Service stamps on E-Bay

[HON2A]

Might be "old hat", but new to me ... makes a fully stamped service book seem less valuable. Amusing that it's £500 for a few bits of moulded rubber, although they are novelty items.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&am...

Or
http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/lukeyboy100/m.html?_trks...

[thinfourth2]

I've always said a fully stamped up service book tells you that someone has put some stamps in a book and nothing else.

Recipts show someone has paid some money

Actually looking at filters etc tell you when they were last changed

[JonnyFive]

This is why we don't do stamps anymore, anyone can stamp a book for a tenner.

We use a Digital Service Record, yes people complain about it but you can't fraud it.

[rfn]

Last few cars I've bought haven't had a "Service Book" as such. The Clio just had a wad of receipts etc, and the Mk1 had a massive folder full of receipts taking back to the original purchase invoice, as well as regular receipts for service parts throughout its life.

Jonny's right though - my 5 has the DSR although I keep all the invoiced and receipts for things like tyres, etc for my own security & in the hope it makes the car more appealing to a prospective purchaser.

[Codswallop]

JonnyFive said:

This is why we don't do stamps anymore, anyone can stamp a book for a tenner.

We use a Digital Service Record, yes people complain about it but you can't fraud it.

So what happens if you take your car to be serviced anywhere other than a main dealer? I can't believe Mazda have been allowed to do that as it surely forces people to go to a main dealer for servicing otherwise they loose their 'full history'.

[JonnyFive]

Codswallop said:

JonnyFive said:

This is why we don't do stamps anymore, anyone can stamp a book for a tenner.

We use a Digital Service Record, yes people complain about it but you can't fraud it.

So what happens if you take your car to be serviced anywhere other than a main dealer? I can't believe Mazda have been allowed to do that as it surely forces people to go to a main dealer for servicing otherwise they loose their 'full history'.

You can keep the invoices as proof.. Or, I think, if you send a copy off to Mazda Customer Services they can update it for you.

[ARH]

Or just go to your local stationary supplier and have a custum stamp made, it won't cost a lot. This to my mind makes a joke of the service book, reciepts are best but still no real proof. buy on condition, if it looks like it has been looked after it probably has.

[200bhp]

I once worked with someone who scanned in the official stamps from the only main dealer service, tweaked it a bit in photoshop, removed staples from the service book and then printed the "stamps" onto the pages of the book.

All for a lot less than £500.

[J3PTF]

200bhp said:

I once worked with a tt

EFA

[bakerstreet]

ARH said:

Or just go to your local stationary supplier and have a custum stamp made, it won't cost a lot. This to my mind makes a joke of the service book, reciepts are best but still no real proof. buy on condition, if it looks like it has been looked after it probably has.

Hmm...Think I'd like to see a combination of both.

If I service the car myself, then I photograpg everything and show that to people when I sell the car.

Its anal, but I've never had any complaints from people who have bought cars or bikes from me.

[redtwin]

Buy on condition. A stamp in a book is only proof that there was ink in the stamp pad. A receipt is only proof that money was spent, but the parts or oil etc may have not been anywhere near the car in question.

Even that digital service record isn't proof that a car was serviced, just that it was in a dealer's service bay for a period of time (and even that is questionable). I know of too many instances where mechanics sign off that they have done service work when they actually haven't.

No, I am not a paranoid cynic.

[AndrewW-G]

You'd be suprised what some people will use for service stamps, there was a case in the times a few years ago of one scrote who was caught using a stamp stolen from a GP's surgery!

[wildcat45]

On both my Mazdas the dealer is happy to provide an official print out of the service history.

I've not had it stamped yet, but for my older CX-7 I have bought a blank generic book off Ebay. They dealer who has done all the servicing on it say they will be happy to fill it in for me.

I can see why electronic records are good, but once a car gets out of the dealer network it's good to have a service book - backed up by a wad of receipts to give an indication of a car's life. Not essential these days though.

One of my MGFs - now sold - was 11 years old had I had a box file of paperwork for everything from major services to lightbulbs. All backed up by a nicely stamped service book which talled with milage and receipts. It didn't net me any more money, but the person I sold it to appreciated they were getting a car whith a past that was easy to see.

As far back as 1991 - I was offered hooky service books. They company I worked for had a fleet of Volvos - Something like 30 - and someone at the firm who knew I had the same model told me he could sort me a service history out from a local main dealer. This was before the days of photoshop etc.

I didn't take up the offer by the way.

A book is just a nice thing to have, nothing more.

[honest_delboy]

Went to see a RAV-4 for the missus advertised with fTsh, got there and iT had no receipts but a suspicious looking service book with the last 4 services looking identical down to the handwriting for mileage. The stamp just said "toyota service" no logo. I memorised the postcode and phone number and when i got home and googled it the dialing code didn't even exist in the uk and the postcode was a fake.

D- try harder next time.

[JonnyFive]

honest_delboy said:

Went to see a RAV-4 for the missus advertised with fTsh, got there and iT had no receipts but a suspicious looking service book with the last 4 services looking identical down to the handwriting for mileage. The stamp just said "toyota service" no logo. I memorised the postcode and phone number and when i got home and googled it the dialing code didn't even exist in the uk and the postcode was a fake.

D- try harder next time.

But, if people weren't as on the ball as you were.. They'd fall for it and have bought a dodgy car, some people believe the service stamp never lies..

[djt100]

redtwin said:

Buy on condition. A stamp in a book is only proof that there was ink in the stamp pad. A receipt is only proof that money was spent, but the parts or oil etc may have not been anywhere near the car in question.

Even that digital service record isn't proof that a car was serviced, just that it was in a dealer's service bay for a period of time (and even that is questionable). I know of too many instances where mechanics sign off that they have done service work when they actually haven't.

No, I am not a paranoid cynic.

Not had this on a car, but i friend brought a new Yamaha R1 when they were first released, 1998/9 i think. Thought the dealer was taking the P*** when it went in for a service, So he put tipex on the tank bolts (you had to remove the bolts to change the plugs). Went to pick up the bike asked to check it over before paying,lifted the seat rubber or soemthinf like that to see the bolts had not been touched. needless to say he never went back and didn't pay a penny.

[johnpeat]

You should certainly double-check the history of a high-priced car but an unscrupulous dealer could have a FIELD day with this stuff, filling-in history for otherwise unwanted 'nails' (do you think people check the history of regular stuff??)

The seller is clearly taking the piss - selling in a Business Category but claiming 'novelty' and yet asking a lot of money - so that's him reported then

[thinfourth2]

djt100 said:

Not had this on a car, but i friend brought a new Yamaha R1 when they were first released, 1998/9 i think. Thought the dealer was taking the P*** when it went in for a service, So he put tipex on the tank bolts (you had to remove the bolts to change the plugs). Went to pick up the bike asked to check it over before paying,lifted the seat rubber or soemthinf like that to see the bolts had not been touched. needless to say he never went back and didn't pay a penny.

The other haves previous car had a full main dealer service history since new

The fuel filter rusted through and pissed fuel all over the drive

Oh and see this

http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/xforums/topic.asp?h=0...

[stemll]

JonnyFive said:

This is why we don't do stamps anymore, anyone can stamp a book for a tenner.

We use a Digital Service Record, yes people complain about it but you can't fraud it.

Which proves and means nothing at all and is as much use as a chocolate fireguard. Wife has just bought a 5 from a Mazda main dealer and, according to the useful printout from the dealer, has never been serviced at all. Utter nonsense and no use to anyone who doesn't want to pay inflated dealer prices.

Sorry, but the only reason Mazda do this is to try to keep owners in the dealer network. Not going to work though.