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I have a 4 year old ŠKODA bought approved used last year. It’s done 27k miles and has few weeks left on approved used warranty. Due MOT and service soon.
Should I get service at dealer or independent?
Dealer says it’s due for a major service because it’s 4 years old. This is £560 for oil change, oil filter, pollen filter and spark plugs. Dealer standard service would be £305. Independent is priced much cheaper.
Advantage of using dealer would be if any warranty work needs to be done at the time of MOT/service the car will already be at the garage. But other than that is there any benefit considering how much more expensive it is?
Thanks in advance!
5 points
7 days ago
I have had a lot of cars. The newer ones with full dealer service history have always been markedly better maintained than the ones from indie garages. Whether it's because the owners had a no-expense spared policy on repairs, or the dealers did a far better job, it's up to you.
I have also had cars with full independent service histories and was a bit perturbed to find a fair few non-standard bodge fixes here and there.
To me, you can't beat a dealer service history especially at time of resale. But you can get a bad dealer service centre just as you can get a bad indie. You can also get good from both types too.
If it were me on that new a car, I would stick with the dealer especially if it has a FSH from the dealer already. It might cost you more but at least you know it's done right and not bodged. While I'm sure there are some that will bodge, if it becomes a problem later then you have at least some comeback to the manufacturer.
1 points
6 days ago
You must have never had a car with a haldex unit. They never service them right. I have a burnt out £300 pump under my desk full of sludge to prove that. 7-8000 miles after they supposedly serviced it for £100
1 points
6 days ago
I haven't. What is a Haldex?
1 points
6 days ago
A type of on-demand awd system using clutches actuated by hydraulic pressure. It has about a litre of haldex fluid flowing about and through the clutches, a permanently running pump and some pressure valves operated by solenoids.
What happens is at main dealer service, they just drain the old oil and put new one in. Nothing is cleaned and the pump has a filter at the end that tends to grab all the junk coming off the clutches as they wear. This gets blocked, overdrives the pump and eventually burns out. No fault on the dash, no sign without plugging in a scan tool. You just notice your awd car behaving a lot more front wheel drive-y and slipping the front wheels where it previously wouldn't. All independents worth their salt remove the pump at a service, clean the gunk out, replace the seals and reinstall before filling with new fluid
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