| Motoring Discussion > Servicing prices | Miscellaneous |
| Thread Author: bathtub tom | Replies: 27 |
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New Sat 9 May 26 22:28
Servicing prices - bathtub tom
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Daughter contacted me to ask if a quote of six hundred-odd quid was reasonable for a service on a nine-year-old Kia Niro hybrid. Sent me a bit of the quote and the first two items were: 1. engine oil flush 2. fuel system flush Couldn't see the details of the rest of the quote. Told her to run away and get another price, perhaps from a KIA dealer - two hundred-odd quote. I've never had main dealer servicing, apart from the first few years of the Yaris. I thought them charging £150 for what was basically an oil and filter change was extortionate! To put things into perspective, I've done an oil and filter change on the Yaris today for £60 and that includes Toyota's recommended 0-20W oil (refined from unicorn tears, I presume), unlike the bulk 5W-30 the main dealers used (could've saved £20 if I'd used 5W-30)! |
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New Sat 9 May 26 23:11
Servicing prices - Andrew-T
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I'd have thought a 9-year-old car would be going to a reputable indy for servicing, not a dealership ? Must be quite a bit cheaper ? And does it really need flushing ?
Last edited by: Andrew-T on Sat 9 May 26 at 23:12
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New Sun 10 May 26 05:40
Servicing prices - Falkirk Bairn
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20 years ago a light came on on the dashboard of my then Civic (2001). Took it to the Honda dealer to get the light issue resolved. Could not find a fault, disconnected the battery and the light stayed off. It was coming up for a service (Honda 1st 3 years then Indie 3 years) They quoted for the service £XXX BUT then produced a list of items needing attention. The car was coming up for 6 years & 90K. £2,500 for the add-ons. My Indie looked at the list and whittled it down to AC re-charge and Rheostat fan PLUS the service. I complained to Honda about the local dealer trying to fleece me. They arranged for an Edinburgh dealer to look over the car - they came back with rheostat, AC Re-charge & only 3mm left on 2 rear tyres I cannot remember all the points on the £2,500 list but a new AC compressor was one item, suspension +shocks...... When I went back with the Edinburgh dealer report the General Manager of the local Honda dealer "That's their opinion and we have ours" The car was sold 6+ months later 93K - T/I £2,700. The local Honda dealer did not get the new car business |
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New Sun 10 May 26 08:59
Servicing prices - smokie
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| The annoying thing is that many are not sufficiently technically savvy to challenge and don't bother shopping around for things, just pay whatever is asked for. You really ought to be able to trust a main dealer though. |
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New Sun 10 May 26 09:03
Servicing prices - sooty123
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. You really ought to >> be able to trust a main dealer though. >> I don't see them being more or less trustworthy than any other business. |
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New Sun 10 May 26 12:10
Servicing prices - De Sisti
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>> . You really ought to >> >> be able to trust a main dealer though. >> >> >> >> I don't see them being more or less trustworthy than any other business. >> This is a post I made to another forum earlier this year: "My 23 year-old BMW 320d SE Touring passed its mot two weeks ago. Built in Dec 2002, it has done 137,500 miles. It has been in the family all its life. My sister had it for the first 10 years, I have had it since Aug 2012, it has a full service history (book fully stamped) and have kept all receipts for work done on it since I acquired it. It was taken into the local BMW dealership for an urgent airbag replacement. They carried out a 'health check' and found nearly £1100 worth of work they deemed urgent. I declined. When it went in for a MOT and service at the local BMW garage, I told them of the issues the dealership found. Of the items highlighted by the dealership, and the local independent BMW garage's opinion: * Water ingress on fog lights: Dealership wanted £165.48 Not water ingress, but condensation. This is common on older cars. * Suspension rear damper dust cover: Dealership wanted £374.63 The shock absorbers are fine. The covers do not affect their operation. One is loose, but will be removed when both rear shock absorbers need replacing. * Under tray cover damage: Dealership wanted £544.87 There was no damage, but just loose. It was re-attached (with a couple of screws) and is very secure now." I did rebuke them in an email response and the clerk who dealt with me partially agreed with my comments, but wouldn't go as far as saying they were 'trying it on' to fleece money out of me. Last edited by: De Sisti on Sun 10 May 26 at 12:12
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New Sun 10 May 26 09:57
Servicing prices - Fullchat
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" You really ought to be able to trust a main dealer though." You really ought to. However my dealings with several Kia dealers over a number of years is that they are next to car park enforcement companies in the 'robbery' stakes. Other brands also apply I'm sure. The engaging receptionists and free coffees are a smokescreen for the deceptions going on in the workshops. Add to that a wash and valet from a a minimum wage employee and the deception is complete. My belief is they work under the Must, Should and Could principal. They must change the oil because most people can access a dipstick and check the colour of the oil. After that an owner would have to engage in some determination to discover malpractice like under seat fuel filters not changed. By the time a vehicle suffers the consequences of service neglect its probably well out of warranty and a few owners into its history. |
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New Sun 10 May 26 11:43
Servicing prices - Terry
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Many years ago my father used to leave clues as to whether the job had been done properly. A loose valve cap that should have been tightened had the tyre pressures been checked. A bit of felt tip marker on the air filter. A bit of thread held in place by the HT lead - not there if the spark plugs had been re gapped or changed etc. In truth he trusted no tradesmen - electricians, plumbers, builders etc. |
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New Sun 10 May 26 17:52
Servicing prices - John F
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Apart from a dealer service on our Peugeot 2008 when it was one year old, our cars haven't had a garage 'service' for decades. I change the oil and brake pads myself when necessary. The MoT does most if not all of the checks done in the 'service'. Also, I think over-diligent brake 'servicing' might be counterproductive. The piston starts life right at the start of its cylinder with big fat pads and disc. I think the inside of the cylinder will last longer if it is bathed in brake fluid, but until the pads and disc wear it risks corrosion from moist salt-laden air getting past the protective rubber boot and so might be more prone to seizing the piston. Discs have around 4mm wear in them and the pads around 12mm. I think pads and discs should be allowed to wear right down to the minimum before they are changed to ensure the piston travels as far as possible along its cylinder. But I have often heard of people advised to change them because.... 'they won't last till the next service, mate'. Obviously wear varies from one driver to another but my discs have always lasted around 100,000 miles and I allow the pads to wear down to the MoT minimum, usually after around 50,000 miles. (at 79,000 miles my 20yr old Audi A8 has only recently had new pads on its original discs). I hammer and grind off rust and 'lipping' from the disc with a carborundum wheel. I have never had to have a new caliper, even on a car which did over 240,000 miles. How long do your calipers last? |
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New Mon 11 May 26 11:21
Servicing prices - Bobby
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Daughter's BYD goes into Arnold tomorrow for its first service (through an AC service plan). I will be following her in to collect her and take her back. Would love to be able to do something in the engine bay to check that it has actually been serviced but wouldn't know where to start! I guess like many drivers now, its on a PCP, doubt she will keep it at the end and as long as it is dealer serviced and has the warranty then should give her hassle free motoring! Whether the service is done or not! |
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New Mon 11 May 26 13:35
Servicing prices - smokie
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Other than standard mechanical stuff that's in any car there is very little to service in an EV (hence very little to wear out or go wrong). I suspect much of the important stuff is done by plugging into the computer and maybe tweaking settings. Hence my first main dealer service for my old EV was only around £45. That probably wouldn't even pay the cost of an oil change or a set of plugs these days for an ICE. Or a cambelt or many of the other myriad of parts which can go wrong in an ICE engine. And if you've not already had a peek you might be disappointed with what you find in in the "engine bay" :-). Last edited by: smokie on Mon 11 May 26 at 13:35
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New Mon 11 May 26 14:55
Servicing prices - Andrew-T
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>> Other than standard mechanical stuff that's in any car there is very little to service in an EV (hence very little to wear out or go wrong). << Presumably anything involving suspension, braking and external lighting are the same as for an ICE or hybrid car ? |
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New Mon 11 May 26 16:38
Servicing prices - Zero
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>> Other than standard mechanical stuff that's in any car there is very little to service >> in an EV (hence very little to wear out or go wrong). Errr battery pack, traction motors, cooling for electronics, etc etc. |
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New Mon 11 May 26 16:53
Servicing prices - bathtub tom
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>> Errr battery pack Very heavy battery pack that places extra load on suspension, steering, tyres and road surface. Last edited by: bathtub tom on Mon 11 May 26 at 16:53
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New Mon 11 May 26 20:25
Servicing prices - Terry
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Newish car - most safety critical items - suspension, steering, braking, tyres etc - are "inspect" and require nothing done. The only longevity critical items are typically engine oil + a couple of filters. Older cars - MoT will capture all safety critical items. There may be a better argument for the lubricate and inspect elements of a service schedule - although many owners only spend money on cars when something fails. Electronic systems on new cars should be far more capable and informative. Limp home mode is unacceptable when (a) potential faults can be identified with temperature, vibration, efficiency monitoring, and (b) fault descriptions provided (not fault codes and take it to a s******). So for an EV the traditional approach to servicing and MoT should be replaced by (a) annual MoT to pick up any safety issues, and (b) far better monitoring and warning systems. Current "inspect" items on a service schedule exist to make the list longer and justify largely unnecessary charges. |
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New Tue 12 May 26 12:11
Servicing prices - John F
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>> Older cars - MoT will capture all safety critical items. ......... many owners only spend money on cars when something fails << I'm one of those. Over the decades we must have saved thousands not having an annual garage 'service' for our three older cars (1980 TR7; 2005 Audi A8; 2019 Peugeot 2008 - average age 36). But preventive maintenance is advisable for troublefree longevity. Every year or so I do a 'wheels-off' inspection on a warm summer day to ensure brake and fuel pipes are protected and have no corrosion, and to address any other corrosion at an early stage. This is something that an expensive garage 'service' will not do. Also, arguably the most important servicing activity is the oil change. By doing it myself I ensure all the old gungy oil drains out (I leave it dripping for hours) and the pricey correct spec oil is used (a cheapo jugful of 0-30 from the garage's trade barrel is not good enough for the Peugeot's BIO engine). Last edited by: John F on Tue 12 May 26 at 12:12
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New Tue 12 May 26 12:45
Servicing prices - De Sisti
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>> >> Older cars - MoT will capture all safety critical items. ......... many owners only >> spend money on cars when something fails << But preventive maintenance is advisable for troublefree longevity. Every year >> or so I do a 'wheels-off' inspection on a warm summer day to ensure brake >> and fuel pipes are protected and have no corrosion, and to address any other corrosion >> at an early stage. This is something that an expensive garage 'service' will not do. A good, reliable independent garage would do the necessary, essential checks. |
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New Tue 12 May 26 15:37
Servicing prices - Andrew-T
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>> ...our three older cars (1980 TR7; 2005 Audi A8; 2019 Peugeot 2008 - average age 36). << I'm wondering how you calculate your averages, John. TR7 : 46 ; Audi : 21 ; Pug : 7. Total ages 74 ; mean value 25 or a bit under ??? No wonder you get such good MPG figures ! Or have you rolled in your own age :-) |
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New Sat 16 May 26 17:33
Servicing prices - John F
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Mea culpa Andrew-T, you are right. Dunno where 36 came from...although I think I must have added them all up to 72 and divided it by the two of us. Heigh ho, senility..... As for mpg, the Audi averages 20, the TR7 around 30, and the long term Peugeot average is 41, although when I drove it to Norwich recently (100 miles mostly clear dual carriageway, cruise control on 70mph) I got 50.3 on the trip computer! After a bit of Norwich town to-ing and fro-ing, it was down to 49.6 when we got back home. |
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New Mon 11 May 26 23:15
Servicing prices - smokie
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From AI ⭐ ICE engine: ~200–300 moving parts ⭐ EV motor: ~20–30 moving parts And when you include the whole drivetrain: ⭐ ICE powertrain: 2,000–3,000 parts ⭐ EV powertrain: 200–300 parts I'd like to think they'll have designed the suspension etc to cope with a heavier vehicle BT :-) |
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New Tue 12 May 26 20:26
Servicing prices - PeterS
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I have a different view to many when it comes to main dealer servicing, perhaps because of my dealers or perhaps because I just don’t know enough about cars! But modern-ish cars don’t seem to need much servicing, and I’ve yet to see any ill effects from that. On the basis they don’t need much servicing, the savings from not using a main dealer don’t seem that significant to me. Some posters might recall my predilection for dabbling in the tattier end of the so called premium manufacturers ranges in parallel to more modern / normal cars, and my experience of well/average/poorly maintained cars as they age is that they all just seem to keep going, unless something that is not a service item and was never going to form part of any preventative maintenance fails. We’ve had a 160k mile A2 that had barely seen a garage after 80k as far as I could make out that was just fine, until it was crashed into a hospital car park. A 170k mile BMW 325i (straight 6 petrol) was reliable, even though its service history was flakey, but suffered from typical ‘80s BMW corrosion. An old A8, whose mileage I can’t recall, had been very comprehensively maintained. But was in no better condition than a 25 year old 160k mile A4 with average service history that I picked up last year. An old Audi 80 convertible had very good service history, but no preventative maintenance would have stopped the heater matrix failing and effectively writing off the car. Take BMW or MINI, who’s condition based servicing works in the same way I think. For my usage that meant a service every 18k miles or 2 years - the service pricing is fixed and, to my thinking, pretty reasonable. They do a thorough check (looking for other work…) and advise accordingly, but there’s never any pressure to do the work. I guess to someone without an understanding of the basics you might feel obliged to have everything suggested done, but I’ve never been pushed on any of it. Mercedes servicing is more frequent - always annual, and more expensive. But every time you have it serviced at a dealer they extend the European breakdown cover by another 12 months, no matter how old the car. They offer a discount on parts and labour for cars over 4 years old, and they are never sniffy about old cars. Indeed, when I took my Facebook purchased 17 year old SLK there for a service / check up (because the specialist quote was only £60 cheaper, and they’re in a less convenient location and don’t offer free breakdown cover) they went over the whole car, commented on a few things but said the only thing that needed doing in the next few months, in their opinion, was to replace some perishing flexi hoses on the front brakes. The quote for the work was a reasonable £250 or so, but the actual job only cost £180 because of reasons I’ve forgotten. I’ve just booked it in for an MOT - which it turns out is free because the car is more than 10 years old. I’m sure that’s on the basis that they’ll find more work, but if something needs doing it needs doing, and their prices seem okay. And as rusty subframes are a Mercedes point of failure, but one that they cover under warranty under Mobilo Life for up to 30 years, having the MOT done at a dealer makes sense to me :) Audi are less interested in old cars than they used to be. They were happy to service our A2s, and indeed the even older 80 based convertible, but I’ve currently also got a 25 year, 160,000 mile old Audi A4 1.8 T sport in a rather fetching orange and when I popped in to pick up an exterior mirror glass (a previous owner had replaced the drivers on with the glass from a pre facelift A4, which was a slightly different shape) they said that all parts for the A4 were end of life and they couldn’t get one. EBay to the rescue!! It’s been serviced, at best, annually over its life, with every two years being more like the norm over the last decade. Everything still works though, including the climate control, although the LCD display (red) used for the OBC had more missing pixels than working ones. But, preventative maintenance wouldn’t have prevented that, and £160 paid to an outfit in Portsmouth got that swapped out. It passed an MOT last month with one advisory for a minor oil leak. There are no clonks, it pulls well, but I had it serviced by a local garage, because the Audi dealer wasn’t interested. But I’m not sure that it’s really much cheaper using the local garage, although they’re a knowledgable bunch and take a sensible approach to work worth doing on a 25 year old car, much as Mercedes do with the old SLK. Price wise an ‘A’ service on a old SLK was £180odd at the dealer, including extending the breakdown cover. It’s an like service with a bunch of checks and a fancy video. But an ‘oil’ service on the A4 last year was £135, plus £70odd to replace a track rod end. Not a lot in it really - and of course oil changes could be done at home, at a small saving, but then no one would look over the rest of the car. When it comes to EV servicing, my old Tesla Model 3 had no specific service schedule, but still needed attention 3 times in 2 years - it went through 2 upper control arms, which I think are a known weakness (or design feature…), a set of lower arm bushes and a dodgy exterior door handle. All under warranty though, which surprised me - I expected the suspension stuff to be ‘consumable’ like brake pads or wipers. I’ve had the BMW 2 and a half years and that’s had one scheduled service at 2 years old (when it had done 35,000 miles, but it’s not a mileage dependent service, just age) to replace the brake fluid and cabin filter and check things. Again, BMW servicing seems fairly reasonable to me - it cost £232 including the dealer picking it up, cleaning it and returning it. And the suspension is just fine :) |
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New Sun 17 May 26 09:54
Servicing prices - PeterS
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Well the previous post was longer than I anticipated ;) The outcome of taking an 18 year old car to a Mercedes main dealer for a free MOT is a new MOT, with advisories for “Rear Brake pipe corroded, covered in grease or other material” on both sides, and “Front Suspension arm pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement Torque strut” on both sides too. The health check video showed those issues, with quotes of £380 a side for the brake pipes and £240 a side for the bushes, but was broadly complimentary about the condition of the rest of the car. But no pressure to have the work done - the service advisor just said neither were necessary yet. I did pay them £16.99 for a litre bottle of oil to keep for top-ups if necessary. The old Audi also had a ‘health check’ at my local garage before its 2,000 mile adventure. That, including an oil change and cooling system check (no issues found) was £141. Their view was that the car was in good condition, and would keep going until it doesn’t :) With the bonus that their apprentice apparently loves anything VAG with the 1.8T engine and would happily take it off my hands when I’m bored of it! So, in about a months time ;) |
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New Sun 17 May 26 11:02
Servicing prices - Falkirk Bairn
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A neighbour has a 33 month old Toyota Yaris. He bought it 2nd hand from a local Toyota dealer (no longer has the Toyota Franchise). He is fastidious - washed 2 x per week + hoovered say once a week. Polished monthly, 2 weeks ago he broke down, or to be exact, the battery would not start the car. He forgot the car was still under warranty/breakdown cover etc etc so called a local garage £90 for a jump start. He drove home and parked up. Next morning car would not start so called the local garage again £50 (Same driver and sympathetic). Later on in the day, his wife came to me and asked me what was wrong! My guess was a flat battery or a failing battery and I said to to take it out for a 20+ mile run. Of course the local garage had already said that twice but her husband (who watches the pennies) thought the 3 or 4 mile trip home would be sufficient to charge the battery. His wife said later on that he had had the car serviced a few days ago - £300+ at an Indie. They had now taken out Green Flag at (£45) so if it happens again they will have cover. In 2 weeks just short of £500 - if they had taken to car to Toyota for a service it would have been roughly £300++ for the service but would have had := 12 months Breakdown Cover and another 12 month's Toyota Extended Warranty thrown in for FREE! PS The car runs fine and the battery no longer shows up as failing. Suspected a light might have caused the problem. Left on when they parked up before going to shops etc etc This had drained the battery. |
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New Sun 17 May 26 12:31
Servicing prices - Andrew-T
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>> ,,, a new MOT, with advisories for "Rear Brake pipe corroded, covered in grease or other material" on both sides, ... << In all probability that advice could continue until the car meets its death. Provided of course that it is just greasy, not corroding .... |
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New Sun 17 May 26 14:15
Servicing prices - PeterS
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| Indeed…and looking at the history on the DVLA site it’s an advisory that was present in 2024, but not in 2025. Now back for 2026! |
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New Sun 17 May 26 16:56
Servicing prices - ORB>>>
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| Looking at servicing costs for the Suzuki compared to the Korando... about 50% cheaper per equivalent service. The year 5 for the Korando would have been Horrendous. |
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New Sun 17 May 26 18:26
Servicing prices - Bill Payer
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>> Mercedes servicing is more frequent - always annual, and more expensive. But every time you >> have it serviced at a dealer they extend the European breakdown cover by another 12 >> months, no matter how old the car. They offer a discount on parts and labour >> for cars over 4 years old, and they are never sniffy about old cars. I used the local MB dealer for mine as they were always up for a haggle on the pricing and, as you, I valued the Mobilo extension. Then at 10yrs old they suddenly tore the car apart and the health check produced work that was equal to the value of the car. The service advisor told me I shouldn't be bringing such an old car to the dealership! Last edited by: Bill Payer on Sun 17 May 26 at 18:27
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New Sun 17 May 26 19:17
Servicing prices - PeterS
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| Yes, the work that my dealer highlighted s ‘advisory’ probably totalled half the value of the car, if not more, but there was no pressure to have any of it done. I realised I’ve been using them used them on and off (as I move between Merc, BMW and Audis) for the thick end of 25 years now. Still, like all dealers I am sure they’ll let me down at some point!! Until then the free MOT and breakdown cover is still an incentive enough to keep using them… |
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