Reasons why you don’t go to a main dealer for a service
Discussion
Why don’t you visit your main dealer for servicing or repairs? I always do
How does it make you feel when you HAVE to go to the main dealer for something? I don't have to go to the main dealer, its my choice to go to the main dealer
What do they do that you DON’T like? Theres usually a massive wait if you need a courtesy car, up to a few weeks in some cases
What do they do that you DO like? The repairs are done by the book by technicians trained in that brand, they don't do bodge-up jobs
The above is based on my personal views and experiences.
How does it make you feel when you HAVE to go to the main dealer for something? I don't have to go to the main dealer, its my choice to go to the main dealer
What do they do that you DON’T like? Theres usually a massive wait if you need a courtesy car, up to a few weeks in some cases
What do they do that you DO like? The repairs are done by the book by technicians trained in that brand, they don't do bodge-up jobs
The above is based on my personal views and experiences.
For me, it depends hugely on the garage in question.
I take my Jaguar in for servicing as they offer fixed-price servicing and consumables. Front discs and pads, for example, cost less at Jag main dealer than at any of the independents I rang around. They are polite and professional, though a bit corporate. The jag rarely has problems though and smaller things I will get done locally. Also, I get a vaguely interesting courtesy car (brand new Evoque last time) and can dribble over the metal in the showroom. It's good enough to wed me to the brand even further.
By contrast, I just took my Suzuki in for a minor service at a main dealer, expecting a similar experience. How wrong I was. First of all, despite Suzuki pushing fixed price servicing, none of the dealers near me honour it. Consequently, a major service on a 1.6 Swift will cost more than a 5.0 Jaguar. But worse than that, they "lost" my online authorisation for further work to be carried out, meaning I had to sit around at pick-up time for half an hour before they worked out that they didn't have the part in anyway. One member of staff was great, but sadly he wasn't serving me and the one I got seemed not to give a stuff. The place was pumping out tinny Radio 1, and their sales staff were all younger than me (easily all in their 20s) with a maturity level of "lad" - I actually caught two of them play fighting on the showroom floor! It all seemed a bit odd when every other customer there was older than I am (33) and probably didn't want some sixth form drop out tell them why they absolutely must have gap insurance. I won't be going back...
I take my Jaguar in for servicing as they offer fixed-price servicing and consumables. Front discs and pads, for example, cost less at Jag main dealer than at any of the independents I rang around. They are polite and professional, though a bit corporate. The jag rarely has problems though and smaller things I will get done locally. Also, I get a vaguely interesting courtesy car (brand new Evoque last time) and can dribble over the metal in the showroom. It's good enough to wed me to the brand even further.
By contrast, I just took my Suzuki in for a minor service at a main dealer, expecting a similar experience. How wrong I was. First of all, despite Suzuki pushing fixed price servicing, none of the dealers near me honour it. Consequently, a major service on a 1.6 Swift will cost more than a 5.0 Jaguar. But worse than that, they "lost" my online authorisation for further work to be carried out, meaning I had to sit around at pick-up time for half an hour before they worked out that they didn't have the part in anyway. One member of staff was great, but sadly he wasn't serving me and the one I got seemed not to give a stuff. The place was pumping out tinny Radio 1, and their sales staff were all younger than me (easily all in their 20s) with a maturity level of "lad" - I actually caught two of them play fighting on the showroom floor! It all seemed a bit odd when every other customer there was older than I am (33) and probably didn't want some sixth form drop out tell them why they absolutely must have gap insurance. I won't be going back...
Why don’t you visit your main dealer for servicing or repairs?
We do. Main car - 2019 M140i - will get main dealer services to manufacturer schedule as long as its under warranty and probably a bit beyond to preserve residual / make it easier to sell. Maintenance i'll go elsewhere to an indy.
How does it make you feel when you HAVE to go to the main dealer for something?
No issue at all. I know i will be paying main dealer prices, but if i have to go there because i've no cheaper option, i will.
What do they do that you DON’T like?
Charge more than i'd like them to.
What do they do that you DO like?
Provide comfortable, warm surroundings while i wait, relatively efficient service, free tea, coffee, cakes (yes i know i'm paying for it indirectly
We do. Main car - 2019 M140i - will get main dealer services to manufacturer schedule as long as its under warranty and probably a bit beyond to preserve residual / make it easier to sell. Maintenance i'll go elsewhere to an indy.
How does it make you feel when you HAVE to go to the main dealer for something?
No issue at all. I know i will be paying main dealer prices, but if i have to go there because i've no cheaper option, i will.
What do they do that you DON’T like?
Charge more than i'd like them to.
What do they do that you DO like?
Provide comfortable, warm surroundings while i wait, relatively efficient service, free tea, coffee, cakes (yes i know i'm paying for it indirectly
Took the Mini in for a major service at the main dealer recently. Added another £60 “inspection service” to the job card when I got there, as it was apparently due.
Car went in with the rear screen washer not working properly.
Car came out with the rear screen washer still not working properly.
No mention of anything in the technicians report,
However, they did go to great lengths to point out the rear pads were down to 4.5mm and there was a slight lip on the discs....
Laughable.
Car went in with the rear screen washer not working properly.
Car came out with the rear screen washer still not working properly.
No mention of anything in the technicians report,
However, they did go to great lengths to point out the rear pads were down to 4.5mm and there was a slight lip on the discs....
Laughable.
I avoid main dealers having had several bad experiences in the past (Ford and BMW)
Although to add balance, my local Toyota dealer have always been good, reasonably priced, good service, call you back etc.. and last year I had to goto the local Ford dealer for the coolant recall on my fiesta ST. I was dreading this one as its a pretty involved repair but they did it quickly, no fuss, no issues. I had to pay for a courtesy car but other than that can't fault them.
For regular stuff though, always use my indie.
Although to add balance, my local Toyota dealer have always been good, reasonably priced, good service, call you back etc.. and last year I had to goto the local Ford dealer for the coolant recall on my fiesta ST. I was dreading this one as its a pretty involved repair but they did it quickly, no fuss, no issues. I had to pay for a courtesy car but other than that can't fault them.
For regular stuff though, always use my indie.
Limpet said:
Took the Mini in for a major service at the main dealer recently. Added another £60 “inspection service” to the job card when I got there, as it was apparently due.
Car went in with the rear screen washer not working properly.
Car came out with the rear screen washer still not working properly.
No mention of anything in the technicians report,
However, they did go to great lengths to point out the rear pads were down to 4.5mm and there was a slight lip on the discs....
Laughable.
Did you tell them to look at / resolve the rear screen washer not working properly?Car went in with the rear screen washer not working properly.
Car came out with the rear screen washer still not working properly.
No mention of anything in the technicians report,
However, they did go to great lengths to point out the rear pads were down to 4.5mm and there was a slight lip on the discs....
Laughable.
Because my local Mazda dealer is about 40 minutes drive away I just don't use them. I've had a recall waiting for some time now but just don't have the time through the week and the workshop don't work weekends!! I have yet to experience what they're like but they seemed friendly enough on the phone.
My local Vauxhall dealer absolutely refused to believe my paint code, even when I took the "Service Manager" out and showed him the stamped plate on my car. "I've never seen Z200 before, it's probably the same as 81L". Oh right, I'll probably buy some and probably f*****g throw it at you then.. Never been back since.
My local Vauxhall dealer absolutely refused to believe my paint code, even when I took the "Service Manager" out and showed him the stamped plate on my car. "I've never seen Z200 before, it's probably the same as 81L". Oh right, I'll probably buy some and probably f*****g throw it at you then.. Never been back since.
I kept up Volvo main dealer servicing on my S40 to an advanced age, having always used independents and specialists on my previous cars.
Some good points:
Some good points:
- The quality of work was very good. Over 8 years my biggest complaint was one of the washes left the underside of the sill covers dirty.
- Collection and courtesy cars were a lot more convenient, although some of the good independents offer courtesy cars (and ones more interesting than the usual new/nearly-new base model fare you get at the dealer).
- The servicing cost more but I had far fewer unexpected issues once the car started getting past that 8-10 year old point, so overall it wasn't that much more expensive. Admittedly this may have been the car as much as the dealer.
- Volvo seemed much better than the independents at getting the interior apart and back together without breaking clips or adding rattles.
- They seemed to be able to get parts a lot quicker than outside the network.
- Free breakdown cover was nice for peace of mind, even if I never used it once.
- The courtesy cars themselves were a bit meh. I preferred it when they were short of cars and gave me a Fiesta, the modern small Volvos always seemed to have car-ruiningly awful drivetrains.
- Anything the main dealer subcontracted (e.g. aircon) they were hopeless at. Interestingly a lot of my local independents didn't want to touch it either. I spent a lot of time and effort tracing down air conditioning that died the first hot weekend of every year until a little garage in Woodford found my compressor didn't have much in the way of bearings left.
- Being able to carpet an entire room in service invoices didn't seem to make the car any more desireable in practical terms, unless you count a lot of "it seems a shame to let a car like that go" comments. I still had to trade it in for a song just like any other large petrol-engined old banger with three torn petrol receipts for a history. I suspect this is very different on a 4 year old car rather than a 14 year old one however.
Only really been to them for warranty stuff on new vans, found both Mercedes and ford couldn't care less and don't mind being blatant about it, merc made fantastic lies to me about causation and tried to take me for a mug with the BS they spouted, ford have a month long waiting list and if your brand new vans off the road thats basically tough s
t. Both will have the van all day and its your fking problem getting it there and courtesy car, don't make me laugh, even if you offer to pay because you need to get on with the day its too much effort for them.
Ironically BMW the opposite - airbag recall on an old car that'll never make them a cent - they were lovely, and even gave me a 1hr window so I could run my day efficiently.
t. Both will have the van all day and its your fking problem getting it there and courtesy car, don't make me laugh, even if you offer to pay because you need to get on with the day its too much effort for them.Ironically BMW the opposite - airbag recall on an old car that'll never make them a cent - they were lovely, and even gave me a 1hr window so I could run my day efficiently.
UTH said:
Put simply:
My 2001 Evo 6 - 99% of people at a Mitsi dealer/garage won't have even seen one on their lives let alone worked on one.....therefore going to a specialist who has worked on nothing BUT Evos.....no brainer.
2015 Corvette Z06 - To my (admittedly small) knowledge, there aren't any official Chevy dealers/garages in the UK anymore? But as above, much rather take it somewhere that has worked on Corvettes for years.
Answer to your second statement is actually twoMy 2001 Evo 6 - 99% of people at a Mitsi dealer/garage won't have even seen one on their lives let alone worked on one.....therefore going to a specialist who has worked on nothing BUT Evos.....no brainer.
2015 Corvette Z06 - To my (admittedly small) knowledge, there aren't any official Chevy dealers/garages in the UK anymore? But as above, much rather take it somewhere that has worked on Corvettes for years.
We have 2 VAG cars, servicing on the Seat Cupra is reasonable at £189 at the dealer, however, Audi want £400 for the same service on a 1.5?
Two Audi garages wouldn’t price match, so took it to an independent who did the work for half the price and I didn’t have to wait 4 weeks for a courtesy car.
Seat garage, really friendly, happy to give you a lift, courtesy car no problem.
Two Audi garages wouldn’t price match, so took it to an independent who did the work for half the price and I didn’t have to wait 4 weeks for a courtesy car.
Seat garage, really friendly, happy to give you a lift, courtesy car no problem.
hepy said:
We have 2 VAG cars, servicing on the Seat Cupra is reasonable at £189 at the dealer, however, Audi want £400 for the same service on a 1.5?
Two Audi garages wouldn’t price match, so took it to an independent who did the work for half the price and I didn’t have to wait 4 weeks for a courtesy car.
Seat garage, really friendly, happy to give you a lift, courtesy car no problem.
Sounds like the SEAT was fixed interval servicing and the Audi longlife?Two Audi garages wouldn’t price match, so took it to an independent who did the work for half the price and I didn’t have to wait 4 weeks for a courtesy car.
Seat garage, really friendly, happy to give you a lift, courtesy car no problem.
Sheepshanks said:
Red 5 said:
Targeting P&L at the service desk, while having a fixed price service menu, are ideas rather at odds with one another!
This particularly annoys me - turn down the "premium service" option at our local Honda dealer and the service advisor then treats you like you're a complete moron.Inchcape dealers will often give you a sheet with additional work on it and on the back it details things like bonus earned for the service advisor. I guess they're only supposed to print the front!
There's no way you can build a good relationship when they key thing they have to do, on pain fo being fired, is screw as much money out of you as possible.
Even if there was a person you would get on with, they HAVE to attempt to take MORE money from you via any means, or face the wrath of their upstairs managers.
The faces like thunder I’ve seen, when refusing fictional work!
Deep Thought said:
Limpet said:
Took the Mini in for a major service at the main dealer recently. Added another £60 “inspection service” to the job card when I got there, as it was apparently due.
Car went in with the rear screen washer not working properly.
Car came out with the rear screen washer still not working properly.
No mention of anything in the technicians report,
However, they did go to great lengths to point out the rear pads were down to 4.5mm and there was a slight lip on the discs....
Laughable.
Did you tell them to look at / resolve the rear screen washer not working properly?Car went in with the rear screen washer not working properly.
Car came out with the rear screen washer still not working properly.
No mention of anything in the technicians report,
However, they did go to great lengths to point out the rear pads were down to 4.5mm and there was a slight lip on the discs....
Laughable.
It is a bit of a bug bear of mine when a customer collects the car and asks "why didn't you sort x when this is the first time x has been brought up, and I make a point of asking on check in"is there anything else you want us to look at today?"
Used a main dealer for a service for the first time in years a couple of months ago. Skoda.
It was a perfect transaction. They rang a few days before asking if I wanted them to look at anything in particular. I mentioned the seatbelt fraying and a EML issue.
Dropped it off, was offered a range of beverages and comfy area to sit in and then an option to test any of their demos. They serviced the car, fitted new seat belts (front), checked and resolved the EML issues.
It was painless and pleasing as a transaction goes. I will def be going back there.
It was a perfect transaction. They rang a few days before asking if I wanted them to look at anything in particular. I mentioned the seatbelt fraying and a EML issue.
Dropped it off, was offered a range of beverages and comfy area to sit in and then an option to test any of their demos. They serviced the car, fitted new seat belts (front), checked and resolved the EML issues.
It was painless and pleasing as a transaction goes. I will def be going back there.
Was reading this thread thinking earlier today thinking what a coincidence as my car is currently in at Audi today....nothing could go wrong could it?!
When booking I made it clear I wanted the inspection service which should be the same as the major. And it's on 40k miles so should have all filters done. Audi have fixed price servicing for this and it's 345. Steep but OK. I email my local centre who say we opt out of that offer but will honour it.
I collect today turns out they have only done an oil change and this is what they quoted for at 345 (Audi fixed price for this is 180) if I wanted filters doing apparently that would have been around 300 more! (This is a 16plate car)
After a lot of arguing and bemusement they were trying to charge 345 for just an oil change....which was apparently a goodwill thing in the first place and it should have been more....they agreed to change the filters tomorrow morning for me. My point as well to them was well even if there was confusion, shouldn't you have rung to say it's on 45k miles, you need more working doing? As the official schedule specifically states all filters at 40k. Why am I having to point that out now after querying why there are no filters on the receipt?
This is the latest in a long line of issues with dealers since having this car. In my first year of ownership it was at the dealers for 6 of the 12months when only 2 years old (I kid you not) 2 separate dealers had it for 3months at a time, always trying and struggling to fix issues they had created, including needed a new bumper as they had reversed it into a wall in the workshop. Broken electric seats, a loud tapping under the dash when they had replaced some trim under warranty (3months to find the source, yet when the sun is on it, I can see the welders glue at the bottom of the windscreen. The exact place is sounded to be coming from all long)
And yes....the most annoying thing is always knowing more about the car and processes than the service advisor. Making it impossible to actually discuss in detail what's happening with the car as the really don't have a clue
When booking I made it clear I wanted the inspection service which should be the same as the major. And it's on 40k miles so should have all filters done. Audi have fixed price servicing for this and it's 345. Steep but OK. I email my local centre who say we opt out of that offer but will honour it.
I collect today turns out they have only done an oil change and this is what they quoted for at 345 (Audi fixed price for this is 180) if I wanted filters doing apparently that would have been around 300 more! (This is a 16plate car)
After a lot of arguing and bemusement they were trying to charge 345 for just an oil change....which was apparently a goodwill thing in the first place and it should have been more....they agreed to change the filters tomorrow morning for me. My point as well to them was well even if there was confusion, shouldn't you have rung to say it's on 45k miles, you need more working doing? As the official schedule specifically states all filters at 40k. Why am I having to point that out now after querying why there are no filters on the receipt?
This is the latest in a long line of issues with dealers since having this car. In my first year of ownership it was at the dealers for 6 of the 12months when only 2 years old (I kid you not) 2 separate dealers had it for 3months at a time, always trying and struggling to fix issues they had created, including needed a new bumper as they had reversed it into a wall in the workshop. Broken electric seats, a loud tapping under the dash when they had replaced some trim under warranty (3months to find the source, yet when the sun is on it, I can see the welders glue at the bottom of the windscreen. The exact place is sounded to be coming from all long)
And yes....the most annoying thing is always knowing more about the car and processes than the service advisor. Making it impossible to actually discuss in detail what's happening with the car as the really don't have a clue
Edited by gregpot2000 on Friday 7th February 18:37
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