Does the servicing network let AM down?
Does the servicing network let AM down?
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Discussion

timbals

Original Poster:

64 posts

139 months

Friday 5th October 2018
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Hi All,

I was wondering how people feel about the quality of the servicing they receive from AM main dealers.

My friend and I both bought Vantages in 2015 (V8 and V12) and both of us have had enough troubles with our services that we would never buy an AM again.


Felonious

392 posts

205 months

Friday 5th October 2018
quotequote all
I suppose, like anything, it depends who you deal with. I use AM Cambridge and have never had better service from anywhere. The team there is superb.

In the past, and with a different make of car, I used another main dealer which was terrific until the guy running the service centre left. The quality of service went downhill so I stopped using them.

Philip0

343 posts

144 months

Friday 5th October 2018
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I've used AM Works who have always been great - high attention to detail and very honest and pleasant to deal with.

Ryuv12vs

7 posts

104 months

Friday 5th October 2018
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AM Memmingen (Germany). Highly recommended! A week agi i last them the car for service and they did very well, also they cleaned the baby inside and outside to perfection! 👍

RobDown

3,807 posts

159 months

Friday 5th October 2018
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AM Servicing is like a box of chocolates....

I’ve had some bad experiences. But now only use AM Works who have been pretty good

AM also has one major advantage over, say, McLaren (apart from the better starting build quality) which is that there are a whole host of very good independents too; BR, Chiltern etc

cayman-black

13,268 posts

247 months

Friday 5th October 2018
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Ryuv12vs said:
AM Memmingen (Germany). Highly recommended! A week agi i last them the car for service and they did very well, also they cleaned the baby inside and outside to perfection! ??
Ryuv are you in Italy? But you service the car in Germany, i understand why though.

F355GTS

3,875 posts

286 months

Friday 5th October 2018
quotequote all
I've only had the one experience which his still ongoing, I'm not sure if it's the dealer's fault or just circumstance but I will have been without the car for over 2 weeks if (and I suspect it's not a small IF) they get it fixed for Monday

tbh it's not filling me with love for the brand


23/9 car broke down, no gears, recovered at roadside
24/9 car to dealer
25/9 diagnosed as ASM pump and also advisory to replace some pipework, warranty authorisation requested, warranty wanted assessor visit, should be within 48 hours
28/9 assessor visited after 72 hours and authorised parts
1/10 parts ordered
2/10 parts arrived and fitted, on fitting the pipes the module they were being connected to broke, new part ordered
4/10 parts arrive late
5/10 parts fitted but system would not bleed, eventually bled, now awaiting road test and setup of clutch/ box on diagnostics, won't be ready until Monday apparently, no idea why they couldn't finish it today or do it tomorrow




Edited by F355GTS on Friday 5th October 17:21

bogie

17,106 posts

303 months

Friday 5th October 2018
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Have used 6 dealers and a few indies over the last 11 years or so. Some of them I wouldn't go back to but a couple of dealers have been really good. All the indies were good for what was needed at the time.

I think its like any car dealer network, some are average, a few exceptional and a few poor. Depending where you live and where you go you get a different experience.

It sometimes changes over time with change of ownership too. I went to a couple of dealers years ago that have since changed hands, and been back to one and it was completely different positive experience.

If you dont like the service you receive somewhere, try somewhere else, ask for recommendations on here......

V8V Pete

2,536 posts

157 months

Friday 5th October 2018
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I've had good and bad experiences within the main dealer network and only good ones at independents so now only use the Indy.

IanV12VSRs

2,749 posts

186 months

Friday 5th October 2018
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I have been pretty lucky with my experiences and had good experiences with the two of the three AML dealerships I have used. Having said that I know of people who would not recommend Exeter (now closed) but have heard a lot of positive reports about Bristol whole I use now.

macdeb

8,760 posts

286 months

Friday 5th October 2018
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hmm, some question. I have found my supplying dealer in Belfast to be full of st! However, my local dealer (Grange, B'ham) have been nothing but perfect. I have also found that Aston Martin themselves to be superb. I do hope that AM get rid of the dealers that are, and will continue to bring the brand a bad name.

Big Ry

1,682 posts

150 months

Friday 5th October 2018
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Guess I'm just lucky having Works on my doorstep. I've had a few bits done under warranty (and some not) over the years, and I can honestly say I've never had even the slightest issue.

They even got a good will approval to replace the ski-slope as it cracked.............that's not even a warranty item.

AstonMartinV8Vantage

46 posts

111 months

Friday 5th October 2018
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I do the repairs myself far easier but so many on here think DIY repairs shouldn’t be undertaken by the owner.

M5MarkM

1,686 posts

202 months

Friday 5th October 2018
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I must say I've not had any BAD experiences with AM dealership servicing although once they forgot to stamp the book, not really a big deal. For me the big issue is the level of work/inspection carried out on a service. I guess for a relatively new AM not a problem. But when I look at the service carried out by a main dealer compared to a place like Trinity the difference in scope is significant. My experience suggest this is with all brands. Main dealer will deliver what it says on the tin - oil, filter off you go. Compared to a quality indy where they check every single item and take 2 days even listing missing bolts on under trays but for the same price

Jon39

15,012 posts

174 months

Friday 5th October 2018
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F355GTS said:
tbh it's not filling me with love for the brand

You shouldn't feel too bad about it Mark.
The diagnosis was within 2 days of the breakdown.

Lucky that you are not dealing with Mercedes-Benz. They have had remarkable success with PCP in the UK, and have doubled their sales.
The workshops just cannot keep up, and you have to wait more than 3 weeks, before your car can even be looked at.

Hope your car is returned to you soon.






vernierMike

397 posts

125 months

Friday 5th October 2018
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I've only been to two AM main dealers and been delighted with one (Cheltenham) and very pleased with the other (Grange Welwyn).

But I used Chiltern for my last service because of the attention to detail, fastidious inspection and much more reasonable labour rate. They have second hand parts too! It is cool looking at all the amazing cars, DB3 upwards, they have whilst waiting....

pggroves

92 posts

246 months

Friday 5th October 2018
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I had one bad experience with a Main Dealer and went Independent.
I use Aston Engineering in Derby and find them superb and wouldn’t go anywhere else. I have used Works for paintwork in the past and found them excellent if a bit pricey.
I can really recommend Aston Engineering and their restoration shop is worth a visit . Lovely people to deal with and very reasonably priced.

james-witton

1,363 posts

138 months

Friday 5th October 2018
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I can only speak very highly of the team at AM Newcastle.
It’s not cheap but we’re not driving Hyundi’s.

Simon Lane

456 posts

152 months

Friday 5th October 2018
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Felonious said:
I suppose, like anything, it depends who you deal with. I use AM Cambridge and have never had better service from anywhere. The team there is superb.

In the past, and with a different make of car, I used another main dealer which was terrific until the guy running the service centre left. The quality of service went downhill so I stopped using them.
smile Thanks Felonious

Global Number 1 and proud of it!



steveatesh

5,383 posts

195 months

Friday 5th October 2018
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james-witton said:
I can only speak very highly of the team at AM Newcastle.
It’s not cheap but we’re not driving Hyundi’s.
Seconded for Newcastle. Great people and not had a problem.
I also used AM at Beamish, an independent and was very happy with them too but like the fixed price servicing now at the main dealer seeing as how Beamish gave up their accredited dealer status.