Garages Over-Charging

babygirlz

I sent my car in for a service and I was told my break pads and my timing belt needed changing.
I was quoted €599 for timing belt and €200 for pads and discs.:eek:
I got a few quotes for the timing belt and the highest was €450 with the main dealer.

So guys, it pays to shop around.

MyKeyG

babygirlz wrote: »

I sent my car in for a service and I was told my break pads and my timing belt needed changing.
I was quoted €599 for timing belt and €200 for pads and discs.:eek:
I got a few quotes for the timing belt and the highest was €450 with the main dealer.

So guys, it pays to shop around.

Yep we got a quote for crash damage that was done to our car. It was coming off the other persons insurance but we thought we'd play it fair and get a few quotes. The first place we tried was €1200 and the second we got a quote for €800. We couldn't believe it.

babygirlz

MyKeyG wrote: »

Yep we got a quote for crash damage that was done to our car. It was coming off the other persons insurance but we thought we'd play it fair and get a few quotes. The first place we tried was €1200 and the second we got a quote for €800. We couldn't believe it.

Its a joke isn't it!!

I think they they thought I would just pay out.

Maybe that's how they make their money, by offering cheap services and then ripping off the gullible customer by telling them what's wrong with the car.

I was almost bullied into getting my break pads done there ( they tried their best).

CptSternn

You do know you can do both of those jobs at home in an hour for a fraction of that price? Buy a Haynes manual for your car and find a gearhead friend who can help you out the first time. After that yer flying it sure.

golfball37

I was at a reputable garage in Ennis 2 years ago whereby the owner phoned up on my behalf requesting a part from a supplier that I needed. he said 165 euro wow to yer man on the phone. Turned to me and said the part costs 165 euro I'm afraid.

I priced the same part on Micks garage.ie later that evening and the highest price for it was 25 euro. Needless to say I haven't been back. I bought the part off Mick, delivered in 2 days. Got another garage to install it. All in cost 75 euro. This crowd would have added labour on top too.

Sickened that this sort of carry on is still going on. I wouldn't mind I gave them my business for 10 years previous.

CptSternn

I can tell you when I started working on my own cars myself. Years ago when I was living in the states I had a Jeep Wrangler. One day I went out and I couldn't shift it out of first, it was stuck.

I rang a mate of mine who lived in this city I had just moved to and he gave me the name of his local mechanic. I took it to him and he told me the slave cylinder was gone and her could fix it for $750. I of course had little choice as I needed to get back and forth to work so I paid yer man and two days later it worked grand again.

Six months later I come out one day and guess what? Same problem. I again took it to the shop and he told me he would have a look. This time he told me the master cyclinder was gone and he would have it fixed in a week. A week later he didn't have it fixed so I went to the shop and wanted to know the story. They had some new guy working the desk who informed me the owner had gone on holiday for a few weeks and they were 'outsourcing' all of their work to a garage down the road and they were backed up with their own work and it would be another week. I told them that wasn't acceptable as I needed my jeep and to go and get it.

He retrieved it from the car park behind the garage and hands me the keys and a small bottle of brake fluid. I was like whats this for? He tells me -

'I couldn't get it to change out of first. These Jeeps have a reservoir for the transmission fluid which has to be filled up now and again. Put this in the little blue cap reservoir under the hood on the right and she will be fine.'

He the told me to feel free to drop it off next week and the owner would be back and they would look at whatever issue it was that I originally brought it in for.

He had no idea what I had brought it in for, and had no clue that the owner had fleeced me once and was about to do it again for another $750.

I filled up the reservoir with the $2 bottle of fluid he gave me for free and it worked again like a dream. After buying a Haynes manual I found Jeeps have this and need to be topped up every six to eight months or so else you can't change gears.

Whats worse was then about a year later once I got to know my Jeep to the point I was doing all the work myself I checked the slave cylinder myself - it was still the original stock cylinder and had never been swapped, ever.

CiaranMT

Anybody else in favour of a thread title change?

Nothing mentioned about Ennis in the actual post and the whole thread has been about how to be savvy when repairing your motor.

Clareman

Very good point Ciaran, and as Cpt's post has highlighted this issue isn't just limited to Ireland.

finbarrk

CptSternn wrote: »

You do know you can do both of those jobs at home in an hour for a fraction of that price? Buy a Haynes manual for your car and find a gearhead friend who can help you out the first time. After that yer flying it sure.

A timing belt and break pads in an hour? Is it a car that Santa Clause brought that you can do those jobs on?

CptSternn

finbarrk wrote: »

A timing belt and break pads in an hour? Is it a car that Santa Clause brought that you can do those jobs on?

I guess it depends on the car and how good you are.

But seriously, I did my belts (timing and fan) plus brake pads in about an hour, maybe hour and a half last summer on my 2000 Polo.

Not rotors, just the pads.

And I did have a mate helping me a bit.

Atilathehun

CptSternn wrote: »

I guess it depends on the car and how good you are.

But seriously, I did my belts (timing and fan) plus brake pads in about an hour, maybe hour and a half last summer on my 2000 Polo.

Not rotors, just the pads.

And I did have a mate helping me a bit.

:rolleyes::rolleyes:

Lady Chatterton

I would be prepared to have a go at most things but I would never ever mess with electrical stuff or my car.

I'd also be concerned about possible legal/insurance implications, what happens if you mess up when you're repairing your car and there is an accident and there are injuries. I presume an insurance company won't pay out if they can prove that your work was defective and you acted outside your area of expertise??

MyKeyG

CptSternn wrote: »

I guess it depends on the car and how good you are.

You kinda hit the nail on the head there. Most people are not that good! You also have to take into consideration that we're dealing with a machine that has to meet specific legal standards and unless you were sure you knew what you were doing then you could be asking for trouble.

I'd hate to be responsible for causing injury just because me and my mate tried to play mechanic. That is personally why I think garages charge so high.