Diagnostic fee Suzuki Swift
Discussion
Hi
Girlfriend bought a Swift in January from a main dealer which is covered under their three year new car warranty until early September and she’s discovered the air con isn’t working.
She’s spoken to the dealer and they are asking for a £180 to “diagnose” the problem, which thoroughly irritates me, so has anyone had any similar experiences? Interested to know if it is covered under the warranty, which I think it should be, whether she is likely to get the diagnostic fee refunded?
She has a garage who have serviced cars for her and her Father, so she knows and trusts them, and I’m thinking she takes it there to find out what’s going on with the air con to avoid the £180 fee then goes to the Dealer to see if it qualifies to be fixed under warranty?
Thanks
Girlfriend bought a Swift in January from a main dealer which is covered under their three year new car warranty until early September and she’s discovered the air con isn’t working.
She’s spoken to the dealer and they are asking for a £180 to “diagnose” the problem, which thoroughly irritates me, so has anyone had any similar experiences? Interested to know if it is covered under the warranty, which I think it should be, whether she is likely to get the diagnostic fee refunded?
She has a garage who have serviced cars for her and her Father, so she knows and trusts them, and I’m thinking she takes it there to find out what’s going on with the air con to avoid the £180 fee then goes to the Dealer to see if it qualifies to be fixed under warranty?
Thanks
In the past i have been told of the diag fee would need to be paid if it wasn't covered by the warranty, ie wear and tear or external damage.
But if a defected part covered under warranty then it should not be charged to the customer.
You could ask other garage to have a look and see. But suzuki will still look to charge a diag fee if you ask them just to change a part.
But if a defected part covered under warranty then it should not be charged to the customer.
You could ask other garage to have a look and see. But suzuki will still look to charge a diag fee if you ask them just to change a part.
vw_99 said:
In the past i have been told of the diag fee would need to be paid if it wasn't covered by the warranty, ie wear and tear or external damage.
But if a defected part covered under warranty then it should not be charged to the customer.
You could ask other garage to have a look and see. But suzuki will still look to charge a diag fee if you ask them just to change a part.
That’s helpful so thank you.But if a defected part covered under warranty then it should not be charged to the customer.
You could ask other garage to have a look and see. But suzuki will still look to charge a diag fee if you ask them just to change a part.
Think I’ll say to her to stick with her current garage as he’ll be honest and helpful and I have a feeling, based on today’s conversation, that the Suzuki garage will try to wiggle out of it and she’s fuming about the fee already.
So her friendly local garage took a look and came back with this:
“Signs of leak at air-conditioning condenser, need to replace this first before regas. Total cost for this including re-gasing will be £612.00 all in”
I have no idea if that’s reasonable but certainly doesn’t seem like it to me so think we’re off to the selling garage as I believe it should be covered under Suzukis used car 12 month warranty.
The car is just over 3 years old so I’m going to start from the point of view that we know what the problem is now and it shouldn’t happen on a car that young?
“Signs of leak at air-conditioning condenser, need to replace this first before regas. Total cost for this including re-gasing will be £612.00 all in”
I have no idea if that’s reasonable but certainly doesn’t seem like it to me so think we’re off to the selling garage as I believe it should be covered under Suzukis used car 12 month warranty.
The car is just over 3 years old so I’m going to start from the point of view that we know what the problem is now and it shouldn’t happen on a car that young?
Sheepshanks said:
Crucial thing is why is it leaking?
Often it s stone damage. Or corrosion. Neither will be covered although corrosion on a fairly new car could be arguable.
Yep, a stone through it is very unlikely to be covered.Often it s stone damage. Or corrosion. Neither will be covered although corrosion on a fairly new car could be arguable.
Back in the day this was a bit of an issue with the RX8 so many fitted aftermarket grills.
CoolHands said:
A condenser is around a hundred quid so that plus fitting shouldn t equal £600. Sounds like you ll have your pants pulled down either way.
To be fair, looks like a genuine Suzuki one is £500 ish. The garage will have a pet supplier - they’re not going to hunt around to find the cheapest available. No idea how easy / awkward to fit - might need some dismantling and the main rad out.
CoolHands said:
Yeah true. But it s not worth getting a genuine condenser IMO. But I agree it means you need a local garage that is willing to fit a cheaper bran
Mind you, the selling garage should be putting all this right.
If the genuine part really is £500 then for £600 the garage isn’t fitting a genuine one. There’s also the regas to do.Mind you, the selling garage should be putting all this right.
Like I said, no idea of the work to swap it. Say it’s 3 hrs, condenser, regas, £500 plus VAT isn t massively out of court.
Sheepshanks said:
CoolHands said:
Yeah true. But it s not worth getting a genuine condenser IMO. But I agree it means you need a local garage that is willing to fit a cheaper bran
Mind you, the selling garage should be putting all this right.
If the genuine part really is £500 then for £600 the garage isn t fitting a genuine one. There s also the regas to do.Mind you, the selling garage should be putting all this right.
Like I said, no idea of the work to swap it. Say it s 3 hrs, condenser, regas, £500 plus VAT isn t massively out of court.
I’ve asked my GF to find out from the garage what the cause was, stone or rust, but we’ll be visiting the Suzuki dealership on Monday to discuss so I’ll come back after that.
Thanks Again
DFNorfolk said:
Thanks all for your input.
I ve asked my GF to find out from the garage what the cause was, stone or rust, but we ll be visiting the Suzuki dealership on Monday to discuss so I ll come back after that.
Thanks Again
Your ideal issue is neither of those - some kind of manufacturing failure / fracture would be better.I ve asked my GF to find out from the garage what the cause was, stone or rust, but we ll be visiting the Suzuki dealership on Monday to discuss so I ll come back after that.
Thanks Again
What model is this?
If its the ZC32 its a 30 minute job including the gas.
I've done two of these (I own two Swifts). You just unclip the top of the bumper, two 10mm bolts holding the top of the condenser and the a/c connector. Everything is easy to get at.
I've had a Stark condenser from Autodoc for three years and its still cold. Last time I checked they were £60.
I really struggle to see this at more than an hour labour, £60 for the part and the re-gas £50.
If its the ZC32 its a 30 minute job including the gas.
I've done two of these (I own two Swifts). You just unclip the top of the bumper, two 10mm bolts holding the top of the condenser and the a/c connector. Everything is easy to get at.
I've had a Stark condenser from Autodoc for three years and its still cold. Last time I checked they were £60.
I really struggle to see this at more than an hour labour, £60 for the part and the re-gas £50.
trickywoo said:
What model is this?
If its the ZC32 its a 30 minute job including the gas.
I've done two of these (I own two Swifts). You just unclip the top of the bumper, two 10mm bolts holding the top of the condenser and the a/c connector. Everything is easy to get at.
I've had a Stark condenser from Autodoc for three years and its still cold. Last time I checked they were £60.
I really struggle to see this at more than an hour labour, £60 for the part and the re-gas £50.
As the car is only just over 3yrs old it's not a ZC32. Also it'll be the newer gas so won't be £50.If its the ZC32 its a 30 minute job including the gas.
I've done two of these (I own two Swifts). You just unclip the top of the bumper, two 10mm bolts holding the top of the condenser and the a/c connector. Everything is easy to get at.
I've had a Stark condenser from Autodoc for three years and its still cold. Last time I checked they were £60.
I really struggle to see this at more than an hour labour, £60 for the part and the re-gas £50.
I've no idea on the work differences but Google suggests it's tighter on the ZC33 due to turbo and intercooler.
It's all very well quoting DIY prices but finding a garage who'll fit the cheapest part at cost price might be a bit tricky.
The Suzuki garage would have actually said "you need to authorise a diagnostic fee which will be payable in the event that the fault is not covered by warranty" This is different to what your understanding of the conversation is. The reason for this is to protect the garage in the event of the fault not being warranty as you would probably take it to a local garage for repair and refuse to pay for their diagnostic time.
It sounds like your friendly local garage are offering a fair price for the job.
It's all very well saying get parts from Autodoc, but garages don't work like that, they have to have cars in and out and have some confidence that the part is correct. They also need to source them from suppliers that they have a good returns and warranty process in place with in the event of a problem. They can't afford to have a car stuck on a ramp, and efficiencies are destroyed if you're taking cars in and out of the workshop all day. Heaven forbid that they would like a profit margin as well.
We now refuse to fit customer supplied parts, and tend to leave the driveway experts to their own devices, we won't pick up the pieces when it goes wrong either. I know it sounds like we're being awkward, but we have enough of our own problems to resolve without inviting additional stress into the day!
It sounds like your friendly local garage are offering a fair price for the job.
It's all very well saying get parts from Autodoc, but garages don't work like that, they have to have cars in and out and have some confidence that the part is correct. They also need to source them from suppliers that they have a good returns and warranty process in place with in the event of a problem. They can't afford to have a car stuck on a ramp, and efficiencies are destroyed if you're taking cars in and out of the workshop all day. Heaven forbid that they would like a profit margin as well.
We now refuse to fit customer supplied parts, and tend to leave the driveway experts to their own devices, we won't pick up the pieces when it goes wrong either. I know it sounds like we're being awkward, but we have enough of our own problems to resolve without inviting additional stress into the day!
Edited by fbwinston on Thursday 10th September 11:07
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