Are you sitting down?

[chfs911 0]

Just got the bill in from my wee back street garage to change front discs and pads front and back with calipers at the back and rear bearings.

 

They also attempted to fit rear wishbone bushes at the front but only managed NSF as the sump got in the way for the other one and they gave up.

 

Prize for one nearst the cost for labour.

 

I had to sit down!

 

Last time I took the VR6 to the tyre place and they did brakes all round for for £60

 

This time the bill is....... anyone?

 

 

Three hundred and seventy five pound plus VAT ~£460 total

 

I supplied all the parts bar a new hose £10. Any view on how much stink I should cause?

[kvwloon 0]

Bloody hell, sure you didn't take it to a small back street garage with a large VW sign outside! Sounds very pricey to me, guess most of the labour will be for the failed attempt to do the wishbone bushes, but why are they charging you for a failed job, and why are they so surprised that sump was in the way....doesn't sound good to me.

[VR6 0]

Did it hurt?

 

 

 

 

 

When they had the gun in your back!!

[chfs911 0]

Should have gone to Jim curly as that's where I'll have to go now to get the other bush done. It would have been cheaper at Vw(Camerons, Perth) or Star Perfomance. VW I would have to have bought the parts too but it would still of come in under the £800 for changing brakes!

 

Star is closer and gives a discount to club member so should have know better and gone there. They did a great job on my lupo with 4 wheel alignment and ABT exhaust. Also managed to get 300bhp out of my 964RS )

 

Charles

[chubbybrown 0]

I was going to say £100 for front £100 for rear,£150 for the bushes,but that was me thinking you were supplying them.

where do you live,Perth ?

 

chubbz

[Storm 0]

even if it took them 6 hours ( which is diaboloical) 5 x £30-35 + VAT does not equal £460 take some mates round and reason with the bloke. Didn't you get a price up front?

[vr6storm 0]

Should have gone to Jim curly as that's where I'll have to go now to get the other bush done. It would have been cheaper at Vw(Camerons, Perth) or Star Perfomance. VW I would have to have bought the parts too but it would still of come in under the £800 for changing brakes!

 

 

 

Charles

 

 

as they say hindsight is a great thing etc......but why did you not go to Star in the first place??????

[chfs911 0]

I didn't bother to get a price as he has been working on my cars for a couple of years and I expected about 4 hours for the brakes and 1-2 for the bushes. Tops £150 plus vat!

 

Big mistake. He had to hacksaw off a bolt to fit the bush and then drive to Camerons for a new one. Guess I am getting hit for travel time!

 

Brakes went ok apart fom the Allen keys on the rear calipers which were seized. Guess they took longer than expected too!

 

All up I would say 4 hours for brakes 2 hours for bush plus 1 hour travel plus 1 hour calipers. 8 tops times 30 which is only 240 plus vat! Thats what I will offer him or no more cars. He gets 4 of my cars to MoT and fix so I have some leverage )

 

Thanks for your comments,

 

Charles.

[Henny 0]

I'd simply ask him for a break down on the cost with a confused look on your face... you'll soon be able tell if he's trying to pull a fast one, or has genuinely screwed something up.... ;) I nearly got screwed over by a stealer in Leek a few years ago who tried to charge me £565 for a service on an (old) X reg Golf 1.5 auto... the car was only worth £500! when I asked for a breakdown of costs, the guy kinda stopped, thought about it for a moment, and then said "seeing as you're a regular customer, I'll give you a discount...." and knocked 50% off... :| It was the first and only time I've been to that garage...

 

If he tells you it's correct, you can simply tell him that you're gonna get trading standards in to investigate, 'cos there's no way on this planet that it's gonna take 10 hours at £35/hour to fit/do what you've stated above... Even at dealer prices of £60/hour, that's nearly 8 hours labour! :crazyeyes:

 

Front pads + disks = 1hour (absolute top, and that's with all bolts being a git)

Rear pads = 1 hour top (with the allen key bolts playing hell - if all else failed, they should have known to use some heat and replace the bolts!)

Rear calipers = 20 mins if you're already doing the pads

Rear bearings = 1 hour TOP (and that's only if they're being a sod to remove from the old disks, it should take 30 mins top if they're new disks)

 

So that's 3.5 hours (being generous) to do all except the front bushes... If they're telling you they spent the best part of 7 hours on doing 1 bush succesfully, and couldn't do the other one "because the sump got in the way" then I'd REALLY never take any business their way again... :| Sorry, but I've worked on cars older than I am that hadn't been serviced since before I was born, and we couldn't charge more "because a bolt wouldn't undo".... :roll: They are taking the p!$$, tell them so, and see what happens... 8)

[RadoAds 0]

Yup same here, a jobs a job, you cant go charging people for your own failures (unless you can get away with it :lol: ), tell him your not payin cos he's over charging and see what happens, I agree with Henny mention trading standards and then watch them squirm, its always worked in the past for me, I once threatened a hifi company with false advertising with trading standards for not coming up with the goods, they then did me deal on a B&W subwoofer that should have been £850 for £425 just to stop me from ringin em. 8)

[chfs911 0]

Thanks,

 

I'll print off the thread, attach the £60 bill from the place 1/2 mile down the road(from last time) and see what the reaction is. Like I said he gets 4 cars to look after. Reason I didn't get to Jim's was pure laziness and the fact it is a piss easy job so anyone could do it!

 

From now on Jim will get the VR6 and the Lupo and the porker can get the £50 hour Glenvarigill treatment.