Hi guys,

Had the vRS in at DM Keith (Ossett) (for a 20k service) who in the past I've only had good things to say about.

Here is todays tale,

Dropped the car at at 8.15am and picked up a loan car (11 plate fabia estate £10 to pay for insurance excess waiver), fuel light was on range to empty read 15 miles, I had to go from here to Mirfield and back, was determined not to put any fuel in and managed it (just !).

I'd been talked into taking the service deal £299 for two services including a brake fluid change, got to 4 o'clock this afternoon and no call from dealers so I called them. They said service had been done with a number of points, 2 rear tyres needed changing, one had 2mm of tread one 3mm ( quoted £90 a piece) as they are on the back and above the legal limit I reckon they should still be ok for a couple of thousand miles.

Also the front brakes show wear, well they would they have doen 55000 miles , (quoted £207 is this expensive ?), and the rears discs are discoloured ? ? :S (quoted £175 is this expensive).

When I asked were any off these points enough to fail the upcoming MOT (due in May) was told they were not, but it was just the attitude of the dealer that because they had mentioned them I'd automatically have them fixed that really annoyed me. When I said I'd leave them they almost seemed shocked.

But the icing on the cake was that they wanted £9 to top up my Engine coolant, which they said was not included in the service :wonder:

And they washed the car and made a pigs ear of it :( , guess thats my fault I should have told em not to.

Really tempted to have a go at the brakes myself, how difficut are they ?.

Alan.

You seen my Halfrauds what a load of ..........(insert your own abusive term) thread? Most garages don't seem to want repeat business and im convinced they're out to scam anyone who isn't on their guard.

Who is DM Keith? A stand alone garage or branded? Ive done marketing stuff in the past and know how much it costs to attract new customers and how damaging bad word of mouth can be. Annoy one person and it will influence 10. I know everyone is skint at the minute but when I started to drive all my MOT's and servicing were done at my local MOT station, they weren't the cheapest but just didn't take the pi55.

Man, everyone of these threads makes me remember how pleased I am to use Unit 18, having a decent, honest garage is a rare thing now days, esp one that has great prices as a bonus!

Matt

You seen my Halfrauds what a load of ..........(insert your own abusive term) thread? Most garages don't seem to want repeat business and im convinced they're out to scam anyone who isn't on their guard.

Who is DM Keith? A stand alone garage or branded? Ive done marketing stuff in the past and know how much it costs to attract new customers and how damaging bad word of mouth can be. Annoy one person and it will influence 10. I know everyone is skint at the minute but when I started to drive all my MOT's and servicing were done at my local MOT station, they weren't the cheapest but just didn't take the pi55.

Yeah I did read your thread, I think it's shocking how business's treat the customer, All I want is a garage thats fair and honest (and reasonably cheap woud be nice ) does such a thing exist ? ?, I'm beginning to doubt it :(

at least close to where I live (west yorkshire)

Man, everyone of these threads makes me remember how pleased I am to use Unit 18, having a decent, honest garage is a rare thing now days, esp one that has great prices as a bonus!

Matt

I wish there was something like them close to me :(

Gaelic

I was not a witness to the attitude of the dealer, but they were only doing what they are paid to do, They did not demand they advised

Two tyres near the legal limit is pretty bad, yet you comment 1mm of tread would be good for a couple of thousand miles That is dangerous mate

The deal for a service is pretty good, I take it that is one minor service and one major one, Everyone has to pay for fluids used in a service

As for attempting to do the brakes yourself, along with your near limit tyres, Are you really trying to kill yourself and others ?

I realise getting a big bill is sore, and makes one upset, but thats what it takes to run a car these days, you just have to accept the hit, or not have a car

More importantly it is your duty to keep your car safe, not just for you but others

Whilst it is a bit nasty, thankfully we have the MOT these days, that put unsafe cars off the road

Back then in 19 canteen, people ran on tyres that were not only bald but had the canvas showing, almost none existant brakes, and had never wondered why the steering was all over the place having no track rod ends

This post is NOT against you, just showing they gave you GOOD advice even if it is hard to swallow

National

brakes and tires are the most important part of any car

GET THE TIRES CHANGED ASAP, it is only tires that keep u on the road

as for the brakes: leave it to someone who knows what they are doing, u seem hesitate in your post bout doing the brakes, dont do them get it wrong its a big bill and your playing with peoples lives

rear brakes discoloured: if they have a blue tint to them sounds like they are getting hot most likely cause will be sticking calipers

as for paying for fluids everyone has to pay for an antifreeze top up. next time check it often enough and top up if required then avoid your £9 charges

Tyres have a legal limit for a reason, if it's above the legal limit, then it's legal, he's doing nothing wrong. It's not dangerous having tyres just above the legal limit, there's still tread on the tyre. Some garages sell part worn tyres with a few mm of tread, some better, some a bit worse. As for doing brakes yourself, go for it. Buy a haynes manual, that'll help you a lot. I do my brakes myself, along with servicing the car. Once you've done it once, you know what you're doing. Just my 2p worth, but it'll be a lot cheaper doing yourself

Also the front brakes show wear, well they would they have doen 55000 miles , (quoted £207 is this expensive ?), and the rears discs are discoloured ? ? :S (quoted £175 is this expensive).

...

Really tempted to have a go at the brakes myself, how difficut are they ?.

It's not something I'd do unless you're confident/comfortable taking a car to pieces. The actual process of replacing the discs and pads on my Fabia was quite straight-forward, if a little time-consuming - it took me the best part of 2 afternoons, but I was going slowly, cleaning everything that came off as I went, and making sure I did it right. I also had to buy a calliper rewind tool for the rear brakes (about £15 from Machine Mart, etc). Get yourself a Haynes manual, and it should be simple enough. As for the cost, trade price for a complete set of OEM discs and pads for the PD100 was somewhere under £120 - the vRS has different (bigger) parts, so will probably be a bit more expensive.

Obviously, the brakes are a rather important part, so if you have any hesitation about it, don't do it.

I paid a total of just under £100 for discs and pads from Euro Car Parts

£14 a disk for the rears I paid

mmmm.... i just paid £1200 for the main 4 year service (cambelt, water pump, brake fluid, all filters etc etc) and then went straight from that to buy two new front tyres, tracking and an MOT for £350.

It aint cheap running a car. :'( :'( :'(

mmmm.... i just paid £1200 for the main 4 year service (cambelt, water pump, brake fluid, all filters etc etc) and then went straight from that to buy two new front tyres, tracking and an MOT for £350.

It aint cheap running a car. :'( :'( :'(

£1200 sounds like an awful lot of money for a cambelt and service

Cambelt service should be about £350, and major service with all filters, fluids etc. is about £250 – ABSOLUTE TOPS.

Was it a stealer, and did you get any other quotes first?

Also, 2 good tyres, Kumho for instance, can be had for about £120 fitted from Event Tyres, tracking is £50 and MOT is £50, so again, you've spent an awful lot of money on that.

Where are you based?

£1200 sounds like an awful lot of money for a cambelt and service

Cambelt service should be about £350, and major service with all filters, fluids etc. is about £250 – ABSOLUTE TOPS.

Was it a stealer, and did you get any other quotes first?

Also, 2 good tyres, Kumho for instance, can be had for about £120 fitted from Event Tyres, tracking is £50 and MOT is £50, so again, you've spent an awful lot of money on that.

Where are you based?

Down near Brighton and yes it was a dealer. No i didnt get any other quotes and where i went is the nearest dealer to me. A lot of money i know for a service but i actually trust them. The tyres were Michelins at about £130 each. I would like to find someone like Unit 18 down near me.