High servicing costs?
Discussion
Can anyone tell me why servicing is so much, what are they doing thats so special.
As motor vehicle tech with a franchise dealer, Tvr's look like a hark back to the days of yesteryear when any ordinary sunday nmesser could would and did fix/service their own car. Modern cars are far more complicated, require more time work in a sevice. So why £600 and someone paid 4 grand for one. As far the diagnostics go, more often than not the error codes simply deleted, take it for test dive, recheck codes & 99 out of 100 all clear.
TVR's just georgous grown up go karts on steroids (cut wih crack) Big engine on frame with wheels. Not Apollo 13.
At these prices think I'll service it myself and sod the history (probably keep it foever anyway)
Plus its anther good way of getting to know your car Intimately. I,ll know exactly what I've done, and ai'm sure Ill have done it more thorough, with meticulous attention to detail because its my baby.
p.s could be wrong as I've not owned mine a week yet? (Cerbera speed6 )Rained everyday, drove it anyway. That'l keep you fit.
Doing more catching than Pakitani cricketer playing Engand.
As motor vehicle tech with a franchise dealer, Tvr's look like a hark back to the days of yesteryear when any ordinary sunday nmesser could would and did fix/service their own car. Modern cars are far more complicated, require more time work in a sevice. So why £600 and someone paid 4 grand for one. As far the diagnostics go, more often than not the error codes simply deleted, take it for test dive, recheck codes & 99 out of 100 all clear.
TVR's just georgous grown up go karts on steroids (cut wih crack) Big engine on frame with wheels. Not Apollo 13.
At these prices think I'll service it myself and sod the history (probably keep it foever anyway)
Plus its anther good way of getting to know your car Intimately. I,ll know exactly what I've done, and ai'm sure Ill have done it more thorough, with meticulous attention to detail because its my baby.
p.s could be wrong as I've not owned mine a week yet? (Cerbera speed6 )Rained everyday, drove it anyway. That'l keep you fit.
Doing more catching than Pakitani cricketer playing Engand.
I've always been suspicious - but I still pay the price...price cartel maybe?
If everyone says it'll cost 3k / year to run...that's how much we'll charge...I don't seem Rover V8 cars forking out this much and I am sure the mechanics spend the same amount of time on those cars during each service...
If everyone says it'll cost 3k / year to run...that's how much we'll charge...I don't seem Rover V8 cars forking out this much and I am sure the mechanics spend the same amount of time on those cars during each service...
the servicing checklist for the TVR Cerbera is pretty extensive. Therefore, a service therefore takes a good while. Garage engineers are perfectly entitled to charge a going rate. I doubt that any decent Indy charges more per hour than your Local BMW dealer.
If you have the time, patience, space, tools and skill then do it yourself. I have none of these therefore getting the experience in for £50-75 an hour is worth every penny.
Parts is as parts does so little saving there, and as you will know Cerbera's rarely need anything replacing.
As for comparison, see how much a TVR costs to look after compared to other auto erotica.
In this regard you could argue they are CHEAP to run.
If you have the time, patience, space, tools and skill then do it yourself. I have none of these therefore getting the experience in for £50-75 an hour is worth every penny.
Parts is as parts does so little saving there, and as you will know Cerbera's rarely need anything replacing.
As for comparison, see how much a TVR costs to look after compared to other auto erotica.
In this regard you could argue they are CHEAP to run.
My recent 6K service was under £400 and I get a verified stamp in the book.
I could have done this myself, but the person I used also tuned the car so it's running the best it ever has, and cast his professional eye over it and pointed out a couple of bits which I'd have probably missed.
I could have done this myself, but the person I used also tuned the car so it's running the best it ever has, and cast his professional eye over it and pointed out a couple of bits which I'd have probably missed.
It's a 180mph Supercar, it's basically a race car with a nice interior toned downa bit for road use. Servicing is a bit more than changing the oil and seeing if the brake pads are OK. But if you feel quite confident that you, or the grease monkey at your local back street garage has done everything right, then blasting along at 180mph won't present any problems to you, and you'll feel nice and safe as the scenery blasts past you and that bend up ahead is looming into sight.
byker28i said:
My recent 6K service was under £400 and I get a verified stamp in the book.
I could have done this myself, but the person I used also tuned the car so it's running the best it ever has, and cast his professional eye over it and pointed out a couple of bits which I'd have probably missed.
I could have done this myself, but the person I used also tuned the car so it's running the best it ever has, and cast his professional eye over it and pointed out a couple of bits which I'd have probably missed.
This is exactly my point,you are obviously getting a FAIR DEAL from a FAIR BUSINESS, and as such doesn't fall into this catergory. The service schedule is no more time consuming than any other. Schedules are broken up their respective catergories, Lights, Tyres, Brakes etc. which funnily enough, all cars have, so schedules are pretty much the same hwether its a micra or mercedes 500. The more complicated it gets the more things to check in SOME of the catergories. Citroen C5 is the most complicated car I know, same schedule as every car with 6 or 7 extra checks. And even that doesn't cost £300.
Just wondering people are saying £1000+ for 12k service. (It hasnt even got a timing belt to change) Am I overlooking something.
TVR's dont have
heated front screen, auto lights , auto wipers, pollen filters, parking sensor, airbags etc all these systems and sub-sytems have to checked on a modern car, even the radio is monitored by an ECU most cars have several.
It does have engine mapping, but so do the rest.
You can work on most things on a TVR with no qualification other than interest & enthusiasm.
Go to BMW dealer with those qualifications.
I'm not advocating that everyone does their own services, just that its not rocket science and you should be getting a bill from N.A.S.A.
I think jensenna summed it up nicely, which is why I do my own servicing.
If I do die in a fireball at 180mph, I would rather like to go into the next life knowing it was my doing rather than some oilly oik who cut corners cos he was late for a night out with his bird.
If my stupidity/ignorance takes me into the next life I think they call that Karma.
If I do die in a fireball at 180mph, I would rather like to go into the next life knowing it was my doing rather than some oilly oik who cut corners cos he was late for a night out with his bird.
If my stupidity/ignorance takes me into the next life I think they call that Karma.
so the conclusion is --- we'll carry on paying for them cause we love them!
But I reckon if someone came on to the scene who'd do services for £400 (plus tunning!) they easily book an appointment a week...just get your hands on a TVR dealer stamp (can't be that hard nowadays) and you're away!
But I reckon if someone came on to the scene who'd do services for £400 (plus tunning!) they easily book an appointment a week...just get your hands on a TVR dealer stamp (can't be that hard nowadays) and you're away!
mufdady said:
[
Just wondering people are saying £1000+ for 12k service. (It hasnt even got a timing belt to change) Am I overlooking something.
.
Just wondering people are saying £1000+ for 12k service. (It hasnt even got a timing belt to change) Am I overlooking something.
.
But the 12k service doesnt cost £1000 (well, not from a good inie anyway), its the other things that need fixing whilst its there. Ive yet to have my car worked on where either something else needed doing or there was something extra I wanted done.
jensena said:
It's a 180mph Supercar, it's basically a race car with a nice interior toned downa bit for road use. Servicing is a bit more than changing the oil and seeing if the brake pads are OK. But if you feel quite confident that you, or the grease monkey at your local back street garage has done everything right, then blasting along at 180mph won't present any problems to you, and you'll feel nice and safe as the scenery blasts past you and that bend up ahead is looming into sight.
What russlem said has scared me now :-)
But seriouly tho.
what I asking is what is this lttle bit more that you refer to? all major services are little bit more changing oil and checking pads.
I'm also refering to main agents grease monkies
Been on the plane for some time now, & know an awful lot of Master techs, techntions, mechanics, Fitters & Grease monkies,
and amongst all of them, Give 1 a guage and he'll diagnose & fix "every mutha f***** in the room, excepting no substitutes" (Samuel L Jackson -Jackie Brown) And another who'll do the same using his natural senses and experienc.
Its not where it done but whose doing it.
This debate keeps popping up time and time again, and the arguments for both sides never change. It is a FACT that the TVR Cerbera is a simple machine, and it is also a fact that it may do 180mph. Now, onto garages. I have had some really bad experiences with garages before (pre-TVR actually). I'm not going to go into details, but the bottom line is I simply don't trust anyone else as much as I trust myself. If I torque a bolt to 60lbft, then I know to a fair degree of certainty, that said bolt will be torqued to 60lbft. How do you know for sure that a mechanic at a garage couldn't be arsed to set the wrench properly and torqued it to 20lbft or even 120lbft??? You can't, so I think I make my point. So, with reference to the 180mph, which is safer I ask?
I sincerely appreciate that getting yours hands mucky isn't for everyone, but that £1000 12k service I just haven't had to pay for has just bought me a new set of protech double adjustables!!!!
Vive la difference........
I sincerely appreciate that getting yours hands mucky isn't for everyone, but that £1000 12k service I just haven't had to pay for has just bought me a new set of protech double adjustables!!!!
Vive la difference........FUBAR said:
mufdady said:
[
Just wondering people are saying £1000+ for 12k service. (It hasnt even got a timing belt to change) Am I overlooking something.
.
Just wondering people are saying £1000+ for 12k service. (It hasnt even got a timing belt to change) Am I overlooking something.
.
But the 12k service doesnt cost £1000 (well, not from a good inie anyway), its the other things that need fixing whilst its there. Ive yet to have my car worked on where either something else needed doing or there was something extra I wanted done.
Hi fubar
I'm just asking the question.
My mate had Lotus V8 which suffers a lot of the same kind of press and rep as TVR's he took it to Lotus Dealer in birmingham now moved to bromgrove, like you say they found things wrong. 1 f the turbos (fiesta xr2) and a blockage in 1 cat on the same side 2k+ They hadd fitted new turbo but didnt connnect it to as no pressure coming from pipe. Where he live there's a long gravel drive,given the tolerance involved inside the turbo any ingress of grit would have been terminal & he,d have to have anothe 1. So I go down there with menaces they apppolgised profusly, squashed the bill & gave him full staimless exhaust system (1 for each bank of cylinders) complete lambda sensors. Needless to say we took the deal as about cat replacement pipes anyway. Simular with another well lotus specialit in the same area.
The point is on cars like these especialy unscrupulous dealers will manufacture job that need for machanically challenged.
longbow said:
This debate keeps popping up time and time again, and the arguments for both sides never change. It is a FACT that the TVR Cerbera is a simple machine, and it is also a fact that it may do 180mph. Now, onto garages. I have had some really bad experiences with garages before (pre-TVR actually). I'm not going to go into details, but the bottom line is I simply don't trust anyone else as much as I trust myself. If I torque a bolt to 60lbft, then I know to a fair degree of certainty, that said bolt will be torqued to 60lbft. How do you know for sure that a mechanic at a garage couldn't be arsed to set the wrench properly and torqued it to 20lbft or even 120lbft??? You can't, so I think I make my point. So, with reference to the 180mph, which is safer I ask?
I sincerely appreciate that getting yours hands mucky isn't for everyone, but that £1000 12k service I just haven't had to pay for has just bought me a new set of protech double adjustables!!!! Vive la difference........
I sincerely appreciate that getting yours hands mucky isn't for everyone, but that £1000 12k service I just haven't had to pay for has just bought me a new set of protech double adjustables!!!!
Vive la difference........trebien monsiur longbow
couln't have put it more susinctly If I tried
talking of torque settings any ideas where I can get those , tappet setting & mechanical specs etc
Thanx
It's also a question of trust. The person I use I now trust explicitly as it turns out he does most of the 3 counties TVR cars. He also used to be a mechanic for Arrows and Renault F1.
I'm still learning about the car and whilst I'm happy doing the simple stuff, I'd rather have a fully experienced mechanic deal with the more complicated (or just plain awkward) jobs.
I'm still learning about the car and whilst I'm happy doing the simple stuff, I'd rather have a fully experienced mechanic deal with the more complicated (or just plain awkward) jobs.
you pays yer money yer takes yer choice. But I'm the sort of person that wouldn't build and extension to my house or bother fitting a kitchen or doing the tiling. I'll pick up a paintbrush every now and then maybe fix a fuse or two...
As for understanding cars, if know my clutch is busted, I can check the fluids, I can understand how it works and what might have failed, but am I going to bother wasting a weekend of my life trying to fix the fcuker? Not a chance. I have no problem using local well known independents for big jobs and engineering expertise. IF they screw up then it is a matter of professional pride to get the problem resolved and ensure the client is satisfied.
This is a simple balanced view of UK business practice, those of us that regularly drive our Cerberas at 180 mph (hands up everyone?) will make our own decisions.
As for understanding cars, if know my clutch is busted, I can check the fluids, I can understand how it works and what might have failed, but am I going to bother wasting a weekend of my life trying to fix the fcuker? Not a chance. I have no problem using local well known independents for big jobs and engineering expertise. IF they screw up then it is a matter of professional pride to get the problem resolved and ensure the client is satisfied.
This is a simple balanced view of UK business practice, those of us that regularly drive our Cerberas at 180 mph (hands up everyone?) will make our own decisions.
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