Dilemma - R reg 940 MOT failure - advice please..

[bgarston]

Originally Posted by Sally Cavanagh

Volvo specialist garage

Out of interest which garage is this? The nearest I can think of in Bristol other than a main dealer is Elite Automotive Services in Bedminster. After that, the next nearest non franchised dealer I guess is Shipham Motor Company in North Somerset and then after that Fishers Volvo in Gloucester. I ask as I need some work doing on my 940 and whilst I am fairly handy it's my daily and I simply don't have time to get it all done.

[TonyS9]

Basically all normal service/wear items that apply to any car + a repair on the ABS and a sticky caliper/slider pin. The car has provided many miles for that, and its unusal to need all brakes done at the same time. You can't count normal service items towards a cars demise.

£1300 labour and other markup is definately seriously good money, even for a old car that needs a experienced hand to be efficient.
Personally I don't agree with parts markups at 50-75% by mechanics, they do it because they can and to take the bad look of exhorbidant labour+overhead charges.

[aardvarkash10]

Originally Posted by TonyS9

Basically all normal service/wear items that apply to any car + a repair on the ABS and a sticky caliper/slider pin. The car has provided many miles for that, and its unusal to need all brakes done at the same time. You can't count normal service items towards a cars demise.

£1300 labour and other markup is definately seriously good money, even for a old car that needs a experienced hand to be efficient.
Personally I don't agree with parts markups at 50-75% by mechanics, they do it because they can and to take the bad look of exhorbidant labour+overhead charges.

I presume you disagree with all retail markup and the capitalist model in general then.

Welkom to The Soviet Republik of Volvo!

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by aardvarkash10

I presume you disagree with all retail markup and the capitalist model in general then.

Welkom to The Soviet Republik of Volvo!

"Sweden - the last Soviet Country!" - direct quote recently from a Swedish friend living in Sweden.

What i've always known on price mark up on parts is the customer pays the RRP, the mechanic/garage buys at RRP less a previously agreed discount. As has already been mentioned, the likes of ECP, GSF etc tend to over-inflate prices to start then give humumgous discounts. Usually that works out the parts are more or less trade price normally but if the customer gets charged RRP according to the price list (after the over-inflation) they tend to get the raging hump. Most customers don't mind shelling out a bit in profit to garages, after all most of them understand certain overheads are involved but it's like my example above of £49.99, £99.99 and £22.76 - if the mech bought it at £22/76 and sold it for £49.99, the customer would probably think "Ouch!" He's got to make some profit somewhere thogh".

[TonyS9]

Originally Posted by aardvarkash10

I presume you disagree with all retail markup and the capitalist model in general then.

Welkom to The Soviet Republik of Volvo!

How it works in a capitalist society is I prove you wrong by competing with you, however there have always been too few mechanics for that to really happen.

I'm an Engineer, costing is in my blood, there is little value in getting parts for your customers. In manufacturing we are lucky to get 15% markup with a load of work, specialist tooling and machines investment. Labour and over heads is based on your labour time, I don't undertstand why you just are not more honest about it.

[aardvarkash10]

Originally Posted by TonyS9

How it works in a capitalist society is I prove you wrong by competing with you, however there have always been too few mechanics for that to really happen.

Really? Evidence please. Again, the cost of entry into running an auto workshop is as near to zero as possible. There is no registration process, no licencing process, all you need is a Snap-on account and a pair of overalls.
As far as I am aware, there are no major delays in getting a car worked on - perhaps two or three days ahead if its a major, but many businesses operate a drive-in service with an expectation that you can wait while its done.

There is no evidence that I can see that there is a shortage of businesses offering car servicing at a price, or that those offering the service are making excessive profits.

The existence of this forum is evidence that even amateurs expect to be able to carry out major servicing and repair work on thier own car. This includes work on significant safety systems eg brakes, steering where there is a high degree of risk if the work is done poorly or incorrectly. In New Zealand, I'm not allowed to replace a fixed water tap or light fitting in my house even if its like for like, but I can carry out any repair I like on my (or anyone else's) motor vehicle.

Bizzare.

Originally Posted by TonyS9

I'm an Engineer, costing is in my blood, there is little value in getting parts for your customers. In manufacturing we are lucky to get 15% markup with a load of work, specialist tooling and machines investment. Labour and over heads is based on your labour time, I don't undertstand why you just are not more honest about it.

I am being honest about it - mark-ups on parts is a part of the revenue generation of a vehicle service business. Ultimately, it makes no difference if the revenue comes from parts markup or labour markup or charging for ramp time or use of specialist equipment - the overhead cost of the business has to be met somehow, and a margin has to be made to make the work worthwhile.

Well OT by now, but an interesting discussion.

[360beast]

The RR and Bentley garage I worked at put massive mark ups on parts they bought in. One car needed a map sensor, turns out is from a Ford! Even has Ford stamped on it, so they Bentley wanted about £900 for it... Ford wanted £25 so they bought it from them and marked up the price to about £500!

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by 360beast

The RR and Bentley garage I worked at put massive mark ups on parts they bought in. One car needed a map sensor, turns out is from a Ford! Even has Ford stamped on it, so they Bentley wanted about £900 for it... Ford wanted £25 so they bought it from them and marked up the price to about £500!

Did any Bentleys ever need a CPS Luke? If so, what did Bentley want for it?

[360beast]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

Did any Bentleys ever need a CPS Luke? If so, what did Bentley want for it?

No not that I can remember, probably a few hundred atleast if they did as most things were astronomical compared to a normal counterpart (usually the exact same as other cars just in a Bentley box). I wouldn't fancy changing one either as to get to distributor properly it is just easier to sit on the engine!

[Jimsiss]

Exhausts are very overpriced for the cheap tat they are nowadays. You can get a full custom stainless system for around £500-800 depending on spec, cat etc and they usually come with a lifetime warranty so no need to ever replace it. My brother gets discounted parts for us through his work and my dad put several back boxes etc on my 940 before I got it, I wasn’t shelling out for more over the next several years so I made my own stainless system as I could but I would gladly have paid more to have one made otherwise as I’m keeping the car for as long as I possibly can.

I’m always quite out of touch with prices for jobs at garages as my brother, my dad and myself are all pretty handy with spanners and rebuilding cars over the years. If there is a crap job I don’t want to do my brother can usually get one of the garages he supplies parts with to give me a very good price to do it for me as long as I don’t need the car quickly (although they are great at turn around anyway).

Think one garage rebuilt my Parent’s Skoda fabia TSI engine (yes if you know VAG cars you’ll know well they lunch themselves). Piston to valve contact with complete top end rebuild for around £1400 so not bad at all. By the way Skoda is the only VAG company that won’t acknowledge the oil pressure reliant timing chain tensioner fault, all other companies either repair or replace the engine free of charge).

As for rust repairs by garages (in case anyone is tempted) most garages that own a welder seem to not know how to competently use one and I’ve seen varying results including plates you can pull off by hand. I’d always ask to see a weld performed by any garage before letting them touch my car (not that I need to as I can weld myself). The prices some charge for welding that is atrocious is astronomical.