Car servicing costs are TOO damn high!

I've probably kvetched about this before, but I just felt sick listening to the guy from halfords quote me the following:

£235 for a full service - Oil change, filter, air filter, pollen filter, transmission oil, brake fluid, steering fluid, sparkies, cables, etc, the whole shebang.

plus

£111 for a new tire (just one!) includes balancing and disposal.

Why the hell is it so expensive???  What could possibly be that much?  I bought 2 litres of synthetic last year myself for £15!

I long for the days of going to jiffy lube or mineke and just paying $25 for an oil change, maybe $50 max for a "service"  (I still like to call it a tune-up).

The tires I can sort of understand, most of them are imported so that's a bulk of the cost.  Still makes me sick though...

Geez - that's ridiculous.  I would stay far away from Halfords if I were you - definitely a rip off.  See if you can find a small local garage or mobile mechanic.  Don't know where you are but my husband (a mobile mechanic) charges about £100 for an oil change + servicing!

My DH uses a guy named John in Hailsham, East Sussex.  He comes to our house and drives the car to his shop, we live in Knatts Valley.....he does the full service, MOT, and this year had to replace a tire, which was brand new but when some guy ran me off the road I hit a rock and it sliced the sidewall........and he put petrol in the car all for £345.00.....we don't have to pay him right away but always try to get it paid asap......he has been doing my DH's cars for the last 12 years.......very friendly guy also......to me the money is worth it for the service he gives.....he also fixed the bumper of the car that got messed up when my DH wrecked the car last year.....he doesn't drive anymore btw...   

I agree find a local garage.  We got the MOT done, servicing and few other bits and pieces for under 200.

We also bought some engine clean and spark plugs and he put them in as well.

Halfords seems insane!

I am going to miss the jiffy lubes.

The secret is definitely finding a local guy to do the work. The big shops thrive off ripping people off who don't have a friendly mechanic. I used to drive from Nottingham to Bromley to get my car serviced by my uncle, the petrol costs were worth it not to be ripped off by halfords.

The one time I went to them cause of god awful noises coming from my engine they took it in, then brought it back out and sent me down the road to the guy that did electrical work cause it was an electrical problem. They guy opened the bonnet, took one look and called me over saying electrical problem huh? I looked in to see my fan belt absolutely shredded and hanging on by mere threads. I had to laugh. 2nd dude definitely got my business after that if I couldn't make it to my uncles.

Hi,

Servicing and running costs depend on the car itself - brand and model.

Also the word 'Servicing' is bit of a misnomer in this thread so far. Changing the oil & oil filter isn't anywhere near a proper service.

£235 for that full service quoted is actually about right from one of the major chains offering similar universal full services on cars. As an example there, have you actually any idea how long it actually takes to drain and re-fill transmission oil?!  it's not a 20 minute job ! $50 or perhaps £35 for a full service you mention is probably the rates from the 1970's! - a full service in addition to what Halfords and others will quote you for will also include things like multiple checks of fanbelts, any clearances checking, exhaust examination, brakes examination, refilling of liquids - anti freeze, windshield cleaning etc etc.

I know some car owners who'd love to pay as little as £235 for a full service on their cars! and it's the same for tyres. It all depends on quality and the sizing you want.

'why it is so expensive' and 'what could possibly be so high' - these two statements go on a higher level. Commercial property, commercial rates and taxes and other associated 'business' costs are extremely high in the UK, these are reflected in the prices you see for goods and services. The UK's laws are very much biased for the consumer and the Business owner/person pays significantly more for everything, because they're a 'business'. Costs need to be covered and in many cases, there's also a little thing called making a profit in order to survive and put food and shelter over their families heads each day - this little factor is almost usually conveniently forgotten in many threads on forums and when talking to people etc. As to the 'reason' what could possibly be so high, then again on a higher level, the UK's pricing structure is geared higher than the US because pricing could be set at that level. It's not news anymore, but the UK's population lived on the 'buy now pay later' way of thinking, and thus stuck a lot on credit cards and borrowing. The 'price' of the goods wasn't such an important factor anymore. Thus, the manufacturers of everything you can obtain in the UK, have higher pricing to those businesses importing the goods compared to say ..  the US. The USA enjoys the lowest pricing for goods at manufacturer level because of factors such as demand, US Dollar Import/Export pricing, shipping costs and different beauracratic (sp) red tape.

If you think of the above, for pretty much everything you purchase in the UK, it'll help give you a bit more knowledge into just why things are the way they are in the UK.

Cheers, DtM! West London & Slough UK!

mm, Dennis is right, jiffy lube wanted $200 to change out the transmission fluid on my dodge neon. I missed that part.

Seems like a business opportunity for someone.
Demand exceeds supply=opportunity.

£235 for that full service quoted is actually about right from one of the major chains offering similar universal full services on cars. As an example there, have you actually any idea how long it actually takes to drain and re-fill transmission oil?!  it's not a 20 minute job ! $50 or perhaps £35 for a full service you mention is probably the rates from the 1970's! - a full service in addition to what Halfords and others will quote you for will also include things like multiple checks of fanbelts, any clearances checking, exhaust examination, brakes examination, refilling of liquids - anti freeze, windshield cleaning etc etc.

The prices he quoted were about what I payed in the states and it usually took 30 minutes to an hour. I was there five years ago--not in the 1970s. I never had this whole take most of the day and charge hundreds that I have here.  I have a heart attack every time I do anything on my car here--and I have a good local mechanic like others were saying.  Even paying £100 seems high to me.  And I also got all those extra bits you mentioned in the full service.  I don't remember it going above $65 for a full service that did pretty much everything.

(its greener on the other side)
I pay £24.24 for an oil change on my Mazda at the local Mazda dealership.

(its greener on the other side)
I pay £24.24 for an oil change on my Mazda at the local Mazda dealership.

That sounds similar to the price of an oil change in the US.

Big Garages are raping everybody at the moment, they have to pay for high overhead costs.

In the Livingston area near Edinburgh where I work, I use a one man garage Muriestonautos (www.muriestonautos.net) the chap that runs it is very popular, does a good job for a decent honest price with everything that needs done explained fully before going ahead.

Before I found out about MA, I used to go to the Ford dealer and I got told I needed a new power steering pump (ford focus 1999) because it was leaking and it would cost £500!. When I went to MA I was told there's nothing wrong with the pump, apparently they tend to 'sweat' a wee bit and fluid levels checked out normal. A wee wipe down was all it needed and saved 500 quid! So be warned big Garages = £££. p.s. MA fit tyres as well (17x40) = £65

Anyone have a good "one man shop" to recommend in Manchester area??  Always nice to have handy

So I drops it off this morning and I just get a phone call telling me the following:

Yes, theres the major service and the tire, BUT, guess what we also found the following:

another tire is bald (don't see how, it's only about 2 yrs old), front drivers tire has gouges in it from rubbing against tire (that'll be DW), tracker ends need replacing (apparently those help with the balance and are worn away), and miraculously they found a broken brake lamp.  It's amazing how many times they manage to find a broken bulb in this car.

After initially being told £335 for the work, it's now gone up to £590 for everything i told him to do (told him to forget about the other tires and brake lamp for now I'll do it later).  Managed to get it down to £530 in the end, but still feeling a bit sick from it.

......After initially being told £335 for the work, it's now gone up to £590 for everything i told him to do (told him to forget about the other tires and brake lamp for now I'll do it later).  Managed to get it down to £530 in the end, but still feeling a bit sick from it.

You could have bought a decent secondhand car from auction for that price