I'm sure this has come up before, but how do I know that the dealer does everything they should on the service? Am I being silly here or is it, as I suspect, a quick oil change, wipe of the oil filter, quick spray around with the WD40 and a drive around the block to see if there's anything obviously wrong?

I just have this feeling that human nature and commercial pressures trump professional pride every time and a mechanic who spends too much time and materials doing a good job isn't going to keep his/her job for very long.

Or should I just not care as long as I have the stamp in the book?

I'm sure this has come up before, but how do I know that the dealer does everything they should on the service? Am I being silly here or is it, as I suspect, a quick oil change, wipe of the oil filter, quick spray around with the WD40 and a drive around the block to see if there's anything obviously wrong?

I just have this feeling that human nature and commercial pressures trump professional pride every time and a mechanic who spends too much time and materials doing a good job isn't going to keep his/her job for very long.

Or should I just not care as long as I have the stamp in the book?

Silk,

I would totally agree with you, commercial pressures certainly do inflict it's own pressure on mechanics to meet demands i.e more motors booked in more money injected into company through Service dept's etc..

I know a VW mechanic who has been in the business for many years & is very much 'old school' but where as he used to take pride in his job & get satisfaction in finding the problem & fixing it, this simply doesn't happen anymore as he is given more & more deadlines to get the problem fixed before sending in the next motor. Some even get drafted into the office & get grilled if they spend too much time on a problem. Ok, modern engines have changed dramatically since 15+ years ago & it is really more of a replacement unit for this or that than getting dirty just to replace a washer. I think eventually the new breed of mechanics will only be trained how to replace engine modules in as quick time as possible to be remain competitive.

I, just like a few others here, often carry out my own oil change in between service periods simply because I think this is the best thing you can do to keep the engine in tip-top condition, other than that I feel that it's in the lap-of-the-gods whether you get a good proper service or not these days.

For those mechanics reading this who do take pride in their work & who do do a decent honest job......apologies, I am not blaming Mechanics at all but simply the management for 'micro managing' skilled people who probably need a little more time to do the job properly. I've always said it & I'll say it again "If you provide good service & satisfied customers, the sales will come!" (I should use that as my signature!).

W.

I appreciate your concerns, and with anything like this there are always going to be good and bad dealers / mechanics out there.

One thing you can do is read the reviews section on here, and try to find a dealer in your area that has a good reputation. Using the closest just for convenience is not always the best policy.

if your in doubt about any work thats done to your car you can always request to have back , or at least the old bits. i ALWAYS do this when letting any garage do something i cant do myself. I also quiet often get the parts beforehand so i know they are using the proper bits.

luckily enough ive got a great guy who does my bits for me, so i dont have to worry. but we still have a arrangement to hand back the old parts. If and when i have to use a bigger garage i get them to show me the work on the ramp. you dont have to be a mechanic to spot brand new parts or oil.

i know our service bay here can have their moments, but in the whole the mechs working here are pretty much bang on chaps who will fight the bosses to spend as long as needed on a car.

sadly its management who dont seem to understand this:

"If you provide good service & satisfied customers, the sales will come!"

I'm sure this has come up before, but how do I know that the dealer does everything they should on the service? Am I being silly here or is it, as I suspect, a quick oil change, wipe of the oil filter, quick spray around with the WD40 and a drive around the block to see if there's anything obviously wrong?

I just have this feeling that human nature and commercial pressures trump professional pride every time and a mechanic who spends too much time and materials doing a good job isn't going to keep his/her job for very long.

Or should I just not care as long as I have the stamp in the book?

In my experience as both employee and customer of dealers carrying out services, I would be very surprised if they actually took the time to drive around the block to see if there's anything wrong. And make sure they have stamped the book correctly - they usually forget or stamp the wrong page.:thumbdwn:

Having said that - I have yet to experience a Skoda service, so maybe they are not as bad as every Ford, Fiat, Vauxhall and Peugeot dealer and specialist that I have ever dealt with.

Maybe I am asking too much, expecting the dealers to actually do the job that they are overcharging me for...

I always check he basics have been done (oil, filters etc) after being properly ripped off once on a service at Ford. I got 3 miles down the road noticed that steam was poring from the engine bay, they had left the cap off the expansion tank and the entire cooing system emptied itself over the engine bay. Then to add insult to injury i checked the oil the next day and it was dirty, obviously having never been changed. When I called to complain I was met with an appalling amount hostility and apathy.

The dealership was bulldozed a few years ago and is now a housing estate so I guess they got their just deserts in the end..