Main dealer experience

[greas-E-monkey]

On the subject of car dealers. From my own experience there are a number of VW agents that have provided me with very good service if somewhat costly! I am in no way affliated to anybody but I would recommend Croydon VW for general servicing and diagnostics but there four wheel alignment facilities leave a lot to be desired in terms of cost and the final results of a £280 job.
I think my own vehicle handled worse once thay had carried out the alignment than before, It only went in because it was scrubbing tyres at the front and now handles poorly.
Any other good bad experiences at main delears ? lets compile a list of good and bad !?!:confused:

[bluetwo]

98 golf tdi, 185k miles FVWSH

I have had poor service fro Argents of Heathrow (5 years ago). Parts not fitted correctly, causing a visit to a different garage (even after a visit to correct the problem), Whites in Camberly (now Martins? (3/4 years ago) who seemed to do an ok job, still really expensive though.

Since then have used Mann Egerton in Exeter, who are really expensive, never know quite what needs doing on their recomendations lists (things not done sometimes don't re-apear next time) Was fairly happy untill a bout 6 months ago when things (AC caps, nuts etc.) started not to be replaced, had an engine under tray replaced which fell off in 100 miles. Turbo mass flow meter thing unplugged and not reconnected. Last service the car came back feeling as though the steering alignment had changed (even though they were not doing anything needing it to be changed), and the wheels were not put on properly... and came loose after a couple of 100 miles

Main dealer quality. Over 6 I have spent nealy the same as i paid for the car in the first place.

Never had a breakdown untill last week, gear box/drive seems to have packed up. A month after MOT, new tyers, cambelt, the works. :D how chuffed am i? (worth fixing?)

Just bought a 2002 TDI, looking for an independent.

[Huweth]

Bluetwo, if you are in the Exeter area there was an independant VW garage at the top of Pensylvania road in Exeter. I don't know if it's still there. Maybe it's worth checking? If you do find a good one in the area, let me know, as I'll be needing a service shortly.
Cheers

[bluetwo]

will do.

[thecoolalhambra]

Can anybody recommend indepenmdent garages in North or East London?

[Bryce]

Would be interested in an independent in the Farnborough area (hampshire), Main dealer in Camberley (Whites or MArtins) are really expensive, more than Barons BMW with my old car.

Barnett and Small in Farnham used to be good but no one answers the phone and I haven't had the time to pop over.

[sp900]

Try:

Laszlo Continental Auto Spares
Site 6, South Harrow Industrial Estate,
Brember Rd,
South Harrow
Harrow, Middlesex HA2 8XB
Tel: 020 8423 5590

They did my service and Cam Belt service on my Passat.

FANTASTIC SERVICE - and Great price.

10 mins from the A40 - just off the A312.

[blackie]

As far as buying anew car is concerned, steer well clear of JCB Medway - the salesmen know less about their products than me. Totally useless. As for servicing (well, I should say repairing persistant faults), they're not much better. The Service Manager (Mark) is first rate, but nevertheless I've still got faults that aren't being fixed.

Like I say, steer WELL clear.

[MalcQV]

I have just picked my car up from Smith Knight Fay in Bolton last night.
On Friday the car had a warning light "STOP" :aargh4: on the dashboard. Long story short I thought the thermostat had seized.

It went in (under warranty) to said garage. they quickly diagnosed water pump.

When I bought the car 2 months ago from another VW dealer, they had not entered the warranty details, however the Bolton VW and where I purchased it from sorted it all out.

I had a phone call Monday afternoon telling me what the fault was. The technician suggested I consider having my cam belt changed (the car is at 48k/4yrs old). Because the engine was stripped down for a new water pump, there would be a considerable saving in doing the belt.

I know they got a little extra money but in the long term it has saved me a few hundred quid :beerchug:

[brianf]

My VW main dealer story relates to the fitting of speakers in the rear doors of my Touran 2.0 TDi DSG and is hot off the presses - the bill received yesterday is an unbelievable €850.87 (£586.80). It's bad enough that they sell a vehicle of this class without rear speakers but their sales literature is misleading in that it tells the prospective buyer that it comes with a four-speaker system as standard. What they don't say is that all four speakers are in the front.
The car went in for its end of warranty check-up last week to deal with any faults that should be rectified before warranty expires on 12th Dec and I thought it would be expedient to have the speakers fitted at the same time.
They only dealt with two of four warranty items that I reported, the most time consuming of which was a modification to the front seats to stop them descending by themselves. I suspect that they are also billing me for that work because the total time listed is 11.31 hours.
Prior to asking the main dealer to fit the speakers, I did ask the importer how much it would cost and they told me about three hours of work plus the parts (double the price of Kenwood speakers) so about €400 in total.
I have sent a registered letter of complaint but you can imagine what this has done for my confidence in dealing with these people in future.

[adamss24]

My VW main dealer story relates to the fitting of speakers in the rear doors of my Touran 2.0 TDi DSG and is hot off the presses - the bill received yesterday is an unbelievable €850.87 (£586.80). It's bad enough that they sell a vehicle of this class without rear speakers but their sales literature is misleading in that it tells the prospective buyer that it comes with a four-speaker system as standard. What they don't say is that all four speakers are in the front.
The car went in for its end of warranty check-up last week to deal with any faults that should be rectified before warranty expires on 12th Dec and I thought it would be expedient to have the speakers fitted at the same time.
They only dealt with two of four warranty items that I reported, the most time consuming of which was a modification to the front seats to stop them descending by themselves. I suspect that they are also billing me for that work because the total time listed is 11.31 hours.
Prior to asking the main dealer to fit the speakers, I did ask the importer how much it would cost and they told me about three hours of work plus the parts (double the price of Kenwood speakers) so about €400 in total.
I have sent a registered letter of complaint but you can imagine what this has done for my confidence in dealing with these people in future.
Next time go to your local ICE dealer and you will have a top notch system for that price including a brand new head unit !

[brianf]

Next time go to your local ICE dealer and you will have a top notch system for that price including a brand new head unit !

Don't overlook the fact that I live in Belgium. Also, I have the VW combined radio/cd/DVD/Nav system - not that this has any impact on rear door speakers.

[anoak]

Hi...
I decided to fit cruise control in my vw passat 2003 TDI 130 in local VW dealer in Bolton ...I received answer about 160 labour plus vat and part costs.So together almost 230 pounds :). I think its too expensive...Anyone know independent VW garage in Bolton/Manchester area?

[jdcampbell]

Hi...
I decided to fit cruise control in my vw passat 2003 TDI 130 in local VW dealer in Bolton ...I received answer about 160 labour plus vat and part costs.So together almost 230 pounds :). I think its too expensive...Anyone know independent VW garage in Bolton/Manchester area?


Listers in Stratford quoted me £150 all in to fit cruise to my Golf Mk5

[MalcQV]

Hi...
I decided to fit cruise control in my vw passat 2003 TDI 130 in local VW dealer in Bolton ...I received answer about 160 labour plus vat and part costs.So together almost 230 pounds :). I think its too expensive...Anyone know independent VW garage in Bolton/Manchester area?

There is a VW specialist in Walkden/Little Hulton. Not sure what they are like.


http://www.manchesterdirectory.co.uk/info/26137/

[RickT]

i have replyed to this thread as the main subject on this thread from the HOME page was LG TV $1000 .... it appeared the thread had been deleted however the post had not been phyiscally removed..

you dont want spam on the home page visable

LG TimeMachine TV..$1000USD

Cheers

RickT

[brianf]

My VW main dealer story relates to the fitting of speakers in the rear doors of my Touran 2.0 TDi DSG and is hot off the presses - the bill received yesterday is an unbelievable €850.87 (£586.80). It's bad enough that they sell a vehicle of this class without rear speakers but their sales literature is misleading in that it tells the prospective buyer that it comes with a four-speaker system as standard. What they don't say is that all four speakers are in the front.
The car went in for its end of warranty check-up last week to deal with any faults that should be rectified before warranty expires on 12th Dec and I thought it would be expedient to have the speakers fitted at the same time.
They only dealt with two of four warranty items that I reported, the most time consuming of which was a modification to the front seats to stop them descending by themselves. I suspect that they are also billing me for that work because the total time listed is 11.31 hours.
Prior to asking the main dealer to fit the speakers, I did ask the importer how much it would cost and they told me about three hours of work plus the parts (double the price of Kenwood speakers) so about €400 in total.
I have sent a registered letter of complaint but you can imagine what this has done for my confidence in dealing with these people in future.

At long last I am delighted to report that the dealer has seen reason and issued a credit note for 400€. This makes the total installation cost 450.87€ (£310.94). Still expensive by comparison with the ICE dealers but acceptable for a 'properly done' job.
It is nice to see a dealer responding positively to a client's concern about excessive charges.

[new to vw]

I live in BANBURY NORTH OXON and only take my car to a garage in DONCASTER SOUTH YORKSHIRE........CandC auto's...there moving in jan next year to larger premises....will put address on when i get it....the guys are good and know there stuff without charging the prices the ******** do:biglaugh:

[RickT]

I wonder if this is a whole new section in its self......

Would you lie to see a section regarding Audi Main dealer experience (http://www.vwaudiforum.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?p=11393#post11393)s??

RicKT

[steveh2507]

My VW dealer (Vindis of Cambridge) is pretty good for anyone in East Anglia. Whenever I've had any problems they've sorted it out pretty quickly and anyone who has been in there with me who doesn't own a vw has been amazed at the quality of service i've received. Although, as i'm sure most of you are aware, VW dealers aren't cheap, but they are pretty good from my experience.
I've heard of an independent VW specialist mechanic around here who also does wonders with bodywork (has repaired two VW's of people I know to a magnificent standard, including a full strip and renovation of a mark 1 golf gti) and will post details of as soon as I can get some contact details.

[Davidj241]

I must say that the Sales staff here have been extremely Knowledgable and helpful. Maybe it was because I was spending a large sum of money, but they have answered all my questions straight away.
I am due to collect my new car on 8th Jan - so time will tell what the rest of the organisation is like.

[R_evil_O]

Hi all,

Sorry for being a noob, have had a look around and a search and this seems to be the best place to post:

Looking for a garage (preferably independant due to generally lower costs) in W. London/Surrey etc to service my wife's mk4 1.6 petrol. Had a pretty poor experience at Whites in Petersfield, missed a broken lambda sensor and resulting heavy pinking etc. so not got much confidence in them. They also said a pronounced rattle on cold start is nothing to worry about. I think it is, basically no oil for 1-2 secs, VERY loud valvetrain noise...

Any recommendations? All help very much appreciated, I'm sure you all know how hard it is to find someone to trust with your cars.

Thanks,
Olly

[nmorjaria]

I bought my 4 year old A4 a few months ago and had it checked out at my local Audi dealer. No probs but wouldn't use one for servicing due to high costs.

Have just serviced it at my local Audi specialist as also mentioned on page 1 of this thread. Would recommend to anyone with a VW or Audi. Nice bunch of guys and helpful in every way.

Laszlo Continental Auto Spares
Site 6, South Harrow Industrial Estate,
Brember Rd, South Harrow
Middlesex HA2 8XB
Tel: 020 8423 5590

FANTASTIC SERVICE - and Great price. Car feels rejuvenated!

10 mins from the A40 - just off the A312.

Neil

[OpenRoad]

As far as buying anew car is concerned, steer well clear of JCB Medway - the salesmen know less about their products than me. Totally useless. As for servicing (well, I should say repairing persistant faults), they're not much better. The Service Manager (Mark) is first rate, but nevertheless I've still got faults that aren't being fixed.

Like I say, steer WELL clear.


I am really suprised that you have had these issues at this garage. I have nothing but praise for them. I bought my car from the Ashford branch were I got an excellent trade-in deal on my Golf. Long test drive in the Passat and all faults I pointed out rectified. However Medway is a lot closer to my home. (Only 25 miles away as opposed to 40 miles). Since then I have had both long-life servicing and a faulty door lock replaced by the Medway branch with no issues. Indeed the door was soughted out 100% free of charge curtousy of the extended warrenty I bought with the car. Plus during the service a loose undertray had been identified and re-secured.

Now if you really want to experience dire service, try my local VW main dealer.
Sales idiot was more interested in selling GAP insurance than the car.
Workshop could not identify a patently obvious fault on the ignition switch, took four visits to get the switch changed and, come the service they changed a headlamp bulb which I knew to be working when I arrived at the garage that morning, and charged an extortionate sum of money for the job. They may be in my home area, but .........:aargh4:

[andy1234]

In Cambridgeshire area I would definately recommend Vindis Sawston for both sales and servicing. Bought new car from them a couple of years ago and received excellent service, questions answered really quickly and accurately and was kept uptodate with progress etc.

Have since used them for warranty work and servicing and they always appear to be very good.

[sooty]

I must say that the Sales staff here have been extremely Knowledgable and helpful. Maybe it was because I was spending a large sum of money, but they have answered all my questions straight away.
I am due to collect my new car on 8th Jan - so time will tell what the rest of the organisation is like.

Ask to speak to Zoe at Vindis if she is still there... That's VW Vindis

[coolio]

Stafford - perfect, couldnt get any better...well unless they were closer

Docklands - Okish. A bit slow. I had a steering angle sensor issue. I hadn't been able to reset via VAGCOM so was pretty confident it needed replacing. They dissed VAGCOM a bit when I explained what I had done, and that their expensive systems would find the issue. I understand they need to do diagnostics, but I dropped it off at 7:30am and come 4pm I had been told that the steering angle sensor error was showing. They were going to try and reset it the following day (even though its a quick 10min job that would be done while still connected). Come midday next day finally got hold of them. 'The steering angle won't reset' and now we can't get the part until tomorrow.

Dulwich - The worst EVER. My alternator went presumably. Who knows tbh as they told me £400 and fixed it. I had requested a bill breakdown before agreeing. I get the car back and I see the bill. It includes ptensioner, etc that had been replaced just weeks before. I asked why they had been replaced. They said 'we do that at the time anyway'. Honest mistake maybe?!? NO, I had spoken to them at length about how they and the cambelt had been done weeks before, yet they still replace stuff and charge. They said I would have to pay as I didn't have the cambelt/tensioner bill on me. I got louder in front of customers, and this guy comes out from the back and says 'I'll rip the FXXXXXX parts outta your car if you don't want them.' Class, real class Dulwich.

[genix]

Just collected my car (Approved used) in January from Smith Knight Fay in Bolton.

While I am happy with the car and the whole purchasing experience, I find that trying to speak about a question I have to somebody knowledgeable After Sale (now that they've got my money... :Blush:) is virtually impossible. I have emailed them once, and then phoned four times (over 5 days) only to get promises that I will be contacted soon.... :banghead: yeah, you wait... :p

(While this can be easily explained by a ruthless team of economists and psychologists...) I wonder if this is the norm with VW dealerships, as I find the way they treat customers After Sale a real shame for the brand...

Any similar experiences (name and shame!), or am I just a lonely poor unlucky soul?... :aargh4:

[MalcQV]

Just collected my car (Approved used) in January from Smith Knight Fay in Bolton.

While I am happy with the car and the whole purchasing experience, I find that trying to speak about a question I have to somebody knowledgeable After Sale (now that they've got my money... :Blush:) is virtually impossible. I have emailed them once, and then phoned four times (over 5 days) only to get promises that I will be contacted soon.... :banghead: yeah, you wait... :p

(While this can be easily explained by a ruthless team of economists and psychologists...) I wonder if this is the norm with VW dealerships, as I find the way they treat customers After Sale a real shame for the brand...

Any similar experiences (name and shame!), or am I just a lonely poor unlucky soul?... :aargh4:

I have bought parts and had maintenance/service work done by SKF in Bolton, my experiences were different to yours. http://www.windowsguide.org/forum/images/smilies/hmmm.gif

[Bertiec]

Stafford - perfect, couldnt get any better...well unless they were closer

Docklands - Okish. A bit slow. I had a steering angle sensor issue. I hadn't been able to reset via VAGCOM so was pretty confident it needed replacing. They dissed VAGCOM a bit when I explained what I had done, and that their expensive systems would find the issue. I understand they need to do diagnostics, but I dropped it off at 7:30am and come 4pm I had been told that the steering angle sensor error was showing. They were going to try and reset it the following day (even though its a quick 10min job that would be done while still connected). Come midday next day finally got hold of them. 'The steering angle won't reset' and now we can't get the part until tomorrow.

Dulwich - The worst EVER. My alternator went presumably. Who knows tbh as they told me £400 and fixed it. I had requested a bill breakdown before agreeing. I get the car back and I see the bill. It includes ptensioner, etc that had been replaced just weeks before. I asked why they had been replaced. They said 'we do that at the time anyway'. Honest mistake maybe?!? NO, I had spoken to them at length about how they and the cambelt had been done weeks before, yet they still replace stuff and charge. They said I would have to pay as I didn't have the cambelt/tensioner bill on me. I got louder in front of customers, and this guy comes out from the back and says 'I'll rip the FXXXXXX parts outta your car if you don't want them.' Class, real class Dulwich.

I had the same thing with an astra from a main dealer after he failed to correct a fault with my heater rear widow saying glass was not covered. I was threatened that the "boys" from out back would come and throw me out. I offered to stand and let them. They then backed down as the guy with me is a pc. Next week end I stould out side for 4 hrs on a saturday morning pointing the fault out to customers. Th director was called and I got my window replaced. The regime has since changed and I have the best service pos since. If he had threghtened to rip my parts out I would have ripped his out there and then.

[youngfairy]

Is is really worth using a main dealer? I have a 1.4 Polo Sport FSI 2006 and was told my my local dealer that I need over £1000 worth of work doing after only buying the car 6 months ago, none of the work is covered under the warranty! At 4 years old should I save myself the money and go to a local garage instead?
Also the car has just developed a stalling issue which it has never done before, so i'll have to add that to the bill.

Advice please.

[paulthefox]

what work needs done according to vw,sometimes i do think that they "do things" to people cars just to drum up business just my thoughts:beerchug:
paul