1985-1998 [Subscribe to Daily Digest] |
... that made me stop taking my car to the dealer and start doing it myself. I had done all my own work until I bought my first Saab. I started taking that to the dealer for some of the things I would previously do myself. The second one came with a warranty, so I had that serviced by the dealer, and let them do everything else too. The third one, my current car, also came with a warranty. I had that serviced and repaired exclusively by the dealer. Just out of warranty by 2000 miles, a turbo oil seal failed - loads of smoke. They had the head off, changed the gasket, replaced some valves, messed me around - despite my pleas for them to check the turbo. Then they changed the turbo and it was fixed. To be fair, they tried hard to accommodate me - they only charged me for the parts for the turbo replacement, but one guy had agreed a price, another charged me a different (higher) price and generally, they had lost co-ordination.
I sorted out a deal with the managing director of the company, then gave them one more chance (I let them do the next service), but honestly, they had lost a customer from that point.
Ironically, after all that work and money, the engine threw a con-rod a few months later and scrapped itself (and the cat). While looking for a second-hand engine, I came across an independent that carried Saab parts at reasonable prices. They replaced the engine efficiently and quite cheaply, and I realised what little value for money I had been getting from the dealer. Since then, I have done all my own work, sourcing parts at much less than dealer prices when I can (which is quite often). I enjoy doing this work, and am getting my '96 Aero with 150K miles back to low-mileage condition, which I couldn't have afforded to do otherwise.
Anyway, enough rambling...
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