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Originally Posted by Melly31
Let me start by giving you that detailed break-down of work this guy did....
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OK, I'll do my best to give a detailed, honest and unbiased opinion!
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Originally Posted by Melly31
Engine:
3.5 HRS Semi-Synth = £16
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I take it the "HRS" was a typo, for litres
. Right, is your engine a turbo? If it is, then it needs fully synthetic oil, to the appropriate VW standard as listed in your owners manual. Semi, and plain mineral oil, will coke up in the turbo bearings, leading to turbo failure!
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Originally Posted by Melly31
Oil filter = £9
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About the right price for a quality aftermarket item.
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Originally Posted by Melly31
Oil leak (locate fault, labour & switch) = £30
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What exactly did they do, and what did they replace? The £30 (inclusive of parts and labour)
could be a reasonable figure!
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Originally Posted by Melly31
Total = £55
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No separate labour charge - was it listed anywhere as a "total" labour charge for the whole car?
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Originally Posted by Melly31
No plate light
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Was it blown, or corroded contacts etc?
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Originally Posted by Melly31
2 Wiper blades (these were replaced only the week before Xmas!)
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Had they since been ripped on snow or ice, when frozen to the screen. Were they wrong, or cheap nasty items fitted previously?
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Originally Posted by Melly31
Front bumper loose
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Was it? If so, it would require rectification for the MoT.
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Originally Posted by Melly31
Total = £20
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If all that work was carried out, and the price includes parts and labour, then I consider it to be a very fair price, for that little section of works.
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Originally Posted by Melly31
Brakes:
Replace front brake pads = £29
Rear brake pads = £25
Labour = £60
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Right, the price for the parts seems fair, but the price for the labour
may be a little questionable! You really need to find their hourly rate. My personal target times for front brakes would be 45minutes, and for rears 60 minutes. These are only "targets" though - you don't know if there was any corrosion, leading to seizure of securing bolts, pads in the caliper, handbrake linkages etc, - which could lead to longer labour times. You also don't know how thorough he was with carefully cleaning all the caliper and pad guides, and lubricating them with the appropriate silicone and anti-seize greases!
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Originally Posted by Melly31
N/s CV Boot = £19
Labour (drill out bolt) = £60
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If it was a genuine Audi OEM boot, then a fair price for the parts. The labour again might seem a little excessive, but as I indicated in post #8, there would have been contamination of the joint, which would have needed thorough de-greasing, inspection, regreasing, and then the new boot. The seized bolt could have been at a fiddly angle, and may have resulted in lots of profainities, skinned nuckles, and lots of head-scratching! Again, without the hourly rate, it is difficult to give a firm conclusion, though my gut feelling would probably state the labour figure is not too wide of the mark!
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Originally Posted by Melly31
Total = £234 (Actually the total is £233-but the guy can't add up!)
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OK, OK - I often run out of fingers and toes to add up on! The phone may have been ringing, another customer may be at the counter . . .
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Originally Posted by Melly31
MOT = £40 (this bill does not include £35 for 1st MOT)
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Did the MoT get done at the same place that failed it, and was it within 14 days? If not, they are fully entitled to charge you the full price of £44, but you got a £4 discount! Reading your first post again, they stated they would "do the MOT retest in with that price" - two issues; firstly, were the garage confused as to weather they did the iniitial MoT? (you stated in your post the ambulance station did it, but did you make it clear to this new garage?), and secondly, a "free retest" can only be carried out by the same testing station as the initial failure, and within a certain time limit.
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Originally Posted by Melly31
Total bill = £309!!!
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It is a lot more than the initial estimate. But you never got an initial written "quotation" from the garage prior to starting any works, and you stated the garage initally advised you that they could not give you a firm "guesstimate". You also havn't answered my concern in post #8 to RickT about any "instructions" you may have given to the garage. This is potentially the crux of the issue regarding the above prices.
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Originally Posted by Melly31
Now i really need your help guys.............as soon as i got my car back i had to go on a short motorway journey (20 mins total time driving-about 10 on motorway) & my brake fluid light came on as did my ABS light?
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Not good. The ABS light will sometimes come on with any other brake warning light (apart from handbrake on, or worn brake pads).
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Originally Posted by Melly31
I brought the car straight home-about half way into my journey (so still total driving time 20mins) & the next morning i rang the guy-its normal he says, put a little brake fluid in it-its because of the new pads, this i did.
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Fair enough, he basically admitted to not topping up the brake fluid - which is not really acceptable. How low was the fluid?
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Originally Posted by Melly31
I then find that my car is shuddering a lot when i brake (just street driving-no more than 30mph-10mph on turns?), i ring the guy again-its just the brake pads bedding in he says!
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Has it rained much, there may be an overnight build up of rust on the discs! Does the shuddering settle down after 5-10 applications of the brake pedal. Have a read of some specialist sites for bedding in processes;
Bedding in new pads and rotors (for racing and high performance systems),
StopTech : Balanced Brake Upgrades (for racing and high performance systems),
BRAKE PAD BEDDING IN PROCEDURE (an Audi OEM pad supplier, for normal road car pads),
Brake Tech - Brake Pad and Rotor Bed-In Procedures (a good "all-round" advice page, detailing brake shudder causes). Nevertheless, the garage should have carried out the initial bed in for you. Bear in mind, it can take 150-300 miles for pads to bed in fully! For further reading, the Google search linky:
bedding in new brake pads - Google Search=
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Originally Posted by Melly31
Next my oil light is coming on-though he's supposed to have done a full oil change, i ring him again, he dropped by my house on his way home & fills my car with oil!
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Oh dear - this is where it all goes Pete Tong, in a big way! How much oil did he need to "top up" with? Did you see the make and grade of oil he used, particularly the SAE viscosity rating - it should be 5W30.
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Originally Posted by Melly31
Please bare in mind i've barely driven my car since this guy had it, i've been a little wary & i've had a lift to work.
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Are there any puddles or drips of oil on your driveway/street, underneath your engine? How many days have you not used the car?
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Originally Posted by Melly31
Last week i drove a short distance, again my oil light came on, i ring the guy-he's on holiday (WITH MY BLOODY MONEY!), but also my car is making a lot of noise-sounds just like a bomber taxi,
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Oh dear, again. Do not drive the car, or even start the engine. It sounds like he forgot to put any oil in it at all, after he drained the old stuff out! Does your car have an oil temperature gauge - if so, did you notice any "unusual" readings, ie no movement of the needle at all, when you drove the car back from the garage initially? What about the water temperature guage - was that reading normally? Did the car heater seem particualarly hot? Was there any strange smells from the car?
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Originally Posted by Melly31
so rang my dad who told me to put STP oil in it-this i did & car seems fine.
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Oh NOOOOOOOO. STP is American snake oil $h!te. That was a bad move!
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Originally Posted by Melly31
Today i'm on another motorway journey, been on the motorway 5mins when car starts making a lot of noise again, black smoke starts pouring out of exhaust & oil light comes back on, i took next turning off & rang my dad-who's a member of the AA, he came to my rescue & rang the AA.
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This is going from bad to worse. The oil light simply means low oil pressure, and can be caused by a number of issues.
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Originally Posted by Melly31
They come out, tell me my car has been over filed with oil & its totally knackered!
Its either the pistons or the engine-he'd bet his money on it being the engine-approx £1500 for a new engine-car worth £2000 tops
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OK, the AA must provide written details of any call-out they attend. Did they actually write down the oil was overfilled, by how much over the max was it? Did they also write down their full diagnosis? Damaged pistons are one of the central components of an "engine" - the generic "engine" term is about as much use as a chocolate teapot, for this diagnosis - the AA should really know better than that!
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Originally Posted by Melly31
-best advice he can give is do a complete oil change, fill it with STP & trade it in asap (while its not making so much noise)!
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WTF - was that advice from the AA?????????? If it was, then that is truely scandalous, and needs a formal written complaint, to both the head office, and also to BBC Watchdog, (where they have been frequent visitors over the years). Do NO SUCH THING.
ALL THIS THINKING IS GIVING ME A HEADACHE - I'LL RETURN LATER, AND EDIT SOME MORE
And I've exceeded maximum post length!
02-21-2007, 06:46 AM
very long, and detailed reply - don't fall asleep!
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