Service cost

NeVeR

Hey.

Getting my Honda Account 2006 serviced on Saturday. My mate who is a mechanic normally does it for me, but decided to get it done by a garage this time.

Whats included in a service ? .. like parts wise i mean

Are wiper blades / bulbs etc covered ?

just want to know how much cash i'll be needing

thanks.

bazz26

Nobody here can answer what is to be replaced as we don't know what was done to the car as part of the previous service intervals.

Surely you should be asking the garage what is normally covered under what they define as a service?

Bulbs, wipers, etc are all consumables and should only be replaced if needed.

NeVeR

Thanks for the reply.

There is one bulb gone on the reg plate.. also the wipers do need replacing.

All previous services I had old / filters / plugs etc changed. I also had the oil done around January.

Sorry i just thought there was a normal service charge and then the extras are added. Thats was I was asking about.

But I'll just wait and see.

thanks.

bazz26

I'd definitely mention to them about the number plate bulb as I'd bet it's something that would be overlooked as part of a normal routine service. Wipers would be the same depending on how meticulous the garage is. Or you could change the bulb/wipers yourself.

NeVeR

I told them about the bulb over the phone.

I thought a full service would check everything.. But as i said this is the 1st time i've left the car into a garage to be serviced.

If they don't change the wipers I'll do it myself.

enumbers

a full service should check all lights, wipers and obviously all the usual suspension, brakes, tyres and good bit of other stuff. we would generally fit standard wipers included on the service (can't do it beam blades as a set can run to over 60euro). If one or 2 bulbs were blown they would be replaced at not extra cost but if a lot of bulbs are blown they would just be noted on the service sheet and the customer would be informed.

CiniO

I don't like that "servicing" term at all, because it's open to so much optionality to be decided by garage doing it.

One garage says - we do servicing for 199 euro, and other says we do servicing for 99 euro.
But services they provide might be totally different.

If I'd be doing servicing at the garage, I would go there and ask to do f.e:
oil - castrol 5w30
oil filter
air filter
fuel filter
pollen filter
check condition of brake pads, brake discs, wipers, leaks, etc..

If you just go to garage to do servicing, you don't really know what you get.

George Dalton

CiniO wrote: »

I don't like that "servicing" term at all, because it's open to so much optionality to be decided by garage doing it.

One garage says - we do servicing for 199 euro, and other says we do servicing for 99 euro.
But services they provide might be totally different.

This is the problem exactly.

Unless the garage knows the previous history of the car then there is no way they can give a quote for the service in advance.

Whenever we are asked to quote for a service on a car that we don't know we always give a price range where the cheaper price is for a basic oil and filter service and the more expensive price assumes all filters, spark plugs, brake fluid etc are all required. The final total is generally somewhere between the 2.

power pants

enumbers wrote: »

a full service should check all lights, wipers and obviously all the usual suspension, brakes, tyres and good bit of other stuff. we would generally fit standard wipers included on the service (can't do it beam blades as a set can run to over 60euro). If one or 2 bulbs were blown they would be replaced at not extra cost but if a lot of bulbs are blown they would just be noted on the service sheet and the customer would be informed.

im pretty sure bulbs are always charged out, if more than one bulb is blown eg both rear lights the labour time would still be standard 15 mins and not 15mins *2 for each rear light, on top of the service charge

that was the way it was done in the place I worked in

enumbers

we aren't to strict on this if its a easy 501 or something like that its just replaced helps a little with customer relations as I said if there s alot of bulbs or an expensive bulb its just noted and customer informed.

power pants

Our place was money money money at all costs!!

Perhaps a little harsh, on things like this they were strict and on others they could be accommodating I suppose

robtri

I agree, i hate the term servicing, and really hate the 99 euro service deals.

A proper service should be based on your manfacturers instructions for the mileage of the car.
At certain mileages certain things need to be checked or replaced

I prefer to do it myself, then i know its done.... And if i cant do it myself then i know what exact job i am getting done going ti the garage... I.e timing belt

Mech1

George Dalton wrote: »

This is the problem exactly.

Unless the garage knows the previous history of the car then there is no way they can give a quote for the service in advance.

Whenever we are asked to quote for a service on a car that we don't know we always give a price range where the cheaper price is for a basic oil and filter service and the more expensive price assumes all filters, spark plugs, brake fluid etc are all required. The final total is generally somewhere between the 2.

Hi George, I refuse to quote for a "service" its very simple, a independant cannot possibly give a quote due to the broad range of vehicles we are dealing with.

I will always quote the hourly labor rate and a guestimate of hours needed for the job.

What we do is book in the car under no obligation to get anything done, price it all up then quote to the penny. Everyone wins.

power pants

Standard "service" labour was 1.5 hours for the oil, filters and then anything else that needed done would incur additional labour and parts

enumbers

the major issue is customers that really don't understand what servicing is and what its purpose is. The amount of times I get cars for a service because something is wrong with the car but sure a service will fix it, its very frustrating

Mech1

enumbers wrote: »

the major issue is customers that really don't understand what servicing is and what its purpose is. The amount of times I get cars for a service because something is wrong with the car but sure a service will fix it, its very frustrating

Then when they collect the car they are mad that, "the creak in the sunroof when turning left at 37kph over a concrete road" that they didnt tell you about, wasnt addressed.

George Dalton

Mech1 wrote: »

Hi George, I refuse to quote for a "service" its very simple, a independant cannot possibly give a quote due to the broad range of vehicles we are dealing with.

What I meant by "a car we don't know" is a car that is not already on our books so we don't know the history of it.

Obviously we would need the full details in terms of make, model, year, engine, mileage before quoting but there is no problem quoting once you have that information IMO.

B00056718

Would be great if all of the makers would be made to adapt to a categorised standard, like in aviation world.

Let's say A, B and C check and service.

Where "A" would be oil and filters, "B" would be more extended and so on.

Then you would be able to ring a mechanic and ask "how much for "C" Check and service for 2000 Corolla" for example.

Make it as foolproof as possible.

enumbers

I always quote on a service but this is always specific to the car and any additional work needed outside of the inspection oil air fuel etc will be noted and the customer will be quoted for this work before anything is done usually works out ok as there is no nasty shocks when it comes time for the bill to be paid. This probably could result in lost revenue but I think it generally works out ok

enumbers

B00056718 wrote: »

Would be great if all of the makers would be made to adapt to a categorised standard, like in aviation world.

Let's say A, B and C check and service.

Where "A" would be oil and filters, "B" would be more extended and so on.

Then you would be able to ring a mechanic and ask "how much for "C" Check and service for 2000 Corolla" for example.

Make it as fool proof as possible.

Unfortunately this is impossible with the difference in cost prices of even the simplest thing like a fuel filter ranging in cost from 10 to over 60 there is no one size fits all

biko

The "smallest" service would be oil, oil filter and air filter.
Anything else like wipers, coolant etc will be extra.

Tbh, reg plate bulb and wipers you can do yourself by bringing them into a factors/Halfords and say you want replacements and then change in the parking lot outside.

ABajaninCork

My car needs a full service now. For that I expect:

Oil change
Filters change
Wipers checked & new ones fitted if necessary
Brake check
Light check (I've just put in new brake lights, so front lamps/number plate check).

I always tell the garage that if additional work is to be done, then call me and clear it first.

B00056718's idea is a great one and one that I've seen done in London. Wish more garages would do it here. Makes things nice & simple for me!

B00056718

enumbers wrote: »

Unfortunately this is impossible with the difference in cost prices of even the simplest thing like a fuel filter ranging in cost from 10 to over 60 there is no one size fits all

Yes, but you would be able to go go back and quote precisely for the exact make and model. At least you would know what exactly would need to be changed at "C" service for a 00' Corolla.

Mech1

George Dalton wrote: »

What I meant by "a car we don't know" is a car that is not already on our books so we don't know the history of it.

Obviously we would need the full details in terms of make, model, year, engine, mileage before quoting but there is no problem quoting once you have that information IMO.

Im sorry but I dont agree, with the average customer expecting a service to address all lights, NCT type checks, etc. and the costs of some modern bulbs / wipers / pad wear sensors etc its not possible to accurately quote over the phone.

Customer will be disapointed on the day as your quote has increased / or because you didnt fit something due to extra unauthorised expense.

Forget about getting a certain gender to answer the phone when you have already agreed a price!

power pants

enumbers wrote: »

I always quote on a service but this is always specific to the car and any additional work needed outside of the inspection oil air fuel etc will be noted and the customer will be quoted for this work before anything is done usually works out ok as there is no nasty shocks when it comes time for the bill to be paid. This probably could result in lost revenue but I think it generally works out ok

Exactly with the service a vehicle health check was also normally done and anything that came up would be brought to the customer's attention and they would advise to proceed or not

the vhc would be done free of charge when part of the service

our place was also good and ensuring the correct oil was used for each car

biko

You could/should take this opportunity to learn a bit more about your car by doing things yourself (and no, I'm not just saying it because it's cheaper ).
Once you've done your first service you'll be kicking yourself you didn't start sooner, it's that easy.