Just been pricing up a new battery, as the old one appears dead as a dodo and is resisting all attempts at resurrection (forgot to leave it on trickle charge - doh!). Looked on the Eurocarparts website, as they were really cheap the last time I bought a new battery. They wanted £79.99 for a Bosch S3 063, which is what I have on the car at the moment. I then did an eBay search, and in their eBay shop the self-same battery is £41.17, delivered. An object lesson of the benefits of shopping around, even with the same supplier!

It so they can run 30% 'sales' and make people think they're getting a good deal!

Yes! Every weekend a new and unrepeatable offer!

Try an ebay shop called CarPartsBargains. They are EuroCarParts. I ordered an Exide Premium 640CCA battery from them for £47 last month with free postage, compated to the £98 they wanted on Euro's website (including their discount codes)

http://stores.ebay.co.uk/CarPartsBargains?_trksid=p2047675.l2563

Hi, both eurocarparts and their ebay shop areback up to the£80 to £90 aaagh

OK don't laugh, but if you know anybody with a Halfords trade card, you can practically half their shown prices on car batteries. Lots slag off Halfords & I suppose at times justified. As an ex mechanic (many years ago) I have a card & I've saved a considerable sum over the years. I come from a time when Halfords were practically the only accessible car related store on the block & you you knew what you were buying & they could get parts for you as well. Obviously things have changed over the years.

Unfortunately over the years due to several factors, some staffing issues were apparent shall we say...

I miss the old independent suppliers. My local one bck in Hampshire / Dorset stocked just about anything. I needed a water pump for a Renault 6 once (it was n old car at the time), They had one for a 5 and knew the pulley was different, asked me to bring in the old pump, pressed the pulley off both and put old pulley on new pump, no charge

Robert G8RPI.

Aye, good/bad/indifferent these days. Some are taken in by the cheap fleabay stuff, it's a lazy option most of the time, although you can get lucky. Personally I buy the best option available & what I know will work well. However although we all like a bargain, it never ceases to amaze me how much money is spent by some on go faster bits & things that are way over priced & really not needed, then scrimp on the essential consumables that matter.

jimboy said:

Aye, good/bad/indifferent these days. Some are taken in by the cheap fleabay stuff, it's a lazy option most of the time, although you can get lucky. Personally I buy the best option available & what I know will work well. However although we all like a bargain, it never ceases to amaze me how much money is spent by some on go faster bits & things that are way over priced & really not needed, then scrimp on the essential consumables that matter.

Click to expand...

Indeed, some years ago I stopped to help a co-worker who I thought had broken down in the car park but refused to help when I realised that the white rear tyre's were not because he'd driven through paint, they were the cords He wasn't broken down, he was fitting an cone air filter, obviously much more important thing to spend money on than tyres
He lost his licence a month or two later, don't know why, just that he was cadging lifts.

Up here it's really no hiding place & the feds are on top of the drivers that come to their attention for what ever reason. Now I'm more curious about a couple of cars that I have been around for some time, a Golf GTI that's so slammed to the deck.I have no idea how he manages to drive around our very bad roads or get a jack under the car, driving onto a ramp would be very iffy. The second car is an old Civic, slammed, loud, looks like a Christmas tree & so much thrown at it, it looks like a sculpture.

Far from slagging these cars off, I genuinely wonder how the drivers cope, & as said, the feds tend to come down hard on the likes of this up here. Lastly I have to share something an old mate of mine told me a wee while back. In Elgin he told me of a Saturday night the young team drive round & round the town circuit in their chosen mode of transport for hours on end clocking up well in excess of three figure mileage..

Perhaps I'm a wee bit jealous of the money I never had when I was a whippersnapper.... Sorry way off topic.

Used to see that in Forres too, literally driving up and down the high street for hours on end.

jimboy said:

Up here it's really no hiding place & the feds are on top of the drivers that come to their attention for what ever reason. Now I'm more curious about a couple of cars that I have been around for some time, a Golf GTI that's so slammed to the deck.I have no idea how he manages to drive around our very bad roads or get a jack under the car, driving onto a ramp would be very iffy. The second car is an old Civic, slammed, loud, looks like a Christmas tree & so much thrown at it, it looks like a sculpture.


Perhaps I'm a wee bit jealous of the money I never had when I was a whippersnapper.... Sorry way off topic.

Click to expand...

"Slammed". I assume you mean very low? Maybe they have air ride suspension which they can raise/lower according to road conditions and pose value!

Davefridge said:

"Slammed". I assume you mean very low? Maybe they have air ride suspension which they can raise/lower according to road conditions and pose value!

Click to expand...

Not in Elgin, lol

Davefridge said:

"Slammed". I assume you mean very low? Maybe they have air ride suspension which they can raise/lower according to road conditions and pose value!

Click to expand...

They certainly do not, that's for sure...