Inspection 2 service

[scoobysnacks]

Out of interest what have you guys paid for this recently. I have a 316i e36 for a runabout which is due for a service. I rang my local London based dealer and they quoted £450. I travel to Bristol everyweek so rang the dealer there and was quoted £240. I had to ring back to make sure that was parts and labour included. Seem odd such a difference. Any ideas why?

[dcb]

scoobysnacks said:

Out of interest what have you guys paid for this recently.
I have a 316i e36 for a runabout which is due for a service.
I rang my local London based dealer and they quoted £450.
I travel to Bristol everyweek so rang the dealer there and was
quoted £240.
I had to ring back to make sure that was parts and labour included.
Seem odd such a difference.
Any ideas why?

Blindingly obvious I would have thought.

BMW dealers know how to charge and they know exactly
how much the local market will stand.

Try ringing up a dealer in the far back of beyond and
see what they charge.

Failing that, try a dealer in Swindon or Reading, about
half way.

[Deutscher]

One expects all BMW main dealers to charge the same - but they don't. There is a massive variation for all types of work. I was quoted between £120 and £260 for KDS on a 528i.

[Andrew D]

Yeah, they really like to take your shirt off if they can, slip an extra couple of hundred in under the radar and hope you're none the wiser.

Apparently there's a dealer in Cockermouth in the Lake District, so how's this for a plan:- I can't imagine they have too much demand for service work up there, so get a quote off them and I'd bet you could take the car up there and stay a night in a nice hotel on the money saved, make a weekend getaway out of it!

[The_Doc]

I paid £450 ish for Inspection 2 quite recently. 2002 330d

Included:
Service, all P&L
1 new P6000 tyre
Brake Fluid change
Auto Fluid change
Hire car
Diagnose faulty numberplate bulb issue, and inform me it would be covered under BMW extended warranty and therefore not con me out of unneccesary billing.

BMW-Care in Leeds. top job.

[dcb]

Andrew D said:

Apparently there's a dealer in Cockermouth in the Lake District, so
how's this for a plan:- I can't imagine they have too much demand
for service work up there, so get a quote off them and I'd bet you
could take the car up there and stay a night in a nice hotel on the
money saved, make a weekend getaway out of it!

Excellent plan.

Along the same lines, you might have an aged relative who
lives hundreds of miles away that you don't see all that
often.

I bet they would like a visit. It does make the service
record book a bit more interesting.

For overpoints, you could ring up the local dealer you
were considering using and telling them all about how much
you are going to save and find out what their reaction might be.

Any sensible dealership would make you an offer.

[baz1985]

Always supply your own oil (CostCo usually cheapest) and brake fuid from any decent motoring shop. You'll save a useful sum. Always negotiate on price; just name another dealership and state a reasonable price and you're done! Cheapest in W.Yorks and S. Yorks has always been Sytner Sheffield for me.

[Pat H]

Do it yourself.

I have just done an "Inspection 2" on my 1995 E36 328.

Plugs, oil, oil filter, air filter, wiper blades, front pads, change the diff oil, make sure the gaitors aren't split.

£71.54 inc VAT for the parts, including a couple of gallons of semi synth.

It is hardly rocket science and an E36 is no longer worth enough to justify a main dealer service history.

Given 12 seconds and a bent bit of wire you can even re-set the service lights on the dashboard.....

My BMW goes to an independant mechanic for nasty jobs like replacing the rear wheel bearings, or replacing the control arms and the rear control arm bushes.

If my car is worth £500 less than one with a full BMW history, then I can sit back and feel smug about the £1600 I have saved by doing the basic serivcing myself.

The main dealer servicing was kept up just long enough to see out the warranty. This was just as well, as the car had a new engine block courtesy of BMW at 18,000 miles cos of the dreaded nicasil lining failure.