cheap servicing
Discussion
Hats off to the Dick Lovett Ferrari/Maserati dealership in Cardiff, they do a 3200GT service (minor) for £501 inc parts, labour + VAT. 
I was expecting £650 or higher. And for an extra £25 they will collect the car in a transporter plus return it, so the minimum of inconvenience to one's working day (v useful for me, living in Bristol).
V friendly bunch too. 
I know they are being friendly mainly because they want to keep their (mainly rich) clientele sweet, but that doesn't seem to stop other dealerships from being as grumpy as sin ...
ps how does limp mode manifest itself? The 'check engine' light came on the other day on the motorway and the revs seemed to be limited at around 3,000rpm. Stopping and starting seemed to clear it. However, I was pretty knackered at the end of a 3 hour journey so I am wondering whether perhaps I was just catching my right foot a little on the trim to the side of the accelerator and there was actually nothing wrong ...
I was expecting £650 or higher. And for an extra £25 they will collect the car in a transporter plus return it, so the minimum of inconvenience to one's working day (v useful for me, living in Bristol).
V friendly bunch too.
I know they are being friendly mainly because they want to keep their (mainly rich) clientele sweet, but that doesn't seem to stop other dealerships from being as grumpy as sin ...
ps how does limp mode manifest itself? The 'check engine' light came on the other day on the motorway and the revs seemed to be limited at around 3,000rpm. Stopping and starting seemed to clear it. However, I was pretty knackered at the end of a 3 hour journey so I am wondering whether perhaps I was just catching my right foot a little on the trim to the side of the accelerator and there was actually nothing wrong ...
Seems v reasonable for the service.
The "limp" mode does exactly what occured ! Limits revs to 3k. You can get the ecu checked by plugging into the diagnostic equipment at your dealer, it logs why the engine check light was activated. The most common reason seems to be a sooted lamba sensor due to starting before the full checks have compleated. This will clear after a decent run but the check engine dash light will not go out until next time you start it.
The "limp" mode does exactly what occured ! Limits revs to 3k. You can get the ecu checked by plugging into the diagnostic equipment at your dealer, it logs why the engine check light was activated. The most common reason seems to be a sooted lamba sensor due to starting before the full checks have compleated. This will clear after a decent run but the check engine dash light will not go out until next time you start it.
vulcan1208 said:
What is a minor service ? is it a standard 12k / 12 months with no extra items ? if so it's hard to see how independants can be much cheaper than this.
yep, a minor service, the one after the first belt service (31K miles).
I'm sure there's a sting in the tail somewhere, perhaps labour costs for faults spotted etc, but I'm warrantied up to the hilt so I'm not too afraid.
3200gt said:
The most common reason seems to be a sooted lamba sensor ...
Thanks GT, that would be my guess: I only just scraped through the emissions test on the recent MOT. Plus prior to the 'limp mode' occurence I had spent about 1.5 hours stuck in heavy traffic around the West End.
Any idea if the trick of thrashing the pants off the car for a bit really does clear a dirty LS? Or do sooted sensors need replacing sooner rather than later? I'm guessing that if the sensor was genuinely foobarred then the 'Check Engine' light would remain on permanently (which it doesn't).
Yep, a serious blast normally clears it. I've only had problems when doing very short journeys from cold (ie full choke), a brisk drive has always cleared it. But remeber the light will not go out until you restart and a full engine check sequence has run before turning the starter over.
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