KwikFit - Overcharging, Lying Robbers - Avoid - I saved £400!

[TheBlueRaja]

Hi All,
Just to let you know i went to Kwik fit to get my brakes done the other week as they currently have a 50% off deal on breaks.

Anyway - went in and they looked over the car and i got a call about an hour later and they guy was saying that i needed the following done:-

Front / Rear - Brake Disks and Pads
Back Right Calliper
Copper pipes from Brakes to Master Cylinder needed replaced due to corrosion.

Cost - £700 - Estimate

At this point i told him where to go - the cars only worth about 2 grand and said i will get my own parts to save money, Kwik fit then tell me that they cannot fit the parts as they are not their "own" and therefore they could not guarantee them.

At this point im thinking screw this and go and pick up my car, they were not exactly pleasent either.

Anyway off i went to get my own parts as i knew what i needed and where to get them - total cost £230. Wandered down to my local garage to get a quote on fitting - 70 quid. Therefore a total cost of £300 - 400 quid cheaper than Kwik fit.

On top of this when im getting the parts fitted the Pads were OK and all the disks were ok bar the front left and the back right where the calliper was sticking. The copper tubing from the front brakes to the Master Cylinder were also OK and didnt need replacing - the guy said there was a bit of rust on them which he just brushed off - they were fine.

So, take this as a warning - they will try to rob you blind.

[Graham M]

Cheers mate, im probably getting a car tonight, yay! So won't be taking it to them.

[punky]

Have you reported them to Trading Standards? If you do, keep us informed mate

Originally Posted by TheBlueRaja

Anyway - went in and they looked over the car and i got a call about an hour later and they guy was saying that i needed the following done:-

Front / Rear - Brake Disks and Pads
Back Right Calliper
Copper pipes from Brakes to Master Cylinder needed replaced due to corrosion.

Cost - £700 - Estimate

This is a surprisingly common trick. I personally think it's the kind of thing that the fraud squad should go after, since invariably none of the work is 'required'.

Of course the problem here is one of objective vs. subjective opinion. It's quite impossible to prove that some work doesn't need doing. So the charlatans can always claim that it's just their opinion.

Originally Posted by TheBlueRaja

At this point i told him where to go - the cars only worth about 2 grand and said i will get my own parts to save money, Kwik fit then tell me that they cannot fit the parts as they are not their "own" and therefore they could not guarantee them.

Which would be fair enough - if what they 'guaranteed' was actually as good a quality, for the extra cost. Sometimes it isn't.

Originally Posted by TheBlueRaja

At this point im thinking screw this and go and pick up my car, they were not exactly pleasent either.

They hate getting found out, because then they even lose the business they could have had.

Originally Posted by TheBlueRaja

Anyway off i went to get my own parts as i knew what i needed and where to get them - total cost £230. Wandered down to my local garage to get a quote on fitting - 70 quid. Therefore a total cost of £300 - 400 quid cheaper than Kwik fit.

Mistake #2. You spent £230 on parts you didn't need.

Originally Posted by TheBlueRaja

On top of this when im getting the parts fitted the Pads were OK and all the disks were ok bar the front left and the back right where the calliper was sticking.

In which case, it was irrelevant whether the pads were ok, because if you fit new discs you should fit new pads, otherwise the old pads will prematurely wear the new discs.

Originally Posted by TheBlueRaja

The copper tubing from the front brakes to the Master Cylinder were also OK and didnt need replacing - the guy said there was a bit of rust on them which he just brushed off - they were fine.

This is a common problem - it often comes up at MOT time too.

OK - super tip here, but only if you're quite sure that your brake pipes are actually NOT about to fail on you - before the MOT, clean off any loose surface dirt on the pipes. treat any rust spots with a rust-converter product. Then, cover all the pipes with grease. Apart from the fact that the grease will further protect the pipes from corrosion, the MOT tester is not allowed to remove the grease to inspect the pipes, so he can't possibly determine if they're corroded, so he can't possibly fail them.

Originally Posted by TheBlueRaja

So, take this as a warning - they will try to rob you blind.

As will just about any car repair outfit - not just Kwik-Fit.

I once went in to get the rear exhaust box replaced - I would normally buy one and do it myself, but I was feeling lazy. Anyway, the grease monkey spent a few minutes banging away at it before warning me that it was more than likely that he'd have to replace the rest of the system, as it would probably disintegrate during removal of the rear box.

I pointed out to him that I'd done that job several times before and NEVER had to replace anything EXCEPT the part I was replacing, and I suggested that he'd better be able to do so too, or I'd hold HIM liable for any damage.

Needless to say, he suddenly became much more adept at his job.

[Aragorn]

I took my company car to them recently because of steering vibration, and said can you balance the front wheels.
They came back after a couple of mins and said the front tyres were 'illegal' and I would need a new pair - no probs, company car, so fleaseplan will pay.
Made no difference to the vibration!
Washed the car a couple of days later and couldn't see any balancing weights, so took it to another C**pfit. They then took 15 minutes balancing the completely unbalanced new tyres fitted by the other fitters!! Much better after that!

[Saaf_laandon_mo]

A few years back I had over filled the oil in my car. As a result I was one day driving down a London main road on a saturday morning with lots of black smoke blowing out of the back. I immediately pulled over at a Kwik fit that I was approaching at which a worker came out shaking his head. He told me the car engine had blown and that this would set me back approx 900 quid to get it fixed. And this was done before he even opened the bonnet.

I was crapping myself (car was only worth 1500 but it was my pride and joy). I phoned up a mechanic friend and he told me to get Kwik fit to drain the oil and just replace it (i.e an oil change). I asked Kwik fit if they could do this and they said No. They told me it was unrresponsible of them and contrary to their safety procedures to do that because in their opinion the engine had blown. They also told me they dont do oil changes.
I told them that if that was the case I would call the AA and get them to tow the car to my local garage. There was no way I was going to leave it with Kwik Fit. At this point they agreed to do the oil change whichh I watched to make sure it was done properly. They had the cheek to charge 45 quid for it. Needless to say after that I drove the car 30 kmiles up the M1 without a propblem and got another 12 months trouble free mortoring from it.

I'd never go to KWIK fit for anything now.

Originally Posted by Aragorn

I took my company car to them recently because of steering vibration, and said can you balance the front wheels.
They came back after a couple of mins and said the front tyres were 'illegal' and I would need a new pair - no probs, company car, so fleaseplan will pay.
Made no difference to the vibration!

Between owners who don't know better and company cars it's no wonder they keep getting away with it...

Did you check the tyres? Were they 'illegal'? I'll bet you still had good tread depth over at least 75% of the tyre tread - if so, they were still legal.

Originally Posted by Aragorn

Washed the car a couple of days later and couldn't see any balancing weights, so took it to another C**pfit. They then took 15 minutes balancing the completely unbalanced new tyres fitted by the other fitters!! Much better after that!

That kind of incompetence should see them sued - that instability could have caused an accident. If these cowboys were brought to book a bit more often then perhaps the motor trade would clean up its act.

They try to lead us to believe they have the 'expert' knowledge to look after cars and keep them safe, when in reality they let illiterate drop-outs loose on them who think that using oxy-acetylene is a requirement for exhaust removal. Wonder how I managed all those years without.

I once took a car in for a tune-up. (I was trying to learn about carbs etc. and managed to mess it up. lol) Anyway, after they were done I was handed a small item that was 'left over'. I was surprised, but thought I'd figure out later what it was.
As I was driving home the engine became steadily more undrivable - so I just turned around and went back. Pointed out to the manager that it was driving like a dog, when it was supposed to have been tuned up and handed him the left-over part, which by then I'd realised was one of the jets from the carb!

Anyway, he re-did the tuning, including checking and replacing some ignition cables, for free. This time I stayed and watched the entire procedure to ensure I knew what had been done. The car was fine after that.

[TheBlueRaja]

Originally Posted by ScaredWebWarrior

Mistake #2. You spent £230 on parts you didn't need.

What was Mistake Number one? (I'd guess at going to KwikFit in the first place?)

Anyway - i did need two Brake Disks and a Calliper so its not so bad and i wont have to touch the rest for ages so its not biggie.

Imagine if i had paid 700 quid though...

[punky]

Originally Posted by TheBlueRaja

Imagine if i had paid 700 quid though...

That's why its so important to get second, third, forth,etc opinions. The fact TS do so many spot checks I think lure people into a false sense of security.

[handyman]

I can reccomend National Tyres and exhausts in Kendal. They are so different from the 'kwik fit' types.
1. Changed front tyres for main car all went ok.
2. Brakes where making a racket on punto (sounded serious). Disc had sheared from the hub . so they sorted the pads and discs and repaired something that got bent.
3. Took in Picanto as rear tyre was going flat all the time, they re balanced the tyre and replaced the valve. Charge = 0
4. Brakes where making a noise on the Picanto and the susp squeeking. they oiled the sqeak and clean the disc. Charge = 0

Originally Posted by TheBlueRaja

What was Mistake Number one? (I'd guess at going to KwikFit in the first place?)

Yup

Originally Posted by TheBlueRaja

Anyway - i did need two Brake Disks and a Calliper so its not so bad and i wont have to touch the rest for ages so its not biggie.

As I said before - if you've got new discs you should have had new pads.

If not, then whoever fitted your discs still didn't do a professional job.

[grandmaster]

Originally Posted by handyman

I can reccomend National Tyres and exhausts in Kendal. They are so different from the 'kwik fit' types.

I can also Recommend National Tyres and Exhaust in Rochdale.
They even do price matching.

Took my mums car in two have two tyres changed and the spare from my freelander.

He matched the quote i got from ATS (they also did not have the tyres in stock)without any quibble and did the job there and then.
Nice lad as well very polite.

[handyman]

Originally Posted by grandmaster

Nice lad as well very polite.

Yeah they are at Kendal too. After the 2nd time they refused to charge me I left them a tenner for beer/morning butties.

[grandmaster]

That was a nice gesture.

[basa]

Originally Posted by ScaredWebWarrior

........<snip>.......I once went in to get the rear exhaust box replaced - I would normally buy one and do it myself, but I was feeling lazy. Anyway, the grease monkey spent a few minutes banging away at it before warning me that it was more than likely that he'd have to replace the rest of the system, as it would probably disintegrate during removal of the rear box.

I pointed out to him that I'd done that job several times before and NEVER had to replace anything EXCEPT the part I was replacing, and I suggested that he'd better be able to do so too, or I'd hold HIM liable for any damage.

Needless to say, he suddenly became much more adept at his job.

Similar tale to me>

Went for a new back box and was at first told they couldn't just replace the back box as removing it would damage the centre box as well. Then the supervisor came over and banged on the catalyser and pronounced that 'dead' too because it rattled . Total cost £250+

I told them to get it off the hoist and took it to the nearest MoT station for an exhaust test which proved the 'cat' was OK.

I bought the back box and fitted it myself for a total cost of £18.

Most garages are rip offs if you don't know a bit about cars.