[J. Derek Riddell]

Or ...

" The Bills, The Bills, Master ! " ...

Had my Civic in the Honda dealer where I now work (Arendal - S. Coast) ...

They got it on Tuesday first thing, I got it back just a few hours ago ...

Work List :-

1 Front skirt and wheel arch trims - realign - new clips required ?
2 Drop Links (anti-roll bar ends) to be replaced - parts are provided
3 Fuel filler cap - readjust locking catch - owner screwed it up !
4 Dipped headlight right - cuts out a lot - loose connection \ ballast unit ?
5 Fuel filter must be replaced (Dealer to supply)
6 Some minor paint damage \ scrapes - localised respray needed
(left front wing, left mirror, rear right bumper) …

And the Bill ? (inc. hire car for 2 days) : NoK 12,300 or £ 1,300 !!! ...

I should really have known better - they're also the BMW dealer, and they charge £ 145 per hour (and I got 'hit' for 8 hours) ...

And the headlamp isn't even fixed ! - they said (as I suspected) that the ballast unit was faulty, they didn't have one in stock, and they cost some £ 400 each ...

At which point I started to feel like puking up - but, they then said that they had talked to Honda and it was a freebie (Warranty claim - 5 years here under the Sale of Goods act, for anything that should last 'for ever') ...

So, when the part eventually arrives, I'll just have to pay for the fitting ...

 

[regan1985]

feel sorry for you mate, i always tell my garage check with me if its going to take more then 1hour longer then they quoted as i got hit with a bill like that before

 

[J. Derek Riddell]

feel sorry for you mate, i always tell my garage check with me if its going to take more then 1hour longer then they quoted as i got hit with a bill like that before

I forgot the "good" part - they actually proposed to charge me 12 hours labour ! ...

Some intense negotiation later, they reduced it to 8 ...

 

[bodgerx]

Gotta love the BMW labour rates. Local dealer is a 'bargain' @ 110. I took my 318 e91 to an indie after they quoted me 2.5 hours on a cat change.

 

[J. Derek Riddell]

Gotta love the BMW labour rates. Local dealer is a 'bargain' @ 110. I took my 318 e91 to an indie after they quoted me 2.5 hours on a cat change.

Well, if I had accepted the proposed bill, it would come to about £ 1,900 !!! - *** ...

And if they HAD charged me for a new ballast unit (fitted) - it would have been some £ 2,500 - ***^2 !!! ...

 

[Peteo48]

These labour rates bear no relation to reality whatsoever.

OK, the labour rate also pays for the capital cost of the workshop - premises, diagnostic equipment etc etc.

However:

When i had my Golf, an "Indie" with all the VW kit would charge about £45 per hour - the dealer - about £90.

Anything above these figures must be rampant profiteering surely?

 

[harhay]

Wow thats a bummer.....

 

[coste1l]

more paintwork jdr? do you corner by crashing or something?

 

[J. Derek Riddell]

more paintwork jdr? do you corner by crashing or something?

Nope - scraped (again) while parked - and sideswiped by a Taxi (driver denied fault and my excess here is around £600) - I just had to eat the cost ...

 

[coste1l]

id have eaten the taxi driver.....

 

[coste1l]

youre paint must be an inch thick in places

 

[HappyMan]

You do get some steep bills JDR, don't you?

I would have died at that cost :shock:

 

[DPG87]

B-LOODY hell!! Honda dealerships are so expensive, really is a rip off, did they inform you of the work they were going to do? As I'm sure here they have to contact you before they can carry out the work...

 

[J. Derek Riddell]

Is

B-LOODY hell!! Honda dealerships are so expensive, really is a rip off, did they inform you of the work they were going to do? As I'm sure here they have to contact you before they can carry out the work...

I'm a Scottish Viking in exile in Norway

Still, I told them to do the work, against an estimated price less than half of what I paid - not a lot of choice here !

 

[FWH]

I suppose that is the price of freedom then?

I.e. not having to be a member of the EUSSR.

 

[J. Derek Riddell]

I suppose that is the price of freedom then? I.E. not having to be a member of the EU(SSR).

Nope - it's the price of being a bloody idiot, and 'semi-believing' in their estimate of circa NoK 5K + hire car ! ...

And I'm an "Estimator" to trade !!! ...

(Took my eye off of the ball a bit, didn't I ?) :facepalm: ...

 

[Mr Punch]

To be fair, my local Honda dealer are good in as much as they give me a quote and the negotiations begin. They are more expensive than the local garages but I know I'm getting a good job done. The local garages use the word "about", which means expect more. The current service I get off Honda is more than sufficient.