October 2002
What is the best course of escalation for over priced servicing. A colleague has recently had a Vauxhall Dealer service on a s-reg astra, and was quoted £2700 for a basic servive, MOT, plus extras such as clutch-adjust, replace headlamp etc.
Once the big extras were removed from the scope of the work(clutch, headlamp) the bill was still £900 (400parts/500 labour) including such things as £35 for 'investigating' a poor quality radio (conclusion - upgrade it!) and £30 for changing the wipers (labour only).
The dealier isn't interested. Vauxhall say thay only regulate part-prices....Dealer says labour rate is 64.50 plus vat.
What are the other courses ? Credit Card (bill payed by Visa), Trading standards ????
Advice please....
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Dear All,
I have recently suffered a car fire in my Renault Megane which has a direct injection engine. Has anyone else had the misfortune to have such an experience in this make of car? and if so was the source identified? or was i simply unlucky,
John Read more
Dear All,
I have recently suffered a car fire in my Renault Megane Coupe, which is fitted with a direct injection gasoline engine. Has anyone else had the misfortune to have such an experience with this make of car? and if so was the source identified?
John
SWMBOs car is shortly to be replaced (M Reg 1.1 Fiesta). She has the following main criteria:
Up to £4000 (but if cheaper comes along then not a problem. similarly a little more available for the "right" car)
Small and manouverable
Power steering
5 door hatch/4 doors
Reasonable to insure & run
Reliable
Low mileage (I know the potential pitfalls of this)
and, seriously, Green
She has no desire for any great performance, and her home - office journey is about to change from 2 mins back roads to 45 minutes mainly motorway.
I am likely to buy at auction (Blackbushe, although I have also bought in Nottingham and Preston in the past)
Having been through the car-by-car breakdown I had decided on a Punto (new shape) but they look "too mean" for her liking. Neither does she like the Yaris. She would really like another Fiesta (in green of course). I personally have some regard for Fords as they seem reasonably reliable and there are a million and one places and people who can service/maintain them, usually at reasonable rates.
So this post is specifically to ask which model Fiesta I should look for, and what sort of age/mileage she should get for her money.
And also, if I engaged buyer at auction, what would that cost?
PS she is deadly serious about Green & Fiesta, so I am not really looking for backroomers advice on alternative colours or makes!! Thanks in advance for any help. Read more
The three year warranty was only standard on cars from late September 2000 (I think) on and offered free to people who bought after 1 September that year. There's no guarantee that they'd have taken it up though, afaik.
In other words, the 3 year warranty is only going to be on X plate cars and newer. For £4k, if it can be done at all, you'd most likely be looking at a leggy (50,000+) one in solid white. Prove me wrong if you can.
I'd recommend going for one of the slightly newer style front, with the Focus-style lights, as these look less dated than the earlier cars. This should still be possible on budget.
I am thinking of taking out the AA mechanical failure insurance which is £48 a year for £500 cover. Is it worth it? any experience? Read more
I've used Motor Warranty Direct several times. They cover components the others don't and have always paid up at claim time. Your car needs to be serviced at factory intervals and they ask to see the MoT certificate if you claim. If repairs are done at one of their listed garages, they pay the bill direct.
They also have a discounted service scheme at these listed garages.
Anybody know the repair operation time for replacing a heater matrix in a 1993 Discovery?
thanks in advance,
CMark Read more
CM,
6.5 hours.....but you'd need to be good/lucky to make that time. So many things to misplace or break both removing and refitting the thing.
Good luck.
MM
My dads Golf GT TDI 115 (RHD import from Holland , new in May 2001) has been in for its 30,000 service and the (main) dealer is reporting that there are problems with both the ABS & the traction control (ESR - presume it is something different over here?). He will find out exactly what the problems are today, but does anyone know of any specific faults with this car and the ABS/ESR? HJ mentions a recall of Golf/Bora due to faulty ABS ECU - but doesn't say when these cars were made.
Anyone? Read more
The warranty was only one year - It would have cost a few hundred quid to extend it and generally they aren't worth it (except in this case!)
But the car was registered with VW when it was imported.
If the car is run with this problem, does it just mean that ABS/ESR won't function, or will it cause some other problems with the braking system?
My wifes 1993 K reg BMW 316i has, for sometime now, had the ABS warning light illuminated on the annunciator panel. After taking it to the local 'BMW specialist' they explained that it is probably one of the wheel sensor, which they went on to say showed no obvious signs of damage. If I wanted to find out what the actual problem was I would have to take it to a BMW dealer and have it put on there computer (at the current cost of a BMW technicians time). I found some info on a website saying that BMW ABS problems are usually to do with a sticky ABS pump motor relay, wheel sensor or the ABS ECU (expensive). I have checked the relays and they seem to be fine. Does anyone have any knowledge on this matter, I would be grateful if anyone has
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Cheers for that Nick. I'll give it a go, it may save me some money!
Having run a Leon for 12 months and seen many a positive comment about them on this website, why is it any Leon apart from the Cupra is virtually invisible in most car mag comparisons and tests? In lease car terms, the Leon ends up way ahead of the Golf and A3 and yet trying to find a review of models other than Cupra and Cupra R is left to trawling through the darkest reaches of the web. Read more
They are pretty rare, and still don't sell many. I don't know why though, maybe the public has trouble with the image.
Looks like a fine buy - let us know how its gets on HJ. Nice colour too.
I can barely believe how cheap that Vectra was. My Uncle just bought a 1 year old one (poverty spec 1.8) this summer and he thought he was getting a good deal at £10k. Unbelievable. Read more
Neil,
Thanks for the reply - I think you might be right, it does feel like engine vibration. It's done 81k.
Regards
Rob G
Hi
I have recently bought some alloy wheels to put on my VW Corrado (1990), however the wheels do not fit on the drivers side rear wheel but fit on all other three wheels.
The problem is that the tyres are catching on the bottom of spring cup whereas they are not on the other three sides. There is about an inch difference to the opposite rear wheel and I have had the car in the garage and they say it is just from wear of having someone in the drivers side all the time. One garage has said to me that the shock absorber fitted is not the correct one, is this true? Low profile tyres are an option but expensive and the tyres I have at the moment are 205/50 and the lowest profile possible are 205/45 and they still might not fit.
Any thoughts or solutions?
Thanks Ross Read more
Yes Billings third law! my laptop is s***e and was taking forever and do relise the excesive number of posts. Im sure it will not hurt anyone.
Browse
Fortunately I've started driving when buying a Ford ensures cheap servicing and repairs and good quality that has progressed in leaps and bounds lately. :)
I just couldn't bring myself to buy a Vauxhall, they all seem deadly dull to me. Compare a Focus and an Astra and tell me which one looks like the driver has a pipe and slippers! :)