Took car in for first service today. It's on variable servicing and I've done 13500 miles in 18 months. Over the phone I was quoted £99 but when I went in and asked if I wanted a fixed or variable service was quoted £145 because it was a 'bigger service' which I assume basically means more work.

Anyone have any idea what the difference is? (Yes, I know I should have clarified with the provider...)

Absolutely no difference i'm afraid. They will probably say its different oil but the reality is it will be 507.00 oil on either service regime.

Absolutely no difference i'm afraid. They will probably say its different oil but the reality is it will be 507.00 oil on either service regime.

£46 for maybe a different grade of oil... :-(

I can only think that on the variable servicing they feel the need to change the filters as well. The oil is exactly the same.

I can only think that on the variable servicing they feel the need to change the filters as well. The oil is exactly the same.

They don't - Only the oil filter which is changed on any regime.

Dealers use the different oil requirements as an excuse, don't have the wool pulled over your eyes.

Is your vRS a diesel?

If so it has a DPF (Diesel Particulate Filter). This means that the car requires the long life / low ash oil irrespective of which type of service it gets.

Fixed? VW 507.00 required.

Variable? VW 507.00 required.

I just had a variable service done on my vRS. The dealer tried to charge me more money and to lied to me telling me the type of oil used was different.

When I pointed out his mistake (or lie) he back-tracked and then told me there are more visual checks during a variable service. It was too late by this point, he was on the back foot and agreed to charge me £129.00 for the variable service, see here...

http://www.skoda.co.uk/gbr/owners/national-pricing/pages/servicing.aspx

Well if you are "wise" and poor (like me), then what you do is look over your car, decide what needs doing, buy your own oil (of the correct spec), parts from various sources, for the best price, then find a local small garage that charges £30 per hour for labour, and say "Please would you do the following ..., with these parts in the box I am providing, and can you tell me the cost - yes that seems OK"

Whereas if you are rich, you take it to your large Skoda dealer, that charges £90 per hour for labour, and a fortune for parts, and you are charged a figure for time that is looked up in a book, rather than how long it actually takes. Still you get to wait in a nice lounge, with leather seats and a nice young lady brings you a caffe latte with biscuits.

It's a petrol VRS.

I went to work so didn't get the benefit of sitting in a nice leather chair and having a nice young lady serving me a latte. :-(

Well if you are "wise" and poor (like me), then what you do is look over your car, decide what needs doing, buy your own oil (of the correct spec), parts from various sources, for the best price, then find a local small garage that charges £30 per hour for labour, and say "Please would you do the following ..., with these parts in the box I am providing, and can you tell me the cost - yes that seems OK"

Whereas if you are rich, you take it to your large Skoda dealer, that charges £90 per hour for labour, and a fortune for parts, and you are charged a figure for time that is looked up in a book, rather than how long it actually takes. Still you get to wait in a nice lounge, with leather seats and a nice young lady brings you a caffe latte with biscuits.

And if you go to the right place they will source the parts at trade and not put any mark up on them, saves you between 10 and 25% on the parts as well :-)

Im all for using independent garages but I don't think stopping to the kind of back door bodge artist that charges £30 an hour could ever be called "wise"

Edited 23 August, 201213 yr by mr_awol

Well if you are "wise" and poor (like me), then what you do is look over your car, decide what needs doing, buy your own oil (of the correct spec), parts from various sources, for the best price, then find a local small garage that charges £30 per hour for labour, and say "Please would you do the following ..., with these parts in the box I am providing, and can you tell me the cost - yes that seems OK"

Whereas if you are rich, you take it to your large Skoda dealer, that charges £90 per hour for labour, and a fortune for parts, and you are charged a figure for time that is looked up in a book, rather than how long it actually takes. Still you get to wait in a nice lounge, with leather seats and a nice young lady brings you a caffe latte with biscuits.

For all you pay for servicing over 3 years i personally would not worry about saving a small amount by using an independant garage. A bigger reason for going to dealer is that when i traded my VW golf into a BMW dealer they told me unless it was full VW service history they would not take it. Luckily it was. How much was that worth?? Certainly more than i would of saved on the one variable service i had to pay for during the cars time with me.

Edited 24 August, 201213 yr by Jockdooshbag

That's all well and good if you plan to trade the car in at some point in the future.

I run my cars until they die so for the £500 I get it really doesn't matter whether its been serviced at all let alone who by.

I use main dealers for the first five years of its life as you are then eligable for gestures of goodwill outside of warranty. After that it's independant all the way and money in my pocket.

Let me tell you a story.

About 17 years ago I lived/worked in Edinburgh and had a girl friend (S), who was an intelligent woman, MA LLB, Lawyer, not short of money and who had a Red Golf, bought brand new from the VW main dealer in Edinburgh. When I first drove her car I was astounded at how poorley it performed. She was quite indignant "Its not a GTi, you". It would not go up the slightest incline without changing down, plus nothing seemed to work properly. It was only 18 months old. I opened the bonnet one day and was amazed at the sight that greeted me, a terrible state, things missing etc.

I told her the truth and she was upset, because she had it regularly serviced at supplying main dealer in Edinburgh. She showed me the service book, plus a sheaf of bills for work done. She was upset with me because I criticized her car, and told she had been ripped off. Later, in bringing this up with a friend of hers - her friend said "You should take it to Bill"

Bill turned out to be an amiable chap in his sixties, a retired motor mechanic, who had owned his own - what was the term, oh yes "back door bodge artist " garage and who at that time just did some work on Saturday mornings, just for fun. Well to cut a long story short, he sorted out her Golf, charged her 50 quid, and said "well it was in a bit of state, but its OK now" -- and so it was.

From that point on she took it to Bill, and wrote a terse letter to VW main dealer, apologised to me, for doubting my advise.

So much for main dealers with their huge bills. Long live "back door bodge artist"

vRS petrol

fixed servicing req 5w40 fully synth oil 502 or 505 grade

variable needs 5w30 fully synth oil 504 or 507 grade

Spark Plugs - Replace Every 6 Years or 60k

Pollen Filter - Replace Every 2 Years or 40k

Air Filter - Replace Every 6 Years or 60k

Timing Belt - Replace at 120k Miles or every 4 years

Brake Fluid - Replace Every 24 Months

fixed service 20k is 1.3hr - 40k 1.6hr - 60k 1.3hr

variable service first is 1.3hr, then 1.6hr, 1.3hr, 1.6hr and so on - variable serives range from 12k to 18k normally.

david

Edited 24 August, 201213 yr by davey boi

Im all for using independent garages but I don't think stopping to the kind of back door bodge artist that charges £30 an hour could ever be called "wise"

True - but there are plenty of time served mechanics who perform quality work that charge similar rates to that. When you are running a 5+ year old car taking it to a main dealer isn't 'wise' either - according to the safety report from Simpsons Colne I needed new suspension bushes and CV boots, at an astronomical cost. The same car passed the MoT without an advisory 2 weeks later. Who do I trust - the MoT tester, or the £100 an hour main dealer? Oh, and they couldn't perform an aircon service to save their lives either.

Make your own mind up. The car has since been on a Hunter rig for an alignment check, and they couldn't find any issues with bushes or CV boots either.......

For the second time today I apolgise to Tech1e et al for tarring all dealers with the same brush.

Let me tell you a story.

About 17 years ago I lived/worked in Edinburgh and had a girl friend (S), who was an intelligent woman, MA LLB, Lawyer, not short of money and who had a Red Golf, bought brand new from the VW main dealer in Edinburgh. When I first drove her car I was astounded at how poorley it performed. She was quite indignant "Its not a GTi, you". It would not go up the slightest incline without changing down, plus nothing seemed to work properly. It was only 18 months old. I opened the bonnet one day and was amazed at the sight that greeted me, a terrible state, things missing etc.

I told her the truth and she was upset, because she had it regularly serviced at supplying main dealer in Edinburgh. She showed me the service book, plus a sheaf of bills for work done. She was upset with me because I criticized her car, and told she had been ripped off. Later, in bringing this up with a friend of hers - her friend said "You should take it to Bill"

Bill turned out to be an amiable chap in his sixties, a retired motor mechanic, who had owned his own - what was the term, oh yes "back door bodge artist " garage and who at that time just did some work on Saturday mornings, just for fun. Well to cut a long story short, he sorted out her Golf, charged her 50 quid, and said "well it was in a bit of state, but its OK now" -- and so it was.

From that point on she took it to Bill, and wrote a terse letter to VW main dealer, apologised to me, for doubting my advise.

So much for main dealers with their huge bills. Long live "back door bodge artist"

Nice 'story' and I have little doubt that something vaguely like that could happen - just as it could happen the other way, such as my factual account of a colleague who bought a pug 206 for £3k of an independent dealer and later found it was previously written off, unsafe to drive, and returned £50 scrap value. Oh, and despite a successful court claim the guy never did pay up, never had that from a main dealer.....

Unfortunately however your scorn is misplaced - I don't have a problem with independent dealers as such, and use a trusted VAG specialist myself. My point was the labour rate - I've got/had enough clients in the motor trades, from small garages to main dealers, to know that you can't make money off that labour rate. Anyone charging so little is either not declaring income, hasn't got all the kit you'd expect a proper indy or main dealer to have, or only does the very basics. Quite frankly I'd almost go as far to say that a good mechanic operating on a self employed basis is worth £50 an hour all day long and they all know it, so anyone charging so much below the market rate is either on te scam somewhere, doesnt do enough to keep his 'eye' in or isn't up to task......

Edited 24 August, 201213 yr by mr_awol