Good car, bad car?

Honest John Back Room » Motoring discussion
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Tue 3 Aug 2004 20:14
Good car, bad car? - Le Chidge
We all have ideas about what is a good car and what a bad car but is it purely the car we should consider or should it be that we look harder at the manufacturer and dealer network. I have heard horror stories about BMW, Ford and Volkswagon dealers but that doesn't mean the cars are that bad. Likewise the 'customer support' from manufacturers, is it all good? I personally have had an argument with Ford for nearly five months over a broken fuel pipe on my Fiesta 1.4TDCI which took them ten weeks to repair. I don't blame the car, things do go wrong, it's the dealers and the manufacturer that are crap. Has anybody else had a long term problem with repairs? Should we have a table of 'bad' dealers/manufacturers?
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Tue 3 Aug 2004 22:20
Good car, bad car? - Sofa Spud
There used to be one of these urban myths about a Rolls-Royce on which the substantial chassis became cracked. The owner contacted Rolls-Royce to complain about his faulty car and was met with the reply: "Rolls-Royce chassis do not crack."

Cheers, SS
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Tue 3 Aug 2004 22:57
Good car, bad car? - barney100
I heard the tale was that some guy had his Rolls Royce back axle snap on a mountain road somewhere in Switzerland. RR supposedly flew out a new axle one and a couple of mechanics by helicopter and fixed it. Impressed the guy on return to the UK rang RR and asked for the the bill. The reply was ''there is no bill sir, RR axles do not break''( pinch of salt may be required )
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Tue 3 Aug 2004 23:44
Good car, bad car? - Ivor E Tower
IIRC there was a book published some years ago with the best RR breakdown stories and myths.
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Wed 4 Aug 2004 00:43
Good car, bad car? - daveyK_UK
ford galaxy 51 tdi - engie mounts. off the road for 4 weeks.
fiat punto 03 mk II windscreen wiper motor - of the road for 5 weeks.
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Wed 4 Aug 2004 00:47
Good car, bad car? - Robin Reliant
I would always choose the dealer first and the make of car second. Cars are pretty much of a muchness now, with few real dodgy models about.

But having enjoyed the services of a really excellent Peugeot dealership for six years, who gave me priority as a business user and diagnosed faults correctly and repaired them properly at the first attempt they were worth their weight in gold.

Unfortunately, I did not really appreciate them and when offered a slightly better cost-to-change at a trade in I foolishly transferred my custom to a nearby Citroen agent who was the exact opposite. Mis-diagnosed faults that kept me off the road for days on end, inability to repair anything without a second visit and wasted trips to pick up a car which had not been finished on time cost me a fortune

I still have the ring spanner one of their "Mechanics" left under the bonnet after a service. Didn't get round to returning it as they have gone out of business now.
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