Lots of businesses decline lots of work, most businesses aren't about doing as much work as possible but about making as much profit as possible. Many, many businesses make more profit by doing less work and the English motor trade generally is for their benefit with only lip-service to customers' benefit. Unfortunately I can, again, assure you from personal experience even smaller privately owned garage(s) regard customers as something unpleasant they trod in on soles of their fashion shoes or safety boots.

The bigger garages and business have ignored training and staff retention for years/decades, eventually the pot runs dry given natural wastage (like old blokes and not so old blokes leaving the trade to retire or deliver groceries or perhaps set up their own businesses.

When you own a large number of, different named, business you don't worry too much if a number of them fall by the wayside as you own a number of "the competitors" anyway and shift to larger quicker profits, you only need worry about short and medium term, some would say that is good business sense, I'm alright Jack look at the sizes of my houses, boats (racetrack). It's all a supply and demand situation

Driving tests are taking longer because of lack of personnel and modern methods of fiddling things, same idea as bulk-buying, sucking up, as many tickets for entertainment events to sell them at profit back to those you deprived them of, same sort of thing, and other stuff, happens with driving test dates. The internet has opened up so many more opportunities for dishonest (and outright criminality)

Consider yourself lucky you've led such a shuttled life and can keep so relaxed, and retain your baby-faced innocence. 😁

All the best to you with your new purchase (only seems two minutes since your last, I must be getting old).

2 hours ago, nta16 said:

Lots of businesses decline lots of work, most businesses aren't about doing as much work as possible but about making as much profit as possible. Many, many businesses make more profit by doing less work and the English motor trade generally is for their benefit with only lip-service to customers' benefit. Unfortunately I can, again, assure you from personal experience even smaller privately owned garage(s) regard customers as something unpleasant they trod in on soles of their fashion shoes or safety boots.

The bigger garages and business have ignored training and staff retention for years/decades, eventually the pot runs dry given natural wastage (like old blokes and not so old blokes leaving the trade to retire or deliver groceries or perhaps set up their own businesses.

When you own a large number of, different named, business you don't worry too much if a number of them fall by the wayside as you own a number of "the competitors" anyway and shift to larger quicker profits, you only need worry about short and medium term, some would say that is good business sense, I'm alright Jack look at the sizes of my houses, boats (racetrack). It's all a supply and demand situation

Driving tests are taking longer because of lack of personnel and modern methods of fiddling things, same idea as bulk-buying, sucking up, as many tickets for entertainment events to sell them at profit back to those you deprived them of, same sort of thing, and other stuff, happens with driving test dates. The internet has opened up so many more opportunities for dishonest (and outright criminality)

Consider yourself lucky you've led such a shuttled life and can keep so relaxed, and retain your baby-faced innocence. 😁

All the best to you with your new purchase (only seems two minutes since your last, I must be getting old).

If you are talking about large national chains etc then you may have a point but when I'm talking about local businesses which are family owned and run with the family actually working everyday in the business then I'm afraid you talking nonsense, I know many of them well, having been their customers for well over 20 years.

The main garage I have used for years has been in the same family since 1919 and there is absolutely no way on earth that they would have survived and still be a proud independent business or even still in business today, if they were to treat their customers in the fashion that you seem to think small garages do.

We have plenty of such garages around here and many of my extended family have sworn by them for decades and these garages will if they can humanly squeeze us in when things go south, then they will do so. On one occasion recently I had a front spring break on me and they told me that if I can get my car to them, and leave it with them they try and squeeze it in when other customers were arriving late or maybe cancelling for unforeseen circumstances, and they did it for me in a couple days, when at the time they were fully booked up for 4 weeks. Believe me, these are not the same sort of garages/dealers that you seem to be having experiences of.

Good. I didn't say it was all garages. Very big, big, medium or small there's good bad and a lot in between. Being local family owned and run with the family working there everyday doesn't necessarily mean they hold their customers in very high regard or very low regard I wasn't referring to any place that you know as I've no idea of what and who you know and don't know as I put I'm going on my personal experience of dealing with business in the motor trade and yes I do know people that were in the motor trade at various levels and even those that were generally decent people would pull tricks on their customers or for their customer that were dishonest at best.

What makes no sense to you and your experience will make sense to others. It's good that you have people at garages you want to defend., long may it continue. Stop with the nonsense you don't know all business well, or even perhaps how business and businesses operate, bless your cotton socks.

2 hours ago, nta16 said:

Good. I didn't say it was all garages. Very big, big, medium or small there's good bad and a lot in between. Being local family owned and run with the family working there everyday doesn't necessarily mean they hold their customers in very high regard or very low regard I wasn't referring to any place that you know as I've no idea of what and who you know and don't know as I put I'm going on my personal experience of dealing with business in the motor trade and yes I do know people that were in the motor trade at various levels and even those that were generally decent people would pull tricks on their customers or for their customer that were dishonest at best.

What makes no sense to you and your experience will make sense to others. It's good that you have people at garages you want to defend., long may it continue. Stop with the nonsense you don't know all business well, or even perhaps how business and businesses operate, bless your cotton socks.

Well that is just where you are wrong, firstly you were trying to tell me that the back log of MOT tests, repairs and servicing etc had nothing to with Covid, when it has everything to do with it, nobody was able to do anything during the many lockdowns. Then you tell me I don't know business and how it works, yet more BS. I have been involved with many businesses of all sizes and the one constant message coming down the line to those at the coal face, getting orders or getting orders made and shipped out is the constant need for leaving no stone unturned in getting orders and moving mountains to get orders out and invoiced because of the need to constantly grow.

Graham reread what I put about the Covid bit and what I put about your business knowledge, you're getting yourself upset about nothing and putting spittle in my direction when you shouldn't.

I thought I must have mistyped something (again) but it's your misreading and misunderstanding this time, we all do it sometimes, I do it often, so it's no biggy, your energy could charge a battery. 😄

Edited 15 July, 202515 Jul by nta16
ETA: again

In my opinion anyone still using the Covid excuse nearly 5.5 years is not being truthful.

What they really mean is their planning, staff training, succession planning and HR is useless. If you wonder why I include HR (Human Resources) it's because there primary function is to provide sufficient trained staff, and if they haven't got enough to keep up with demand long term then clearly failing to do their basic task.

Nowadays if a company says we're have a big backlog, I sometimes ask how many staff they have in training to clear it. The most common answer (if they answer) is don't think there are any. Zero succession planning so will eventually fade.

Recently a friend had problem and their local main dealer (not Škoda) said couldn't handle it because no high voltage trained staff. Why when 44% of car sales are now BEV, PEV or HEV do they ignore. Same don't care attitude, no training (and as people retire or leave, no skill either).

.

Edited 15 July, 202515 Jul by SurreyJohn

28 minutes ago, SurreyJohn said:

In my opinion anyone still using the Covid excuse nearly 5.5 years is not being truthful.

What they really mean is their planning, staff training, succession planning and HR is useless. If you wonder why I include HR (Human Resources) it's because there primary function is to provide sufficient trained staff, and if they haven't got enough to keep up with demand long term then clearly failing to do their basic task.

Nowadays if a company says we're have a big backlog, I sometimes ask how many staff they have in training to clear it. The most common answer (if they answer) is don't think there are any. Zero succession planning so will eventually fade.

Recently a friend had problem and their local main dealer (not Škoda) said couldn't handle it because no high voltage trained staff. Why when 44% of car sales are now BEV, PEV or HEV do they ignore. Same don't care attitude, no training (and as people retire or leave, no skill either).

.

Yes, but that does not strictly correlate back to garages carrying out routine services, repairs etc, all of which require not only increased trained staff but also an increase in the space to build new inspection pits or to build new ramps, when there were already at full capacity prior to the lockdowns. Then also add in the fact that for many it would mean having to relocate to other premises and then get planning permission etc etc.

Do places still have Inspection Pits built for working on passenger cars?

1 hour ago, nta16 said:

Graham reread what I put about the Covid bit and what I put about your business knowledge, you're getting yourself upset about nothing and putting spittle in my direction when you shouldn't.

I thought I must have mistyped something but it's your misreading and misunderstanding this time, we all do it sometimes, I do it often, so it's no biggy, your energy could charge a battery. 😄

Sorry but you are distorting the position I was referring to into a completely different scenario.

I know that pre covid I could get a MOT done within a very short time period, now that is no longer the case. It might be totally different in your neck of the woods, all that I can speak about with any authority is my own personal experience in my locality.

Recently I had a front spring break and that was causing the car to emit horrible vibrations and disturbing noises every time brakes were applied or the steering wheel was moved causing me to get a recovery truck out to take my car to the only garage that could actually offer any glimmer that they might be able to assist by snatching a few minutes here and there working on the car whenever they could.

Another time recently, my alternator packed up and needed to be replaced, the alternator was freely available from many motor factors in the local area but all garages were fully booked and the first slot that they could offer me was the best part of 4 weeks away. I had to resort to the services of Book Car Repairs by Mobile Mechanics & Garages | ClickMechanic

That still took a further 5 days before somebody could attend to fix the issue and they have loads of independent mobile mechanics on their books nationwide, such is the demand for the services of mechanics in the area.

I will say one thing though and is that it is refreshing to see that you admit to being human and making the mistake of misreading/misunderstanding things at times, and I also admit that I too do the same thing, but others never do that do they.

1 hour ago, Ootohere said:

Do places still have Inspection Pits built for working on passenger cars?

Maybe or maybe not, I was just using that as an illustration of the requirements needed to increase the throughput of work. When the existing facilities are already at full stretch, then new ones need to be provided to cope with the demand, something that is far easier said then done. 😁

I do know for instance that some places are trying to speed up the process of doing MOT tests by installing computerised testing stations.

Edited 15 July, 202515 Jul by Graham Butcher

You've seen my posts, I make many mistakes, I used to worry as bit about it and because of my stalking troll putting my posts were too authoritative I used to put what's in my signature "Please note - I am not a mechanic or expert in anything." at the start of every post (when I remembered) and other members asked me not to as it's not necessary as posters aren't expected to be experts (unless they claim to be or others say they are, correctly or not). I try to show editing of my posts if relevant and leave up my errors, if relevant you don't want to know about all my typos, missspellings (yes, that was on purpose) but to show I was wrong and have corrected the mistake on that occasion.

But, but, Graham you're humouring and spoiling me with the alternator packing up ! 😆 Of course this can happen when it's been overworked because the 12v battery has ben overworked and/or allowed to get to lower state of charge too much and/or too often, lack of charging, or recharging with a battery charger and occasional battery charging. 😆 😆 😆

There full c i r c l e - let's leave it there, well for today anyway, tomorrow's another day another opportunity, for something, who knows what til we get there and if we don't it won't really matter. 🙃

MOT Testing stations that have ramps or not enough ramps could work longer hours.

But if Examiners are not available that is an issue.

As it is the UK,s MOT is damn cheap for an hours labour of a qualified professional (1 1/2 people) and equipment / facilities. (Not 45 minutes, start to finish.)

If that Technician / Mechanic was doing Garage Work the hourly rate might be £100 plus VAT.

As it is even On the Side & no VAT< nod and a wink might be £50 an hour.

22 minutes ago, nta16 said:

But, but, Graham you're humouring and spoiling me with the alternator packing up ! 😆 Of course this can happen when it's been overworked because the 12v battery has ben overworked and/or allowed to get to lower state of charge too much and/or too often, lack of charging, or recharging with a battery charger and occasional battery charging. 😆 😆 😆

Let me just say this, no way on earth was I ever humouring you, as always what I say is factual, the alternator did indeed fail on me and as you will see from the receipt below, I did use ClickMechanic and this was on the 23rd of last month. 😁😁. I thank you for providing me with a big laugh.

booking-receipt-15955496.pdf

I can't download pdfs off posts some unknown reason at the moment and I know I'm not alone but it's not the Briskoda site at fault as others can download them.

I totally believe you could have an alternator fail on you, it's the irony of it with your previous work and dismissal of some of my advice to others about battery and potential effects on its partner the alternator. If you have a video of the alternator failing I'd be please to witness that, it would humour me greatly. 😁

I can't download pdfs off posts some unknown reason at the moment and I know I'm not alone but it's not the Briskoda site at fault as others can download them.

31 minutes ago, nta16 said:

I totally believe you could have an alternator fail on you, it's the irony of it with your previous work and dismissal of some of my advice to others about battery and potential effects on its partner the alternator. If you have a video of the alternator failing I'd be please to witness that, it would humour me greatly. 😁

I think the failure to download PDF files is something to do with your computer settings, you need to delve into the settings and tweak them a bit think 😉.

No sorry I don't have a video of it failing, sorry. I just got message on the infotainment screen telling me that it was not charging and to stop the car, which I didn't because I knew I had a full charge in the battery and I was only a few miles from home.

As I used to refurbish alternators in a previous role as an auto electrical engineer, I knew that the alternator would have either brush problems on the slip ring, or the sliprings where worn out and would require a lathe to fix which I didn't have, or a have at least 1 failed diode, none of which I had. I also could not have physically removed the old alternator myself, being unable to do many of the things I used to do so I knew what the cure was, get someone to replace it for me.

From that previous role I also knew that some of the information that you advising others to do was technically incorrect and did not need doing or could have caused expensive problems with the modern electronics. Before with the earlier cars then your advice would not have been an issue but since everything today relies on communications between various units , then it is extremely easy to upset those communications and make problems a lot worse.

As it was, in the process of doing the alternator, they managed to lose the comms to the A/C so it was nothing less than a heater and they had to come out again and make that good.

Edited 15 July, 202515 Jul by Graham Butcher

The Adobe program was already updated today so it's possibly that but just for the sheer 'fun' of it I 'modified' it and then a 'repair' but no joy. Chrome is up to date. I expect the problem might have started with an update of Adobe or Chrome and will probably sort itself at the next update of one or both of them. Thank gawd we don't have these things on cars. 😄

I can download oxop(?) file from a post here.

I don't understand why you put the bill up, I was joking of course I can believe you had an alternator failure, and enjoy the irony of that, but I see so far it's been downloaded 8 times (unless you done 8 test download, covering possibilities).

Yes I remember your previous job well, hence the remarks before, and you echoing the troll and breezy sniper but you always seemed better than that to me, and possibly an 'amesome fella for your ancient years, sorry how the years and perhaps other stuff have affected your body, I know exactly how that is. If I put something wrong you'd be right to correct me and/or give your different opinion or belief. I can't think I deliberately said anything technically incorrect or caused expensive problems unless someone done the things wrong, and things that might not need doing can still be done and give overall improvement on a wider band of vision rather than narrow one-off direct issue, I'd have thought you might have trained people in your past and understand this.

As you didn't have this Superb from new you can get out of the alternator killing, tho' perhaps not giving it an easier life.

I doubt they lost the comms more likely their scanner program and/or VW's programs on your car, you put far too much faith and worry about these car communication and other computer systems, don't let your marque brand loyalty blind you too much to all their flaws.

70 odd quid sounds very reasonable.

I should have a few wisecracks in mind for Ghost Auto coming out and doing the work, but nothing, been far too hot for far too long (self-discharging) bound to be some puns at least, perhaps others will give them.

Sweet dreams.