Geekzone: technology news, blogs, forums
Guest
Welcome Guest.
You haven't logged in yet. If you don't have an account you can register now.


pctek

807 posts

Ultimate Geek
Inactive user


#225626 27-Nov-2017 13:03
Send private message

 

 

 

My dad used to take the car to this crowd, for yearly warrants and servicing.
He was never much with cars.....

There was the time he got a warning light on the dash, to do with catalytic converter and they wanted $500 to fix it.
I insisted he get someone knowledgeable with cars from his church round.
$50 later and the sensor was fixed, no more issues.


Since he died my mum continued, but the bill increased. It is always around $600 she says.
So this time, I heard that 2 of things - after her WOF cost $217 was 1)Windscreen has small chip and needs fixing and 2)Battery needs charging.

I told her 1)AMI does windscreens free, no excess whether it's fix or replace and 2)batteries are recharged when you drive, unless the alternator is stuffed. Was there problems with the battery? Starting etc? No.

In the end one of the church guys went with her and they took the car to the glass place and it was done for free via AMI. Over this car guys protests and nastiness to the friend with her.
The bill was reduced slightly so she tells me she only paid $729 in total.

She isn't going back.
However I have tried to tell them this, mechanics DO take advantage of you if they think you know nothing, especially if you are female, and/or old.

She does very little mileage, a couple of thousand KMs a year....it certainly does not need an oil change every year, never mind the rest of it. It is under 100,000km still, had cambelt done at around 60,000.

I complained to MTA and got this back:



Keith May wrote:
>
> Thank you for sending through the extra information. We have discussed this with First Auto Works who advise they have been looking after this vehicle since 2010. I have attached their reply. I can assure you First Auto Works take your comments very seriously. Please advise on the requirement of any future service reminders.
>
>
>
> Regards
>
>
>
>
>
> We have looked after this vehicle since it was purchased in 2010. Prior to that we looked after their Honda Orthia.
>
> As most car manufactures recommend their cars are serviced every 12 month we send our service reminders at 12 month intervals.
>
> >
> During October, Mrs Xs son, X I think, phoned to advise that they had not received a service reminder. I advised him that as the WOF did not expire until 20.11.17 the reminder would be sent at the beginning of November.
>
>
>
> The car was brought to us on 14th November for its annual WOF and service, invoice 49061 attached (we had last serviced it in November 2016)
>
> There were two items needing attention for the WOF and three recommendations from the service.
>
>
>
> We test the battery as part of the service. The battery did not test as a “fail” but its CCA (cold crank output) was very low. Modern calcium technology car batteries need to be charged on a multi stage charger to get them up to a fully charged state.
>
>
>
> Charging the battery did not inconvenience Mrs X as the car sat in our workshop for three days waiting for the windscreen to be repaired.
>
>
>
> We offer free pickup and delivery of the car to Mrs X’s home and did not charge for the time taken delivering the car to Smith and Smith or the time for two technicians to pick up the car as Smith and Smith refused to deliver it back to us.
>
>
>
> We have done our best to assist this customer, Mrs X has always seemed to have been happy.
>
>
>
> If Mrs X requests, First Auto Works will not send a service reminder out in 12 months’ time.
>
>
>
>
She also told me they had offered her a free lunch at some place down the road, which she declined. Of course they did! They make a fortune off her!!
Interestingly there are a couple of comments on their facebook page already - one from an ex-staff member.

 

 

 

 

 

 

wipe your paws.

 

 


View this topic in a long page with up to 500 replies per page Create new topic
 1 | 2 | 3 | 4
surfisup1000
5288 posts

Uber Geek


  #1908427 27-Nov-2017 13:28
Send private message

Interesting. 

 

We had new English neighbours a few years back and the husband got a job as an auto mechanic at a large auto repair nationwide chain. 

 

He was telling me that his boss was asking him to make jobs up that didn't really need doing, and he didn't want to so was getting offside with the new boss already. 




xpd

xpd
Geek @ Coastguard NZ
13765 posts

Uber Geek

Retired Mod
ID Verified
Trusted
Lifetime subscriber

  #1908434 27-Nov-2017 13:49
Send private message

Friend got a job with a "reputable" car mechanics a few years back... car came in with an issue which my mate knew how to resolve, but boss refused to let him do it and did some temporary fix... which guaranteed the car would be back for more work. Mate was disgusted and handed in his notice the same day.

 

I've taken one of our cars in the past to a very well known car place, and never again. Cost us an absolute small fortune and the car still packed up. Ended up not being able to have a go at them, as while the car was broken down in my folks driveway, someone decided to strip the engine bay for parts.

 

Its hard to find a decent garage these days, we seem to have finally found a decent lot locally though, may not be the absolute cheapest but def not the most expensive and they're happy for us to pop in any time to discuss issues etc.

 

Unless you're a mechanic yourself, it does become a bit of "he said she said".....





       Gavin / xpd / FastRaccoon / Geek of Coastguard New Zealand

 

                      LinkTree

 

 

 


Linux
11399 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted
Lifetime subscriber

  #1908471 27-Nov-2017 14:10
Send private message

Point 2 is actually incorrect an altanator will not fully charge a car battery, It will really only put a surface charge on it

 

The worse thing is a car battery sitting around in a car that is used very little, They should be removed and put on a bench charger for 24 hours at 2 amps

 

Linux




Coil
6614 posts

Uber Geek
Inactive user


  #1908476 27-Nov-2017 14:19
Send private message

Causeway Barrys Point Road if anyone is after a good mechanic on the North Shore.
Doesn't seem to rip people off or lie about things. 
Doesn't send people on wild goose chases.
Has very helpful advice that would cause him to make lose money out of you but have a smile on your face. 


Cars have a time frame or km service interval, what ever comes first. In your case 12 months per oil service and a time frame on the cambelt. 

I cannot comment on the invoicing as for all we know you may have left out info.

Regardless of that, you should retract the unjust thoughts of: "However I have tried to tell them this, mechanics DO take advantage of you if they think you know nothing, especially if you are female, and/or old. "

Its makes you no better than saying someone steals something because they are a certain ethnicity. Its the person mate, not the job. 


Linux
11399 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted
Lifetime subscriber

  #1908485 27-Nov-2017 14:42
Send private message

Auto Pal Barrys Point Road is very good as well

 

Linux


RunningMan
8953 posts

Uber Geek


  #1908492 27-Nov-2017 14:50
Send private message

pctek: AMI does windscreens free, no excess whether it's fix or replace and

 

Did you tell the mechanic that, or agree to them arranging the fix?

 

pctek: 2)batteries are recharged when you drive, unless the alternator is stuffed. Was there problems with the battery? Starting etc? No.

 

They also discharge when the car is unused. You say the car does a couple of thousand km/year - this is very low, and the alternator is unlikely to ever charge the battery fully. Short trips and infrequent use are the worst for keeping the battery in good condition, and a decent charge from the correct charger is a good idea.

 

pctek: However I have tried to tell them this, mechanics DO take advantage of you if they think you know nothing, especially if you are female, and/or old.

 

Well, mechanics are no different to any other occupation or segment of society - most are fine, a handful are exceptional and a handful just give the rest a bad name.

 

pctek:it certainly does not need an oil change every year, never mind the rest of it.

 

I expect the manufacturer of the car would disagree. Majority of vehicles specify a distance and a time (eg 10,000km and 1 year). The service should be done whatever comes first.

 

EDIT: Formatting

 

 


alasta
6703 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted
Subscriber

  #1908541 27-Nov-2017 16:15
Send private message

Linux:

 

The worse thing is a car battery sitting around in a car that is used very little, They should be removed and put on a bench charger for 24 hours at 2 amps

 

 

How much is 'very little'? My car usually gets used once a week, but I don't know whether that is unusually infrequent.


 
 
 

Cloud spending continues to surge globally, but most organisations haven’t made the changes necessary to maximise the value and cost-efficiency benefits of their cloud investments. Download the whitepaper From Overspend to Advantage now.
RunningMan
8953 posts

Uber Geek


  #1908561 27-Nov-2017 16:56
Send private message

Once a week isn't that often, but the duration the motor is running for is also important. If you use it once a week for a 2 hour journey, that's probably fine, but once a week for 5 mins, not so good.


pctek

807 posts

Ultimate Geek
Inactive user


  #1908563 27-Nov-2017 17:00
Send private message

Specifically the car did 9000km in 3 /12 years.

 

 

 

Yes, yes, the battery- however you KNOW when you have an issue, never mind technical ability etc....the thing starts to have issues starting.

 

It didn't, it doesn't.

 

And let's drop that bit to eliminate him banging on about calcium etc..............$729? And $600 every year? It's done 107,000km now.

 

Oil changes yearly...uhuh.

 

And the expensive oil, of course! Whether that is actually put in it is ano=ther matter but it's said it is.

 

He also used $60 worth of petrol in the 3 days he had it.

 

And claimed they took it to the windscreen people, no he didn't.

 

 


MikeB4
18435 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified
Trusted

  #1908567 27-Nov-2017 17:21
Send private message

The oil change is expected after a year, the vehicle is averaging 49kms per week. That low the engine is cold running and the oil would be affected by condensation. The low oil flow would be damaging the internals due to "dry" starts adding to the poor oil state. The battery would be struggling to keep charge due the low KMs after start load.


RunningMan
8953 posts

Uber Geek


  #1908571 27-Nov-2017 17:40
Send private message

We don't know what was asked for and/or agreed to when the car was taken in, but on the face of it, they are doing preventative maintenance by using good quality oil, charging battery etc. Preventing a problem, rather than having to muck around fixing a broken car is usually a good thing.

 

If you (or the car owner) doesn't think that spending $600 odd every year for servicing is a good idea, then discuss with the mechanic what it is you want when the car is taken in. Any halfway decent business owner would be happy to spend a couple of minutes explaining what work they suggest and why it should be done. If you're not satisfied with the explanation, take your business elsewhere.

 

If you would rather just wait until there is a problem (it doesn't start because the battery died, it throws a rod because the oil is gummed up and won't circulate) then don't do any maintenance - just get a WOF when it needs it, and keep driving.

 

At less than 50km/week and fixed service costs high, have you considered an EV instead? An early gen 1 Nissan Leaf  with a worn battery would easily do that range, and the service costs would be lower, fuel costs lower - you'd obviously need to charge the battery (yes, I can see the irony!), but at that sort of mileage, it wouldn't need much more than a brake fluid flush every couple of years.


surfisup1000
5288 posts

Uber Geek


  #1908641 27-Nov-2017 19:42
Send private message

Coil:
Its makes you no better than saying someone steals something because they are a certain ethnicity. Its the person mate, not the job. 

 

 

We are all coloured by life experience. Human nature. 


1cloud
164 posts

Master Geek


  #1908682 27-Nov-2017 20:57
Send private message

pctek:


She does very little mileage, a couple of thousand KMs a year....it certainly does not need an oil change every year, never mind the rest of it. It is under 100,000km still, had cambelt done at around 60,000..






wipe your paws.



Thars why, battery never get fully charged in that distance

Linux
11399 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted
Lifetime subscriber

  #1908699 27-Nov-2017 21:27
Send private message

Every 6 months I would be putting that car battery on a bench charger for 12 hours 2 amps, You do will low km per year

 

Linux


blakamin
4431 posts

Uber Geek
Inactive user


  #1908701 27-Nov-2017 21:33
Send private message

Besides the battery charging and oil changes (not going into whether it needs it or not), what else is done to cost $600 a pop?

 

A WoF is what, $60-80?

 

Oil service on the Mrs diesel X5 is $250.

 

Charging a battery is about $25 in labour, if they're slow.

 

What else is on the invoice?


 1 | 2 | 3 | 4
View this topic in a long page with up to 500 replies per page Create new topic





News and reviews »

Air New Zealand Starts AI adoption with OpenAI
Posted 24-Jul-2025 16:00


eero Pro 7 Review
Posted 23-Jul-2025 12:07


BeeStation Plus Review
Posted 21-Jul-2025 14:21


eero Unveils New Wi-Fi 7 Products in New Zealand
Posted 21-Jul-2025 00:01


WiZ Introduces HDMI Sync Box and other Light Devices
Posted 20-Jul-2025 17:32


RedShield Enhances DDoS and Bot Attack Protection
Posted 20-Jul-2025 17:26


Seagate Ships 30TB Drives
Posted 17-Jul-2025 11:24


Oclean AirPump A10 Water Flosser Review
Posted 13-Jul-2025 11:05


Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7: Raising the Bar for Smartphones
Posted 10-Jul-2025 02:01


Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7 Brings New Edge-To-Edge FlexWindow
Posted 10-Jul-2025 02:01


Epson Launches New AM-C550Z WorkForce Enterprise printer
Posted 9-Jul-2025 18:22


Samsung Releases Smart Monitor M9
Posted 9-Jul-2025 17:46


Nearly Half of Older Kiwis Still Write their Passwords on Paper
Posted 9-Jul-2025 08:42


D-Link 4G+ Cat6 Wi-Fi 6 DWR-933M Mobile Hotspot Review
Posted 1-Jul-2025 11:34


Oppo A5 Series Launches With New Levels of Durability
Posted 30-Jun-2025 10:15









Geekzone Live »

Try automatic live updates from Geekzone directly in your browser, without refreshing the page, with Geekzone Live now.



Are you subscribed to our RSS feed? You can download the latest headlines and summaries from our stories directly to your computer or smartphone by using a feed reader.