Fun at the Dealership!
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My Volvo was driven about 7,000 miles from July 2020 til now and needed an oil change. The engine in my V60 falls in the range of engines that could be impacted by having bad piston rings which will necessitate a full engine rebuild should things go sideways. Volvo did not issue a recall for the rings, but did issue a TSB. What owners have been discovering is that Volvo will cover all but about $1000 of the cost of the repair IF you have had your car serviced (and specifically oil changes) at the dealership. Thus far my car has a spotless dealership service record and I don't want to ruin that and then be deeply out of pocket on the repair.
While I was there I mentioned to the service writer that the alignment seemed off and could they take a look. They did check the alignment and let me know it was bad, which would not have irritated me except that the car had been driven 3400 miles since the same dealership did an alignment in October which seemed like a short time frame. The dealership wanted another $160 or so to redo the alignment. I explained my side of things and was told that I was wrong and that they would not do the service again for nothing. After a few minutes of explaining to the service manager that getting fucked by the service department was not the reason I bought the car, I got him to redo the alignment for nothing.
Then I got the bill. An oil change,as indicated on their website, is $103.09.
I had received in the mail a $50 off coupon which I used. My total came to $92.58. an oil change, according to the receipt, actually costs about $138, not the $103 they advertise. I don't care about the $30, but I fucking hate being mislead.
I would sell this car and move on, but everything is currently conspiring against that. I could net about $6k selling it today, but what would I buy? Or should I take that $6k and dump it directly into making the El Camino a real daily driver?
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@sovande That's rough. My Volvo dealer has been sending me $25 oil change coupons (extra for synthetic) all year long. Probably going to take advantage of it shortly.
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@sovande A couple weeks ago, a MINI dealership wanted to charge me $1000 ($770 for the parts) to replace all 4 ignition coils in my car. I ended up doing it myself the next day, spending 15 minutes and $110 on parts. But, while still at the dealership, I looked up ignition coils via their own parts department website, and was quoted something like $63/piece. I sooooo wanted to order a set of 4 for ~$250 while sitting in their waiting area, and then watch them try to explain the price discrepancy. It was almost worth the extra cost.
2012 R55 LCI N18B16A 6MT
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@flatisflat Which coil packs did you go with? Mine are OEM at 123k and I'm sure I'll need them soon.
2013 Chevy Volt
2014 Mini Paceman S -
Dealers suck. I was so glad when my Mazda6 reached out-of-warranty status and I (and my daughter’s godfather who is a part-time mechanic) could work on it ourselves.
My wife’s Highlander is new-ish and still goes to the Toyota dealer. They tried to cancel my appointment for an oil change last month when I arrived at 7:35 instead of my 7:30 time. I agreed that I was late but had to plead my case with them to go ahead and perform the services I had scheduled. They said me being late would “put their entire day behind.” And there were exactly zero other cars/customers there waiting. Sigh.
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@rctothefuture I went with a set of Bosch coils and 'splurged' on a set of new NGK Iridium spark plugs while I was at it. Car seems to enjoy the new parts.
2012 R55 LCI N18B16A 6MT
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@sovande God, "cabin air filter" is really dealer speak for "Haha, fuck you!"
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@sovande daily the EC!
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@sovande said in Fun at the Dealership!:
The engine in my V60 falls in the range of engines that could be impacted by having bad piston rings which will necessitate a full engine rebuild should things go sideways.
I completely agree. Pistons should go up and down. When a piston goes sideways, it's time for an engine rebuild.
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@roadkilled on some cars, sideways is fine, up and down is a problem
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@sovande Cabin airfilter for $137? WTF, it's a $24 filter and takes all of 2 minutes...
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@tripper in all honesty, that service may be worth it... Replacing the filter is apparently an exercise patience as it is behind the center stack and accessibility is horrible. I haven't done it, but it was changed out about 30k ago, so it due. In my C30 you had to remove the gas pedal to replace the cabin air filter. You also had to remove the sides of the console and then fold the filter into a hole, and then somehow unfold it to fit. It was a fucking nightmare.
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@highlander not in this car it doesn't. It's a horrible pain in the ass.
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@sovande get a Ford Maverick truck? I dunno but I was about to post a question on how Volvo is doing, cause a friends life was just saved by a Volvo; got accordianed in traffic by a semi. So of course I’m thinking about them again…
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@mazda616 I was actually late this morning and was surprised that they didn't make a fuss. I did get some pushback on the coupon I used as it was supposed to expire at the end of July. I received it on the 15th and booked the appointment the same day - this was the earliest appointment they had. The guy tried to tell me it was not possible to honer the coupon until I explained to him it was not possible to make an earlier appointment. I just hate it there.
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@sovande Yeah there are always a couple plastic bits covering them, but nothing close to the labor they charge you to do it. its behind the glove box in most cars. Doesn't look too bad.
E46 M3 | 1502 Hotrod | 11th Gen Civic Si
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@sn4cktimes I actually may. I drive very little at this point and I obviously don't need two cars. The El Camino needs a new power steering pump, a new fuel line and the AC needs to be fixed. It also needs catalytic converters. I'd love to update the suspension too. I would think I could get it all straightened out (except the paint issues) for somewhere around $3000.
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@rctothefuture said in Fun at the Dealership!:
@flatisflat Which coil packs did you go with? Mine are OEM at 123k and I'm sure I'll need them soon.
Not all cabin air filters are a glove box dump away. See: first gen Mazda 3 for reference.
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@sovande
Your alignment can go off as soon as your leave the dealership. I get that it hasn't been many miles, but if you hit the wrong things, it can go off nearly instantly.
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@tripper said in Fun at the Dealership!:
@sovande Yeah there are always a couple plastic bits covering them, but nothing close to the labor they charge you to do it. its behind the glove box in most cars. Doesn't look too bad.
Remember Dealer labour is not $20/ hour, it's in the range of $130-190 depending on the brand.
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@sovande Alignments can go bad 2 miles after having an alignment done if you find the right pothole. Was the alignment good for a little while after the last time it was done? If so, then it's not their fault and they owe you nothing. If not, then they do owe you, but you maybe should've mentioned sooner, like within a week or two of picking up.
As for the oil change price, I'm not saying it's ok out right or anything like that, but prices listed on websites are often a base/generic price for most vehicles and should be verified with an actual person before agreeing to work. That's not just a dealership thing. Most will honor their listed prices if asked, especially if price wasn't agreed to beforehand. It's not like an engine that takes 6 liters is going to cost as much as an engine that takes 9, then the are different oil types and filter types. There's actually a huge variance in what oil changes cost. My shop actually loses money on them, it's a loss leader item.
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@someoneatacura Exactly! which is why having a dealer do the cabin air filter is almost always a rip off. Even in that mazda, thats barely more than a glovebox drop. @Sovande was saying he thought it might be worth it because of the complexity of the service. My argument is that it's not worth $100.
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@sovande said in Fun at the Dealership!:
Or should I take that $6k and dump it directly into making the El Camino a real daily driver?
I tend to think this. Those charges are pretty high but it is dealer service. It comes down to how much do you like the car.
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@tripper said in Fun at the Dealership!:
@someoneatacura Exactly! which is why having a dealer do the cabin air filter is almost always a rip off. Even in that mazda, thats barely more than a glovebox drop. @Sovande was saying he thought it might be worth it because of the complexity of the service. My argument is that it's not worth $100.
Nooooo, the Mazda requires a glove box removal, plus dahs trims, console trims, fuse box removal, and then a bunch of brackets before getting to the door, which is pressed right up to the firewall. The filter is split and stacked, so you have to hold the top one in while sliding in the bottom. It's a pain in the fucking ass, and I understand why dealers do it and charge for it.
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@someoneatacura maybe I watched a newer one. Still I’m not going Volvo labor on a 10 minute install (on his v60). On most cars it is crazy easy and dealers will beat ya for a whole hour.
