Car Service rip off - be warned

[Jack Peterson]

7 minutes ago, robert k said:

By and large I agree that it's a dealer scam.

 Seems harsh to call it a Scam as it is really a  normal dealer practice all over the world where the dealer carries out work that is not requested and the owner is not there to say No, We know where we are and for me, I am always present and will authorise  any extra work that they say needs doing, we have not done many km's in our car and have just what is required to maintain the Warranty conditions.

[Dave Hounddriver]

40 minutes ago, Jack Peterson said:

Seems harsh to call it a Scam as it is really a  normal dealer practice all over the world where the dealer carries out work that is not requested and the owner is not there to say No

Agreed.  Flipping the coin, I get extremely frustrated when I take my car somewhere for repairs and then go to pick it up and they tell me it needs X, Y, and Z and I think:  Why the feck didn't you get it done while the car was here.  Now I have to bring it back again.

BUT, I would have expected a text before they did the work so I can reply OK or NAY.

[Jack Peterson]

25 minutes ago, Dave Hounddriver said:

BUT, I would have expected a text before they did the work so I can reply OK or NAY.

 Absolutely! and my Dealer does just that, in fact they text me when the car is due for a service so we can arrange a schedule that suits us but  then there are Dealers and there are Dealers (garages and garages) 

[LUFCinMakati]

6 hours ago, Rooster said:

Cost at Dealer for Parts are a huge rip off as well. The dealer wanted 7,000 Pesos for a replacement remote.

One can buy 10 remotes for $28.95 on Amazon.  I bought 2 while I was in the states from Amazon for $8 and both work fine.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074PBK7XM/ref=sxts_kp_tr_2?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_p=8778bc68-27e7-403f-8460-de48b6e788fb&pd_rd_wg=kSxw2&pf_rd_r=G7B811ZGTKH3E9XTKJ7T&pf_rd_s=desktop-sx-top-slot&pf_rd_t=301&pd_rd_i=B074PBK7XM&pd_rd_w=YwnKU&pf_rd_i=ford+remote&pd_rd_r=7d9e43d6-6fba-4b3a-ab19-c8de7ad413c8&ie=UTF8&qid=1537049366&sr=2

Problem is the manufacturer wants a margin at country of origin, then the country importer wants a margin, then the dealer and then you have to factor duty on top of this. 

I needed an electric window switch for my merc in Malaysia, it was $45 from memory. Went to my local dealer in the UK and picked one up for the equivalent of $11.

The dealer has little option, they are duty bound to use genuine parts and have huge costs inflicted on them such as the dealer software and management systems. Margins are low, inventory and fixed costs very high, hence they look for additional profit opportunities. US dealers through NADA have much more weight than dealers in Asia and Europe, which are tightly controlled. 

[OnMyWay]

6 hours ago, Jack Peterson said:

 Seems harsh to call it a Scam as it is really a  normal dealer practice all over the world where the dealer carries out work that is not requested and the owner is not there to say No, We know where we are and for me, I am always present and will authorise  any extra work that they say needs doing, we have not done many km's in our car and have just what is required to maintain the Warranty conditions.

Yes, but it is still a scam if they are requiring ridiculous service intervals and services in order to not void your warranty.  I think they all do it here.  In addition to what I describe in my previous post, Chevy, Toyota and others go by "kilometers or months, which ever comes first".  So if your oil change is due at 6 months or 5,000 km, and you only drive 2000 km in 6 months, you better get in there at 6 months, only at the dealer, for their over priced oil change.  This has scam written all over it.

[sonjack2847]

6 hours ago, Dave Hounddriver said:

BUT, I would have expected a text before they did the work so I can reply OK or NAY.

I have had five different repairs/services done here and they have always texted me when anything extra is required.

[Jack Peterson]

1 hour ago, OnMyWay said:

Yes, but it is still a scam

 No not a scam at all but common Practice ALL over the World but can be sorted by OUR due diligence in communication with the Dealer or Garage. What we see here is peoples anti ways that we should shoulder most of the blame for, I don't have any problem so why should anyone else. Of course easier to moan and point fingers to a sacm instead of just asking the right questions of the Right people; ie will this affect my warranty  BTW  Most decent Manufacturers offer an Interim service between major services to maintain the Warranty, Ever asked about this?

Edited September 16, 2018 by Jack Peterson
added a little

[Jollygoodfellow]

2 hours ago, OnMyWay said:

So if your oil change is due at 6 months or 5,000 km, and you only drive 2000 km in 6 months, you better get in there at 6 months, only at the dealer, for their over priced oil change.  This has scam written all over it.

That's how the service log books are in Australia ?

[OnMyWay]

5 minutes ago, Jollygoodfellow said:

That's how the service log books are in Australia ?

Are they getting away with warranty voids if the consumer does not follow the "months" schedule?

Maybe I am spoiled because I think they did away with that in the U.S. years ago.  Scroll down to page 125 in this link, which is the "severe" schedule to the Chevy Colorado Duramax Diesel.

https://my.chevrolet.com/content/dam/gmownercenter/gmna/dynamic/manuals/2018/2018-duramax-diesel-owners-manual-supplement.pdf

[OnMyWay]

44 minutes ago, Jack Peterson said:

 No not a scam at all but common Practice ALL over the World but can be sorted by OUR due diligence in communication with the Dealer or Garage. What we see here is peoples anti ways that we should shoulder most of the blame for, I don't have any problem so why should anyone else. Of course easier to moan and point fingers to a sacm instead of just asking the right questions of the Right people; ie will this affect my warranty  BTW  Most decent Manufacturers offer an Interim service between major services to maintain the Warranty, Ever asked about this?

Jack, not sure why you cut my quote off.  I said "Yes, but it is still a scam if they are requiring ridiculous service intervals and services in order to not void your warranty".  I may not have worded it well, but I was referring to a second scam perpetuated on Philippines consumers by the manufacturers and dealers.  The first scam is that of dealers doing unneeded service.  I described the second scam in a previous post.  The second scam is not a common practice all over the world, although I only know that for sure in the U.S.

Yes, I have had extensive discussions with my incompetent Chevy dealer that I no longer patronize.  The one that when I asked for a list of services the mechanic did, the service adviser pulled out a check list and checked them off right in front of me. And my Trailblazer Club  lobbies Chevy Philippines (TCCI) for change, to no avail so far.

Yes, I'm very familiar with the minor and major service intervals on my two vehicles.  The bottom line is that you have to follow all of them, at the dealer, or you risk warranty avoidance if there is ever a problem.