Clutch and dual mass flywheel replacement - Cost/Quotes

[AshVrs]

Just for future reference I have been enquiring about getting my dual mass flywheel and clutch replaced.

I have had three quotes which are as follows, all for the same LUK OEM replacement kit.

Awesome GTI - £895

My local independant - £700

Unit 18 - £595

As can be seen the price varies massively and I have opted for unit 18 purely based on the positive feedback they have on this forum and it is one of few examples where I don't think this is a case of "you get what you pay for!" Lol.

[mattbvRS]

On eBay the LUK clutch, dual mass flywheel and release bearing kit is around the £350 mark. The job takes 4-5 hours so add another £200-£250 for labour and sundries. 

 

So the quote from Unit 18 is a fair price but I'm not sure what the other two are charging extra for! They must charge a lot per hour for labour or just be trying their luck!

[AshVrs]

Yes your working out is similar to mine However it would appear Unit 18 have a good labour rate regardless. The price from awesome gti is a complete **** take to be honest. You could quite easily work it out as over £100 an hour for labour. That is more than a Lexus main dealer! Lol (Speaking from experience when I had my is220d)

[stevobeavo]

Unit 18 are amazing. Had a gearbox swap with new oil for just I've £100. Best there is IMO.

[hutchysrs50]

Awesome GTI will replace all the bolts that are needed and done everything oem, I can guarantee other places won't.

Just saying

[AshVrs]

Everything OEM? they quoted for the same LUK kit as the indy and unit 18. I'd expect gold plated replacement OEM bolts to justify an additional £300!

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[Jon_woo]

Hello matey

 

Glad you popped down to Unit18 they are a top bunch of lads and they ave recentley done my clutch and fly.

 

PM if you need a lift anywhere on the day you drop it off as im always in MK

 

They currently have my mrs fabia in bits so it might still be there lol

[hutchysrs50]

Maybe not, I've heard great things about unit 18 on here so it's where I'd go.

I used to work for an independent VAG specialist, where I was sub-contracted basically doing dealer work and warranty repaires all day.

Our prices were high, but the customer got the best, three different sprays and greases just for the door hinges on a services!

[AshVrs]

I fitting analogy I can think of here is have you seen those packs of 8 caramel wafer biscuits you can buy from Aldi for 86p (if I remember correctly), well they sell exactly the same things at sainsburys for about £1.80. Absolutely nothing wrong with the Aldi ones, just sainsburys are deluded and think their sainsburys brand justifies charging over twice the price. I've never been a sainsburys man myself! Lol

And thanks for the offer jon_woo!

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[mattbvRS]

Maybe not, I've heard great things about unit 18 on here so it's where I'd go.

I used to work for an independent VAG specialist, where I was sub-contracted basically doing dealer work and warranty repaires all day.

Our prices were high, but the customer got the best, three different sprays and greases just for the door hinges on a services!

 

Is using 3 types of grease/spray on the door hinges really of any noticeable benefit to the customer? I'd ague not unless they'd specifically mentioned an issue asked to have them looked at. To me that is a typical example of being charged for something that isn't really required!

 

Yes I'd want the job to be done properly no doubt about it and to an extent you do get what you pay for but I've no reason to believe Unit 18s service will be any better/worse than Awsome GTI's. There is certainly nothing on a clutch change job warrants an extra £300! It's must be the labour rates they charge. I can't see it being for sundries such as new bolts and that lol. 

[hutchysrs50]

You don't notice unless your battery goes flat, you put the key in the door and the locks jammed solid because it hasn't been used in 8 years and you can't get into the car.

Door hinges that go click click click when you open the door, different style to the Fabia, but roller type on the golfs and passats that wear and jam making the door stiff.

I got a *******ing once for not putting enough grease on the boot hinges, everything had to be done 100%. If you don't want it that's fine but we had a few celebrity clients and high end cars such as bentlys and Porsches where people wanted the best, an extra couple of quid didn't matter aslong as it was right.

[AshVrs]

Hutchy slightly off topic but I can remember seeing a high end car valet company in London than used a UV light to look for bird **** stains in paintwork that you couldn't even see! Lol was about £1k for an entry level valet or something ridiculous and there was blokes taking there car there every week lol.

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[hutchysrs50]

Yep, if you can afford it and love your car, why not!

I personally could t afford it so clean my own car, and as said, is take mine to unit 18 also

[DarksideDevelopments]

From experience I would recommend a Sachs Kit over the Luk.

OEM on the PD130, PD150 and PD160 is Sachs. LuK was fitted to the PD115.

It's insane the prices some companies charge for a pretty straightforward job.

Thanks

[AshVrs]

Thanks Mr Darkside, experience is always welcome.

I know it's always easy from a customer point of view to complain about price but I do think this particular case is on the verge of ridiculous.

Just out of interest, the independent garage did say they could fit an OEM clutch for £1100, I haven't a clue what this would have been. Would your betting be sachs? Or if you went to trade parts specialist would they have something different as an OEM part?

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[AshVrs]

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[Guest BigJase88]

Those prices are quite good

I got a quote for my BMW 320d from BMW for a laugh

Standard clutch and dmf can be had for £350

BMW's quote ..... £1700

[theezenutz]

Sod that the clutch went on the Pulsar and I was told all kind of nightmare stories people s******ing ect.

 

Well not to sound smug or anything but I paid £250 for a uprated Exedy sports clutch and fitted the thing myself on my drive way for nothing all I had was a pair of axle stands, a jack and the help from a friend to get the gearbox back on. Probably cost around £300 by the time I brought gearbox and transfer box ect.

 

How hard can it be to remove a Fabia Gearbox to fit a new clutch? Can't be harder than a Pulsar with 4wd surely.

 

Edit not sure why the swear filter intervened I only used another word for laughing.

[AshVrs]

Probably not but I've never done it before and this is my daily driver. I need the car for work everyday so I couldn't risk me bodging something whilst I was doing it.

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[theezenutz]

Probably not but I've never done it before and this is my daily driver. I need the car for work everyday so I couldn't risk me bodging something whilst I was doing it.

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No that's fair enough I'm not trying to play the big I am I'm not I'm just a tight git when it comes to that sort of thing , especially when hearing people quote nearly a £1000 I thought how hard can It be so I found a guide and asked plenty of questions. It's seems a little crazy to be paying those prices.

 

Have you looked at any small reputable independents? But if anything the price from Unit 18 isn't bad and from what everyone is saying their work is very good too.

[AshVrs]

I'd have thought at best I'd only be able to perhaps shave another £100 off that price just because it isn't a 5 minute job and clutch and flywheels aren't renound for being cheap parts. One day I'll have a go at doing this myself, when I have a second car lol.

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[DarksideDevelopments]

Thanks Mr Darkside, experience is always welcome.

I know it's always easy from a customer point of view to complain about price but I do think this particular case is on the verge of ridiculous.

Just out of interest, the independent garage did say they could fit an OEM clutch for £1100, I haven't a clue what this would have been. Would your betting be sachs? Or if you went to trade parts specialist would they have something different as an OEM part?

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OEM could be Sachs or LuK, depends which part numbers they use to order. Strictly speaking it should come back as Sachs, but I can't say for sure.

 

The issue with pricing at any dealer is 2 fold. Firstly they have to stick to the retail prices given by the manufacturer (VW, Skoda, BMW etc) which can be more than double the aftermarket price.

Secondly they have to charge their standard labour rate (anything from £70 - £100 + VAT per hour) for the number of hours their system tells them (could be anything from 4 - 7 hours). We book them for 5 hours but if everything goes smoothly, it does not take quite as long.

 

With us it works out at £618 for a Sachs Kit, fitted with a new CSC (make sure this is replaced).

 

Someone mentioned about the main dealers changing all the bolts. It works out about £20 or so extra to do this, but is not necessary unless a bolt is damaged.

 

The 02M Gearbox on a 1.9 TDI weighs around 70Kg and is very tight. Get it wrong and you can bust the radiator pretty easily. I would not like to do one without a proper ramp and someone to help lift the box out and refit.

[sepulchrave]

Awesome don't want to do the job for less because they've got plenty of other work would be my guess. The price from Unit 18 is fantastic probably because they've done so many now that they can do them really fast and they likely buy the clutch kits in bulk at really good prices rather than ordering specifically for the job like most garages would. The independent is in the middle because the job will take him a bit longer and the parts will cost him more.

 

It all comes down to profit and demand, Unit 18 and the independent will probably both make the same profit from the job, Awesome operates on a higher margin because they're so busy.

[AshVrs]

That may well be the case but in my opinion from a commercial point of view, they are doing themselves no favours issuing highly inflated prices. Don't get me wrong I don't disagree with anything you have said, I just think from experience (ok, not in the car industry) this eventually comes back and bites people on the bum! Lol

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[AshVrs]

OEM could be Sachs or LuK, depends which part numbers they use to order. Strictly speaking it should come back as Sachs, but I can't say for sure.

The issue with pricing at any dealer is 2 fold. Firstly they have to stick to the retail prices given by the manufacturer (VW, Skoda, BMW etc) which can be more than double the aftermarket price.

Secondly they have to charge their standard labour rate (anything from £70 - £100 + VAT per hour) for the number of hours their system tells them (could be anything from 4 - 7 hours). We book them for 5 hours but if everything goes smoothly, it does not take quite as long.

With us it works out at £618 for a Sachs Kit, fitted with a new CSC (make sure this is replaced).

Someone mentioned about the main dealers changing all the bolts. It works out about £20 or so extra to do this, but is not necessary unless a bolt is damaged.

The 02M Gearbox on a 1.9 TDI weighs around 70Kg and is very tight. Get it wrong and you can bust the radiator pretty easily. I would not like to do one without a proper ramp and someone to help lift the box out and refit.

Thanks again for the input from a supplier point of view.

Do you happen to know if the LUK and Sachs parts are rated the same?

I must also apologise for not considering you to do this as you are closer to me than unit 18. My Mrs lives in Sheffield so the only downside to you doing the job would have been having to see the mother on law... lol

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