortunately.The work is being done by a local independent who i have been dealing with since 2020 and knew them long before that hence i trust their work.The labour rate is £70 an hour plus vat.This may sound high but compared to the Mercedes dealer i worked for in 2020 who were charging £110 per hour it seems reasonable for the southeast and the original estimate was for 5 hours.

[Fore Left]

Surely any competent mechanic can make a pipe using the original as a template

[Clad-Hach]

Its up to you after all...if you spend some money on an old tech car which has much less to go wrong than something more modern and once repaired will give you many more trouble free miles.

There's a lot to be said for keeping older cars going vs the high cost of something newer.

[21TonyK]

The part will be available for less but a garage will want to use OEM to reduce future problems (for them) with failure. I have this with a local garage who will use pattern parts if asked but always note the request on the final invoice.

As for £70 an hour, bloody good rate I'd say. Again, similar to the garage I use and less than half the local main dealer.

[shtu]

Post the correct part number and it's very likely someone will hunt it down.

eg, this might be it,

https://www.neobrothers.co.uk/car-parts/transmissi...

[Ussrcossack]

shtu said:

Post the correct part number and it's very likely someone will hunt it down.

eg, this might be it,

https://www.neobrothers.co.uk/car-parts/transmissi...

If that is the part and the garage are willing to fit, get the job done

Otherwise it's a 50/50 if its worth it

[magpie215]

Had this with a ford galaxy clutch pipe dealer only parr 220 plus vat.

Sourced one from a vehicle breakers yard 25 quid

[oldagepensioner]

21TonyK said:

The part will be available for less but a garage will want to use OEM to reduce future problems (for them) with failure. I have this with a local garage who will use pattern parts if asked but always note the request on the final invoice.

As for £70 an hour, bloody good rate I'd say. Again, similar to the garage I use and less than half the local main dealer.

The garage i use has a policy of only using pattern parts unless the customer insists on OEM.The part has been modified in some way so i can only assume that it has been improved in some way.Having spent my entire working life in the motor parts trade including a couple of years with a Renault dealer i know this does happen and i would rather have the improved version.

[21TonyK]

oldagepensioner said:

21TonyK said:

The part will be available for less but a garage will want to use OEM to reduce future problems (for them) with failure. I have this with a local garage who will use pattern parts if asked but always note the request on the final invoice.

As for £70 an hour, bloody good rate I'd say. Again, similar to the garage I use and less than half the local main dealer.

The garage i use has a policy of only using pattern parts unless the customer insists on OEM.The part has been modified in some way so i can only assume that it has been improved in some way.Having spent my entire working life in the motor parts trade including a couple of years with a Renault dealer i know this does happen and i would rather have the improved version.

Fair enough, just comes down to whether a 5-600 quid repair means a few more years life out of it.

I have a 2010 mini which has just ticked over 100,000 miles. In the past couple of years its had well over 1500 spent on it but comsumables aside its reliable and it will be kept as a spare "family" car when something newer comes along.

[shtu]

oldagepensioner said:

The garage i use has a policy of only using pattern parts unless the customer insists on OEM.The part has been modified in some way so i can only assume that it has been improved in some way.Having spent my entire working life in the motor parts trade including a couple of years with a Renault dealer i know this does happen and i would rather have the improved version.

As above, post the correct part number.

tbh, it's a 15 year old Renault. Whatever pipe you fit will probably outlast the car.

[oldagepensioner]

Fore Left said:

Surely any competent mechanic can make a pipe using the original as a template

Look at the web site another poster has sent me and you will see its not something you can knock up yourself.Unfortunately those days are long gone
but thanks for the suggestion.

[shtu]

oldagepensioner said:

Look at the web site another poster has sent me and you will see its not something you can knock up yourself.Unfortunately those days are long gone
but thanks for the suggestion.

Without the part number, we can't help you any further.

[Pit Pony]

Fore Left said:

Surely any competent mechanic can make a pipe using the original as a template

Lots of hydraulic service engineers for industry. When I worked for Hydraforce Bosch Rexroth compact hydraulics in Aston, we had a company come in weekly to replace all hoses with any wear. They could make up any pipe or hose with any fitting. Especially if they had one in front of them.

[oldagepensioner]

Ussrcossack said:

shtu said:

Post the correct part number and it's very likely someone will hunt it down.

eg, this might be it,

https://www.neobrothers.co.uk/car-parts/transmissi...

If that is the part and the garage are willing to fit, get the job done

Otherwise it's a 50/50 if its worth it

Tried this but the Renault dealer will not give out the part number to an independent which is quite a common practice in the trade for fear of customers doing just this.Again it was what we used to have to do back in my Mercedes days.I have passed this info onto the garage however just in case they find it useful.

[Doesitdrive]

If you like the car, it suits your purpose and will give more service, definitely worth it.

I am going to be way over purchase price making this nice, but such a fun nice car it is worth it to me.

[21TonyK]

At best you are going to save 150 using parts but the final bill would still be 400+, so 400+ or 550'ish. Sounds like saving 100 quid on a high cost job?

If (big if) the garage guarantees this fixes the issue then not worth worrying about saving 100 quid which I assume is on top of all the other work already done?