General Does anyone service their own 500?

[T14086]

I'm sure you'd be pissed off if you forgot to put oil in my engine

why would I be putting oil in your car

becase they usually make a meal of it

how many services are carried out by dealerships...thousands so yes probability will dictate a few mishaps but by far the vast majority will be fine.

the point is that the 'official dealers' are perceived to have a monopoly on servicing if you want to keep the warranty

Block exemption was brought in for this purpose.

in answer to your points

fuel £6 a litre = drive less
high energy bills = change supplier and fit energy saving controls to your boiler
council tax = just a cost of having a home, do you want to live in a shared flat or a caravan?

Rob your missing the point I was trying to make, the fact is the government can charge £10 gallon, energy bill's of £3000 year and £300 council tax per month yet still people will moan about £150 car service!

 

[306maxi]

It was a hypothetical situation t

 

[T14086]

It was a hypothetical situation t

Ahh right ...but wouldn't the hypothetical oil light be on?

 

[306maxi]

Ahh right ...but wouldn't the hypothetical oil light be on?

Of course, but I'm a 500 owner and I don't understand how these things work and I'll just assume that you've done everything right

 

[306maxi]

Rob your missing the point I was trying to make, the fact is the government can charge £10 gallon, energy bill's of £3000 year and £300 council tax per month yet still people will moan about £150 car service!

I agree, hence why I didn't whine about the cost of the service, I did my best to make it as cheap as possible for myself. You're daft if you don't!

 

[T14086]

Of course, but I'm a 500 owner and I don't understand how these things work

try here, these folk should be able to answer questions you may have;

www.fiatforum.com

 

[jnoiles]

To me the whole point of buying a new car was the warranty. Our 500 is going in on thursday afternoon for some warranty work which although not hugely costly, would vastly outweigh any savings done by self servicing.

I gave up on Fiat warranty about 3 months into the ownership experience when I had the argument with them about the roof blind not retracting. Their argument was that it wasn't broken. Mine was that it retracted only half way on the spring and therefore was broken. The guy stood there, watched it retract halfway and told me to my face that this wasn't a problem. At that point I stopped believing that Fiat would give a damn about me.

Lack of service history come trade in is enough to put me off alone. The dirty bit - oil & filter change - is v.cheap anyway, even if you want to do the rest in your own time.

The whole point of the new car for me was to buy The Exact Car I Wanted. New is the only way to do that. I love her and have no plans to sell her therefore the effect of my servicing habits on trade in don't really bother me.

Agreed. After my 406 which had apparently been serviced religiously by the previous owners father I'll skip on cars without properly documented service history. At least it wasn't a shame to scrappage it!

My £200 X1/9 came with zero service history and it's been a hugely entertaining treasure hunt discovering the scale of bodging previous owners have indulged in.

slightly off topic but why do so many people distrust dealers especially over a £150-200 service yet does anyone check the roof after spending £5000 getting the roof re-tiled or check the house electrics after a re-wire or plumbing etc?

Speaking as someone at the end of a 3 year odyssey of house renovations, yes, I check and double check everything a builder/plumber/roofer/electrician/carpeter/painter/kitchen installer/etc does. Why? Because, like my experience of most car dealers, tradesman are essentially dishonest unscrupulous liars. I'm not saying that to upset anyone, it's just been my experience of them. All of them. Not some, not the odd one, all of them. We've not had a single one through the house in 3 years who showed up on time, did the job they quoted on to a standard they promised in the time they said they would.

OK it's not quite the same but the princable is, we seem so obsessed by the motor trade yet no one complains (and takes action) over fuel at £6 litre, high gas/electric bills, £140 month council tax etc

Because there isn't a DIY alternative to government whereas I can choose to buy £20 in parts and service my car myself, thus saving myself £230. And look in the leisure lounge here. Plenty of people complain about the government in there.

 

[T14086]

I agree, hence why I didn't whine about the cost of the service, I did my best to make it as cheap as possible for myself. You're daft if you don't!

Naturally, make the effort to get price quotes and your more likely not to get caught out....I always read the laminated book of dreams (argos book) before I buy anything to get a good comparison

 

[jrkitching]

OK it's not quite the same but the princable is, we seem so obsessed by the motor trade yet no one complains (and takes action) over fuel at £6 litre, high gas/electric bills, £140 month council tax etc

Well there were around 400,000 folks in London last Saturday doing just exactly that...

Back to topic, like all things DIY, if you service your car yourself you can take much more time over the job than a paid mechanic could ever reasonably justify, and that means you can do a much more detailed and thorough job of it, and do far more than the absolute minimum demanded by the service schedule. And you'll know exactly what's been done & what materials have been used.

It's like cleaning the car - you'll get a much better result with far less damage if you spend a day detailing it yourself, rather than taking it down to the local car washing outfit & paying them £10-£30 to spend fifteen minutes or so on it.

 

[306maxi]

I gave up on Fiat warranty about 3 months into the ownership experience when I had the argument with them about the roof blind not retracting. Their argument was that it wasn't broken. Mine was that it retracted only half way on the spring and therefore was broken. The guy stood there, watched it retract halfway and told me to my face that this wasn't a problem. At that point I stopped believing that Fiat would give a damn about me.

My £200 X1/9 came with zero service history and it's been a hugely entertaining treasure hunt discovering the scale of bodging previous owners have indulged in.

For £200 you can forgive a car for not having history.

Tbh with the blind not retracting I'd just call Fiat CS and tell them that it's not working and you want it fixed. At the end of the day if you went to a small claims court and said "this is my blind, it came with the car and it is meant to retract and it doesn't" then it'll be hard for them to find against you.

 

[306maxi]

Naturally, make the effort to get price quotes and your more likely not to get caught out....I always read the laminated book of dreams (argos book) before I buy anything to get a good comparison

I always find Argos a bit expensive tbh.

I always shop around before I buy most things. I just don't see the point of paying more than I need to unless I absolutely need it that day.

 

[T14086]

Well there were around 400,000 folks in London last Saturday doing just exactly that...

Absolutely, just a pity the idiotic few got all the attention

Back to topic, like all things DIY, if you service your car yourself you can take much more time over the job than a paid mechanic could ever reasonably justify, and that means you can do a much more detailed and thorough job of it, and do far more than the absolute minimum demanded by the service schedule. And you'll know exactly what's been done & what materials have been used.

True BUT, a dedicated trained technician can cast his (or her) experienced eye over the car knowing exactly where to look in a fraction of the time a novice could. Most techs have a set pattern when servicing concentrating specifically on known problem areas, after all how many tips have forum members learned from techs here? A good tech would also go that little extra using his experience to prevent further issues (oil plugs for easy renewal next time, top strut mounts and how many people lubricate the bonnet hinges as stated on service sheet. Also update any module while resetting the service counter will often prevent the customer having to return...all this goes on without the customer knowing.

I always find Argos a bit expensive tbh.

Yes but it's a good point of reference, I really didn't know the price of 10 plastic curtain rings so consulted the 'argos bible' to guide me in the right direction.

 

[jrkitching]

...and how many people lubricate the bonnet hinges as stated on service sheet...

Thanks for that, have just added it to my list of items for my monthly walk around with the oilcan. Have always done the bonnet catch along with the doors & tailgate but that one often gets forgotten ...until now.

 

[T14086]

Thanks for that, have just added it to my list of items for my monthly walk around with the oilcan. Have always done the bonnet catch along with the doors & tailgate but that one often gets forgotten ...until now.

I even walk around under car and oil places I know will soon have to be removed from experience (of part failure and age/mileage of vehicle). Breather hoses often split/rupture out of sight in certain places , I oil door straps not grease (grease just attracts dust/dirt more) and something even stranger....I use a micrometer to measure disc wear

I'm not for one minute saying servicing at a dealership is better but just pointing out a few things often forgotten and things only experience can provide.

 

[jrkitching]

I oil door straps not grease (grease just attracts dust/dirt more) and something even stranger....I use a micrometer to measure disc wear

Me too, on both counts. Unlike grease, oil will flow back if squeezed out of the hinge or wiped off the strap.

One of my treasured possessions is the micrometer my Grandfather bought in the 1920's & used throughout his working life - my concession to modern times is that I now have a calculator to convert the readings into metric units.

 

[T14086]

I now have a calculator to convert the readings into metric units.

Zeus table

 

[sludgeguts]

Zeus table

I lost mine but fortunately managed to download one off t'interweb.


On the subject of DiY anything on a car - whilst you might consider yourself a capable mechanic, others might not think so (not having a go at anyone BTW).
You only have to look around at some of the sheds on the road.

 

[T14086]

My 'classic' example is when my heating broke down, the official makers tech wanted £80 call out fee + parts. I went for the local advert stating 'all types of boiler repaired' & only a £10 call out fee.

After an hour I knew the guy was stumped, fair dues he knew his stuff & openly admitted it was beyond him, I bunged him £20 & said thanks.

I reluctantly phoned the official guy who was here next day in a big new van...this was gonna cost me However within 5 minutes he showed me 2 water damaged circuit boards & seized valve. He said to take out a years warranty/service at £150 which I did on the spot. This covered the call out fee & £250 worth of parts and covered me for the rest of the year which as we were selling the house was piece of mind for new owner

Point here was he knew exactly where to look and saved me money with a job well done thrown in however I do realise there is an element of luck who you get...who done your last service a trained tech or apprentice?

p.s. I have worked at many independant garages and rate many of them highly but sometimes it pays to go with the manufacturers trained techs IMO for at least the first 2 services (warranty). You spend £8-15k on a car so £350-400 for 2 year services isn't a lot really. It's a decision that is up to the owner at the end of the day and if you want to do it yourself then go ahead it's your car after all. If I was buying a new car i'd haggle to get the first 2 services thrown in or at least heavily discounted

 

[pearce_jj]

Shame Fiat aren't offering service packages like Mini and VW really - c.£200 for five years I think. Then clearly there is no discussion!

 

[306maxi]

I even walk around under car and oil places I know will soon have to be removed from experience (of part failure and age/mileage of vehicle). Breather hoses often split/rupture out of sight in certain places , I oil door straps not grease (grease just attracts dust/dirt more) and something even stranger....I use a micrometer to measure disc wear

I'm not for one minute saying servicing at a dealership is better but just pointing out a few things often forgotten and things only experience can provide.

That's why our 500 will be going to the dealer for its services. If it needs any work doing on things like brakes, exhaust or suspension I'll take it to our local independent as anyone can work on suspension or brakes really.....