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RE: CAN WE REFRAIN FROM CALLING DEALERS STEALERS

hendy1978 — Sat, 13 Dec 2008 15:30:27 GMT

Hi all i am new to this forum and i work in a main dealer. To be honest there are alot of people in main dealers who are bonus hounds and will do anything to get there time in at work but i for one am not. To root these people out you need good workshop control and supervision. My motto is if its broke then fix it, not if its nearly broke do it ! The whole trade as a whole is going to get very bad in the near future and needs to re assure the customer that main dealers or independant garages look after there vehicle and not take them to the cleaners !

RE: CAN WE REFRAIN FROM CALLING DEALERS STEALERS

laldog — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 13:06:28 GMT

I agree with most of the above,the only point i can add if i may is that us independents tend to be classed as back street garages by VM's. We have in the past been accused of having no or little product knowledge.
Now that the said same dealers are opening their doors to all makes and models due to high overheads and a dwindling customer base, then product knowledge seems to have taken a back seat.
We can all recall stories of VM's not playing ball but generally at a local level the dealers tend to be approachable. We have a fantastic relationship with most of the local dealers it tends to be at a higher level the problems start.
I too have a huge problem with Garages that simply rip people off,dealer or no dealer a con man is a con man.

RE: CAN WE REFRAIN FROM CALLING DEALERS STEALERS

silverfox — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 15:36:59 GMT

We find the dealers most of the time are quite helpful. at their stores you can get the most help if you know how to go about it say you have an item which you think is faulty, you can ask them have they sold many, how many have been sold in the UK in the past year, some times they may say are you sure its not the ??? as we have sold lots of those, also get on first term names with them, sometimes they will pass you to a tech waiting at the workshop counter to talk to. In the end we are in the same trade, they want to sell parts to fix cars, not have you keep returning them for credit and sorting out all the extra paper work. We have had some dealer phone us up for help as we tend to work on the older models, in the end we all have to earn a living from the same trade, it`s not the tech`s fault their labour rate is so high, the overheads in most dealers must be massive, compared to ours, so why slag each other off

RE: CAN WE REFRAIN FROM CALLING DEALERS STEALERS

BarryR — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 13:39:40 GMT

Hi, I dont think that the main dealers I work for "steal" but they are more expensive

Main dealers have huge overheads and a huge investment to recoup from being "awarded" the franchise. I see little on my travells to suggest that garages of whatever type are creating work. Main dealers sometimes have to follow guide lines from the factory and head office which independants dont. Parts are a different business from service and prices reflect that

jtspugs

"have recently started to talk about being there local towbar fiiter and with that could any one give me an idea of what fitting cost's to charge a trade customer like themselve's, i am curently charging about £60-£70 to retail but obviously they will bring alot more regular work in"

We charge Volvo £100 plus VAT--labour. (peugeot 80 ish) We always charge trade more, as they mess you around-(cars and parts not ready). If you a get a lot of work from them, then you wont be able to cope and will wish you hadnt done them for 60 quid with two months credit and the possibility of them going into liquidation

cheers

Barry

RE: CAN WE REFRAIN FROM CALLING DEALERS STEALERS

Radnorman — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 19:23:25 GMT

Dave Hill (09/08/2008)

but I cant say that the dealers are any better or worse that the independents.

As usual, I have waited for others ' to break the ice ' before I propose my 'twopennorth'. Dave H has given a balanced reponse, and Thema, following, has come quite close to my viewpoint. I believe the most likely factor in what I call 'looking for work' is the size of the 'outfit'. If there is a multi-layered management structure, then there will be sales targets to be met. So, the staff 'at the coalface' will be pressured ' to find work '. This makes me MAD !!!!!!

RE: CAN WE REFRAIN FROM CALLING DEALERS STEALERS

Thema — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 18:09:56 GMT

I agree with pretty well all the above. Calling them stealers is just rude, if you have a particular gripe then I dont see a problem in mentioning it but to just blanket them with abuse is wrong. If you want to talk about labour rates well, I know what my overheads are but there's must be terrifying!

However, if you DO want to wind me up what about the fast fits? Had a customer in yesterday who had just had a rattly cat replaced by a well advertised national fast fit on his Pug 306 1.4. It's the sort that is part of the downpipe, right up by the manifold. Fitted cost? £249.99 (inc VAT), it was a pattern one too and smothered in exhaust paste at the top joint (ahead of the cat!), check the price with your local factor, add in the fact that they will get a bigger discount than you do and then work out the margin on that! Oh, I did ask him how long the car was in for in case they had to retap a manifold stud or soem other snag but he said well under half an hour. The really upsetting thing is he went there because he thought they would be cheaper than me!

And, no, I didnt get into why the old cat had broken up. If I get involved now it just looks like sour grapes on my part, if it melts again let him go back to them.

RE: CAN WE REFRAIN FROM CALLING DEALERS STEALERS

jts_pugs — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 15:29:54 GMT

i agree my local ford dealer is very helpfull and i know all the staff by name and some of them i socialise with, they now do all my mot's as i have recently relocated the business and the more i get to now them the more help and info i am getting from them, as with any one who starts to get a good working relationship you tend to help each other out.

i have recently started to talk about being there local towbar fiiter and with that could any one give me an idea of what fitting cost's to charge a trade customer like themselve's, i am curently charging about £60-£70 to retail but obviously they will bring alot more regular work in.

sorry to go of subject but it just sprang to mind.

jon

RE: CAN WE REFRAIN FROM CALLING DEALERS STEALERS

Dave Hill — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 15:11:17 GMT

I feel for the many well intentioned folks who work for the often "slandered" dealerships. Many of them are true professionals that take great pride in their work. It isn't fair to paint them all as "stealer's" just because they are dealers. I know of many independents that qualify for the title too.

I can well imagine that some of the folks who use the term "stealer" are the kind of two faced ar5eholes who are forever ringing them up for advice & borrowing their kit.

I have witnessed some bad practices of overzealous "work needed" reports, but I cant say that the dealers are any better or worse that the independents. Like anything in life, there is good & bad in everything. The trick is spotting the rogues before it's too late!

Good call Cyril!

Cheers

RE: CAN WE REFRAIN FROM CALLING DEALERS STEALERS

Halcyone — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 08:21:32 GMT

Cornex & others. the dealers are always looking for work as their overheads are so high, so many non productive fee earning staff, buildings, signage, rates, insurance etc. Customers are them selves to blaim as well, it was their choice to go to the dealer in the first place, a quick search on the internet will show up any specialist in their area.

We are all in this business to make money just as they are,

Many garages are doing just what they are & have been for years & will continue to do so.

I do not hate the dealers. What I hate is any garage that charges to fix a fault but doesnt actually fix it, We have all I am sure seen the customer who has spent hundreds if not a thousand or so pounds at one if not more garages & still has the origonal fault.

RE: CAN WE REFRAIN FROM CALLING DEALERS STEALERS

cornex — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 03:40:36 GMT

I think dealers are looking for work. We serviced a p307 and my tech is quite hot on brake wear but did not even advise. The customer had to take to main dealer for safety recall and with out even taking wheels off told owner she needed pads & discs asap as they were low. She returned to us with quote from dealer in an aggitated state so we removed wheels and rechecked, not even half worn and slight lip on disc nothing to worry about so are dealers scaring coustomers into getting unnecessary work done because they are quiet.

RE: CAN WE REFRAIN FROM CALLING DEALERS STEALERS

Crasher — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 04:55:56 GMT

I completely agree. I have been moaning at people on another site about this and was met with disdain, even from the moderators. I am not a dealer but I still find the expression insulting and near slanderous and I am pleased this forum is taking a stand against it.

CAN WE REFRAIN FROM CALLING DEALERS STEALERS

CYRIL — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 04:19:06 GMT

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