I've NEVER know a franchised dealer do all the items correctly on a service schedule, something has always been missed or done wrongly - I decided a long time ago that my cars would only be serviced at a dealers while under warranty.
One of their current "favourites" is to miss changing the pollen filter, fitted to many cars - it's often difficult to get at so often they simply don't bother. This is of course fraud as they've included the labour and parts cost in their menu pricing amount.
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"You drove to the garage with low tyre pressures? Deliberately? Knowingly?"
Give me a break, no I flew the car in and dropped landed it !
I checked the pressures beforehand so I knew exactly what they were. A service is supposed to test and check tyre pressures.
Would I use this garage again, sure I would, they work with the customer not against them, and I work with the garage. They having a continuous improvement program and respond well to customer feedback whether positive or negative and I consider that to be a good professional approach for any business.
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A service is supposed to test and check tyre pressures.
Does it say this in the your service schedule book then? Fair enough if it does, but I've never seen it mentioned before.
Also, seeing as tyre pressures are *supposed* to be checked when they are cold, if the garage were to check and adjust the pressures where necessary, they would in fact be at the wrong pressures - unless the pressures were checked several hours later.
More than likely, the mechanic wandered around your car, gave the tyres a cursory glance; and providing they didn't look too flat or overinflated (radials at the correct pressures will alway bulge out a little where they contact the road) accepted that they were ok.
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Checking and adjusting tyre pressures has been a part of every service I've ever done.
There are a few things that can make for mis-understandings though.
1) Either the punter's or the mechanic's tyre pressure gauge read incorrectly (typically both!)
2) The mechanic is working to a different specified tyre pressure. Vauxhall, for example, used to issue a tyre pressure book every year - the pressures were sometimes a psi or two different from those in the manual. The mechanic may be looking in an Autodata book, or a book from a tyre manufacturer rather than the manufacturer's spec.
3) The mechanic "knows" better, and sets the pressures up differently.
Or, as sometimes happens, the mechanic simply doesn't bother. IMO this is so basic as to be unforgiveable. A garage implemeting a continuous improvement program is great, but if tyre pressures aren't being checked on services, this is a fundamental problem - not a dotting of an i, or a crossing of a t.
Number_Cruncher
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Normally a service would include a check of tyre pressures, tread depth (often noted on 'feedback sheet' given to cusotmer) and also a visual check for tyre damage.
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i think its unforgiveable if tyre pressures arent checked
why?
because nobody checks them anymore till they look sad
most cars i get are always low on air and i double check my guage if they all seem normal
looking at an invoice yesterday and seing a £2,73 charge for blowing up a 155/70 /13 with nitrogen takes the biscuit a bit though
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>looking at an invoice yesterday and seing a £2,73 charge for blowing up a 155/70 /13 with nitrogen takes the biscuit a bit though
Why? What is the cost of the N cylinder, the pump/gauge, the time, the rent on the premises, the guy's wage, the NI, the phone bill, the rates, the red tape etc.
Nothing is ever free, just charged for elsewhere on the bill.
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air from the compressor isnt charged on the invoice
air for the tyre fitters lungs isnt charged for (yet)
its a sales gimmick
nothuing more or less
its selling UP
do you want large fries with that?
have a nice day..........yawl
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DD, I'm surprised you've never noticed that Vauxhall include checking tyre pressures in all their service schedules.
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Surely the idea of a service is to replace items needed and check car against service check sheet because most drivers dont check basic items?
Checking tyre pressures should happen at every service! Bad marks to the garage that doesn't.
I would be wary of re using the garage purely because of this! But it doesnt mean anything else was missed1 But it might have been! Were the tyres checked for wear/bulges/splits too? Were the headlamps checked for aim etc etc? all relatively minor points but its what you are paying the money for?
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DD I'm surprised you've never noticed that Vauxhall include checking tyre pressures in all their service schedules.
RT, you're right - it is mentioned in my service booklet (pretty much word for word in your other post). However, as far as I am aware the garage I use don't check the pressures, and if they do there is no tell tale signs of them doing so (ie, grubby or even clean marks on the wheels where the vales are).
I take it for granted that they don't anyway. I don't expect them to check them either. AFAIC, checking tyre pressures should be down to the individual owner to do - lets face it, it's not rocket science and is classed as one of the basic fundemental chores of owning a car.
Why should I rely on the garage to check the pressures annually (or even every 24 months for some service intervals)? Yes, I expect them to check the tyres for nicks and cuts that aren't always obvious on the inside edge of the tyre for instance. I even expect them to give me a wear report - which they do. But to expect the garage to check the pressures when you should be doing so regularly yourself is asking a bit much, IMHO.
Besides that, why should I pay the garage an extra 5 minutes labour for something that I can do for nothing.
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I checked the pressures beforehand so I knew exactly what they were.
Sounds like you were deliberately looking to find fault. Since you are clearly capable of, and have the equipment for, checking tyre pressures yourself (and actually did so both before and after the service) why make such a fuss about whether the dealer did or did not check/adjust the pressures? And please don't tell me it was a point of principle!
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L\'escargot.
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surely it is a matter of principle?
What else have they missed if they missed this?
The original point I think?
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Vauxhall Service Booklet, model year 2000
Annually or every 10,000 miles whichever comes first - 23 - Wheel attachment - loosen and retighten; tyre condition, inflation pressure (incl. Spare wheel): check, correct
I don't imagine that Vauxhall are any better or any worse than any other manufacturer, it's the franchise dealers, for all manufacturers, that introduce the errors and omissions.
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It was the first time I had used this garage and I wanted to know how good they were, hence the reason I carried out the checks.
In addition having paid someone nearly £200 I expect them to do the job I pay them to do. Essentially I have put my life and the life of other road users in the hands of garage concerned to do a proper job, if they don't do that job properly then I want to know why they were negligent and hopefully save a repetition occurring to another customers car.
I know of far too many people who totally rely of their garage doing all their car maintenance work for them and they often come to me for a recommendation of which garage to use, usually in the light of having received poor garage service or repair work by a garage they choose at random. One such example that comes to mind was the time someone at work collected their car from a local Vauxhall dealer. Whilst driving down the dual-carriageway their car bonnet suddenly flew open, the mechanic had forgotten to lock down the bonnet. The driver was fortunate enough to live to tell the tale, the phone call that followed was none too pleasant to say the least and they never used that dealer again. Not long after that incident the dealership went out of business, word soon got around.
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