2 year Service... how much??

[rivarama]

I just called my local Volvo dealer to get my 2019 T5 inscription serviced.

They quoted me £600 for it, which I find shocking. The car is 11k miles, and was only driven 4K miles since the last service in March last year. I was told it’s because it is the 2 year major service (or 36k miles).

Given that it’s more than what I pay to get my Ferrari serviced, and that this car isn’t really driven much (3-4K a year as it’s aime of 6 cars in our household), I am considering going to kwik-fit or halfords - both quoting me around £250 for the equivalent service (no idea whether the service parts are same as boesch oem). Am I nuts?

Alternatively- I could just get them to do a minor service for £300... but would they refuse to reset the service schedule light then?? Claiming I haven’t done the recommended service?

Thanks for your advice

[Kev0607]

I just called my local Volvo dealer to get my 2019 T5 inscription serviced.

They quoted me £600 for it, which I find shocking. The car is 11k miles, and was only driven 4K miles since the last service in March last year. I was told it’s because it is the 2 year major service (or 36k miles).

Given that it’s more than what I pay to get my Ferrari serviced, and that this car isn’t really driven much (3-4K a year as it’s aime of 6 cars in our household), I am considering going to kwik-fit or halfords - both quoting me around £250 for the equivalent service (no idea whether the service parts are same as boesch oem). Am I nuts?

Alternatively- I could just get them to do a minor service for £300... but would they refuse to reset the service schedule light then?? Claiming I haven’t done the recommended service?

Thanks for your advice

In the nicest way possible, Halfords or Kwik Fit haven't got a clue how to service cars & they really are the last place I'd consider bringing my car to - So yes, that is a nuts idea! They won't use the right oil & claim to be experts... they don't even know how to put bulbs in. There's some good Halfords branches out there with staff that know what they're doing, but some are just clueless.

My Brother bought a bulb in a Halfords branch for his Range Rover & they asked him when he was paying if he'd like the bulb fitted for an extra £5. He thought that seemed reasonable, so agreed for them to do it. My Brother ended up showing the "mechanic" how to fit the bulb & basically did it himself. They still wanted to charge him £5 though, but he said why should he pay it when the chap that come out didn't have a clue. They agreed & didn't charge him for fitment. So would I let them service my car? Not a chance.

You can get a minor ("essential service") as they call it done at Volvo, based on the miles done since its last one & they'll reset the service light no problem... this wouldn't cost as much as a major service. I wouldn't dream of bringing it to Halfords or Kwik Fit.

Dealerships will be on the dearer end of the spectrum for servicing, but they can be competitive too. Another option is find an independent Volvo garage to service the car, as their labour charges are much less. Using a Volvo Specialist won't affect your warranty & they use genuine parts.

Personally, I'd either find a local Volvo Specialist & get them to do the work. Or, ask the dealership to do a minor/essential service for a fraction of what you've been quoted. The minor service literally is an oil & oil filter change, so don't be expecting all the other filters to be replaced.

[js90]

Personally, I'd be going to a main dealer with a car that's still in warranty. Check with other dealers though. A certain dealer that occasionally pops up on this forum offers the following prices for a 2 year service:

V40
£430

V60/S60
£510

XC60/XC70/XC90
£510

Assuming max 2L engine. And a 2019 T5 would be 2L

[DSK]

I never get why people whinge about driving a few thousand miles and thinking servicing is insignificant. But, I'd not use a dealer as most are con artists and charge you lots for doing sweet f**k all. Find a local independent Volvo specialist, ideally recommended by the forum and get what's required done at a more sensible price. Even a great mechanic that's not a Volvo specialist will get it all done properly but, if you have a warranty, I'd want to the them no wiggle in case you need to claim.

I have a couple of vehicles that pretty much only got to the MOT station and back annually and yet, I always spend a few hundred quid in parts alone and give them a MAJOR service whether they need it or not.

[Kev0607]

I also don't get why people winge at the cost of servicing when they're driving an expensive car, loaded with electronics & expensive parts.

If you can't afford to service/maintain it, don't buy it. Do your research first.

If you want a cheap runaround that you can run on a shoe string, then don't buy a prestige car. Simple.

[XC90Mk1]

I think the thing to remember is that you will get free software updates which halford won’t give you (or be able to) and will probably receive a good service and potentially good will from Volvo in future if something goes well outside of warranty).

I think also that’s been kind to Halfords and quick fit who as pointed out genuinely don’t have a clue!

I am interested in your Ferrari experience as that’s something I too consider. I really like the 348 but am out of by the valve stem issues, the 355 seems very costly for belts and such like and the 360 does seem to be where the smart money is however they have rocketed in value and are inaccessible now.

Which one do you own and how have you found running it?

[rivarama]

I also don't get why people winge at the cost of servicing when they're driving an expensive car, loaded with electronics & expensive parts.

If you can't afford to service/maintain it, don't buy it. Do your research first.

If you want a cheap runaround that you can run on a shoe string, then don't buy a prestige car. Simple.

Very helpful comment - thanks for you invaluable input!

[js90]

Very helpful comment - thanks for you invaluable input!

BEEP BEEP BEEP

Sarcasm alert!

BEEP BEEP BEEP

[rivarama]

I think the thing to remember is that you will get free software updates which halford won’t give you (or be able to) and will probably receive a good service and potentially good will from Volvo in future if something goes well outside of warranty).

I think also that’s been kind to Halfords and quick fit who as pointed out genuinely don’t have a clue!

I am interested in your Ferrari experience as that’s something I too consider. I really like the 348 but am out of by the valve stem issues, the 355 seems very costly for belts and such like and the 360 does seem to be where the smart money is however they have rocketed in value and are inaccessible now.

Which one do you own and how have you found running it?

As far as Ferrari is concerned, I own an F430 F1 and a 550 maranello. They are both brilliant depending what you’re looking for.

I actually think that sportscar smart money is with Ferrari at the moment. Porsche , esp classics have gone mental. For the price of a 993 4S you get a Ferrari 550 which will destroy the 993 on every single segment. Diff league. 911T are now flirting w 100k which is preposterous. That will get destroyed by a 348 which is 1/2 the money (obviously not L4L car or generation but you get my drift)

Prices for well sorted examples avg mileage.
V8
348 - £45-50k
355 - £60-70k for manuals less F1
360 - £60k for manuals (add 10k if you want red)
430 - £70k
458 - £120k

V12
550 - £80k bullet proof
456 - £50k for manuals not v reliable
612 - £55-60k more exp to run
599 - £85-90k

348/355/550 belt service prices aren’t bad. Belts need to be done every 3 years and add £1k to the price of the service. Engines don’t need to be dropped anymore... at least not at respected indies that aren’t there to bleed their customers dry.
To the point made above I pay £600 for the annual on the 430 / 900 on the 550. Add £300 to that for the major every 3 years

[Kev0607]

Very helpful comment - thanks for you invaluable input!

You're welcome. The truth is sower. :buttkiss:

You own two Ferrari's & are complaining about how much it is to service your Volvo... really? :rolleyes:

The car should be serviced annually, regardless of the miles you've done. As it sounds like the car may still be under warranty, the servicing aspect is even more important.

I did give you some advice (quoted below), but clearly you didn't read it.

In the nicest way possible, Halfords or Kwik Fit haven't got a clue how to service cars & they really are the last place I'd consider bringing my car to - So yes, that is a nuts idea! They won't use the right oil & claim to be experts... they don't even know how to put bulbs in. There's some good Halfords branches out there with staff that know what they're doing, but some are just clueless.

My Brother bought a bulb in a Halfords branch for his Range Rover & they asked him when he was paying if he'd like the bulb fitted for an extra £5. He thought that seemed reasonable, so agreed for them to do it. My Brother ended up showing the "mechanic" how to fit the bulb & basically did it himself. They still wanted to charge him £5 though, but he said why should he pay it when the chap that come out didn't have a clue. They agreed & didn't charge him for fitment. So would I let them service my car? Not a chance.

You can get a minor ("essential service") as they call it done at Volvo, based on the miles done since its last one & they'll reset the service light no problem... this wouldn't cost as much as a major service. I wouldn't dream of bringing it to Halfords or Kwik Fit.

Dealerships will be on the dearer end of the spectrum for servicing, but they can be competitive too. Another option is find an independent Volvo garage to service the car, as their labour charges are much less. Using a Volvo Specialist won't affect your warranty & they use genuine parts.

Personally, I'd either find a local Volvo Specialist & get them to do the work. Or, ask the dealership to do a minor/essential service for a fraction of what you've been quoted. The minor service literally is an oil & oil filter change, so don't be expecting all the other filters to be replaced.

I hope you don't bring your Ferrari's to Halfords or Kwik Fit for servicing. :speechless-smiley-5:rolleyes:

[rivarama]

Thank you

[DaveNP]

Have to admit I'm with Kev 0607 on this, you own 2 Ferraris worth £150k a T5 worth £30k which you hardly use 3 other cars yet you want to quibble over servicing and think Halfords or Kwikfit would be a good place to go?

But if the Ferrari service is so cheap then why not take the T5 there?

[Prad0r]

As far as I know Volvo servicing cost is comparable with German marques of similar quality.
My ropey old 62 plate Insignia used to cost me 200/400 for minor/major at a main dealer. Yes a 50% increase with Volvo but, subjectively to me anyway, way more than 50% more car.

[Kev0607]

As far as I know Volvo servicing cost is comparable with German marques of similar quality.
My ropey old 62 plate Insignia used to cost me 200/400 for minor/major at a main dealer. Yes a 50% increase with Volvo but, subjectively to me anyway, way more than 50% more car.

Yep...

Prestige car = prestige prices.

[rivarama]

That’s probably where my original assumption was wrong when we went out to buy a 5th car to replace a Range Rover that we barely used, as we didn’t think of volvo as prestige car but more like a middle of the road reliable work horse like VW.

Thanks for the recommendation on exploring the specialist network, I didn’t expect there’d be so many around the country... I guess that’s an interesting tell tale of the market the main dealers created taking the P*** with their pricing structure.

For what it’s worth, I have found a well respected local Volvo Specialist that quoted me £275 for the 2 year major, with all Volvo parts and diagnostic tool. Looking at the Google review (4.95) I am safer going there than my local Volvo dealer (3.25).

[rivarama]

But if the Ferrari service is so cheap then why not take the T5 there?

Ok, I’ll bite....

If I insulted you by asking whether there were alternatives to paying £600 for an oil change, air/oil filter changes, etc... I feel sorry for you.

£600 does not look like good value to me (and to the apparently healthy Indy network), and I guess my approach to smart money in life has helped me get to a point where I can afford 2 Ferrari and a Porsche in addition to 2 daily driver.

Your assumption that people who can afford prestige cars (not talking Volvo here), are happy to **** money away, is as idiotic as your comment.

[Zebster]

I just called my local Volvo dealer to get my 2019 T5 inscription serviced.

They quoted me £600 for it, which I find shocking. The car is 11k miles, and was only driven 4K miles since the last service in March last year. I was told it’s because it is the 2 year major service (or 36k miles).

Given that it’s more than what I pay to get my Ferrari serviced, and that this car isn’t really driven much (3-4K a year as it’s aime of 6 cars in our household), I am considering going to kwik-fit or halfords - both quoting me around £250 for the equivalent service (no idea whether the service parts are same as boesch oem). Am I nuts?

Alternatively- I could just get them to do a minor service for £300... but would they refuse to reset the service schedule light then?? Claiming I haven’t done the recommended service?

Thanks for your advice
I'd want a relatively new car to be serviced by Volvo. I have a full Volvo service history on my much older example. Like you I thought it was something of an extravagance to pay the full price for a service having done so few miles in lockdown and so my local dealer offered me an 'essential' service for only £179 (which was actually cheaper than the service on my ride-on mower conducted the same week). For that I got an oil and filter change, software updates, health check and the service booked stamped exactly the same as if I'd paid the full whack (about £370 iirc). Worth asking your local dealer about?

[XC90Mk1]

As far as Ferrari is concerned, I own an F430 F1 and a 550 maranello. They are both brilliant depending what you’re looking for.

I actually think that sportscar smart money is with Ferrari at the moment. Porsche , esp classics have gone mental. For the price of a 993 4S you get a Ferrari 550 which will destroy the 993 on every single segment. Diff league. 911T are now flirting w 100k which is preposterous. That will get destroyed by a 348 which is 1/2 the money (obviously not L4L car or generation but you get my drift)

Prices for well sorted examples avg mileage.
V8
348 - £45-50k
355 - £60-70k for manuals less F1
360 - £60k for manuals (add 10k if you want red)
430 - £70k
458 - £120k

V12
550 - £80k bullet proof
456 - £50k for manuals not v reliable
612 - £55-60k more exp to run
599 - £85-90k

348/355/550 belt service prices aren’t bad. Belts need to be done every 3 years and add £1k to the price of the service. Engines don’t need to be dropped anymore... at least not at respected indies that aren’t there to bleed their customers dry.
To the point made above I pay £600 for the annual on the 430 / 900 on the 550. Add £300 to that for the major every 3 years

Thank you for the reply, that’s really informative! I can still remember a time when the 360s were half that price.

I do still wonder about the dreaded 996 Porsche. The IMs bearing issues seem very easy to clear up (and don’t occur on the turbo) and the prices for then is so low!

I wonder if the 996 will in fact pale into insignificance or prove to be a shrewd buy??

That’s a nice fleet of cars you have by the way, and well done on getting the 2 year service to £275!

[big square car]

£600 pounds sounds excessive to me but maybe that's London prices. For my 2018 V90 D4 the second service was £424 last July, done by main dealers Agnew (SMW), Belfast. No way would I let Halfords or Kwik fit near it (Except to change a tyre maybe!). Maybe you should shop around, there must be loads of indies and main dealers in London/ SE

[js90]

Also may be worth noting that recent price increases may be due to brexit inflation.

[100K+]

When I bought my V70 AWD R in 2008 I bought a volvo 2 year extended warranty. The car had full VDSH. I could have taken the car to an indi for service but due to the complex nature of the car ( 4C suspension + AWD system ) I opted to get the car dealer serviced. I'm so so glad I did. Under warranty the car received new bevel gear, clutch, DMF, x2 4C shockers, and various electrical components. I may have got those repairs done under the warranty if I had gone indi servicing, but it was so much easier having the dealership "going into bat" for me with Volvo..
Once the warranty expired I began serving my car, if you don't wish to, or prefer others to do it for you, an indi would be a good choice.
Your car sounds as if its AWD, perhaps its not, but one "malfunction" will perhaps make you wish you had the car Volvo serviced. The dealership looked after me, which I don't believe they would have done if the car was not FULLY serviced within the dealer network.
So.... how lucky do you feel....?????

My 2d...

Cheers Bob

[Kev0607]

That’s probably where my original assumption was wrong when we went out to buy a 5th car to replace a Range Rover that we barely used, as we didn’t think of volvo as prestige car but more like a middle of the road reliable work horse like VW.

Thanks for the recommendation on exploring the specialist network, I didn’t expect there’d be so many around the country... I guess that’s an interesting tell tale of the market the main dealers created taking the P*** with their pricing structure.

For what it’s worth, I have found a well respected local Volvo Specialist that quoted me £275 for the 2 year major, with all Volvo parts and diagnostic tool. Looking at the Google review (4.95) I am safer going there than my local Volvo dealer (3.25).

Volvo's are easily just as expensive to run/maintain as German rivals like BMW & Mercedes. Maybe not quite as expensive now that I think of it, but I wouldn't think there's a lot in the difference either.

Yes, there's plenty of Volvo independent garages around that are usually far cheaper than the dealership. Once you find a good one, stick with them for future servicing/repairs would be my advice.

£275 is very reasonable for a major service. You could get that figure down even more if you told them to an "essential"/minor service, taking into account that the car didn't do big miles in the last year.

[Whippy]

Your paying for the dealership, the glass, the concrete, the staff, the equipment, the investment, the payments to Volvo, the staff training, the coffee, Tracey on the front desk. All needs paying for, what you get in return is latest equipment, software, training etc plus goodwill in the future. For a new car it's essential, after that it's personal choice.

[FunkyMelon]

Personally I'm with the OP here. The fact you can service a bloody Ferrari for pretty much the same cost as a Volvo shows how mental Volvo has become as a brand.


I've had Volvo's most of my life and have a master tech within my family at a main Volvo dealer, he's worked 30+ years between my 2 local dealerships - Some of the stories I get from him.....

Unless you're on PCP/finance and you're forced to get it maintained at a main dealer as apart of the finance agreement, just don't bother.

I take my car there because I get 'family' rates which brings the price of parts to cost price to Volvo + 5% and labour rates in line with an indi garage and even then, I'll only book it in if he is personally working on it, or overseeing the work they do.

A lot of their 'techs' are actually ex quick fit and make no end of mistakes, yet they still charge £152 per hour in labour and have a huge turn around of 'techs'. If you think you're getting value for money because of 'experienced people' working on your car, think again.

Regarding paying for quality parts etc - On the pre 90's Volvo's yes, fair point but most pre 'Geely ownership' Volvos are essentially a Ford Focus in a frock with most of their parts stamped FordMoCo, so you're not getting 'quality' there, just a heavily inflated 'Volvo price, for a Ford part.

Find a good local Volvo specialist and use them, they're usually setup by ex master techs and generally do know the cars well.

Only use the main dealer for software or if you need a VIDA/DICE system to find out what's wrong.

[Kev0607]

Personally I'm with the OP here. The fact you can service a bloody Ferrari for pretty much the same cost as a Volvo shows how mental Volvo has become as a brand.


I've had Volvo's most of my life and have a master tech within my family at a main Volvo dealer, he's worked 30+ years between my 2 local dealerships - Some of the stories I get from him.....

Unless you're on PCP/finance and you're forced to get it maintained at a main dealer as apart of the finance agreement, just don't bother.

I take my car there because I get 'family' rates which brings the price of parts to cost price to Volvo + 5% and labour rates in line with an indi garage and even then, I'll only book it in if he is personally working on it, or overseeing the work they do.

A lot of their 'techs' are actually ex quick fit and make no end of mistakes, yet they still charge £152 per hour in labour and have a huge turn around of 'techs'. If you think you're getting value for money because of 'experienced people' working on your car, think again.

Regarding paying for quality parts etc - On the pre 90's Volvo's yes, fair point but most pre 'Geely ownership' Volvos are essentially a Ford Focus in a frock with most of their parts stamped FordMoCo, so you're not getting 'quality' there, just a heavily inflated 'Volvo price, for a Ford part.

Find a good local Volvo specialist and use them, they're usually setup by ex master techs and generally do know the cars well.

Only use the main dealer for software or if you need a VIDA/DICE system to find out what's wrong.

Any reputable specialist will have VIDA.

[Nick6262]

That’s probably where my original assumption was wrong when we went out to buy a 5th car to replace a Range Rover that we barely used, as we didn’t think of volvo as prestige car but more like a middle of the road reliable work horse like VW.

Thanks for the recommendation on exploring the specialist network, I didn’t expect there’d be so many around the country... I guess that’s an interesting tell tale of the market the main dealers created taking the P*** with their pricing structure.

For what it’s worth, I have found a well respected local Volvo Specialist that quoted me £275 for the 2 year major, with all Volvo parts and diagnostic tool. Looking at the Google review (4.95) I am safer going there than my local Volvo dealer (3.25).

bit late to this thread, but what indie in London did you find? I'm on the look out for one.

[Clan]

As far as Ferrari is concerned, I own an F430 F1 and a 550 maranello. They are both brilliant depending what you’re looking for.

I actually think that sportscar smart money is with Ferrari at the moment. Porsche , esp classics have gone mental. For the price of a 993 4S you get a Ferrari 550 which will destroy the 993 on every single segment. Diff league. 911T are now flirting w 100k which is preposterous. That will get destroyed by a 348 which is 1/2 the money (obviously not L4L car or generation but you get my drift)

Prices for well sorted examples avg mileage.
V8
348 - £45-50k
355 - £60-70k for manuals less F1
360 - £60k for manuals (add 10k if you want red)
430 - £70k
458 - £120k

V12
550 - £80k bullet proof
456 - £50k for manuals not v reliable
612 - £55-60k more exp to run
599 - £85-90k

348/355/550 belt service prices aren’t bad. Belts need to be done every 3 years and add £1k to the price of the service. Engines don’t need to be dropped anymore... at least not at respected indies that aren’t there to bleed their customers dry.
To the point made above I pay £600 for the annual on the 430 / 900 on the 550. Add £300 to that for the major every 3 years


I have said on here many times , that the new software driven volvo is probably more complex than a Ferrari now , and would you take your Ferrari to someone who hasn't been trained to do the necessary work ....
well here we DO have a Ferrari owner . who does do the right thing with his Ferrari but wont with his volvo !
a strange world we live in ...

you do need to negotiate that price down a bit though ... the difference between the 18000 and 36000 service is a fuel filter and Air filter that's all and dont forget the whole car's software gets all the updates and you get breakdown cover all for free....

[Jsayers]

I just called my local Volvo dealer to get my 2019 T5 inscription serviced.

They quoted me £600 for it, which I find shocking. The car is 11k miles, and was only driven 4K miles since the last service in March last year. I was told it’s because it is the 2 year major service (or 36k miles).

Given that it’s more than what I pay to get my Ferrari serviced, and that this car isn’t really driven much (3-4K a year as it’s aime of 6 cars in our household), I am considering going to kwik-fit or halfords - both quoting me around £250 for the equivalent service (no idea whether the service parts are same as boesch oem). Am I nuts?

Alternatively- I could just get them to do a minor service for £300... but would they refuse to reset the service schedule light then?? Claiming I haven’t done the recommended service?

Thanks for your advice

If you are being quoted £600 for a single service, then I am definitely buying the 3 year service package offered for £599 when I get my new car later this year. Why more people don’t look ahead when purchasing, I will never know.

[techwatcher]

If you are being quoted £600 for a single service, then I am definitely buying the 3 year service package offered for £599 when I get my new car later this year. Why more people don’t look ahead when purchasing, I will never know.

The servicing deal is an excellent deal but is isn't always available. It wasn't available when I bought my XC60 in September last year. However in January the salesman who sold me the car called to offer three services for £399. Given the normal cost of the first three services would be close to £1100 the decision wasn't exactly a hard one.