Finally got around to getting some mats from Fiat at weekend. £23.50 plus VAT which I thought was quite reasonable. "They even say Panda on them" said the bloke behind the counter, he was right and they look just the part.

So whilst getting them (some top up oil and a Fiat keyring) I popped into the service bit to see how much the first year service would be.

£130 inc vat for an oil / filter change and a new pollen filter! How much have the rest of you paid for your 100HP servicing from Fiat?

I'd do it myself but want to keep the book stamped for the future and warrantys etc.

There is a recent thread on this cost in this section of the forum.

But I think your price quoted is fine - I was circa £124 at the beginning of January.

paulbfd said:

I'd do it myself but want to keep the book stamped for the future and warrantys etc.

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can't you get the book stamped elsewhere? I'll be taking mine to Nationwide Autocentre for its first service

And tell 'em where to shove the pollen filter!

Hmm, what if you buy genuine parts and keep all of your receipts over the years with the log book and write mileage and tick the oil/filter box in the logbook yourself? Does servicing yourself, if you use genuine parts, really invalidate the warranty?

For me, if I'm going to get someone else to do it, it might as well be Fiat.

Looks better IMO in the service book if and when it comes to sell.

I'll more than likely drop the oil & filter myself too after 6 months as I'm a bit OCD with oil!

pantalaimon said:

I'll be taking mine to Nationwide Autocentre for its first service

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Unless you have first hand experience of the centre you have in mind i wouldn't bother. They nearly destroyed my sisters VW Lupo by not fitting engine bolts/seal properly on her service - the car came out sicker than it went in!

Also on my last MoT for my classic mini I ended up taking it elsewhere for the re-test as my local centre failed the car on stupid little niggley points and broke my bonnet catch, and when i complain to the head office i got told it wasn't there problem and to speak to the garage i dealt with! :bang: Rubbish! You'd expect a big company affiliated with the AA to know what they are doing, but I honestly think they are just in it for the money!

well this is the eleganza 4th service, since it's well outside the warranty period, i will take her to the bloke who has looked after all my cars for the last 8odd years, a quick check in the owners manual to see what should be done, and what could be done, get the parts from interparts, and he can do the rest, hopefully a much cheaper bill.....

I purchased the Panda mats. Just wanted to say I agree, I'm well pleased with them. They fit like a glove in the small space that they are required to fill. Hope to find out some more about other accessories that people have fitted.
My 12 month dealer service was £124.32

Whats wrong with you people! you spend £8-10k on a car and moan about service costs, which maintain your car is good running order & keeps up your warranty

Its simple...buy a secondhand car (or pre-reg) or a cheaper version thus leaving you with a budget to cover servicing, another good idea is to take out a service plan.

Do you buy a new flat screen TV with a suround sound system & wire it up with cheap speaker wire & leads? Do you buy your wife/girlfriend (boyfriend?) a diamond ring then take them out for a meal at mcdonalds!.........errr forget that one

However can you see the point i'm making ? Yes we all like to save money but your car is your pride and joy (i.e. comes before the wife/girlfriend (boyfriend?)) so does it not make sense to look after it properly

I done a 2 year service today,oil/air/lubrication of all door locks/bonnet/hinges
and full suspension check,wheels/tyres,car wash & hoovered,spotted 4 faults all repaired under warranty (worth over £150 if car wasn't under warranty...customer wasn't aware of any of these faults) ,roadtested, reset service counter & lets not forget spark plugs & brake fluid change all for £165 (took me 2 hours) what more do you want?

T14086 said:

what more do you want?

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If only all dealers employed a chap like T :worship:

Andy Monty said:

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I thought someone would reply with yeah blood! but you would be too late as wife bleed me dry years ago

T14086 said:

I done a 2 year service today,oil/air/lubrication of all door locks/bonnet/hinges
and full suspension check,wheels/tyres,car wash & hoovered,spotted 4 faults all repaired under warranty (worth over £150 if car wasn't under warranty...customer wasn't aware of any of these faults) ,roadtested, reset service counter & lets not forget spark plugs & brake fluid change all for £165 (took me 2 hours) what more do you want?

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Where is it you work? I'd take my car to you!

T14086, I always respect your posts and your defences of servicing carried out by Fiat main dealers is valid and true.
Many of us know that service, warranty, sale of spares etc keeps the dealers going as new car margins are very tight, especially in the budget range that Fiat sell. So if these services are lost the dealership folds, then where do we get our new cars from, Asda? They did try that a few years ago and failed.
I'm a pretty good (amateur) mechanic myself but like to buy new so I know what I'm letting my self in for. In addition, some non-franchised dealers sell nearly new at a higher price than discounted new! I then do not resent paying the dealer to service my car whilst in warranty to preserve the warranty and, what's more, the goodwill between dealer and myself if problems occur.
Example, leaking headlamp unit. Dealer applied Fiat's "cure" of drilling big holes in the lamp unit. A gentle letter to the service manager led to him replacing the unit then fighting the issue with Fiat later. Worth a lot of service charges to me.
Now, I confess, I like to keep cars for at least 6 years when I know they've been looked after from new. So, outside warranty I do my own service and repairs which on a Panda are pretty straight forward. If I'm out of my depth I go back to the dealer.
We also know that you guys who do the work receive a fraction of what we pay. Respect. Keep up your good work.
Chris.

shortie said:

Where is it you work? I'd take my car to you!

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sorry but I move around as I wish/required and from many garages.

There are so many excellent techs out there,many on here, use the ATA website to locate one near you and ask for him/her to work on your car if possible

doctorchris said:

to me.
Now, I confess, I like to keep cars for at least 6 years when I know they've been looked after from new. So, outside warranty I do my own service and repairs

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Thats a good policy Its actually good fun working on your own car (when your older anyway & have the spare time/weekends) assuming you have somewhere safe to carry this work out (hate working in the street!) and very fullfilling not forgetting the ££££'s you have saved

I know there is alot of folk who dont like fiat garages and it really shouldn't be a case of finding a good one as they should all be good...but thats up to Fiat. However comments like yours are very flattering & heartning and I say that on behalf of all the techs out there,not often praise is given

its £188 for my second service at 14k miles, quite reasonable as I'd have spent more than that on parts keeping the cinq running lol going in saturday morning, picking it up at 1, can't argue with that, also having locking fuel filler fitted

T14086 said:

sorry but I move around as I wish/required and from many garages.

There are so many excellent techs out there,many on here, use the ATA website to locate one near you and ask for him/her to work on your car if possible

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I will nearer the time. Thanx

100hpJames said:

its £188 for my second service at 14k miles, quite reasonable as I'd have spent more than that on parts keeping the cinq running lol going in saturday morning, picking it up at 1, can't argue with that, also having locking fuel filler fitted

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Have they used the same key code for the locking fuel cap (ending up with only one key on your keyring) or do you have a separate key for the fuel cap?

Also, do you remember how much the cap cost?

its going in on saturday, the cap costs around £15 and uses a seperate key I think