VW main dealers on here?

[frank rabbets]

I've been badly done. Had codes on dash then flat battery so put new battery on from vw supplier. Codes still there so took to main dealer. He said it needed a new Air Bag module fitted at £925 and battery was not the right one. Toe to toe argument and they told me to take the car elsewhere. I couldn't really as braking system was compromised. So ended up paying £1420 for new battery and module. I wrote to them.
1 . New battery I fitted was correct.
2. Old battery was still under warranty, which they denied at the time.
3.It was possible to fit the module without even thinking about the battery.
Had an instant phonecall full of apologies and bullshit but looks like I'll get the battery money back.

Here's the thing. I emailed 3 other vw main dealers and they all quoted £725 for replacing module. Have my vw garage ripped me off again? I thought they all had to work to a dealer price?

 

[karl2000]

Thats terrible. I would have thought a job like that would have a standard book time of X hours. Does your bill say how many hours? Maybe the standard book times are online if you dig deep enough.....

Just out of interest - how old is the car that it needed a new airbag module?

 

[frank rabbets]

7 years old. Failure resulted in air bag light, no hold assist, no "handbrake", no anti collision radar.

The module and battery were priced on the receipt but then just "Labour £460". The module has a plug and 3 screws. Other VW main dealers quoted £30-£90 for fitting and coding a battery for my reg no.

They are already sorry they picked on me, I'm old but kick like a mule.

 

[Towpack]

7 years old. Failure resulted in air bag light, no hold assist, no "handbrake", no anti collision radar.

I'll never moan about the 80 handbrake again.

 

[mettisse]

I read this with interest, it’s because I use several independent mechanics, I have a mechanic who I’ve used for over 30 years for our Comercials HGV and vans, I have another I use for diesel problems and servicing on our fiesta and similar, I have another who is mainly a Land Rover mechanic for the 4x4s and Duchess’ Merc ( and another extra special secret one for the Bruiser, Merlin) why? For one they are all ultra reliable, and secondly very honest, their work has never been questionable, I originally “acquired“ them by asking around and actually speaking with them. I am no mechanic but I ain’t stupid, and as with any “service” you need a keen sense of smell to detect Bullsxxxxx. I’ve never detected any with “my guys” There is downside though, patience is needed as these guys are busy, I may have to wait for their services, however as they know that I “play the game” that is I don’t harass them for pointless things, so that in an emergency, they have never let me down. This may take time in finding your local guys, but, it’s worth the effort.
I last had dealings with a main dealer in 1995, it was about a service on my new Discovery, after asking to speak with the General manager and suggesting it wouldn’t be a good advert in the off road press, satisfaction followed which included an apology, big bouquet and a box of chocolates, however I ain’t short of any of those, All I wanted was what I’d paid for, ( BTW they ain’t there now, they must have pressed their own self destruct button)
best regards to all, Bill Westley

 

[frank rabbets]

I have an equally reliable VW independent but they don't have the diagnostics that the main dealer has. I've never had to take my cars to a garage until all this electronic stuff came out. I go to my independent for MOTs. They turned the air bag light off for the test and said it would pass the air bag light test as long as it did stay on during that part of the test which it didn't. Not many MOT places could have done that. If I have to go to my main dealer again I'll get competitive quotes before allowing them to do the work. Plenty of other VW dealers around.

 

[Towpack]

Things were bad enough when most vehicles used OBD2 diagnostics. When manufacturers start locking down their ECU's and usiing bespoke software/hardware they've got you by the short and curlys whichis just what they want IMO.

 

[karl2000]

If you're into your computers, sometimes auto-epc.org - [Leaving Land Cruiser Club] can help with diagnostics.

 

[madmanmart]

I have an equally reliable VW independent but they don't have the diagnostics that the main dealer has. I've never had to take my cars to a garage until all this electronic stuff came out. I go to my independent for MOTs. They turned the air bag light off for the test and said it would pass the air bag light test as long as it did stay on during that part of the test which it didn't. Not many MOT places could have done that. If I have to go to my main dealer again I'll get competitive quotes before allowing them to do the work. Plenty of other VW dealers around.

I’ve been quite into VWs for a while and I have the full Vagcom diagnostics with coding capabilities (same as dealer) so I’m a little confused as to how a specialist independent wouldn’t have it. It cost just under £1k.

It definitely sounds like the MD has had your pants down a little tbh.

 

[Tractionman]

Frank, sorry to hear that, a not so insignificant amount there. You could always phone up as a prospective customer to ask what their hourly rates are, without giving your name or the game away.
Their hourly rate should be the same whether they are changing a wheel or replacing an engine ?